Atalaya’s championship Old Course is currently closed for hollow tining and other maintenance. The course will reopen on Monday, the 21st of June.
What is a hollow tine?
Specifically, a “hollow tine” is a round tube that penetrates the ground and collects a core. The tube then again penetrates the ground and pushes the core out through a hole. This process removes poor quality soil and thatch and, at the same time, allows water and air to seep into the root zone.
Why is hollow tining important?
According to Andrés Sánchez Garcia, General Director of Atalaya Golf & Country Club, “a deep hollow tining and top dressing with silica sand of the Old Course tees is very necessary….” The hollow tining decompacts and smoothens the surface of the tees.
Sánchez comments that this work is necessary “at least once a year” and that it is particularly important on par three holes “where there is an intensive and deep wear of the tees”. Sánchez continues: “The top dressing of the divots and the whole area improves the recovery of grass and also smooths the area for a more correct stance position.”
