You don't want to see this in your shop.  Our one and only roller, held up by tow straps, covered in grease from the blown bearings, and helpless as it waits for new parts.  The roller went down on the final day of the Invitational on May 21st.  This is the second time this has happened, before the final round, at the exact same spot of the course, during the 2nd pass on the putting green.  The damage is of the wear and tear type, so it's a mystery how it always knows when to break down at the worst time.

We try to roll the greens 3-4 times per week and more if we have the weekend staff to do so.  This is an extremely important practice that does more than increase green speed.  It has actually been shown to decrease some diseases and certainly puts less stress on the greens than a mower.

The final round of the Invitational, the greens had topped out at 10.5 feet on the stimp meter which is below average for our usual tournament speed.  The rain was to blame for that one; we had standing water in 7 fairways the day before the practice round.  Rolling the greens will only get the speed up to a certain point.  You also need to consider smoothness by way of topdressing, grooming, and verticutting.  Moisture management is important and can be managed when mother nature is not calling the shots.  Mowing height is certainly important, but not my option when it comes to speeding up the greens.

In the 2+ weeks that the roller has been down, we've lost a full foot of green speed!!  They look smooth and tight.  They feel firm and healthy.  We are still grooming and lightly topdressing on a regular basis and the mowing height is the same as tournament time, but we are a full foot slower sitting around 9.5.

So..... raise your glass to the glorious return of the all powerful roller.  The greens will be back up to normal speed by Friday especially with this new found, spring-like weather.  It feels gooooood.