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We all know that playing golf costs money. We’re reminded of this fact every time we pay, yes, the green fee. Given the amount of work that goes into creating pristine putting surfaces (or at least tolerably smooth ones), surely the greens are the most expensive part of a course to maintain per square foot?
Wrong (and don’t call us Shirley)! Sorry to throw sand in the gears of that notion, but bunkers are in fact the priciest feature to upkeep. It can take 200-450 hours of manual labor weekly at some courses to hand-rake surfaces, fix washouts, and mow and edge turf bordering bunkers.
We all want to keep golf affordable and sustainable, too, including course designers. To reduce the resources needed for bunker maintenance, a few factors help, namely, flatter bottoms, shallower faces, sufficient drainage, and the right sand for the job.
Architects who follow that blueprint help the game have a solid foundation rather than, well, being built on sand.
Anatomy of a Bunker: Here’s how a sand hazard is built (see above):
1 – Drainage
There is usually a network of drainage pipes under the sand to keep bunkers from filling with water after a rainfall. Basins and swales around bunkers can also help keep water and debris out of the sand.
2 – Bunker Liner
Modern bunkers are commonly built with liners (made from materials such as porous aggregate, fabric or sod) to keep the sand from being contaminated by soil and rocks.
3 – Sand
The sand in today’s bunkers is carefully selected for playability and performance characteristics, with particle size and shape two key considerations.
4 – Grasses & Precision Irrigation
Specialized grasses are often planted around bunkers – the combination of foot traffic, sand blast and steep slopes can make for a tough growing environment. Precision irrigation can give the grass around bunkers a better chance of survival.