Why are the cups in unusual locations? As you play over the winter, you may find yourself noticing that the cups are in atypical places. There are a few reasons that we set the pins in rare spots in the off-season.
Play is greatly
reduced during the winter months, but not completely absent. So, we still do
the basics of course setup over the winter, which includes changing cups
periodically. But because there are less golfers, and conditions are different
than summer, when we change cups, we put them in locations that we wouldn’t use
in-season. The biggest reasons for this decision are traffic management and frozen
ground and/or frost.
Often, the ground is frozen over the winter, typically for
long stretches at a time. We cannot change the cup when the ground is frozen,
so we must take advantage of the few instances of thawing when they occur.
Knowing that a pin location may have to remain in the same place for many weeks,
we choose areas that we don’t commonly use in the warmer months because of the
repeated traffic from golfers playing to the same location for many days in a
row. Although there are fewer golfers per day, accumulated play over several
weeks can still add up. Add in the fact that the turf is not growing, and
recovery from traffic stress is non-existent. Luckily the greens can withstand
the stress, but on the occasions when the traffic does start to accumulate, it
is noticeable on the grass. Having that stress occur in a location that we
don’t need in the season means that the stressed area has plenty of time to
recover once growing conditions return. So, we purposely choose cup locations
that we would never use during the season and save the “normal” locations for
peak golf weather.
Another near daily occurrence in the winter is frost. Even
if the ground is not frozen, we commonly have frost delays in the winter. Part
of our strategy for minimizing winter damage to the greens is by strategically
placing the cups in places on the green that receive the most sun. By doing
this, we greatly reduce the risk of golfers playing through areas that may have
lingering frost later into the day. We manage frost delays in a way that allows
golfers out onto the course as soon as possible. We make sure frost is clear
from the first few holes that will be played, but often there may be frost
still located on holes that will be played later in the round, just based on
sun angles and shade patterns. But we don’t wait for every inch of frost to be
clear, knowing that it may be 30 minutes or more before a golfer gets to a hole
that still has frost. Nevertheless, we can’t predict everything regarding
temperatures, frost clearing, and golfer behavior, so it is possible that a
player could reach a spot on the course that still has a slight covering of
frost before we anticipated they would arrive. By having the cup in a sunny
location, we protect against this causing damage to the greens. We aim to keep
the cups in areas of the green where the sun always shines first, thus having
as much time as possible to melt the frost.
By combining these two strategies, we end up with pin positions
that are often very different from what a golfer might expect. Nevertheless,
using unique cup locations helps us manage winter golf by still providing a challenging
course but also prioritizing the health of the turf.
Etiquette Reminder of the Month
Please do not try and remove a flagstick that is frozen into
the cup. Turf damage may occur.
Also, as part of a Golf Committee initiative to improve
course etiquette, we have included links to videos teaching proper on course
etiquette. Please take a moment to watch:
Ball
Marks - How to properly repair
See you on the course!
Joe
jvillegas@bwrc.org
