Travels with Terry (equipment ideas)

Protect the hole
John Kois, golf course superintendent at the Hanover Country Club in Ashland, Va., modified a Standard Golf Co. model number 30100 cup setter to protect the hole from damage when using the Smithco X-Press greens roller. Kois also uses the protector when the greens are rolled.

Kois removed the handle and surrounds from the cup setter, leaving just the 4.25-inch-diameter portion that fits on top of the Standard Golf model number ST 2000 plastic cup. Kois drilled 5/16-inch-diameter holes on either side of the cup and glued a 1/4-inch-diameter aluminum handle in place using J-B Weld epoxy.

The materials cost less than $100, and the labor involved took one hour.

Have fan, will travel
At the Hanover Country Club in Ashland, Va., two creeping bentgrass greens have restricted air movement. And because of budget limitations, golf course superintendent John Kois doesn’t have enough fans to put one on each green. So, he devised a portable system for moving fans to wherever he needs them.

Kois welded a 2-inch-diameter mounting pipe base to the bottom plate of a dolly so it can be moved to any location around the green. The fan is operated by a portable generator. Kois places a synthetic turf mat over the top of the generator to keep it dry from rainfall and irrigation. A 10-foot-long power cord leading from the generator to the fan makes the fan easier to move.

The fans and generators were in the club’s inventory, Kois bought the dolly at a local hardware store and the welding materials cost about $100. The mechanic’s labor took about an hour and a half.