Golf courses today have become especially adept at finding ways to conserve resources and save money. For instance, superintendents may use leftover sand from bunkers that have been removed or reduced in size for topdressing of tees or green surrounds. Another example is recycling cores that are collected and removed following core aeration. These cores are sometimes used to build up other areas on the course where elevation is a problem. I’ve also seen wood from large trees used to construct benches or even tee markers.

One golf course I recently visited hired contractors to renovate their practice areas. Included in this renovation was removal and replacement of the driving range mats that had outlived their usefulness. At the same time, their chipping and practice green bunkers were being renovated with artificial turf from old rugby fields overseas. Instead of tossing their old mats, they used them to construct a bunker face reminiscent of sod-stacked bunkers. Whereas sod degrades over time, this use of artificial turf can create a longer-lasting, aesthetically pleasing bunker face. This was a great use of the old driving range mats, which would have otherwise wound up in a landfill.

This method of bunker construction is protected under granted US Patents. 

Southeast Region Agronomists:

Chris Hartwiger, director, USGA Course Consulting Service – chartwiger@usga.org

Steve Kammerer, Ph.D., senior consulting agronomist – skammerer@usga.org

Jordan Booth, agronomist – jbooth@usga.org

Information on the USGA’s Course Consulting Service

Contact the Green Section Staff