USGA Update - April 2013

“All Truly Great Thoughts Are Conceived While Walking” – Friedrich Nietzsche

By Adam Moeller, agronomist, Northeast Region
April 16, 2013

Putting green walk-mowing has turf and employee health benefits.

Spring is finally here and putting greens are being mown regularly across the region. Putting greens can be mown with walk-behind units or triplex ride-on units. Although triplex mowers can provide an excellent quality of cut and save on labor, walk-behind mowers are ideal because they do not have any potential for lethal hydraulic leaks and are lighter weight, which reduces mechanical stress on the turf. Walk-behind mowers also provide a great deal of health benefits to the employees on the maintenance crew. An estimate of the total miles a single employee would walk if they mowed all of the putting greens at an average 18-hole course is 20-30 miles. Obviously, one person cannot walk-mow all of the putting greens alone. Most 18-hole facilities will have a minimum of four to six employees to walk-mow all the putting greens to stay ahead of golfers, but that still equates to walking perhaps five miles per person. This is a nice health benefit for the maintenance staff but it takes a lot of energy too. Golfers should keep that in mind when they see the maintenance staff hard at work. It takes a lot of effort, energy, and teamwork to condition the course for play each day.

Golf course conditions are roughly a week and a half behind normal due to the cold temperatures this spring. Conditions are probably three weeks behind last year given the exceptionally warm spring in 2012. Hopefully more consistent warmth finds its way to the region.