Playing after Rain....

[Anthony_Nysse]

  After getting .5” of rain early this morning, plus another 1.5” now, I had to make a decision as to allow golf on the course or not. This got me thinking-would I want to play golf after 2” of rain?? My initial thoughts were “no.” And this got me thinking….
  Do we love golf so much that we’d play after nearly any amount of rain, as long as greens and fairways were not underwater? OR is your decision to play golf after large rains dependant on what course you’re going to play? Also, how long have you waiting for the rain to stop so that you could play?
  Oh, and by the way…still raining…..

Tony Nysse
Pine Tree GC
Boynton Beach, FL

[Jeff_Brauer]

I play after a rain...I play during a rain if the course is good enough. 

I once got a project on the spot when a potential client happened to make a playing trip of three gca's they were considering.  The fact that my course was playable after a 3" rain made the difference.

BTW, Tony, I was the one who made your former employers course drain as well as it did.  Before we added an extensive drainage system, they lost many, many days of both tournament and regular play.

[Jason Topp]

As a kid I used to love to play right after a rain because the course would be empty and there would be earthworms on the greens.

Now - if the course is open and the weather looks ok - I play.  

[Jud_T]

Tony,

I definitely play after rain if I have the itch.  It can be quite nice as it tends to clear out the riff-raff.  Obviously, firm and fast conditions are preferrable, but as long as there's not significant standing water I'd say let 'em rip...p.s. do you know John Brinckerhoff? I believe he's at Pine Tree, a great player and one of the nicest guy's around...

[Adam Clayman]

Anthony, We've been golfing between the rain storms for the last two days. (Local West Winds not BN) Now, we're fortunate to have mostly a sand base. The only standing water I saw was in the drainage ditches. Granted, this was a slow rain of approx. 2.5 inches over 36 hrs.

In other areas of the country I've resided, knowing the best draining course was always the decision after rains. In heavy populated areas it was necessary to beat the crowd and get out there before too many realized it had stopped raining.

While I prefer a firm canvas, I appreciate golfing when the course is soft because it was Mother Natures rain. It isn't much different than golfing on the water soaked fairways of the majority of courses, everyday, that value green so much that they deny their golfers the opportunity to experience the natural changes in firmness of the canvas. Limiting their ability to create shots that are based on a level of  awareness that exceeds "how far?" Ergo, the
negative results to golf in general because of the typical American mindset.

If you are a respectful golfer and repair divots and ball marks, I see no issue with a super caring or worry too much.

[Greg Chambers]

I really enjoy playing after rain.  But right now our golfers are waiting to see if the snow is going to melt...

[Thomas Patterson]

I enjoy playing after a rain, or even during a light rain/drizzle, as long as the course isn't completely soaked.  I tend to like courses that aren't crowded, and these conditions usually keep a lot of people at home.  Firm and fast are the conditions I prefer, but you can't beat a good round anytime. 

[Mark Manuel]

I think part of what makes golf great, and tests a golf course, is playing in all conditions.  As long as you aren't hurting the course, as previously mentioned, count me in.

As an aside, played once after a monsoon rain storm here in Ohio.  Our 5th hole has a runoff area for the neighboring farm field and it was so full of water that it played as a divided fairway.  A par 5 which meant your layup was critical or you had to wade through the small stream.  We also lost a popup drive on the 15th, it plugged in the middle of the fairway and we never found it.  The four of us who played still talk about that round.

Lightening is about all that will keep me off a golf course.

[Adam Clayman]

On the real downside, I have fallen three times because of rain soaked golf courses. I'm quite sure the necrosis on the ball of my femur is a result of one, or all, of those falls. Two instances were when turf just slipped out under my feet, but the real killer was when the super put down planks of plywood to cover a puddle just off the 8th teeing ground at Pacific Grove. In hindsight I should've stayed down gone to hospital and sued their asses. Maybe then the new clubhouse wouldn't have been built, the course would still be the profit machine it was, all the local golfers would still be able to play all they wanted, and I would be the king at PG.  

So Anthony, if you are looking for a reason NOT to allow golfers out after rains, liability is one they can not argue.

[Steve Pozaric]

For me, completely dependent on the course.  We had an outing scheduled with a client today and it got cancelled after overnight and morning rain.  No continuous cartpaths, golfers of all skill levels meant some potential damage to the course and they called it.

Sunday morning we waited about 45 min before teeing off hoping the rain would stop (it didn't).  We were walking, so not a big deal as the course wasn't completely sloppy wet.

If the course is sloppy wet, I am reluctant to play post rain, and if cart path only (if playing cartball), am also reluctant.

[Richard Choi]

Anthony, welcome to my world in NW.

It is not that uncommon to see spiked galoches on golf courses during winter around here and I have lost countless balls in the middle of the fairways (kinda disappears in the mud without any trace).

If you got the bug, you got the bug, rain be damned.

[Jaeger Kovich]

Personally, I love playing in the rain! I even find I play better in the rain. I think the weather helps my concentration.... When it rains, our members dont play, so I get to tee it up around noon and have the whole place to myself... I love putting on the rain pants, 3/4 sleeves and rain gloves!


What I find most interesting about playing in the rain is... The Europeans (at least in the UK) have no problem playing in poor weather, and American dont... except when they go to the UK!

[Chris Flamion]

I will play in any weather as long as I am prepared for it.  I once got stuck on the course with no rain gear and had to call it after I sent my driver flying when it slipped out of my hands.  That said most people I know are too soft to even consider playing after a light rain let alone a steady rain.

there is 1 exception once I see standing water I call it,  that is not longer enjoyable and becomes a slog.

[Don_Mahaffey]

Tony,
I don't like playing when the course is wet right after a rain nor when there is frost on the ground. But, you'll have plenty of members who do.

[Mike McGuire]

Most courses in SE Wisconsin put so much water on the fairways that its like "playing after rain" every day. It had not rained in a month and balls were backing up in the fairway last week.

[Dan Herrmann]

As long as I don't sink or lose a golf shoe due to having it suctioned off my foot, I'm happy to play.

(I actually had a shoe suctioned off my foot at a course called Progress Downs near Beaverton, OR.  What an ugly day - my feet were so wet that - nah - I'll skip this part)

[Carl Rogers]

Let me indulge me on my fetish of the week ... bunker maintenance. 

In Eastern Virginia, this has been a wet late summer and the poor bunkers are in trouble where I play.  Mud on the ball is not my favorite sight on the golf course.  Thus playing after a rain is not much fun

None of you it seems, play on courses with bunker drainage problems.  If your ball is in a bunker and in casual water, I believe the rules say you can take a drop inside the bunker, if there is a dry spot to drop and if you can locate the ball and fish it out.  Otherwise, it is lost ball ... !

O/T question:  What is the life of a bunker drainage?  Is that too simple a question?  When the bunker does not drain, is that the time to renovate the bunker?