Winter Care of the Course

Care of the Course

It is every golfer's responsibility to look after the course while playing. This means repairing as you go any damage you cause. You should always replace divots and repair pitch marks and spike marks on the greens. It also is every golfer's responsibility to rake the bunkers after playing from them. Please try to leave the course in at least as good a condition as you found it, for example by repairing your pitch mark plus one other that you find. This collective effort will have a huge positive impact on the ongoing quality of your golf course.

Repairing Pitch Marks

As the greens are our ultimate targets and we all use them, they are particularly vulnerable to damage. Please make every effort to take extra care of them.

“A correctly repaired pitch mark will recover in 24 hours. An unrepaired pitch mark left for two hours will take up to two months to repair”.

This often-quoted statistic really drives home how important it is that we repair our pitch marks. If your ball pitches onto the green with sufficient force to make an indentation, always, always look for the mark and repair it properly. A pitch mark repair tool is by far the best tool for the job. We should all carry one of these every time we play.

Ideally we would never find any old pitch marks but if you do notice any, please repair those too.

Replacing Divots

Whenever possible, please retrieve and replace any divots you take. Try to put the divot back by filling the hole that it has come from, pressing it down firmly and securing it with the green bamboo pegs which are available for free from the Pro Shop. Rabbits love the bare earth left after a divot has been removed and will capitalise on it by creating a new rabbit scrape. Please help the Greens staff manage damage and prevent the development of new rabbit scrapes by taking care of your divots.

Spike Marks / Foot Scrapes

Although most players no longer use metal spikes, even the plastic or rubber ones can damage the surface of the green if you don't lift your feet properly or if you twist your feet. Please avoid doing either of these! However, if you do accidentally cause damage in this way, please repair it to the best of your ability and in keeping with the rules of golf.

Bunkers

Please rake the bunker to smooth over any irregularities in the sand such as footprints, marks from a ball landing or indeed the hole left after playing your shot.

Ride-On Buggy Use

There will be times when conditions are such that use of a ride-on buggy is inappropriate on some or all areas of the Course and users must ensure that they comply with any buggy restrictions.

In addition to adhering to the Ride-On Buggy Traffic Light system, please also:

• Avoid any area that is showing signs of wear and tear (from a high level of traffic).
• On an incline do not park facing up the hill, but rather please park across it. This improves traction and reduces the chance of wheel spin and damage to the course when accelerating and moving off. 
• Refrain from driving the buggy on the fairway when the ground is wet, particularly during the winter when buggies must only travel on the semi-rough or rough and apply the 90 degree rule when crossing a fairway.

Finally, again we would like to thank those of you who are continually repairing any damage you create; you are in the majority and it is only a limited number of members who do not take due care and whose behaviour can have an adverse impact on the course.

Your support in helping the Greens staff maintain the outstanding condition of our golf course is greatly appreciated.

James Russell, Chair Of Greens

Return to News Page

Created by intelligentgolf version 10.1.2.