Bekah Rottenberg 2003 Brown University

Out of the five turfgrass species found in RI, bentrgass is the most popular on the greens regardless of course status. This finding holds true for the majority of the US, which is covered with bentgrass greens due to the optimum putting surface that is created from the turf's ability to handle a low height of cut. [10] All 20 of the interviewed golf courses plant bentgrass on the greens; however, this does not mean that bentgrass is the only species of grass planted. Bluegrass, Poa annua, rye, and fescue are also found on a small number of greens throughout RI.

Bluegrass is found on 17% of the greens for both public and semi-private courses, and on 25% of the private courses. Poa annua is found to be present on 50% of the public courses, 17% on the semi-private courses, and on 38% of private courses. This implies that public courses make the least effort to keep poa out of their courses, and are forced to maintain it, or their greens suffer in quality when the annual becames dormant in the summers. The semi-private-courses appear to make the most efforts to restrict poa from their greens, where as the private courses let some in, but most have a decent mix of other grasses to fill in any brown spots left by the unwanted weed. Fescue and rye grasses are planted only on the greens of private courses, according to my research. This implies an extra effort made by the private courses to mix and intermingle different grass species in an effort to avoid a disaster in the case of a pest or disease outbreak, and to ensure high quality greens on a regular basis.

Implications

Bentgrass is found on 100% of RI greens. This means that 100% of RI golf courses plant the grass species that has the lowest drought and disease resistance, and the species of grass that is ranked second to last in terms of resilience and durability. The reasoning behind bentgrass on the greens is simple: it can withstand the shortest height of cut, which creates a fast and true "roll of ball," which is what more and more golfers are demanding. Thus, the playing conditions that are most desirable demand a grass that requires more water than all other grasses planted on RI golf courses. There are over 50 different varieties of bentgrass, the most popular varieties in RI are colonial bent and creeping bent. Out of the eight varieties of bentgrass planted in RI, velvet bent was found to use less water and provide less problems than the other bentgrass varieties. Three out of twenty courses use velvet bentgrass, and an indepth analysis of the course that used the most was conducted and can be found below.

Summary of RI Turfgrass Species

Case Study:Velvet Bentgrass at "GreenLinks Golf Course"

The following information comes from a golf course i visited, which i have labeled "GreenLinks Golf Course."

After observing eight different varieties of bentgrass and the quantities of water each variety required along with the number of diseases and pests the grasses were susceptible to, velvet bentgrass appeared to be the best choice for RI superintendents for use on the greens, tees and fairways. At GreenLinks, a public 18-hole course, 100% Velvet bentgrass was used on the greens, tees, and fairways (most courses use colonial or creeping bent). GreenLinks Course reported using less water, and had less trouble with diseases and pests than all of the other golf courses that were interviewed.
The majority of courses interviewed reported at least four or five diseases and several pests. The only problems GreenLinks Golf Course had had in the past was with dollar spot and grubs. In terms of water use, the average public course used 3,300 gallons of water per acre per day, and GreenLinks Course used 1,700 gallons per acre per day. The superintendent of GreenLinks rarely sprayed, partially because of his limited budget, but also because he said that the diseases would usually go away within a few weeks. In terms of dollars spent on pesticides per acre per year, the GreenLinks Course spent $400 per acre per year, where as the average RI course (that I interviewed) spent $1,100 on pesticides per acre per year. The GreenLinks superintendent openly admitted that he did not have the same conditions as private courses, yet the course averaged 40,000 rounds per year, while my research shows courses in RI to average 32,300 rounds per year. Thus, this course spent significantly less on pesticides than the average course, yet brought in more golfers than the average RI course. The superintendent said that despite the small amount of pesticides he applied, "90-95% of the time things were fine." The superintendent of GreenLinks had a very relaxed attitude towards maintaining his course; he realized it was not a top-notch course, but he served his clientele, who only pay $23 for a round of golf, compared with an average of $27 for public courses, and a $33 average for all RI courses.

Velvet bentgrass is the recommended bentgrass variety for use on the greens, and according to the superintendent who used the most of it, "velvet needs much less water, pesticides, and fertilizer than most other grasses." Velvet bengrass was developed at URI, under the care of Dr. Skogley, and to obtain more information visit Seed Reserch.