Golf Course Environmental Profile Measures Water Use, Source, Cost, Quality, Management and Conservation Strategies

Abstract

The golf industry does not have comprehensive national data on property features, management practices, and inputs associated with golf courses. As part of the effort to develop a national golf course environmental profile, The Environmental Institute for Golf sent a survey to superintendents at 16,797 golf facilities in the United States to determine their number of irrigated turfgrass acres, water use, water cost, water sources, recycled water use, water quality, irrigation system characteristics, and water management and conservation strategies. Of these surveys, 15% were returned. Golf course data were stratified by agronomic region, course type, and number of holes. The analysis indicated proportional representation of all types of golf facilities in the results. Golf courses comprise an estimated 1,198,381 acres of irrigated turfgrass in the United States, and their total annual water use averaged over 2003, 2004, and 2005 is estimated at 2,312,701 acre-feet. Water cost and water source vary by agronomic region. Recycled water is one of the water sources for 12% of golf facilities. Nearly all 18-hole golf facilities use one or more techniques for irrigation scheduling, and they use multiple management practices such as hand-watering to conserve water. These data provide an accurate portrayal of golf course water use that establishes a baseline for comparison with data from future surveys to monitor industry change, and the data can serve as a guide for industry agronomic and environmental initiatives.