WRITTEN BY JACK CREVELING, GOLF COURSE SUPERINTENDENT

To make the golf game feel right, the fairways must have a certain surface quality, a unique texture. That’s where vertical cutting comes into the picture.

According to Grounds Maintenance, vertical cutting (or verticutting) is a method that bolsters the health of greenway turf and helps it to acquire nourishment more effectively and thoroughly.

Golden Ocala Golf & Equestrian Club crews spent August using the process of verticutting to help remove excess organic materials from course turf, helping it to remain more tightly mowed and to provide a better surface for over seeding in the fall.

Once the mowing machines complete the process on the fairways, crews drag excess material to help the turf dry out, blow the fairways clean and then mow the fairways in a circular pattern to promote proper growth.

Once completed, fairway recovery takes about three weeks to produce a better playing surface.

The process, as described in Grounds Maintenance, turns up thatch and opens the turf canopy. This allows the turf to absorb more nutrients and water, clears the way for fresh growth and gives the fairways an energy boost.

Benefits of vertical cutting include:

• To control thatch.
• To produce an upright grass for a cleaner and a more consistent look.
• To control weeds and weed grasses.

A riveting, 18-hole, Ron Garl-designed championship challenges players at Golden Ocala Golf Club with eight patterned after tribute holes from the world’s finest courses, including Augusta, Royal Troon, Baltusrol, Muirfield and St. Andrews.

Golden Ocala Golf Club provides a 10-acre short game area with two practice holes and a driving game. The Golf Shop at Golden Ocala offers clubs, clothing and most golf accessories from the top names in the game.

Private lessons are available from Golden Ocala’s PGA professional instructors and are led by acclaimed golf instructor James Elliot, Jr.

Come and experience the sport of golf at its finest. And keep up with all of the latest news from Golden Ocala by following us on Facebook and Twitter.