Dear Linda,
It is Lou from the south of France again and thank you for
all of your clarifications.
We are now entering the winter here and when we play in the
mornings there is often frost on the course. I understand that frost is not
casual water and we have to putt through it on the greens. However the frost
gathers on the bottom of your shoes and sometimes falls on the green in big
lumps. Does it then become ice from which you get relief or is it still frost
from which you don't?
Thanks, Linda. You probably don't have this problem in California
or Florida!
Yours,
Lou from France
Dear Lou,
Once the frost gathers on your shoes into clumps of ice that
get deposited on the putting green, you may remove the clumps from the green. They
have changed their status from “frost” to “ice.” Be careful to pick them up
before tossing them off the green – if you brush them aside you can’t help but
brush the frost along with them, which will result in a two-stroke penalty
(loss of hole in match play).
Frost is not a common problem in southern California or
Florida, but we certainly experience frost in my home state of New Jersey. Most
courses will not permit play on frost-covered greens, so early-morning golfers
experience what we call “frost delay” (play is delayed until the frost disappears).
I’m surprised the greenkeepers in southern France are not concerned about surface
damage caused by players walking on frost-covered greens.
Linda
Copyright © 2013 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.
