By Design - Spring 2015

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Local authorities have responded
to the drought conditions
throughout the South and
West of the United States by offering
rebates for golf clubs that reduce the
amount of maintained turf on their
courses. Less turf means less water
is required, and that alone can justify
such projects.
But even where rebates are not
available, clubs are finding that a
reduction in turf can deliver cost
savings in other areas – such as
power and maintenance – and a host
of additional benefits, including an
aesthetic that is better suited to modern
tastes, fewer lost balls and a faster pace
of play – all of which can contribute to
increasing numbers of rounds.
The trend towards a more natural,
rustic-looking golf course has been
progressing steadily over the past
fifteen years or so. Often inspired by
an admiration of the work of Golden
Age golf architects who did not
necessarily have the technology to
maintain a lush golf course, today’s
designers are increasingly less likely
to propose wall-to-wall turf, even
where water is freely available.
And the golfing public’s taste is
following suit, evident from the
popularity of more traditional golfing
experiences such as those available at
the Bandon Dunes resort in Oregon and
the overwhelmingly positive response
to the work of Bill Coore, ASGCA, and
Ben Crenshaw at the No. 2 course in
Pinehurst, North Carolina, the host
course for last year’s U.S. Open and U.S.
Women’s Open championships.
As more natural-looking golf courses
get greater exposure, clubs may find
their members and guests having a
greater appreciation of a less manicured
style. And even if they don’t, they may
well find themselves getting greater
enjoyment from courses that don’t
punish the golfer with thick rough.
A golf course architect can help
identify the most suitable turfgrass
reduction program for any given
course, which will be dependent
on soil conditions, climate and a
number of other factors. They can
then recommend a step-by-step
process from the identification of
areas suitable for removal to the
adjustments that may need to be
made to the irrigation system.
Many turf reduction programs –
such as the one referenced earlier
in this issue at the Roadrunner
course at Hogan Park in Midland,
Texas – are seeing expanses of thick
rough replaced by natural waste
areas. It’s still a punishment for the
errant golfer, as the ball may find an
awkward lie among native plants or
unraked bare ground. But it can be
much easier to find your ball and
continue your round in this barren
landscape, or among woodchip or
pine straw, that it is in deep rough.
For most regular golfers, the avoidance
of lost balls can have a very positive
impact on the enjoyment of golf, and if
golfers are spending less time looking
for balls, the general speed of play will
increase too. Faster play equals more
capacity equals increased potential
revenue for the club.•
Turf reduction | Toby Ingleton
Less turf, more play?
CLOSING THOUGHTS
For more information on the benefits
of turf reduction and how a golf course
architect can help, download the free flyer
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26 | By Design
Water and cost savings are usually the drivers for turf reduction
programs. But they are not the only benefits, says Toby Ingleton
At Oakmont CC in Glendale, California, Schmidt-Curley’s turf reduction work also significantly
improved aesthetics