Golf Greens Hole Changing

Hole changing frequency will vary depending on the time of year, the amount of usage taking place, the size of the greens and the available pin locations, but a typical frequency might be daily during major tournaments, 3 or 4 occasions per week during the summer and 2 or 3 occasions during the winter, taking an average of 10 minutes per green as a guide. Changing golf holes regularly and positioning the pin in appropriate locations to both spread wear and vary the degree of challenge for golfers is an important maintenance activity.

When the weather is poor and throughout much of the winter period, the front and edges of the green will be common places for positioning the holes. The aim is to try and limit player activity in the main body of the green. Balls will still run through the green, but there will also be an increasing number pitched on the approach which do not run well into the green therefore helping to reduce wear.

The position of a hole on a green was previously stated as being “… at least four paces from the edge of the green, but greater if near a bunker or slope.” (Royal & Ancient, Pace of Play Manual, Rules of Golf. 6. Appendices. 6.10). However, this has now been superseded by Section 6.11 Appendix K ‘Selecting Hole Locations’, “Setting holes where there is enough putting green surface between the hole and the front and sides of the putting green to accommodate the approach on that particular hole.” And that “ holes should be placed where there is an area of two to three feet around the hole that is relatively level”.)


Hole changing equipment ranges from a simple hole cutter, which the sides (two-halves) being hammered in and then the cutter carefully twisted as the core is extracted, to more advanced cutters which have self-hammering shafts and levers for expelling the core from the cutter back into a previously cut hole. The aim when extracting the core from any cut hole is to do so carefully to avoid causing any surface disturbance around the newly cut hole.

To minimise surface disturbance a hole cutting guide can be used. This has a pre-cut hole the diameter of the hole cutter and is typically made from wood, HDPE or metal. The greenkeeper will place their feet either side of the hole cutter to keep the guide well-balanced and when extracted from the hole to avoid any surface disturbance. Once the core has been removed the liner cup is inserted and carefully tapped into place, ensuring it is at even depth and not tilted slightly. To finish off, a light firming around the edge of the hole might be needed to ensure a perfectly level surface is provided and then the perimeter of the hole is trimmed with special curved scissors to remove any stray grass blades which might be overhanging the edge of the hole. Shallow hole cup rings (also called hole highlighters) might also be place on top of the liner to help golfers see the hole position better when putting from a distance.

The old hole needs to be filled in correctly with the core from the newly cut hole, but firstly the liner will need removing. Whilst a liner has been in position in the hole, players will have walked up, close to the lip of the hole, to retrieve their balls and this foot pressure will gradually squeeze out the surface 25mm above the cup just slightly, making removal of the liner more difficult than when it was inserted. The liner may need to be carefully moved back and forth where this has occurred to ease it out of the hole without damaging the surface.

The core cut from the new hole is then placed into the old hole, the core lightly firmed by foot pressure to ensure it is level; if too much pressure is needed then this means there is too much rootzone in the core and it should be removed and a small amount cut away from the base of the core and then replaced – don’t heal in the core to force it to be level, otherwise it will spring back up and be shaved off when mowing next takes place. To finish off a small handful of rootzone is sprinkled around the perimeter cut in the hole and lightly worked in using the back of a hand as this will help the replaced core blend more quickly back into the green.