Now, an extra green topping for Chandigarh Golf Club course

Golfers from Tuesday will get to play on the newly re-laid and only three-tiered greens at hole 12 of the 18-hole Chandigarh Golf Club (CGC) course.

As CGC resumes sports activities amid a slew of relaxations after the Covid-19 lockdown, players will now face increased difficulty levels putting three-tier greens at the 415 yard par-4 hole.

Putting from one tier to another can be difficult, as the slope that divides tiers can prevent players from speeding up their game.

The new changes come eight years after the greens at hole 6 were re-laid at the CGC course.

Even as the basic characteristics (a dogleg right hole, green with table top and no bunkers around) of hole 12 remain unchanged, 36% of its surface area has increased from 4,800 square feet to 6,554 square feet.

“The greens are a very important part of the course as 50% of the scored strokes are taken on the greens. In the overall round of the golf game, half is played on the greens. It is a delicate area on the course and requires extra care. Looking at the footfall we have at our course, the greens are overused, so on a rotational basis we need to change the upper layer (turf) of the green. Also, if required, we need to completely relay the green, which is a very technical task, requires time and decent investment too,” says SPS Matharoo, CGC captain, who is responsible for the course.

“We started the relay work of the hole 12 greens in mid-March but faced delays because of the lockdown. Now we are ready to open it for play. During the time of the relaying work, we made a small makeshift green close to the original area of the green. The members are enthusiastic about playing on the new green and hopefully it will add more challenge to their play,” adds Matharoo.

Apart from producing top-class professionals such as Jeev Milkha Singh, Gaganjeet Bhullar, Shubhankar Sharma and Ajeetesh Sandhu, CGC hosts professional events regularly.

The big-ticket Rs1.5 crore Jeev Milkha Invitational Tournament was played last year.

“For hosting top professional golfing events, we need to have a top-class course. For that our course manager and entire course maintenance team have been on their toes,” he says.

Elaborating on the changes at hole 12, course manager Amrit Inder Singh says, “We reduced the existing big slopes and introduced smaller contours and more small slopes. This is the first three-tiered green at the course, all others are either single or two-tiered. The new green gives more pin position, thus increasing its lifespan.”

The 7,202 yard 18-hole CGC course was designed by five-time British Open champion Peter Thompson. He was assisted by a founder member of the club and professional golfer Simran Singh, who also remained coach of the Indian golf team for the 1986 Seoul Asian Games.

The overall annual budget of maintaining the CGC course, including investment in machinery, is around ₹2.5 crore, giving employment to over 100 people for maintaining the course.

Getting it right

Greens: The greens are where the flagstick and hole are located. When players hit the ball on the green, they use a putter to roll the ball into the hole. Half of the strokes are played on the greens.

Components of greens: Below the turf (putting surface) is a 12-inch to 16-inch hole filled with seedbed, sand, gravel, drainage pipes and subsoil.