How To Repair Ball Marks

Imagine you lot're playing a round of golf. Yous've hit a fantastic tee shot on a curt par three, and you're left with a 40-foot putt... It'southward hard to think of a better feeling than sinking a long, meandering putt, but information technology's as well hard to call up of something worse than watching your brawl roll toward its target, but to hit an onetime ball mark and spin abroad from the hole. Speaking of ball marks, don't forget to repair the one you just made! Every fourth dimension a ball lands on the green, at that place is a adventure of leaving a brawl marker and information technology takes a lot of work to fix them. Not only will the course superintendent be thanking you for the repair, but so will the golfers behind you lot. Contrary to popular conventionalities, there's a right and a wrong mode to repair your ball marks, and you could be doing information technology wrong...

Ball marking repair is an essential part of golf game grade etiquette. Every golfer should be equipped with a repair tool, and with the proper repair process.

Brawl Mark Repair Tools

When information technology comes to the type of tool, you lot have a TON of options. Turf specialists volition fence the ideal repair tool, simply in reality, a simple golf tee should be substantial plenty to fill in your ball marking. In fact, golf game tees are a low bear upon alternative to some of the other bulky brawl mark repair tools out there. Some tools come up with a ball marker as well, which is also handy once you reach the green.

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Ball Mark Repair Procedure

Now the ball marking repair procedure is the role that so many golfers do incorrectly… It'due south easy to forget that greens are alive, and that they are constantly working difficult to repair themselves. At that place is a complex ecosystem at work and years of intense research has improved green functioning immensely. Nevertheless, greens are still susceptible to impairment and disease similar any other grass.

ball mark repair
Photo Courtesy of The USGA from their video. See beneath!

Many golfers casually repair ball marks by sticking their tool into the ground underneath the ball marking, and prying up the turf. Afterwards a quick pat-downwards with their foot, off they become to line up their side by side shot… This method of brawl marker repair tin can wreak havoc on a green! The twisting and prying actions can tear fragile roots and actually do more than damage than good.

The PROPER Procedure for Ball Marker Repair

And so now we've established that yous shouldn't be twisting or prying the turf, but how SHOULD you be repairing your ball marks? The United States Golf game Association (or USGA) put out a fantastic "For The Golfer Video" all nearly the proper brawl mark repair process, and we've summarized the steps here, as well as included the video beneath! Exist sure to bank check it out and accept a look at their other videos. They have some really valuable data in them.

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Identify the "dorsum" of the ball mark. This is the side of the marking that has all of the turf pushed upwardly to it.

Insert your ball marking repair tool at a 45ᴼ angle behind the mark, ensuring that the bulk of the displaced turf is betwixt the ball mark and where you inserted the tool.

Gently push the height of the tool towards the ball mark, moving the surrounding turf to fill in the mark.

Repeat steps 2 and 3 a maximum of 4 times or until the ball mark is completely filled. Be careful to exercise this gently and don't overdo it to avoid root harm.

One time the ball marking is filled in with the surrounding turf, gently tamp downwards the mark with the lesser of your putter. This should restore the putting surface with minimal impairment to the bentgrass light-green.

If you lot take fourth dimension, check for other ball marks while you're at it! At that place are many golfers that don't exercise annihilation to repair their marks and your actress efforts volition be greatly appreciated!

You can spread the discussion! If you come across someone repairing incorrectly, politely inform them that they can minimize turf harm by repairing properly.

USGA Video: How to Repair Brawl Marks

So next time you hit that perfect approach to a soft green, be sure to repair your brawl marker properly. You might even be able to teach your young man golfers a thing or two about repair procedure