The question was recently asked "I was on the driving range
and was wondering why we don't put sand in the divot areas like we do on the golf course?" Great question and I hope to provide some good feedback.
We will fill the divots
during the winter with our bulk topdresser once the front tee is fully used up. If we
topdress the tee with sand when the turf is dormant, it will leave the tee
covered in sand as the grass is not growing and filling in the divots. Even with the range being overseeded with ryegrass, the divots taken are still removing the dormant bermudagrass. The dormant bermudagrass will not begin to fill back over divots until mid May. Reseeding the tee with ryegrass will be an option but will hamper bermudagrass recovery and long term health of the turf.
The bulk
topdressing will promote a smoother surface and promote divot recovery once the bermudagrass breaks dormancy. We
could fill every divot individually like we do on the golf course tees but this would be a real drain on time and labor
in our off-season with limited staff resources. The range and golf course have been very busy and all of the
divots taken out of the dormant tees make me very thankful that we made the call
to keep the back tee closed this winter. The back tee should be in perfect condition and ready to use while the front and middle tee are healing over divots in May. You can help in tee recovery by utilizing the technique demonstrated in this March 2011 blog post, 'Preferred Practice Technique to Maximize Turf Recovery.'
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| This is one of our large bulk topdressers at work. You can see how the sand will fill all of the divots and promote a smooth, uniform surface. |
