Post-COVID Bunker Rakes: Stay Away or Return?

[Rkrider99]

Funny this should come up now. Our club just sent out a memo this morning. They have just purchased enough rakes for each member to carry one in their golf cart, and to provide one in the rental carts. While I usually play first thing in the morning, the traps are usually just freshly raked so I don't have any issues.

That said, over the last few weeks, with no rakes, I really didn't see a big issue when I got in a trap. There were a few footprints that were inches deep after a previous golfer had settled himself into the sand and didn't smooth it out afterwards, but it wasn't that common.

During 'tournament play', that may be a different issue, where the later golfers are at a distinct disadvantage over the earlier golfers. Especially, if those earlier golfers knew that the more they mess up the traps, the more disadvantaged the later golfers would be.

[jmanbooyaa]

I say get rid of them. Watching a group in front rack a bunker for 2 minutes is annoying. Plus the courses I play have tons of rocks. I would rather see the rocks and decide for myself if my clubs are worth more than the shot. 

[DeadMan]

I voted to return rakes. Bunkers are difficult enough as is (see LSW or anything like that), especially for amateurs. Adding more difficulty isn't going to improve the experience for the vast majority of golfers. I'm generally not in favor of making the game more difficult for people. Plus, I think this would have the biggest effect on golfers who are already not good. I don't want to add to their woes out of bunkers by making the lie worse. 

I think I could be sold on alternatives - maybe high traffic bunkers get rakes, all bunkers are treated as part of the general area, etc., but I would prefer to keep the rakes.

That said, I would be fine with no bunker rakes for elite amateur and pro competitions.

[Vinsk]

I’m a bit biased as I did some work on fairway bunker shots. While playing the other day I smoked an 8i over a lip from 148yds and hit past the pin and watched it spin back to about 10’ from the pin. That shot felt so damn amazing and it wouldn’t have been possible had it come from a deep footprint or blast hole. However this is during a time when we don’t have rakes so perhaps it wouldn’t be a common event to land in such a situation. Like divot holes on the fairway....hardly a common problem. But I think a well kept bunker is still a challenge. I’d like them raked.

[paperclip]

I voted to keep them even though there would be some courses that would not put them back in an effort to cut costs.  And, golfers who don't rake bunkers tend to be inconsiderate of others.

[David in FL]

Bring them back, even though it’s to the advantage of the better player to leave the bunkers a mess.

Even a poor rake job is better than in some big galoot’s footprint.

I disagree that they slow play too.  The guy who takes 3 to get out of the bomb crater filled bunker takes more time than it does to rake.  Plus, while one is taking, someone else is playing.  Not so while one is still flailing away down there...

[iacas]

7 hours ago, Vinsk said:

However this is during a time when we don’t have rakes

Yeah, man! 🙂

[bkuehn1952]

I am drawn toward the "no rake" position but voted bring back the rakes.  The last group in our City Chamionship would be totally hosed unless the bunkers were just totally left alone for a week.  The time to scuff one's foot prints will vary and some perfectionists will take a long time.  Imagine scuffing a steep faced bunker.  It is hard to see how non-raking will save much time.  Finally, @DeadMan was right that for many of us the game is hard and making the game harder is a step backward.

[xrayvizhen]

I say keep the rakes and anyone who doesn't rake after their massive explosion shot that deposits a child's sandbox worth onto the green should be shot! 😀

Seriously, I've read that bunker maintenance itself, due to golf course staff reductions, has been reduced drastically throughout the country and many bunkers are seriously lacking sand as it is, leaving concrete like conditions in many of them. If the staff isn't going to rake in the morning and the golfer isn't going to rake after a shot when will it ever get done?

In our league, prior to this year, if a ball ended up in a divot or footprint or if the trap was barren of sand, we were allowing players to lift, rake and replace before attempting their shot. I don't know what's going to happen next week when we start the new season.

[Bonvivant]

Bunkers should be more of a hazard. Keep 'em gone I say. All too often the fluffy sand is easier to hit out of than tough rough.

[jmanbooyaa]

Turn them all into mini ponds. Sand is filthy and sticks to you. 

[Bonvivant]

30 minutes ago, jmanbooyaa said:

Turn them all into mini ponds. Sand is filthy and sticks to you. 

 

[Patch]

I voted to get rid of rakes forever for a few reasons. 

 

1. Bunkers are considered hazards. Hazards in golf are to be avoided. 

2. Alot of times, the rakes are not used properly,  worn out, or even missing. 

3. More than a few times I have played ftom bunkers that didn't have enough sand in them to be raked in the first place. This includes sand that gets water down, and sun dried, causing a hard, thick crust to form..

4. If raked properly, this can leave a preferred lie for the next golfer, in a hazard. (see #1)

5. Then of course there is the pace of play "savings" angle by not spending time cleaning up one's own mess. Other's left over mess too in some instances. Then again, an unraked bunker "could" cause the golfer extra srokes to get out, which makes the time saving factor a moot point.   

6. Courses can save a few maintenance bucks by not having to replenish both sand, and worn out, damaged rakes less often. Heck, let current bunkers naturally turn themselve into grassy/weedy hazards requiring little maintenance. Every cost saving measure, no matter how small, helps courses stay in business longer.

 These 6 reasons are just off the top of my head. There's probably a few more

 

 

 

[iacas]

29 minutes ago, Bonvivant said:

 

Off topic, so I'll be very brief, but god DAMN is that horrible writing.

[gbogey]

2 hours ago, bkuehn1952 said:

 Finally, @DeadMan was right that for many of us the game is hard and making the game harder is a step backward.

I won't get it right but there's a Pete Dye quote where he says, "if you don't like playing out of the bunker, don't hit it there!"

[Sandy Divot]

I'm going to quit fixing ball marks, too. Why should anyone be guaranteed a smooth roll? There is no relief from divots. You get what you get in unraked bunkers, so I say let the greens go to crap, too. It will speed up play if you don't take the time to fix ball marks, and the grounds crew will spend less time and money maintaining greens. They can let the greens grow a lot longer to reduce spraying and watering. We can all return to playing under Old Tom conditions.

[iacas]

9 minutes ago, Sandy Divot said:

I'm going to quit fixing ball marks, too.

That's a bad argument. The putting green is defined as basically the specially prepared area on which players roll balls. Bunkers are not - as recently as the 2000s they experimented with furrowed bunkers on the PGA Tour. Kiawah Island doesn't have rakes. Pinehurst area courses, many of those don't have rakes in their sandy areas.

[Sandy Divot]

34 minutes ago, iacas said:

That's a bad argument. The putting green is defined as basically the specially prepared area on which players roll balls. Bunkers are not - as recently as the 2000s they experimented with furrowed bunkers on the PGA Tour. Kiawah Island doesn't have rakes. Pinehurst area courses, many of those don't have rakes in their sandy areas.

I was using a bit of sarcasm, but I think bunkers should be raked. Most folks rarely get up and down from a well maintained bunker, so, as a penalty area, it has probably done it's intended purpose, and added a stroke to a players score. I still think, for the most part, even a poor rake job is better than an unraked footprint or old divot. I've been in footprints, and divots to where I could only advance it to a better part of the bunker.