how to mow golf course fairways

by Dameon Roob 3 min read

The most common fairway mowing methods are striping, contour mowing, the classic cut, and pushing and pulling. Striping – This is the method practiced by most golf courses. Stripes are often mowed in at least two directions to create a checkerboard pattern.

Part of a video titled Basic Fairway and Rough Mowing - YouTube
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Power three of the cutting units are out front. So you can watch the cutting line easier while youMorePower three of the cutting units are out front. So you can watch the cutting line easier while you mow. The reels are relatively small in diameter to help provide a smooth cut at lower heights.

Full Answer

How do they cut fairways?

The most common fairway mowing methods are striping, contour mowing, the classic cut, and pushing and pulling. Striping – This is the method practiced by most golf courses. Stripes are often mowed in at least two directions to create a checkerboard pattern. This method creates a striking aesthetic appearance.

How often should you mow fairways?

two to four times per weekDuring the growing season, greens are mowed five to seven days per week, fairways are often mowed two to four times per week and roughs one or two times per week.

How do you mow a golf course?

0:012:278 Things To Know About Golf Course Mowing Equipment - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipHere are eight things you should know about golf course mowing equipment mowing equipment is highlyMoreHere are eight things you should know about golf course mowing equipment mowing equipment is highly specialized. And different types of mowers are required to provide a precise height of cut on greens

How long does it take to mow fairways?

Mowing 20 to 30 acres of fairways can easily necessitate between 6 and 10+ labor hours each mowing. In addition to labor costs, fairway mowing costs includes fuel use, mower wear, equipment maintenance and blowing or removal of clippings.

What height should fairways mowed?

0.38 to 0.45 inchesFairways can be mowed from 0.38 to 0.45 inches while roughs are maintained between 1.0 to 1.25 inches in summer. Mowing heights are raised slightly in the fall, as soil temperatures decrease and the turf thins from peak season cart traffic.

How do you maintain fairways?

Fairways maintenance entails: Keeping a dense and contiguous cushion of turfgrass at a general height between 0.38 and 0.5 inches. Mowing multiple times every week. Suppress the growth rate of turfgrass with growth regulators and consequently reduce mowing frequency.

How often should a golf course be mowed?

Greens typically need to be mown at least once every three days. Without that regular tending, they become overgrown. Getting them back up to speed is tough. Sometimes it's impossible, and the entire putting surface has to be reseeded, and you're looking at least two months before they're ready for play again.

What kind of mower do golf courses use?

reel mowerRather than the more familiar rotary-style lawn mower, a specialized type of reel mower is required to cut turf at low, putting green heights. A reel mower creates a scissor-like action where turfgrass leaves are clipped by the crossing of two cutting edges—the reel blades and bedknife.

How do you mow a golf course green?

The best way that I have found to start cutting is to either start at the edge of the green or the corner depending on the cut. For instance if a front to back cut is necessary then starting at the edge of the green and creating a straight line is the easiest way to go.

What height is grass on golf course?

The standard mowing height for golf greens has been about 0.125 inch. A good speed for the green has been around 7.5 to 8.5 feet. But, because of the demand by golfers for faster greens and longer rolls, superintendents are being pressured to alter their practices.

Is golf course maintenance hard?

Maintaining an average 18-hole golf course – which is larger than 70 football fields – takes work and lots of it. The average 18-hole course may also have dozens of bunkers, a few miles of cart paths and many other course features. As you can imagine, it takes a lot of work to maintain all the different components.

How can I make my golf greens faster?

Maintaining healthy turfgrass and fast putting greens requires the integration of several management practices. Mowing height and frequency, grass type, fertilization, irrigation, thatch management, grooming, and rolling can all contribute to putting green speed.

Does frequent mowing thicken grass?

Mowing actually helps make your grass grow thicker because the tip of each blade contains hormones that suppress horizontal growth. When you cut the lawn, you remove these tips allowing the grass to spread and grow thicker near the roots.

How often do golf courses get mowed?

Greens typically need to be mown at least once every three days. Without that regular tending, they become overgrown. Getting them back up to speed is tough. Sometimes it's impossible, and the entire putting surface has to be reseeded, and you're looking at least two months before they're ready for play again.

Is it OK to cut grass every 2 weeks?

Failing to mow properly, including on the right schedule, can be impactful to your lawn's health and performance. The truth is, even if you feel like you can live with your lawn a little taller, mowing every two weeks as opposed to weekly mowing is not ideal for the overall health of your lawn.

Should grass be cut weekly or biweekly?

To conclude, even though a bi-weekly program may seem economical at first, weekly lawn mowing is the best way to maintain a healthy turf while saving you from the trouble of having to spend behind fixing unwanted damages.

What is mowing in golf?

Mowing is the primary input in golf course maintenance, and the growth rate of the grass is a product of the environment . Consequently, superintendents must always be prepared to adjust their mowing practices according to prevailing conditions. Mother Nature had even more to say than usual about turf conditions at many golf courses nationwide in ...

What are the factors that affect golf course mowing?

External conditions such as disease, drought and heat also affect golf course mowing practices. Many properties in various parts of the country struggled with a prolonged heat wave last summer, and maintenance crews had to adjust their mowing practices accordingly.

What kind of mower does Glen Echo use?

Glen Echo uses reel mowers on the greens, tees and fairways, and rotary mowers in the rough. Wachter is considering using a large-area mower in open areas and tee boxes, and quicker, lighter mowers to get around a large stand of 50- to 70-year-old trees that provide lots of shade and take moisture out of the rough.

What are the features of a lawn mower?

When evaluating mowers, superintendents rely on a number of features to help them select the best equipment. They include: 1 Price 2 Size and speed of the mower 3 Maneuverability 4 Durability 5 Design 6 Ease of operation 7 Ability to maintain the mowers 8 Size and type of terrain to be mowed

What is a good cut on golf course turfgrass?

A quality cut on golf course turfgrass is a top priority for any superintendent— and being able to readily adjust mowing practices according to conditions is the key to quality control. Superintendents should select mowers that will produce a top-quality cut on the areas of the golf course where they will be used.

How often does Glen Echo golf course top dressing?

At Glen Echo, a fine amount of top dressing is applied on a weekly basis, but the crew went six weeks without top dressing in the summer. The golf course also undergoes core sprig aerification in the spring, and deep solid-tine aerification in the fall. The maintenance crew gives the greens a hydrojet application in the summer.

Why use smooth rollers on greens?

The tight cut of the grooved rollers creates more issues for the greens, Wachter notes, but he hopes the use of the smooth rollers will make the surface more consistent and improve the overall health of the turf.

What is the most common way to mow a fairway?

The most common fairway mowing methods are striping, contour mowing, the classic cut, and pushing and pulling. Striping – This is the method practiced by most golf courses. Stripes are often mowed in at least two directions to create a checkerboard pattern. This method creates a striking aesthetic appearance.

What does "pushing the fairway" mean?

Pushing the fairway is when the turf is mowed from tee to green and pulling is mowing the turf from green to tee. A large number of mowers are necessary in order for this method to be efficient. Fairways are often mowed this way for championship events.

What is a classic cut lawn mower?

Classic cut – This style was very prevalent before lightweight fairway mowers. Larger gang-unit fairway mowers of the past which were harder to maneuver mowed in the circular pattern creating light and dark halves of the fairway. The classic cut reduces mower traffic in the rough and often takes less time compared to striping helping to reduce labor and fuel costs.

Why do golf courses use classic cut?

However, some golf courses are using the classic cut because it is more efficient and a better use of their fuel and labor resources. Also, the overall health of the intermediate and primary rough will benefit from the reduced mower traffic. Courses with the slow growing Kentucky bluegrass planted in their intermediates might especially benefit from the classic cut and the reduced wear.

What is the purpose of mowing?

The true function of mowing is to prepare the golf course for play although mowing patterns are often used to highlight the different features of a golf course. The mowing pattern can have a big impact on the appearance of the golf course and the health of the turf while affecting your labor and fuel consumption line items.

What is a classic cut?

The classic cut reduces mower traffic in the rough and often takes less time compared to striping helping to reduce labor and fuel costs. Pushing and Pulling – This method creates a fairway that is void of stripes. Pushing the fairway is when the turf is mowed from tee to green and pulling is mowing the turf from green to tee.

What is push pull mower?

There are other techniques, including “contour” mowing which produces a curved striping effect as mowers follow a fairway’s twists, turns and slopes and the “push-pull” strategy which involves “pushing” mowers from tee to green and then “pulling” them from green to tee to produce a uniform look with no striping.

When did the club at Strawberry Creek use striping?

Matt Kregel, superintendent at The Club at Strawberry Creek in Kenosha, Wis., has a different reason for adopting the striping pattern at the links-style course built in 2004-05. It’s a rationale based on the same more efficient productivity that leads other supers to go with the classic cut. “The fairway lines go everywhere, kind of darting in and out,” he says. “A few years back, we tried the traditional or classic cut, but we found it wasn’t quicker, and it actually took more time to mow the 45 acres of fairway on our 18-hole course, so we went back to striping. We consistently burn in lines, whether we start from the left or right side of the tee or go side-to-side. If we want to get rid of some of the grain, we’ll go side-to-side, and the way our course is laid out, that doesn’t really slow us down.”

Is Briarwood Country Club a classic cut?

For Justin VanLanduit, superintendent of Briarwood Country Club in Deerfield, Ill., the decision to classic cut has been an economic necessity. Seasonal labor shortages and tight equipment budgets tilted the balance toward the classic-cut approach.

Does classic cut mean turf compaction?

While the amount of turns required to create the striping pattern, whether vertical-horizontal or diagonal, especially those in the rough, are cited as major factors in time, wear-and-tear and, inevitably, expense, the classic cut approach can run into some of the same problems if repeated regularly. East Lake’s Kepple, who is otherwise a big fan of the classic cut, admits a frequent diet of that pattern creates turf compaction at the edges of the rough and the greens surround edges where the mowers turn, and will be doing some deep tine aeration to correct that this season.

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Selected with Care

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The end result of any mowing strategy will only be as good as the mowing equipment in a golf course’s maintenance fleet. Ralph Kepple, Certified Golf Course Superintendent at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, relies on machines that are easy to operate and easy to maintain. Although East Lake is “not overly hilly,” he says, t…
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Proper Mechanics

  • The selection of mowing equipment is not the only key to achieving a quality cut, however. The people who maintain and operate the machinery are vital to the process as well—and of these, no one is more critical than the mechanic. “He’s my key employee, and he would be the hardest to replace,” Patton says. “He can do things I can’t do.” Kepple agrees. “A great mechanic will take y…
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Extremes Are No Game

  • External conditions such as disease, drought and heat also affect golf course mowing practices. Many properties in various parts of the country struggled with a prolonged heat wave last summer, and maintenance crews had to adjust their mowing practices accordingly. “We live with the weather the same way a farmer lives with it,” explains Patton. Last year’s heat did not affect t…
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Added Inputs

  • At Forest Creek GC, the staff rolls greens after aerification to smooth out the turf, and the crew rolls or double-cuts greens in preparation for tournaments or other special events. However, notes Patton, the crew can double-cut greens faster than it can roll the greens, because the property has a fleet of 20 walking greens mowers but only two rollers for 36 holes. The property also uses gro…
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