Do you have a green thumb?

Bring a piece

of a golf course home

Are you game?

According to Casey Cumpton, owner of Golfscapes Northwest, installing a putting green is not as complicated as you might think.

The first thing to consider is how you use your yard right now.

Are you already active in recreational sports? Would you want a green as a centerpiece or placed in an area where you could include more space for chipping and practicing your mid-range game? Do you want it to blend seamlessly with your landscaping?

Regardless of your lifestyle or landscape, Cumpton says it’s easy to add a green. As an example, the Henze family has an average-sized lot off Indian Trail Road in northwest Spokane. The area was once their son’s play area complete with a big swing and slide. They simply pulled that out and put in the green.

The next consideration is budget. “This is more of a high end item than say just putting in grass or plants,” says Cumpton. He estimates that an average installation of just the green with reasonable access to the site and no underlying soil or slope problems will run about $12 to $15 per square foot. After basic installation, costs can go up depending on landscaping or special circumstances with your site.

Installing the green

The first thing Cumpton does when he begins an installation is assess the soil conditions of the site. The site must be able to drain water away quickly. If you have sandy or gravelly soil, it is fairly straightforward to begin the installation. If you have a clay-based soil, extra excavation may be required to channel the water away from the green.

Once the base has been properly prepared, Cumpton and his crew will put down between four and twelve inches of gravel and meticulously pack it with a mechanical packer.

On top of this base, they will then lay several inches of contouring sand. The coarse sand is also meticulously packed to form the base of the green. Cumpton then works with the homeowner to establish where the holes will be and what characteristics the golfer wants in each hole and the overall green.

The Henzes have four holes on their green. Each has a different set of breaks, rises and slight grade changes including one hole that has a turtleback that slopes away from the hole on all sides.

Once the contours have been set, the artificial surface material is laid out and glued together. The actual green material is a polypropylene artificial turf material. “It’s the same stuff the Cougars play on at Martin Stadium and that the Huskies installed in Seattle,” Henze said.

Cumpton then fills the fibers of the turf material with a special blend of sand so that there is only about 1/8 inch of fiber sticking up from the surface. “The sand is blown into the fibers with a blower at about 100 miles per hour. That actually sets the sand in the fibers,” says Cumpton. This surface is then topped with a green sand that blends with the green turf.

The final step is to adjust the speed that the ball will roll across the green. “We take a heavy water-filled lawn roller and actually spend anywhere from three to twelve hours just rolling the green,” says Cumpton.

Maintaining the green

Green maintenance is simple. Henze merely blows away any debris with a blower. This does not disturb the sand because it is so tightly packed into the fibers. Stains and spills can be easily cleaned up without damaging the surface. Once in a while you can add some new topping sand just to renew the texture and color “It’s designed to be used quite heavily without problems,” says Cumpton.

Artificial or natural

According to Cumpton, the biggest reason artificial greens are preferred is the maintenance required on a natural green. “A natural green requires several hours a week of work just to maintain it – IF everything is going right, Cumpton said.”

Cumpton also pointed out that avid golfers benefit from the flexibility of an artificial surface. Professional golfers will actually alter the characteristics of their artificial greens to match the characteristics of the natural greens for an upcoming match. You can’t change a natural green to do that.

What do Henze’s neighbors think of the green in his yard? He says he’s found several golf balls near the green. He is pretty sure one neighbor who has a high deck behind him has been lobbing a few balls his direction. “Just don’t hit the big window,” he said with a laugh.

He’s not sure what he will do if someone actually makes a hole in one.