Ganton course manager Simon Olver dives deeper into data and looks at how we get the golf course to its highest level
Building on my column IN the last edition, which looked at how we use data to deliver long-term consistency out on the golf course, I wanted to share some more insights into the type of data we collect and how we use it to improve our practices.
One of the most important things we track is the amount of growth on the course. How we do this is pretty simple – it just requires a jug to measure the volume of clippings in the mowers’ catchers. By doing this, we get a picture of the growth rate and can measure it against growth potential (a stat we build using data such as temperature and moisture) to develop a programme of growth regulation and nutrition to deliver a healthy plant that performs well for golf.
While we have a lot of control, we can’t influence the weather. It has the biggest influence on growth potential, so we monitor data including the soil and air temperatures as well as rainfall and the evapotranspiration rate closely. We continually adjust to deal with the weather – which is easier said than done these days!
Low growth leads to good greens for longer periods. If clipping volume begins to rise, we know we need to do some refinement. We’d start with a period of double cutting. If we have too much lateral growth, we’d look at micro-grooming and/or verti-cutting, or maybe just a brush to stand the grass up before we cut it.
This work all builds into how we meet our targets – from green speed to smoothness and firmness – and collecting data daily is key to that process.
At Ganton, we’re looking for daily green speeds of 9ft on the stimpmetre; trueness and smoothness no lower than nine out of 10 on the STRI visual scale; and firmness between 115-120 gravities, which is measured using a Clegg Hammer. All of this data is then entered into our system using a smartphone.
As well as these, moisture levels are a key consideration as this has a big influence on playing performance and plant health. Where our POGO will measure down roughly 2ins, we’ve just begun trialling the Soil Scout system on two greens, at depths of 100mm and 150mm. These devices give us updates every 20 minutes on things like temperature, salinity and moisture level – and can show trends across set windows allowing us to create programmes of watering, both with sprinklers and by hand. We also hope this will help us control grass types better, as we can limit the moisture closer to the surface where the meadow grass roots are, and keep it low where the roots of the perennials reach down to.
While we have a great deal of data, the key is understanding what it means and how to spot potential problems, then dealing with them. Grass grows and everything we do has an impact – good greenkeeping minimises inputs, both in terms of products and mechanical processes, and ultimately delivers a robust playing surface which stands up to our members’ and visiting golfers’ expectations.
