Frost Delays
I Am An Early-Morning Golfer. What Is The
Justification For Frost Delays?
Frost is essentially frozen dew. Ice crystals visible on the
outside of the plant can also form on the inside of grass blades. The grass
plant, normally resilient to footsteps or cart traffic, becomes brittle and
fragile when ice crystals form. Under the pressure of traffic, ice crystals
puncture living plant tissues and rupture plant cells. Damage will not appear right
away, but it will show up in footsteps and tire tracks the following days as
the plant is unable to repair itself and begins to die. Frost damage can occur
on any turfgrass mowed at any height, but it is amplified when the plant is
mowed low, as on a putting green.
Keep in mind that a foursome typically takes several hundred
footsteps on each green, so even allowing just a few groups to play when frost
is present can be very damaging to the greens, as well as to the rest of the
golf course. It is not completely understood when frost will cause damage, so
the decision to keep traffic off the course must be made conservatively to
protect the condition of the course. For this reason, golf facilities are wise
to delay starting times in the morning until frost has completely melted.
