AGL header 로고

Things I would do right away if I were a golf course owner(2)

The future direction of course management is a combination of science and art based on an artificial intelligence machine learning platform!

Twenty years ago, I worked as a course manager at Troon North Golf Club in the Sonoran Desert in Arizona. In the summer, the temperature would easily reach 40-45 degrees Celsius, and the wind would be hot and dry. It was much more severe than the recent heat waves we are experiencing in Korea. The Troon Golf headquarters, the world's leading golf management company, is located in Scottsdale, right next to the golf course, so the company's president and executives would frequently visit.

When they came, the walkie-talkies would get busy and all sorts of harsh words and combinations of specific words would fly around, such as "Grass," "Burning," "Fire on fairway," "Diseases," and "Symptoms."

One of my main responsibilities as the course manager was to drive a cart around the vast golf course and inspect the condition of the grass with my own eyes.

I would check to see if the grass was burning due to lack of irrigation, or if it was being drowned by too much water. I would also check to see if any diseases that appear at the same location every year were showing signs of re-emerging.

When I got tired, I would sneak out with two cold cans of beer and take a shot in the shade of a rock wall on the highest teeing ground in the middle of the desert.

At that time, I thought that if I could become a bird's eye view and look down at the course from the sky, I could map areas where diseases frequently occur every year, or areas where irrigation fails due to the slope of the course mounds. I could also predict and deal with problems in advance according to the soil temperature and humidity conditions at certain times of the year.

Course management can be divided into two main categories : general maintenance and spot treatment. While general maintenance is relatively straightforward, spot treatment can be costly and time-consuming.

In the past, the American course management trend was a combination of 30% science and 70% art. However, this is only possible if a skilled and knowledgeable course manager is in place. As a result, the difference in course conditions between golf courses is clear. This is because there are clear limitations to human-based course management.

Machine learning (ML) technology based on Vision AI is the solution to this problem.

Vision AI technology can detect and prevent the symptoms and signs of course problems in advance, even in complex course environments, without disturbing golfers' play. This can save up to 50% on course management costs, and customer satisfaction can also be improved by maintaining the best course conditions.

In addition, big data accumulation and rapid learning effects through the ML platform can improve a variety of management techniques that humans could not do before, such as renewal work schedules for maintaining optimal soil physical properties, preventive spraying of pesticides/fertilizers, and calculation and management schedules for the movement of management personnel and efficient machine equipment on a vast course.

If ML technology could learn the layout and grass cutting patterns that golfers see on the course and understand the aesthetics. And if it could reach the level of art where it could decide on separate management for specific holes or areas as needed, wouldn't all golf course owners introduce it right away!

Sources : Golf Industry news (http://www.golfin.co.kr)

Click to View the Original Article