Putting Green Nitrogen Regime and Repair Tool Affect Golf Ball Mark Recovery.

Improperly repaired or neglected golf ball/pitch marks compromise putting green playability.  Recent evaluations of novel and traditional repair tools have been conducted.  Emphasis on cultural practices affect on ball mark injury and recovery, however, is limited.  This field study evaluated ball/pitch mark recovery as affected by six repair tools and nitrogen regime (0, 7.3, and 14.6 kg N ha^-1 14 d^-1) on two creeping bentgrass (Agrostis stolonifera L. cult. ‘Pennlinks’) areas with contrasting initial surface firmness and rootzone moisture contents.  Recovery was quantified using visual scar injury (SI) ratings and scar area measurements.  Novel push-style tools in this study did not provide any meaningful advantage for recovery compared to traditional tools used correctly with a knit-and-twist method.  Ball marks receiving supplemental nitrogen fertilization had acceptable SI by 10 DAR compared to 14 DAR for the unfertilized marks on the soft surface.  For the firm surface, enhanced recovery due to supplemental nitrogen were not as evident but this was likely the result of smaller initial ball mark size when compared to the soft surface.  Nitrogen status and regime has little impact on initial ball mark injury but is an integral factor in improving recovery time, especially for large ball marks.