Course setup

[VVega]

Picking the points from the Course Rating thread, do you know how your course is set up/maintained? How often do you get updates on this?

In particular:

- greens speed
- greens cut height
- greens cut frequency
- greens other applications: rolling, ironing, brushing, scarifying

- fairways cut height
- fw semi rough height
- fw rough height
- fw cut frequency

- greenside / fw bunkers raking frequency

 

[Rlburnside]

Never

 

[nickjdavis]

Never.

Only updates on general work that is being done...scarifying, overseeding, hollow tining...stuff like that.

 

[Billysboots]

It’s another “never”, I’m afraid.

Our last head greenkeeper was pretty good at emailing the membership with updates regarding various general issues. We never hear a thing from the new guy.

 

[Voyager EMH]

Competition days, I walk to the edge of the 18th green and have a look.
First hole, I walk on to the fairway after hitting my drive and take a look before playing my ball from the rough.
After putting out on the first hole, I have all the information I need.
Any more information would clog my head.

 

[rulie]

I'm in the "never" category. Our greenkeeper was adamant that he would never divulge stimpmeter readings. I did borrow a stimpmeter for a month or so and made sure that he saw me using it! Didn't change anything.

 

[VVega]

Competition days, I walk to the edge of the 18th green and have a look.
First hole, I walk on to the fairway after hitting my drive and take a look before playing my ball from the rough.
After putting out on the first hole, I have all the information I need.
Any more information would clog my head.

Sorry, but what are you looking for?

 

[Neilds]

We get a weekly update email on the work that has been done/is being planned. This tells us what has been cut/rolled but not to what height, etc. What most people find useful is the details on the bunker and path work that is going on, along with planned hole closures

 

[VVega]

To buck the (expected, unfortunately) trend of replies. Here is a positive example:

Greens
Cut early every day, currently 4mm (can be 3.5mm – 6mm).

Tees and aprons
Cut twice-weekly to a height of 12mm.

Fairways
Cut weekly to a height of 15mm.

First cut / semi rough
Cut weekly to a height of 25mm.

Rough
Cut weekly to a height of 50mm.

Raking green-side bunkers twice weekly

Raking fairway bunkers weekly

I’m not saying this is essential information to win completions, more of appreciating the quality of the course presentation and managing expectations.

 

[Voyager EMH]

Sorry, but what are you looking for?

Height of green cut, overnight watering done, etc.
Recent cut of fairway and/or rough.
I need to look, because if I'm informed that cut of fairway was "xx" mm done yesterday, I'm left wondering what that means.
I look, I see, then I know.

 

[Lord Tyrion]

Another one for never. Not at any club I've played at.

 

[howbow88]

Genuine question - would anyone's golf experience be improved/enhanced by knowing the 'fw semi rough height'?

 

[VVega]

Genuine question - would anyone's golf experience be improved/enhanced by knowing the 'fw semi rough height'?

Post #9 last para.

 

[Arthur Wedge]

Genuine question - would anyone's golf experience be improved/enhanced by knowing the 'fw semi rough height'?

Broaden it out and why would anyone need to know anything of that nature beyond maybe green speed and even then at our level it’s irrelevant tbh

 

[Backache]

I'd be genuinely interested in knowing Stimp speeds when I play a course, more out of interest than utility.
I know when I consider greens fast and slow but don't know how it translates to other courses or if the speeds that I perceive are relative to what I have played recently or have long term validity.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Never..and not really (at all) interested in knowing…I play the course as I find it.

 

[backwoodsman]

We get informed about ' occasional works' - ie stuff thats done not that often (scarifying, tining, hollow tining, tree pruning etc). Dont get informed of routine works - ie stuff that is done on frequent or regular basis (mowing, watering etc). There are published 'limits' (eg mowing heights etc) if anyone is interested enough to bother reading them. One thing we don't publish is stimp readings - that's just willy-waving. Far more important to make sure greens are smooth, consistent and true.

 

[Golfnut1957]

Never. I don't think our head greenkeeper knows either.

 

[D-S]

To buck the (expected, unfortunately) trend of replies. Here is a positive example:

Greens
Cut early every day, currently 4mm (can be 3.5mm – 6mm).

Tees and aprons
Cut twice-weekly to a height of 12mm.

Fairways
Cut weekly to a height of 15mm.

First cut / semi rough
Cut weekly to a height of 25mm.

Rough
Cut weekly to a height of 50mm.

Raking green-side bunkers twice weekly

Raking fairway bunkers weekly

I’m not saying this is essential information to win completions, more of appreciating the quality of the course presentation and managing expectations.

This sounds like a typical
maintenance schedule although green height cuts won’t vary at all for most of the summer months. Fundamentally there will be a winter height and a summer one, the others will be a gradual move from one to the other. Knowing height of rough etc is of some interest but it would be better to know when it was cut as day 1 would be very different from day 7 and intervening weather will have a massive effect too.

 

[jim8flog]

We have a course maintenance plan in our handbook. If any body wants to know they can read it there. However like anything golf wise it depends on the weather and the number of staff we have.

We get prior notice of anything out of the ordinary planned such a course renovation and alteration.