Drainage, Drainage, Drainage

What are the three most important things for a golf course turf and soil? Drainage, Drainage, Drainage. Recently we discovered a greens drainage problem on the front left of #17 green. The old Purr-Wick drain was crushed during installation of the new irrigation system. This damage of the pipe backed up water in to the green causing it not to drain properly. This type of drainage problem creates anaerobic conditions in the soil making it very difficult to grow grass. The definition of anaerobic soil is, soil that is devoid of interstitial oxygen. This condition mostly occurs because of the sustained presence of water, which limits contact with the atmosphere. Once the drainage is fixed, the drainage of water through the green will pull in much needed oxygen making the area firm again and returning the area to an aerobic soil.

Front left of #17 green

Old Purr-Wick drain

Entire drain project