Fescue or wild natural might not always be prudent

[Robert Mercer Deruntz]

Fescue and native grasses usually enhance the look and playability of most golf courses.  This last week, playing in a tournament,  both players in my pairing consistently hit big miss shots.  In looking for their balls, we encountered some less than safe impediments--snakes! A few popular miss areas had been thinned out with a weed wacker, but in the interest of both pace of play and safety,  the minimalism of this feature may be advisable.

[Josh Stevens]

Is this not simply the trade-off that every design feature needs to balance?  Native grasses might be there for environmental, aesthetic, strategic, or ease of maintenance reasons.  If the price is that a few people die a painful premature death, then I don't think that is unreasonable - as long as it isn't me.

My course is alive with deadly snakes in summer - leave the buggers alone and they will repay the courtesy.  If you must head in after a ball, take a five iron and make lots of noise. I don't think we have ever had a snake bite in 90 years.

On the other hand we have had lots of falls and accidents from people toppling into bunkers etc, resulting from slopes, contours and too much red wine at lunch, plus a few heart attacks from old duffers slogging up the hills.  Are we to flatten the course out to prevent those?

Life is a risk

[Brett Wiesley]

The question on fescue, is penalty or cost saving filler which is aesthetically pleasing.  I agree, if likely to hit into the stuff repeatedly may be a hinder to play.  However, if in places where unlikely to encounter a ball, but saves on excessive watering/mowing than it is great.  Too many courses that mow/maintain acres of unused land.