Chambers Bay golf course to close for months as putting greens go more natural

Chambers Bay will be closed for five months while it focuses on improving the grass on the golf course.

After complaints about dirt-and-sandpaper greens during the 2015 U.S. Open, the University Place course is switching from fine fescue to poa annua, the predominant golf grass in the Northwest.

Work will start Monday (Oct. 1), and the golf course will be closed until March.

Chambers Creek Regional Park will not be affected.

Changing the greens “will immediately improve daily playing conditions and ensure the ability to conduct an exemplary USGA Championship in 2021,” officials said in a news release.

When Chambers Bay opened in 2007, it was known for being one of the only all-fescue courses in the country. But the fescue greens were heavily criticized as bumpy by golfers who played in the Open.

For months leading up to the tournament, officials at the course tried to keep poa annua grass from overtaking the greens, but the invasive grass thrived as grounds crews were forced to water more frequently thanks to above-average temperatures.

Instead of a smooth putting surface, the poa, also known as bluegrass, was bumpy and much of the grass appeared to be dead.

Officials at Chambers Bay said they first detected signs of unhealthy turf on three putting greens early last year.

Poa grass was shipped from British Columbia and used to re-sod the Nos. 7, 10 and 13 greens, as well as the practice green. The results were so favorable that officials decided to redo the remaining 15 greens.

The budget for the final phase (15 holes) is $238,000. The county received a $150,000 to help pay for the project, said Libby Catalinich, Pierce County spokeswoman.

Feedback so far has apparently been good.

“The people I have talked to have been nothing but positive about the new greens they have played,” said Larry Gilhuly, a USGA agronomist with the U.S. Golf Association. “Players think the greens are spectacular. They’re firm. They have good pace.”

The course is owned by Pierce County and Kemper Sports.

Part of the reason new greens are going in is to improve the odds of Chambers Bay hosting another U.S. Open and possibly a U.S. Women’s Open.

Sites for the U.S. Open have been picked through 2027, and sites for the U.S. Women’s Open have been announced through 2023.

Chambers Bay was supposed to host the U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship next year, but it was moved to Bandon Dunes in Oregon at the request of Chambers Bay. The Pierce County course will be the site for the four-ball championship in 2021.

Although Chambers Bay will be closed for five months, the clubhouse, restaurant and golf shop will remain open from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on weekdays and 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on weekends.

This story was originally published September 24, 2018 at 1:55 PM.