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Sanded/Punched Greens

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JamesA

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What effect does a recently sanded and punched green have on playing/putting conditions?
 
Slow, less break and bumpy.
 
Not much..... as long as you can deal with bumps and turns of the golf ball you've never seen before along the way to the hole. Usually takes a lot of the break out of putts too. I play 'em at the hole and hope the bump Gods are nice to me.
 
A process I like to call 'plinko putting'....

I think it depends on the process. The sand will do a decent job of keeping speeds up, but the inconsistencies (especially the older, larger holed punch) will be notable. I've been playing on some this week, and while they are healing, they desperately need to get out and roll them.
 
Have you ever seen them play "PLINKO" on The Price is Right? It's like that.

Sand and punching makes putting very dicey. The punch holes can throw your ball of line and the sand makes the green much slower - especially if there is any moisture on the greens. Generally they do not mow punched greens, so they can become a bit shaggy as well
 
plinko.jpg
 
jlukes said:
Have you ever seen them play "PLINKO" on The Price is Right? It's like that.

Sand and punching makes putting very dicey. The punch holes can throw your ball of line and the sand makes the green much slower - especially if there is any moisture on the greens. Generally they do not mow punched greens, so they can become a bit shaggy as well
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Erky said:
plinko.jpg
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Canadan said:
A process I like to call 'plinko putting'....

I think it depends on the process. The sand will do a decent job of keeping speeds up, but the inconsistencies (especially the older, larger holed punch) will be notable. I've been playing on some this week, and while they are healing, they desperately need to get out and roll them.
Click to expand...

Plinko is always how I think about it too! It's frustrating, but when they fully recover, it makes it worth the wait!
 
Depending on the tines, it could get a little frustrating if you expect to go out and putt for a legit score. In my area they tend to get really slow.
 
I think it depends on what the conditions of the green usually are - fast, perfectly manicured greens are going to show a lot more difference than the slower, shaggier muni greens I usually play on.

When we play on punched greens, we usually extend the gimme range a bit. I agree that it's definitely worth the wait though. I know some people get real upset about them, but I'm usually just happy to be playing golf.
 
I also feel that approach shots will have more rollout on a sanded green. I try to play well short of the hole if they have been sanded/punched recently, it always seems like the ball skips on its first bounce.
 
I just hate if there is any moisture how the sand sticks to your ball and putter

When i play punched greens we usally put the 2 putt rule into effect
 
It definitely adds a bit of guessing to putting. For me it equates to a bad day of putting.
 
Yes, if the sand is wet it will stick to the ball as it rolls and slow it down. Take a towel to the green to wipe off your ball and putter.
If the sand gets dry then I've found it speeds up the ball, so you just need to be observant of the conditions.

How big the punch marks are on the green does affect your control and accuracy, so that's the biggest factor.
 
Conditions for me include swearing, grimacing, drinking, and general anxiety.
 
I've been on different types of sanded and punched greens.

I've been on some that still roll fairly quickly and straight because the punch holes were small and the sand was light and brushed in well.

Others have been extremely slow and unpredictable in where the ball will go, with massive craters to dodge.

I guess it depends on the course and how they go about the sanding and punching of green.
 
My course just punched out greens with the large tines. The combination of the large holes and excess sand on them make putting frustrating. Speeds are inconsistent, and putts will alter direction often on the way toward the hole. All you can really do is try and two putt, and that is not even certain. When the small tines are used, usually later in the season, the greens recover more quickly.


#ImStillWithHarry
 
Depending on how bad they are, we have a no 3-putt rule in place. Unless you're like 90 feet away and hit a really bad putt. Then we don't allow 4-putts. I think it should be a courses responsibility to let you know when you set up a tee time. With the season just stating here, I ask every course before I play if they have aerated, punched or sanded any part of the course. Fairways I can handle, greens I can not.
 
rtparty said:
Depending on how bad they are, we have a no 3-putt rule in place. Unless you're like 90 feet away and hit a really bad putt. Then we don't allow 4-putts. I think it should be a courses responsibility to let you know when you set up a tee time. With the season just stating here, I ask every course before I play if they have aerated, punched or sanded any part of the course. Fairways I can handle, greens I can not.
Click to expand...

Our course lets people know. They also charge Super Twilight rate all day the days they are aerating. Last year the greens were almost perfect a few days after.
 
Full shots into greens, nothing much. Chips and short pitches might take some funny kicks if they catch the edge of an aeration hole.

Putting, it's going to be slower, mostly. Might occasionally catch a hole wrong and turn a bit.
 
As already mentioned, it can depend on how big the punch holes are and how well the sand has been brushed in, but don't expect to make (m)any putts from outside 6 inches.....I played last year at a course which had just done the greens so we had agreed on a gimme range but one of the lads went to knock in a putt that stopped 6 inches from the hole out of habit and the ball took such a jump he missed it by a good few inches
 
Ah the lovely punching time. Personally I do not even both lining up putts during this time. The ball is going to go offline anyways. So I go for close approaches if I can


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I can handle sand since that's mostly a speed issue but once you get the holes, it's a crapshoot.

I was going to book a tee time in VA for Sunday via golfnow but they had an aeration warning so I decided against it and booked elsewhere.
 
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