Helsinki, Finland: Golf courses are more than just expensive green spaces; they are meticulously curated eco-systems that demand precise care and management.
For turf professionals, maintaining these landscapes isn’t just about aesthetics: it’s about ensuring playability, sustainability, and longevity in the face of increasing environmental, financial, and legislative challenges.
And while turf managers are well-versed in the art and science of their work, in an industry where every decision can impact playability – and the bottom line – access to a full spectrum of critical data points is now more critical than ever.
There’s no question the vast majority of what data-driven turf professionals do is already spot on. They know their courses and the unique challenges of their environments better than anyone.
However, this is only part of the equation. To truly justify the actions they need to take to keep golf courses open, healthy, and playable to management teams, members, and regulatory bodies, they need to gather data points that demonstrate the impact of their work.
Soil moisture has long been a critical go-to metric, but there’s more of the story to tell:
Soil oxygen levels have rarely been measured to date, yet they are vital to plant root health. Soil oxygen enables root respiration, a process absolutely crucial to all vital functions. Inadequate oxygen levels through waterlogging, compaction, or inadequate pore spacing can lead to root suffocation, reduced growth, and increased vulnerability to disease.
As turf professionals face growing pressure to reduce chemical inputs and return to traditional agronomy practices like optimising irrigation, cleanliness of cut, and aeration, understanding soil oxygen levels is becoming increasingly important.
Graphing root zone oxygen concentration can potentially demonstrate the need for (and effectiveness of) actions like aeration and irrigation to stakeholders who may not fully understand the complexities of turf management.
The future of golf course management lies in the hands of those who can harness the power of data to inform their decisions. In today’s rapidly changing environment, turf professionals must go beyond the basics and integrate decision-making based on advanced metrics like soil oxygen levels into their management practices.
By doing so, they will not only improve the health and playability of their courses, but also secure the trust and support of the institutions, management teams, and members who rely on their expertise.
Collecting the right data isn’t just about keeping courses green; it’s about ensuring that they remain a vital part of our communities for generations to come.
*Article by John Cozzi, Chief Marketing Officer at Soil Scout, an Associate Business Member of the Asian Golf Industry Federation.