Frost = Temporary Greens?

[SteveJay]

Only 2nd winter since I have been a member at our club, but the practice is to go to temps if it is overly wet, but if its frozen we generally play on the main greens.

Think that echoes what has been said before, thawing and footfall = damage.

 

[Bigfoot]

As have been said above it comes down to how the HG manages his greens and what pressures he's under for the rest of the year, the biggest footfall for all courses will be in the warmer months so you can see why it can be prudent to protect the greens in the colder months , all be it frustrating at times.

Enville I believe are trialling staying on main greens this winter on the Lodge and will be interested to see how they perform later in the year.
Found this article a while ago which goes someway to explaining frost damage
http://www.kmgcgolfconsultant.com/2009/01/should-you-play-golf-in-the-frost.html

Correct. Lodge stays on main greens when frosty and Highgate goes to temps. So far, the biggest difference is that Lodge is being played more as most players prefer to play full greens.

It is going to be difficult to tell at the end of winter as there is a series of monthly hollow tining, on each course, once a month through January, February and March. With all that work, how will we be able to tell the what is frost damage?

 

[chellie]

https://strigroup.com/golfers-grumbles-closures/

 

[MendieGK]

Liphook never has temps, nor does Burnham.

Both seen as having some of the best greens in the country throughout the year

 

[CliveW]

This was posted by our head greenkeeper today.

"This is an example of the damage that can occur on our greens and tees from people walking, skiing and pulling caddy carts across them when covered in snow or hard white frost.
This is the 9th tee of the wee course where a caddy cart has been pulled across it and the snow has been compact onto the surface then froze damaging the turf and as a result it will take the turf well into the growing season to recover."

 

[User101]

This was posted by our head greenkeeper today.

"This is an example of the damage that can occur on our greens and tees from people walking, skiing and pulling caddy carts across them when covered in snow or hard white frost.
This is the 9th tee of the wee course where a caddy cart has been pulled across it and the snow has been compact onto the surface then froze damaging the turf and as a result it will take the turf well into the growing season to recover."

Most frost ridden fairways will have these yellow marks on them due to carts being pulled over them, I know ours do, though doesn't seem as bad as that.

 

[garyinderry]

I remember seeing a post this year on twitter from some golf club claiming that they never have to go on temps no matter what the weather is because they have 9inch roots.

 

[Blue in Munich]

yeah someone mentioned that today. Does not make much sense to me, unless people are saying the slightly soft/wet thawing of the grass is the issue? If so, heaven help us if it rains much in this country............

We are told that if the top is thawing but the roots are still frozen solid any movement at the top rips the blades from the roots and the grass dies. Our greenskeeper is happy to keep us on main greens if they are frozen solid, if the root zone is frozen then the course is closed as we don't do temporaries. Judging by what we play on in summer he knows what he's talking about does Simon. :thup:

 

[HomerJSimpson]

I despise temporary greens with a passion . Luckily my new club in Surrey never goes onto them unlike my previous club.

You and me both and if we are on them (as we have been every winter prior to this) I won't play and would rather do some work at the range. Where are you playing?

 

[patricks148]

This was posted by our head greenkeeper today.

"This is an example of the damage that can occur on our greens and tees from people walking, skiing and pulling caddy carts across them when covered in snow or hard white frost.
This is the 9th tee of the wee course where a caddy cart has been pulled across it and the snow has been compact onto the surface then froze damaging the turf and as a result it will take the turf well into the growing season to recover."

This the reason we go onto temp greens, if we have a heavy frost.

 

[Deleted member 17920]

Think each head greenkeeper/ course manager has there own way of seeing it.

I also think what type of course you are on may vary it as I see a lot of links courses as soon as there is a slight frost then they are straight off the greens.

We play on ours through frost and frozen, its only when they thaw quickly we come off them and the courses will both be shut as we don't have temp greens.

 

[patricks148]

Think each head greenkeeper/ course manager has there own way of seeing it.

I also think what type of course you are on may vary it as I see a lot of links courses as soon as there is a slight frost then they are straight off the greens.

We play on ours through frost and frozen, its only when they thaw quickly we come off them and the courses will both be shut as we don't have temp greens.

Yep Royal Dornoch for instance, close the Championship course if there is any frost.

 

[DCB]

Interesting thread. I think a lot depends on the geographic location, we can see frost from late Sept through until early May. Granted the most likely month are December through to March, and deep frost is not all that common really. However, when we do get a deep frost it can remain in effect for several days. Part of that can be attributed to the location and the amount of sunlight we get. Soil temps will be low until well into April, so, frost damage like that in photo above can take a long time to recover. Whilst extreme, it would be interesting to see how long that tee takes to recover. Given the location and the cooler than average winter up here I think there will still be signs in April.

If the course is frosty, I see no reason to go out and cause damage like that. Better to sit in the clubhouse and enjoy a second breakfast 😉