Most of us associate it with holed and sandy greens, but have you really asked yourselves what it is and what is its purpose or benefit for the course?
Sometimes we have wanted to go out to play in the month of June and we have not been able to because the courses reserve some dates to do this work.
The greens when they are “hollow cored” are not uniform and do not allow the ball to roll smoothly to the hole. It is a very necessary job that will allow us to enjoy a green in perfect condition in the coming months.
The purpose of hollow coring is aeration; the ideal proportion of the surface of the greens should be 50% solid, 25% air and 25% water, but with the traffic of players, the weight of the machinery and the aggression of the balls, this balance is broken, compacting the surface and preventing the entry of water and air into the deeper layers.
To restore this balance of 50-25-25 and facilitate the entry of nutrients and water to the roots of the plant, a specific machine is used.
How does aeration work?
Phase 1: Fertilizing Before puncturing, the green is fertilized to give it “strength”, preparing it to withstand the puncturing process.
Phase 2: Hollow coring The machine pierces the surface by nailing hollow or sometimes solid tubes that produce small holes creating cylinders along the entire surface of the green. These holes, 2-3 cm in diameter and about 5-10 cm deep, will allow air and water filtration and decompaction of the soil.
Phase 3: Sweeping or Re-priming After the puncturing and cleaning the surface, a layer of substrate is spread and swept over the entire green to ensure that the substrate fills all holes.
Phase 4: Recovery Depending on weather conditions the recovery process can take between 7 and 12 days.
When is the aeration carried out?
The puncturing is usually carried out twice a year, scheduled before the temperature changes; before the arrival of summer and at the end of autumn before the new drop in temperatures. These are dates when there are not so many golfers on the Island and so the greens can recover and be in perfect condition before the high golf season starts again.
“There is nothing more irritating than playing with punctured greens, nor is there anything more pleasurable than putting on a perfect green”.
During the summer months from June to September (both included) Golf Pass Mallorca offers a 2×1 twice in all associated courses for a total of 22 rounds for two players.
As the passport is valid for 365 days, we can avoid aeration times and enjoy a good putt.
