Golf courses punching greens is So-Cal?

[gxDD]

What's the norm?

Curious from any of you Golf Professionals out there what the norm is for golf courses to be punching greens this time of year, in So-Cal. In the past I always seemed to notice it being done in the early Fall months, like Oct. and Nov. But I was basically shocked to see one of my favorite courses in the San Deigo region had just punched their greens aprox. a week ago. Suppose my interest has been lit on this topic, because calling in to the pro shop and asking prior to our round was pointless. The answer we got was, "yah the course is in great condition." Just trying to figure out if this can be expected in the future, or if there are specific months I can count on it. Cheers.

[CowtownTexas]

Most courses in warm regions punch several times throughout the year. The amount, when, what type, etc. will vary depending on many factors.

[mwl111006]

[quote name='J-Tyme' timestamp='1306884484' post='3275939']
Curious from any of you Golf Professionals out there what the norm is for golf courses to be punching greens this time of year, in So-Cal. In the past I always seemed to notice it being done in the early Fall months, like Oct. and Nov. But I was basically shocked to see one of my favorite courses in the San Deigo region had just punched their greens aprox. a week ago. Suppose my interest has been lit on this topic, because calling in to the pro shop and asking prior to our round was pointless. The answer we got was, "yah the course is in great condition." Just trying to figure out if this can be expected in the future, or if there are specific months I can count on it. Cheers.
[/quote]

In my experience, [b]most[/b] SoCal courses punch twice a year. Usually in the fall (Oct-Nov) and Spring (Mar-Apr).

Greenskeeper.org is a pretty good site to check course conditions on. It's not 100% accurate, but several courses will give GK advance warning on when they plan to punch.

Greenskeeper.org had info about Sycuan punching both courses in the last week. Other than that the most recent were early may.

[dkirk51]

It's also worthwhile to check the course's website for their aeration schedule. I've found that most courses in my area usually punch them in the spring and in the fall. The LA City courses usually have their schedule on the website. I've stopped calling the starter to see how they are rolling after they've punched them. They are always overly optimistic. I figure it takes at least 3-4 weeks for them to come back. One local course will punch half the green then set the flag on the "good" side. Ofter two weeks they will punch the other side. I would rather see them punch the whole green and get it over with.

[Oldboy]

Checking Greenskeeper.org is a must .. Theyre spoton with aeration schedules

[gxDD]

Just added Greenskeeper.org to my favorite's bar.....thanks fellas.

[gxDD]

[quote name='mwlevey' timestamp='1306888263' post='3276066']
Greenskeeper.org had info about Sycuan punching both courses in the last week. Other than that the most recent were early may.
[/quote]


Yup....that was the course I played. Willow Glen wasn't worth paying for the greens were so bad....and the guys in the pro shop didn't make it known when we called in. Quite the bitter taste in my mouth after that round....but obviously this happens, and who can blame courses for not wanting to turn away money.

[jswaykos]

[quote name='J-Tyme' timestamp='1307202917' post='3284287']
[quote name='mwlevey' timestamp='1306888263' post='3276066']
Greenskeeper.org had info about Sycuan punching both courses in the last week. Other than that the most recent were early may.
[/quote]


Yup....that was the course I played. Willow Glen wasn't worth paying for the greens were so bad....and the guys in the pro shop didn't make it known when we called in. Quite the bitter taste in my mouth after that round....but obviously this happens, and who can blame courses for not wanting to turn away money.
[/quote]

Ha, I was wondering if you were talking about Willow Glen. I'd happened to play elsewhere the week they punched and the week after that, but I played there yesterday. I noticed on a few of the greens that it'd recently been punched but couldn't recall seeing any signs or notifications around the course that they were doing this.

I suppose you're right about a course not wanting to turn away money, but 1) it's not like Sycuan needs it THAT bad and 2) taking a small hit now must certainly be better than a bigger hit with bitter, non-returning customers, but maybe that's just me. At least offer severely discounted rounds, ya know?

[JackpotJohnny]

Riverwalk pulled that on me last month too.. Its like you're supposed to call and ask before you book or something .. Cmon

[dkirk51]

[quote name='J-Tyme' timestamp='1307202741' post='3284278']
Just added Greenskeeper.org to my favorite's bar.....thanks fellas.
[/quote]


Greenskeep.org - Worth checking out. Thanks.

[Pepperturbo]

Courses are NOT going to volunteer condition changes unless you frequent the course and are known. Its for that piece of common sense, when making reservations I always ask if anything has been punched... its such an easy thing to do too. Don't know why others seem to overlook that, and then feel taken advantage of when they show up to find punched conditions.

It's Greenskeeper.org too. That site has been around for sometime now and reasonably effective, but they too have times when their information is not as current as it should be, and some of their posted course deals are not always accurate.

[Reif]

Barona is closing for three weeks starting 6 September for aeration and maintenance.

The guy said give it a couple of weeks after that, so middle of October.

Also, Carlton Oaks totally lost their greens through a self inflicted greenskeeping screw up.

In their defense, they told me ahead of time (it's been a little while) but if you are planning to play there any time soon make sure you ask about the greens.

[gxDD]

[quote name='Reif' timestamp='1315165878' post='3541434']
Barona is closing for three weeks starting 6 September for aeration and maintenance.

The guy said give it a couple of weeks after that, so middle of October.

Also, Carlton Oaks totally lost their greens through a self inflicted greenskeeping screw up.

In their defense, they told me ahead of time (it's been a little while) but if you are planning to play there any time soon make sure you ask about the greens.
[/quote]


WOW...Carton Oaks blew it eh? I wonder if that's going to effect CanTour Qualifying?

BTW, discovered [url="http://www.greenskeeper.org"]www.greenskeeper.org[/url] thanks to this thread....absolute gold.

[JackpotJohnny]

Carlton oaks is in the worst shape of any course I've ever seen.
Played a few weeks ago and it was horrible
It will be months and months before ith playable.