Learn about Green while it Grey out

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By Joshua B

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  1. Joshua B

    Joshua B
    Connecticut

    I look outside to an ice frosted backyard with rock solid dirt underneath and sigh as I cannot chip a few balls in my back yard to practice here in New England. Made me think about green lush grass, and what kind mine is in the backyard, and how why other types are mentioned and how and why they react different for a golfer (which leads me to the ultimate thought that a golf addict will do anything to feel a connection to golf even if they cannot play it). But I found this quick article by a "sir shanks a lot" that was insightful and well written. Enjoy :

    Bermuda Golf Tips

    Bermuda can be a real ***, especially when you get into the rough. The structure of this grass is thicker per weight than most other grasses played on golf courses. So hitting from the rough can be especially difficult, as this grass tends to grab and twist your club, and robs you of speed, and thus distance. Furthermore, the ball isn’t well supported, so it usually sits down in the rough and needs to be dug out from its nested lie. Consider using a club with more loft and make sure you’re attacking the ball with a descending blow. Tightening up your grip a bit when you’re in the deep stuff can also help. This grass is often found in the southern United States due to its sensitivity to cold. TPC Sawgrass is build on bermuda grass. Moral of this story – keep it in the fairway.

    From the fairway, you will notice that more often than not you’ll be hitting from tighter lies, and because of this the ball tends to fly further when struck. Ball first contact is a must, and these fairways have been described as “spongier”. Because this grass grows in more of a gnarly tangle than straight up, lies from the fairway can be a little sticky. Chunking shots on this type of grass is especially common, so hit the ball below the ground.

    When you’re playing on Bermuda greens, there’s a couple things you should know. This grass is pretty grainy and will tend to follow the sun throughout the day. The ball will also tend to follow the grain, so knowing how the grain lies is important on this type of grass. If the grass appears a dull, dark green, the grain is likely growing toward you, and will slow your putts. If the grass looks shiny and light green, it is likely growing away from you, and the ball will roll more. This grass also has a tendency not to roll out as much as other grasses, due to its stronger structure.

    Bentgrass Golf Tips Bentgrass rough is pretty tame, the ball can often sit up and doesn’t give you much of a problem to get out of it. Sweeping it off this rough is common. One thing you need to be aware of is watching where this grass is growing in relation to your target. If the grass if growing in the direction of your target, you will often get flyer lies, if it lies against you, expect it to slow your club down quickly upon impact.

    Bentgrass fairways are usually softer, and often are mowed quite tightly as the grasses grow straight up. Shots to the fairway often roll out. These fairways are easy and straightforward to hit off of.

    Bentgrass greens are some of the most common on the planet, due to their thick root structure and ability to withstand a ton of foot traffic. Furthermore, this grass makes some of the best greens on the planet, and is notorious for being able to hold the line of your putts no matter what type of stroke you put on it. Also a broader variety of strokes can be used on the greens with this type of grass. Ideally you want the ball to be rolling ASAP on the greens, but this is not as important on this type of grass, it is incredibly smooth, and even putting strokes that cause the ball to hop and skip won’t hurt you too much in the end.

    Poa Annua Golf Tips This grass is considered by many greenskeepers as an invasive species. It usually finds its way onto golf courses all over the planet by hitching a ride from one course to another on a golfers shoes. From there it can take root, and begin to grow. You can pick it out because of its lighter green color, and the fact that it grows in small patches amongst other grasses.

    Poa Annua rough is slightly less tangly than bentgrass, and often requires less force to help the ball get out. More times than not, this grass doesn’t put up much resistance to golf clubs, and can leave golfers with decent rough lies with the ball sitting up on occasion.

    Poa annua grass has one specific quality that a lot of people hate – different strains of the grass can grow at different rates. So this means that if you play in the afternoon, you can be dealing with much bumpier greens than people who played in the morning. Pebble Beach is built on Poa annua, and this is an often complaint of players. When it comes to putting, the faster you can get the ball rolling the better, balls that jump off the face and hop and skip on the greens can often be bumped offline on this type of grass. Furthermore hitting putts true, and on the sweet spot is recommended, anything short of good stroke will cause the ball to roll offline and the mistake will be exaggerated.

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  2. Tom B

    Tom B
    Northborough, MA

    But some of the finest courses in the World have Poa Greens. Pretty big especially on older Northern or coastal courses, Northeast, California, etc. Putt on Poa, you can putt on anything. Those of us raised on it don't know any better, and it's Bermuda that drives us crazy until we learn about the grain and how to use it. Take a Southerner and they look at Bermuda like it's nothing. Which means a real appreciation for these guys who have to play all of them traveling around the Country or World making a living at it. Then through in some hybrids, or a nice Zoysia, or Kikuya, to grab your ball. Don't you just love this game!
  3. Bill L

    Bill L
    Spring, TX

    We don't get to play on bent grass much in the south but I love putting on them when I get the chance.
  4. Bill, completely opposite here. I play bent grass all the time and only have had a few rounds on Bermuda. I will say that playing out of Bermuda rough is not fun at all.
  5. Darryl M

    Darryl M
    Wichita, KS

    I played on all Bermuda courses in Georgia last year on two different trips & I really had to focus around the greens due to the thick rough and trying to find my ball sitting down in it. The short pitch shot was not easy to execute in 3 inch Bermuda. We have Bermuda fairways where I play but bent grass greens. Some Zoysia fairways too

    DM
  6. Steve S

    Steve S
    Tuckerton, NJ

    Welcome to my world Chris. Our greens are bent grass. Rough is fescue. Fairways and trees are a blend of rye and bluegrass. It all comes together quite well until the heat of the summer. A challenge to say the least.
    Play Well,
    Steve S.
  7. Frank P

    Frank P
    Port St. Lucie, FL

    Military
    Had to learn how to play Bermuda when I moved to FL from NY 9 years ago. It's a big difference especially on the greens, as the grain is way different than Bent. The grain grows away from you downhill so downhill putts are real slick.

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