Rough Heights

I was recently asked why there is some inconsistency in the height of our roughs. Good question. This is due to 4 or 5 main agronomic reasons:
1. We have 3 different species of grasses in our roughs (poa, bent, and bluegrass) and each of
these species has a different growth rate and different growth pattern. Basically, each of
the 3 species grows at a different rate.
2. We recently fertilized the roughs for the first time in 4 or 5 years. We did this to encourage
growth in some of the shaded and high traffic areas. The nitrogen component of the fertilizer
is now releasing with the warm weather and is available to the plant.
3. The rainfall over the last two weeks has stimulated the growth of all of the rough.
4. Many of the heavily shaded areas of the rough have shorter and thinner turf. The areas that
are exposed to more sunlight have a denser growth pattern.
5. The more cart traffic that is exerted on a given area of turf will affect the growth rate of that
specific turf area. In many cases the closer you get to the green, the more concentrated the
cart traffic becomes and it keeps the turf worn down more because there are more carts
driven in a concentrated area.
6. In certain times of the year (spring and fall) the roughs will grow much faster than in the
hotter summer months.
As for mowing the roughs, we mow all the roughs twice a week and then on Fridays we mow two times around each fairway for the weekend preparation. We mow at a 2.5 inch cutting height.
Based on a survey that I did of approximately 12 area high end clubs, we mow more frequently and lower than any other club in the survey.
If you have any questions, let me know.