Are Greens Becoming More Changeable?

[Paul Gray]

Maybe it's me but I've just returned from playing a reasonable local course where I found the greens to be in poor condition. That may not be a story in itself but I played the same course three days ago and the greens were running somewhere close to perfect. It's not the first time I seem to have inadvertently vexed a courses' putting surfaces. Has anyone else noticed this trend and does anyone have an explanation?

Obviously greens vary but I don't ever recall seeing such sudden changes in conditions.

[jeffwarne]

Can't speak for your area, but greens are often cut and rolled on Fri,Sat, Sun which has a cumulative effect making them quite smooth/fast by Sunday.
Mon, Tues they may not be cut at all and definitely not rolled as they are given a chance to rest and recover from weekend stress.

Of course they could've aerified or something more dramatic in the last 3 days

[Mike_Trenham]

Perfect storm at my club.  We have a lot of grain.  Two days of rain and the greens are not cut or rolled and they are quite puffy with the grain standing up rather than laying down.  I used to complain about the grain but now I just see it as an added challenge as putts really break.

[Ally Mcintosh]

Paul - you're in the UK aren't you?

We are about a month behind in growth this year so that could be playing havoc. Things change quite quickly at this time of year. Are they old poa greens? They will be at the height of seedhead production around now.

[Paul Gray]

Ally,

I am in the UK.

It was a comment made about courses generally but I have long been inclined to feel that poa annua are at the heart of the problem.

Thanks for your knowledgeable words.