How fast should the Greens STIM on a golf course?
Today it is almost unheard of for major championship greens to stimp lower than 11 or 10, unless weather conditions, such as high winds in the British Open, make such speeds unfair or even unplayable. Was this page helpful? Thanks for letting us know!
What is a good green speed on the PGA Tour?
A green speed of 7 is generally considered very slow and is slower than a green speed of 9 (a moderate speed). A stimp rating of 13 or 14 is considered lightning-fast. Most PGA Tour venues have green speeds of around 12. The Stimpmeter looks like a yardstick with a V-shaped track down the middle.
What is a good stimp rating for green speed?
A green speed of 7 is generally considered very slow and is slower than a green speed of 9 (a moderate speed). A stimp rating of 13 or 14 is considered lightning-fast.
What is a fast golf green?
Fast greens will usually register readings up around 10 feet and beyond, with readings of 12 or more being common for professional tournaments. Depending on the weather and other factors, the average golf course will usually come in around the 8-10' range.
What is considered fast on the Stimpmeter?
What is fast on the stimpmeter? Fast or slow is arbitrary but in general, anything over an 11 is considered fast amongst most golfers. Some of the fastest green readings are around 14 or 15 (like Augusta National) and are nearly impossible to putt on for most amateur golfers as the golf ball rolls forever.
What is the average Stimpmeter reading?
A typical golf club usually aims for a Stimpmeter reading of 9 or 10. This is generally considered to be the goldilocks zone of green speeds; not too fast, not too slow. For golfing competitions, it's not uncommon to see stimpmeter readings creep up to 11 or 12, which is the average stimpmeter reading on the PGA Tour.
What is the average green speed?
When the USGA introduced the Stimpmeter in 1978, it had just completed a year-long test of 581 courses. It found the average green speed to be about 6.5.
How high does the Stimpmeter go?
For professional tournaments the greens are normally made slicker and quicker, and stimpmeter readings can reach 13 or more. However the most appropriate green speed depends upon the course, in particular how contoured the greens and also how exposed they are to the wind.
What speed are the greens at Augusta?
Augusta greens would normally run at 12 on a flat surface but could be as quick as 20 to 30 down one of those notorious slopes. The distance a golfball rolls on a pulling green is determined by the force imparted and the friction generated between ball and surface.
What course has the fastest greens?
Oakmont Country ClubRecommendations. The greens at Oakmont Country Club (where the device was conceived) are some of the fastest in the world, with readings of 15 feet (4.6 m).
How can I speed up my golf greens?
To balance green speed and turf health, it is recommended to mow as high as possible to achieve the desired green speed, which preserves extra leaf material for photosynthesis and growth. Increasing mowing frequency is another common method to improve surface quality and increase green speed.
How do you read green speed?
5 Ways to Read The Green For Speed and BreakStep 1 – Find the straight putt. ... Step 2 – Gauge the slope of the green. ... Step 3 – View the green from around the hole. ... Step 4 – View the green from where you are going to hit the ball. ... Step 5 – Visualize the path of the ball.
Can golf greens be too fast?
Trying to make greens faster than they should be leads to higher maintenance costs, turf damage, lost hole locations, and rounds of golf that are slower and less enjoyable.
What is a fast green?
Fast Green FCF, also called Food green 3, FD&C Green No. 3, Green 1724, Solid Green FCF, and C.I. 42053, is a turquoise triarylmethane food dye.
Why did Stimpson measure green speed?
Open at Oakmont Country Club, Stimpson realized that golf course superintendents needed a way to measure green speeds in order to ensure that each green on a golf course rolled at the same speed.
How long is a stimpmeter?
Here are some specifics about how the Stimpmeter is built and works: Stimpmeters were originally wooden, modern Stimpmeters are made of aluminum. They are 36 inches long. Working on a flat portion of the green, the superintendent or other course or tournament official places a golf ball at one end in a notch about six inches from that end.
What is a stimpmeter?
Updated April 09, 2018. A Stimpmeter is a simple tool used to measure the speed of putting greens: how easily a golf ball rolls across the surface of the green . The Stimpmeter is a very low-tech device, essentially just a small metal ramp that is angled down to a flat part of a putting green.
What does the groove on the stimpmeter mean?
There is a groove, or channel, down the center of the Stimpmeter, which keeps the ball on track as it rolls down. When the golf ball exits the ramp, it rolls out across the green. How far the ball rolls before stopping becomes the "Stimp rating," indicating green speed.
When did the USGA start using the stimpmeter?
In 1978 , the Stimpmeter was finally adopted by the USGA for use at golf courses around the United States, and the American governing body began making them available to courses, along with instructing superintendents in their use. The Stimpmeter's use spread around the world in the years after.
Do putting greens have flat areas?
But in 2012, a small modification was made to take into account the fact that modern putting greens sometimes don't have flat areas large enough to allow a full roll-out by a golf ball released from a Stimpmeter. Today there is another notch on the reverse side of the Stimpmeter, halfway down the ramp.
Who invented the stimpmeter?
That is, its name comes from the name of its inventor. The inventor of the Stimpmeter was Edward S. Stimpson. Stimpson was an accomplished amateur golfer; he won the Massachusetts Amateur Championship in 1935. And that was the same year Stimpson invented the simple tool for determining green speeds that bear his name.
What should you identify when you're out on the green?
When you’re out on the green, you should identify the dark green patches, as well as the light green patches. Both of these will help you to determine the grain direction.
How to practice putting pace?
First, put a golf tee into the ground, at a spot where you’ll hit putts from. This will be your starting point. Pick a putt that is level – neither downhill nor uphill. Then, place more of these golf tees into the surface of the green. Do it at the following walking paces: 5, 10, then finally, 15. Basically, you should be putting 1 golf tee at 5 walking paces away from your starting point. Another tee will be 10 paces away from the starting point. The last will be 15 paces away from your original starting tee. Easy!
How to tell if a green is grain?
One more way in which you can determine a green’s grain is by simply looking inside of the golf hole. Yes, the actual golf hole – the one you’re trying to get your ball into!
What is aim point in golf?
The first technique that we do have to show you is the Aim Point – a putting technique or system. This system or technique was developed by a software developer who had a passion for golfing. As an amateur golfer, he aimed to create this technique in order to have an outcome that is more predictable.
Do fast greens break faster than slow greens?
An important thing to know is that a fast green will break quite a bit more than a slow green would. And so, fast putts downhill will break quite much more in comparison to slow putts uphill.
What is a stimpmeter?
It's called a Stimpmeter. It's an ingeniously simple device – basically, a notched, V-shaped metal rail. The USGA sells its official Stimpmeter only to golf course superintendents or managers, so you'll have to obtain one through other means (such as an online auction site or retailer).
What makes a greens putt faster?
Strong winds. Unlike the first two points on our list, wind is one weather condition that will actually serve to speed up the greens. If a strong wind kicks up during your round, moisture is going to be pulled out of the putting surfaces – and your putts will become faster as a result.
How to start a golf game?
To start, take your putter and three golf balls from the bag. Find a long stretch of open green and hit some long putts from one side of the green to the other. It is typical for most golfers to start out with short putts, but you will get far more benefit from rolling long putts at this point.
How far should you drop your golf balls from the cup?
Finally, it is time to hit some short putts. Drop your golf balls at around 3'-4' from the cup and knock them in one at a time. Short putts don't change much based on the speed of the greens, but you do need to be careful not to be too aggressive when the greens are fast.
How to mark a starting point on a putting green?
One easy way to mark your starting point is by placing a tee into the putting surface. Place the ball into the notch in the Stimpmeter, and raise the device slowly until the ball falls out of the notch and rolls away.
How high are the greens in the PGA Tour?
For comparison's sake, the greens on a typical public golf course “Stimp” at about 8 – 8.5”. On the PGA Tour, greens are routinely 11' – 12', and sometimes 14' or higher for the Masters, U.S. Open and a few other events.
How to determine green speed?
To come to a final determination on green speed, add up these numbers and divide by six. This number, stated in feet, is the speed of the green according to the Stimpmeter. You will often hear golfers refer to green speeds by just stating a single number, such as when somebody says the greens are 'running at a 10'.
How far can you see the break of a green?
You can often see the contour of the green as you’re approaching it from a distance of 100 yards and in.
Is pace important on the PGA Tour?
Getting your pace right is very important and also can prove to be a bit difficult. Watching the pros on the PGA Tour. It’s amazing when you think that from week to week they’re playing on entirely different golf courses. The speeds of the greens can and will be very subtly different from course to course. The PGA Tour Stars seem to adjust to this with relative ease.
How fast do Bentgrass greens change?
It is often noted however, that the Bentgrass greens at Augusta National can change speed during the day as they dry out in the morning and then slow down as the sun sets in the evening, peaking somewhere around 15 on the stimpmeter.
Which golf course has the most lethal greens?
Augusta has some of the most lethal greens in the world of golf (Getty Images) For some further perspective, the greens at Oakmont Country Club (where the stimpmeter was conceived) are some of the fastest in the world, with readings of 13–15 feet at their quickest.
How fast are Oakmont greens?
Open. No joke. Legend has it Oakmont’s greens reach head-spinning Stimpmeter readings around 14-15 feet on a regular basis. That’s brutally fast on flat greens – and Oakmont’s greens are not flat.
Which golf course has the toughest greens?
Besides Oakmont, there are two other world-famous courses that can legitimately lay claim to the world’s toughest greens: Augusta National and Royal Melbourne. Here’s a quick look at both.
Who saw Gene Sarazen putt off a green?
True story. A guy named Edward Stimpson was watching the 1935 U.S. Open and witnessed the great Gene Sarazen putt off a green and into a bunker. Stimpson thought, ‘Hmmm, these are some pretty slick greens…. Now if we only knew how slick.’.
How to determine green speed?
Shortcut Method to determine Green Speed. After rolling the three balls, provided they all come within 8 inches of each other, eliminate the ball that traveled the shortest and the ball that traveled the longest and measure the distance from the end of the meter to the one ball in the middle.
How many greens are mowed in the morning?
Since the practice putting green and the other 9 or 18 greens on the golf course are mowed by the grounds crew early in the morning, the speed of the practice putting green is a good indication of what to expect through out your round of golf.
What does reading a green mean?
Reading a green is about anticipating how your golf ball will move from your putter to the hole. No green is perfectly flat, so you always need to take a close look at the slope to do this. Any hills or divots will also change the speed of your ball and, sometimes, its trajectory.
How to know which way your golf ball rolls?
Walk along the lower side of the hole as you return to your ball. Once you have identified which part of the green is lowest, you know which way your ball will roll after you hit it. Stroll back to your ball, taking plenty of time to examine how the green changes.
How to hit a putter in golf?
Hit the ball firmly towards the hole. Shake out your arms to loosen yourself up if you need to. Keep a firm grip on your putter, take a deep breath, and hit cleanly through the ball. Avoid stopping your swing short, or else your ball will end up short of the hole.
What is the difference between a good score and a great score?
The difference between a good score and a great score out on the golf course may be the result of effective putting. Sinking balls in a single stroke involves reading greens accurately, a skill any golfer can learn. Effective golfers study the green from many angles before settling on a shot.
How to adjust strokes on golf ball?
You can adjust your stroke by hitting the ball towards your right foot. Squat behind the ball to finalize your read. Complete your read with a worm’s-eye view of the ball’s path to the hole.
How to improve your golf ball read?
Get multiple reads until you have a good feel for the green. Try walking to the higher side of the green and imagining how you want to hit the ball. If you still aren’t sure, walk back to the midpoint between the ball and hole.
How to visualize reading a golf ball?
To visualize the read, imagine pouring water into the hole. Ask yourself which way the water would spill out if it were to overflow. You expect the water to spill out towards the lower end of a slope. The last stretch of green before the hole has the most impact on your ball.