[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4AYOzpGbyJI[/youtube]
This video was posted on Youtube by the McArthur Golf Club in Hobe Sound, FL. The video explains that they had made this green ultra fast so that the few tour players who are members could practice for the lightening quick greens at Augusta. While that may be the reason for speeding up the green, what possible reason is there for posting this clip? The last thing golf needs are superintendents trying to show off and one-up one another. There are many things that are contributing to the ridiculous green speeds that are prevalent at many courses today but normally this comes players side of things. Let’s hope that this video is not a harbinger that some superintendents have drunk the Kool-Aid and are getting caught up in this obsession. So great……way to go McArthur- 17.5 on the stimp. Woohoo! What a waste.
Not only is this a waste of resources, but in many cases the greens were not designed for these types of speeds. We are not talking about old Donald Ross greens but modern greens, built by some of the best in the business. In recent years there has been a move back towards significant and interesting green contour. Golfers will soon become very frustrated at the multitude of three and four putts if these greens are maintained at overly fast speeds and this dissatisfaction will then swing the pendulum back towards boring flat greens. As the saying goes…..it is a slippery slope.- W.S.
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You can’t possibly be serious!!!
“Well, it is clear that one of the things that is contributing to the ridiculous green speeds that are prevalent at many courses today is the superintendents’ desire to show off and one-up one another; this is simply blatant evidence of this trend”
Man, you have absolutely no clue what you are talking about. We (I am a class A golf course superintendent) are under constant pressure from uninformed golfers, green committees, boards of directors, etc. to make the greens faster.
Please, please make an effort to educate yourself better and stop spreading ridiculous falsehoods. It’s obvious you have never had a conversation with any on the maintenance end of the business.
Thank you,
Keith Angilly
This is one of the most idiotic and baseless assertions I’ve ever seen made about green speeds.
I’ve written about the golf course maintenance industry for the last 9 years on both sides of the Atlantic as well as having worked on a number of courses and I’ve never heard of a superintendent or a head greenkeeper wanting to speed up his greens to impress his friends. Turf professionals know that the frequent mowing at low heights of cut and rolling stresses their grass. They would much rather have slower greens because they are naturally more healthy and, therefore, more resistant to disease and stress. Green speeds are elevated for one reason: golfers demand it.
Keith-
I am very serious. Notice I said that this is one of the things contributing to this phenomenon, not the only thing, and probably not even one of the main things. It can be seen more on high end, new courses, but I truly believe that superintendents do keep track of what their neighbors and colleges are doing.
As you will see if you keep checking in with the site, I have had many conversations and worked extensively with people on the maintenance side of things. I greatly respect the work you do and know it is often a tough job where the only time people acknowledge your work is when something goes wrong.
The main point of my post was not to pick on superintendents but to point out that green speeds are out of control and that “uninformed golfers, green committees, boards of directors,” and even the occasional egotistical superintendent need to stop pushing the game in a direction that is unsustainable both agronomically and economically. To that end, it seems that we are on the same side of things.
With respect,
Will Smith
Anthony-
I agree that the main reason greens are fast are because golfers demand it. This video made by Macarthur and put on the web by their staff serves no other purpose than to brag about their ridiculous green speed. They claim that it is the “fastest green in the world.” If this is not the point of the video, what is?
Having golfers see this video surely won’t help the cause of keeping green speeds at a reasonable and sustainable pace. Maybe, I have overshot my mark with some unfair generalizations, but to me this video is evidence of at least one maintenance staff trying to impress not just their members (who would know by playing) but the rest of the golf world, including fellow turf professionals, with their ability to achieve fast ball roll.
- Will
Don’t they say early on that they greens were made fast so PGA Tour players could get ready for the Masters?
Yes they do and I acknowledge that and have little problem with that. My problem is that the videoed it and put it on youtube. They are clearly showing off (or maybe they are advertising so more Augusta eligible pro-golfers will join). – Will
Will, thanks for your reply. I don’t want to go on and on here. But you must be dealing with a very small sample size, like one superitendent or something. In my 15 years in the business, including 9 as a superintendent and also having served as the president of my state chapter (CT Association of Golf Course Superintendents), I have never heard of a superintendent trying adjust his greens based on another golf course. We get that from our members, who constantly play the comparison game. I am sorry to use such strong terms, but you are dead wrong on this issue. The stimp meter is, by far, the worst innovation ever brought to golf. Assigning numbers to greens just aggravates the important issue you are raising here. But, to say that golf course superintendents contribute to this problem in any significant way is really just baseless and untrue.
Keith,
I don’t think it’s baseless and untrue, but you may be right that I am overplaying my hand. Maybe what I talk about is only evident at MacArthur where they post the stimpmeter number by the first tee. I have great respect for supers like Rusty Mercer at Cuscawilla who don’t allow a stimpmeter on property.
There is way too much emphasis placed on green speed by players, owners, greens committees, and if supers are trying to out do each other it’s because the people they answer to judge them on this one aspect of maintenance. Unfortunately when an assistant interviews for a super position the uneducated judge them on how the greens were rolling when they played there a few weeks back.
My language may be too definitive and I may go back and alter it before I launch the site next week. Thanks for the input. It is welcome and informative.
-Will
Thanks again, Will. Thanks for bringing the issue to light and I agree with everything you say, except (and that’s a huge EXCEPT) the part about superintendents trying to out do each other. The business just doesn’t work that way. In reading your your bios, I noticed your partner is the coach at Yale. I would strongly suggest you run your train of thought by the superintendent at Yale. He is one of the best in the business and I am sure you will be surprised by his response. Please trust me on this one, your way off.
Good luck,
Keith
Keith-
I have tweaked the language a little, as it was never my intention to accuse superintendents as a group as being part of the problem. The video speaks for itself. There is a least one super showing off. I hope we can get together sometime and discuss this over a beer and thanks for taking the time to comment. Hopefully people can learn something from the dialog. – Will