The lumps and bumps often seen on teeing grounds are typically the result of divot injury, over-filling or under-filling with divot mix, and the effects of natural soil settling. As hard as the maintenance department might try, the uneven surface conditions tend to get worse each year until it is decided to strip, level and resurface the tee. Robert Birdsall, CGCS, at Las Lomas Club de Golf (Zapopan, Mexico) has incorporated a simple practice into the club’s maintenance routine to keep the tees as smooth and level as possible throughout the year and reduce the need to frequently strip and resurface the tees. The program at Las Lomas involves three simple steps:
- Irrigate the tees to saturate the regionalUpdateContentzone.
- Aerate with 5/8” solid tines.
- Roll the tee surface with a putting green roller.
This practice is performed four times each year and has been effective at smoothing surface imperfections of 3/4" and less. In addition, the aeration and rolling program has improved mowing quality due to the smoother surface conditions. Keep in mind that aerating and rolling tees with bumps and depressions of 1" or more will not be totally effective, but once the tee is reasonably level, this program can help keep them that way.
Source: Pat Gross pgross@usga.org