Golfdom, April 2010

On a Roll Were telling golfers the greens are faster than they really are Continued from page 19 20 Golfdom A p r i l 2 0 1 0 6 69 ROLLING AND MOWING AND The key to any rolling program is how often you roll and mow and how you alternate the two practices Do you roll greens every day but mow every other Do you mow two days in a row and roll the third Do you mow every day and roll every other When you alternate mowing and rolling for the entire season you see healthier turf stands compared to mowing every day says Thom Nikolai Ph D a turfgrass academic specialist at Michigan State University who has been conducting rolling research since 1994 Any program in which you alternate can work well if you want to save money too At The Club at Pelican Bay in Naples Fla certified superintendent Bob Bittners goal is to mow less often and keep the greens consistent by rolling daily Normally the crew mows every day and rolls five times a week They mow every other day in the winter November through April HOW TO MAKE EM FAST How are you managing demand for faster putting greens Based on 2010 survey of 575 superintendents Superintendents were asked to check all choices that applied Were rolling them more often 12 13 Were double cutting several times a week We continue to lower the height of cut its the macho thing to do Nikolai says Now I think it should be how high can you mow Nikolai cites Mike Morris the certified superintendent at Crystal Downs Country Club in Frankfort Mich who used to mow greens at 0115 of an inch and now is at 0145 Hes rolling every day and everyone is happy Nikolai says Theres less stress on the turf Emerson started playing with mowing heights based on speeds From November through February when theres less light high traffic and slow growth Emerson likes to raise the height of cut He also doesnt want to lower fertility on the greens during the winter Rolling is more about raising the height of cut than green speed he says Im never below one eighth of an inch Scott Griffith superintendent at the University of Georgia Golf Course hasnt raised the height of cut on the courses Dominant bentgrass greens yet but plans to Hell keep the height of cut low until the end of April after he hosts the PGA Tours Nationwide tournament Presently the height of cut is 0115 but 0140 is the goal yet 0135 is more realistic he says Cultural benefits Another result of frequent rolling is less disease dollar spot anthracnose and brown patch because of a higher height of cut and less moisture For example rolling has helped reduce the amount of dollar spot on the greens at Desert Mountain Emerson says Its a moisture management issue he adds Moisture is a big issue Emerson watches the tire pressure on the triplexes carefully when rolling because he doesnt want to leave marks on the greens He also says a key point is not to roll if theres frost because you dont want to crush the plants crown Years ago compaction was a big worry among superin