Michael Holigan: If you've ever wanted a putting green in your own back yard, this is the show for you. We've got Mike Connor, from Short Game Inc. with us. It's good to have you.
Mike Connor: Michael, thank you. Appreciate being here.
M.H.: Help me out on this putting green that we're doing here. I have never seen one of these in a back yard. How common is it?
M.C.: Well, it's not very common at all yet, but right now, with the state of the art technology, putting greens...home putting greens are now becoming a key amenity for many people as they move into new homes.
M.H.: After you've dug out the grass for the putting green, you started putting in rebar and, I mean, heavy rebar. You're not going to drive a truck on this, are you?
M.C.: That's correct, we are not going to drive a truck on it, but we believe the quality is certainly the first thing and by putting concrete and steel down, we're very much assured that this putting green will last for years and years to come.
M.H.: How about as far as the drainage systems on the holes? You are putting in...gardening buckets basically, a PVC bucket and a PVC sleeve with rocks. What's the idea behind that?
M.C.: Exactly. Just because you can, in certain parts of the country, have major downpours over time, that just in case there was just a huge amount of rainfall, the green would still be protected because of the way that we will have water disperse itself over the green and under the ground underneath, so it will never effect the integrity of the putting green.
M.H.: Now, a lot of people watching this show are going to be gung ho and try to do this themselves, but for those who don't, what can they expect for a price, to have one of these installed in their own backyard?
M.C.: It will all vary in different parts of the country do to the costs of concrete and access with concrete to someone's backyard.
M.H.: Yeah, I see you knocked down part of their fence over here.
M.C.: Exactly. Exactly. By and large I would say a ballpark is somewhere between $15 and $20 a square foot.
M.H.: Well, it doesn't take up too much space in this yard. We've got a very big yard, but how big is this one that you're building?
M.C.: Certainly. Our average home backyard putting green is approximately 500 square feet. This one is about that length right now. We've got five individual cups built in and a number of different swells and creativities so that all puts break just a little bit differently.
M.H.: How do you determine how the golf course is going to lay, how it falls and moves?
M.C.: We sit down with the homeowners initially and get an idea of what they'd really like to see in a backyard green. We talk to them about the different designs that they might like to have, the different elevations they'd like to see, how we can blend it into an entire backyard package. In this case, they're going to add a pool and add a number of different landscaping amenities around the green, but the green will certainly be one of the focal points of this backyard.
M.H.: Mike, what's the important thing to consider when they're putting down the carpet? I notice they're using glue like many carpet layers do. What's critical around the hole?
M.C.: Well, obviously, with all the care we've taken relative to where the holes are placed and the different slopes, is, of course, to make sure the carpet lays flat.
M.H.: And how about the turf. This is really nice. I mean it looks and feels like grass. You walk on it, it feels like grass. What kind of turf is it?
M.C.: It's state of the art turf. We've been putting these in all over the country. All of the UV protection that has been learned, all those learnings from all the football fields from the sixties and on are incorporated into this product. This is a special product that reflects bent grass greens. The quality, it actually looks like grass. IF you ever go down and touch it, it would feel like grass. This right now would put at about 7 1/2 on a stemp meter, which corresponds nicely to the pace at most bermuda greens across the country. But with the addition of sand, you have the opportunity to speed up the roll of the ball so that's it more like a bent grass green that might be a 9, 9 1/2, 10.
M.H.: You can actually control the speed of the ball with sand?
M.C.: Exactly. You can talk to you're head grounds keeper of the club you play most on and get a sense of what the stemp meter reading is on that course and then come back and adjust your green accordingly.
M.H.: And how long does the whole process take? Ours took a couple of days here, but what's typical to build one from start to finish?
M.C.: Yeah, by and large, depending on how Mother Nature takes care of us, it's probably a 12 hour job. But we will typically spread it out over two or three days.
M.H.: Mike, appreciate it.
M.C.: Thank you, Michael. Good visiting with you.
M.H.: Well, thanks. As soon as it's done I'm going to get the homeowner out here and see how it rolls.
M.C.: Fantastic.
M.H.: Well, before we make that first put, let's ask Sherri Hutcheon, the homeowner, why would you add this to your backyard?
Sherri Hutcheon: Well I think the main reason is my husband is such an avid golfer and he just loves the game. I'm trying to take the game up myself. I'm not that great, but...and then we have a little two-year-old, and I think it would be great entertainment as she grows up. It will be super for her as well. So we bought it for the family.
M.H.: How did the building process go? It doesn't look as violent as putting in a swimming pool.
S.H.: It was awesome. And it didn't take that long at all. It was just like a three day process and we loved it, the people were great, we enjoyed it. So it was fun.
M.H.: Well, we've got a few million people waiting to see this first put, see how it rolls.
S.H.: Oh, great.
M.H.: We're all sanded now. The grass should be ready, so let's see that put.
S.H.: Well, we'll see what happens.
Episode 012 1995 - 96 Season
| Heating and AC | Fireplace Checkup | Faux Walls | Cleaning Gutters | Backyard Putting Green | Bi Weekly Mortgage Payments |LIST |
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