Putting Green Trial
Fairway/Tee Trial Te 2020 trial provides data on new experimental
entries that may become commercialized in the future. Tis latest trial consists of eighteen creeping entries and one colonial bentgrass entry, planted at eight standard trial locations and seven ancillary trial locations. Turfgrass quality collected in 2024 from eight
locations showed Piper, Oakley, PST-0MRN, and PVF- PV-2 as several of the top turf quality performers. Some entries, such as Musket and Tour Pro were poor performers at some locations and top performers at locations such as College Park, MD. Traffic tolerance ancillary evaluations at Amherst,
Tis shows a 2020 NTEP Bentgrass Trial at Olympia Fields Country Club, Olympia Fields, IL.
Tis trial, containing twenty creeping bentgrasses, was established at nine standard trial locations and ten ancillary trial locations. Turfgrass quality ratings collected in years one through three of the trial revealed several new cultivars that can exceed the quality delivered by previous top performers such as Declaration and Penn A-1. Year four (2024) continued that trend with entries such as PST-PV-1, PST-PV-2, Spectrum, Tillinghast, and Piper finishing in the top turf quality statistical group in at least five of seven locations. Various ancillary trials were conducted at a limited
number of sites. PST-0HR, Piper, PVF-PV-2, Piranha, S1, Tillinghast, and Spectrum filled out the top statistical group in traffic evaluations conducted at Amherst, MA, in 2024. Te West Lafayette, IN, site managed their trial by reducing fungicides to encourage disease and evaluate tolerance. Spectrum, 007XL, and Piper were the only entries to finish in the top turf quality group in 2024. Dollar spot was the main disease noted at both West
Lafayette, IN, and North Brunswick, NJ, with Spectrum, Tillinghast, and CY-4 showing the best tolerance. Similar to 2022 and 2023, pythium root rot (Pythium spp.) was noted at Raleigh, NC, in 2024 with the best performance from PST- 0HR, PSU-CBG1, PSU-CBG3, and Spectrum. Lastly, brown patch was also evaluated at Raleigh where PVF-PV-1, PSU-CBG3, PST-0HR, and Tillinghast were some of the highest rated entries. Tis trial was also evaluated ‘on-site’ at three golf
courses in 2024: Olympia Fields Country Club in Olympia Fields, IL, Shadow Glen Golf Club in Olathe, KS, and Tokatee Golf Club in McKenzie Bridge, OR. Some of the better entries at the three locations include PST-0HR, PSU-CBG1, and PSU-CBG3.
MA, showed great statistical significance in year four. Te colonial bent Musket, along with creeping bentgrass Tour Pro were the only entries in the top turf quality statistical group. When traffic tolerance alone was considered, PST-0R2O, Piranha, 007XL, and Barracuda showed the best performance. Disease resistance is an important feature of any
fairway or tee bentgrass and is a major need for golf course superintendents. Dollar spot, the most prevalent and concerning disease on golf course fairways, was noted at two locations in 2024. Typically, colonial bentgrasses display excellent dollar spot tolerance, however, the creeping bent entries Spectrum, Tillinghast, 007XL, Piper, and Oakley were the highest-ranking grasses.
Low Input Cool-Season In 2015, NTEP established its first management-
based trial, with seventeen locations that manage under ‘low input.’ Te first trial of this type includes cool-season grass cultivars, experimentals, blends, and mixtures of grasses and other species. Tirty-two entries were submitted by sponsors, including single cultivars and blends of Kentucky bluegrass, fine fescue, tall fescue, and perennial ryegrass; mixtures of several grass species, with some including strawberry, white, or Microclover®
(Trifolium spp.); and even a western yarrow entry (Achillea millefolium L.). Management was minimal for the five-year trial,
with no fertilizer applications or irrigation after establishment, no pest control at any time during the trial, and mowing at 3 – 3.5 in. (76.2 mm – 88.9 mm) on the thirteen standard trial sites. Tree ancillary trial sites evaluated the effect of one annual grass pre-emergence application (spring 2016) only, then followed standard trial protocols for the remaining four years of the trial. One additional trial location (West Lafayette, IN) made an additional fertilizer application on one half of each plot for 2016 and 2017 only, to evaluate the effect of the small increase of fertilizer on performance and survival. Overall, these locations were maintained very minimally, which is of interest to an increasing number of our customers.
TPI Turf News July/August 2025
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