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Aeration Isn’t the Enemy—Your 12-Handicap Is

October 26, 2024

An Interview with Chip Wexley

Golf course superintendent sitting in his office discussing the benefits of aerating golf greens.

Every fall, without fail, the members of Willow Dunes Country Club unleash their annual grievances about aeration season. Complaints flood in about bumpy greens, unsightly holes, and the audacity of maintenance crews disrupting their "perfectly calibrated" putting strokes.

So, we sat down with Thurston “Chip” Wexley, our esteemed Golf Course Superintendent & Overseer of Perfection, to address the backlash head-on.


The Interview: Chip Speaks His Mind


Interviewer: Chip, once again, members are furious about aeration. Any thoughts?


Chip: Oh, plenty. But let me start with this—if your putting is so delicate that a few sanded holes ruin your round, maybe the problem isn’t the greens. Maybe it’s you.


Interviewer: Okay, fair. But members are saying the course was perfect before aeration.


Chip: Of course it was! That’s because of all the work we put in. And if we didn’t aerate? You’d have compacted, oxygen-starved, lifeless greens by next summer, and then you’d be complaining about that. This isn’t some secret plot to ruin your back nine. It’s called preventative maintenance—something most of these guys don’t even do for their own health.


Interviewer: But some members say other clubs don’t disrupt play like this.


Chip: Other clubs? Oh, you mean the ones with slower, bumpier greens and less meticulous maintenance? Right. We could stop aerating and just let the greens turn into spongy, diseased nightmares, but I have a feeling those same members would be the first to demand my head on a platter when the course started playing like a cheap muni.


Interviewer: Some members are asking why we don’t aerate in the off-season instead.


Chip: Brilliant idea! Except for the small issue of science. The best time to aerate is right now, when the grass is still actively growing and can recover before winter dormancy. Doing it in the dead of winter would be about as effective as practicing your bunker shots indoors—you can try it, but don’t expect great results.


Interviewer: Any final words for members frustrated by the timing?


Chip: Yeah—patience. Give it a couple of weeks and these greens will roll better than ever. And in the meantime, if you really need something to blame for missing that five-footer, I’d suggest looking inward.


The Takeaway


Aeration may be inconvenient, but it’s essential. The next time you see the maintenance crew out there punching holes in the greens, just remember: Chip isn’t ruining your game—he’s saving the course.

And if you still can’t handle a few imperfections for a couple of weeks? There’s always the practice green.

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