Why "the bunkers are inconsistent" is the second most offensive phrase in golf.

A hazard is defined as "something that is likely to cause a problem or damage."

Once upon a time, some would say a better time, bunkers on a golf course were defined as hazards.  We traded the term bunker for the more popular "sand trap," and the evolution began as we have now moved to "sand features."  We no longer have bunkers and they certainly almost never appear as hazards.  Our expectations are that they should play the same and we should be able to get up and down and avoid the penalty that a hazard would certainly offer.

So, where have the hazards gone?  Is the golfing ego so delicate that a presenting bunker that proves itself as a hazard, penal in nature, has lost all of its impact on the game?

Bunkers are hazards, they are penal in nature

Bunkers are second largest consumer in labor costs on a golf course, with the greens being number one.  When you consider the square feet of the bunkers, they come pretty close to the cost of greens per square foot.  That seems crazy, that a feature meant to make the game more interesting by its penal nature costs almost as much as the putting surface.  We put a tremendous amount of effort to make a hazard not a hazard.  We would be better off to refer to them as "sand features," and put benches out so we could admire their aesthetic qualities.

Footprints after playing a shot

The amount of time and money that we have dedicated to a make a feature that is meant to penalize players in order to make it "consistent with the others," "more playable," or "appealing," is absurd.  Bunkers are hazards, and hazards are penal......they are to be avoided and it your ball happens to find such a place, you can expect to pay a price.  Otherwise, what is the point?

When did we become so fragile that our off line shots are not supposed to cause us some sort of pain or grief.  Golf is meant to humble us and if we can't handle being humbled, well.....maybe we should look at that.  But I digress....

Sand smoothed with foot leaves a playable hazard

Since the pandemic, many golf courses took the bunker rakes away.  What we discovered was that the bunkers did not look much different at the end of the day than they did when the course was scattered with rakes.  Golfers who used to take the time to smooth the bunker with a rake, were now able to do a decent job with their feet, smoothing the shot and their foot placements with a sweeping motion.  Walking with care in and out of the bunker, they were able to disrupt very little sand.  Without a rake, they were still able to leave the bunker semi-playable for the next unfortunate lad.

The loss of the bunker rake also turned out to be a great deal of labor savings.  Mowers didn't have to reposition rakes and either did the mechanical bunker rakes.  Regular course maintenance realized improvements in efficiency.  It seems like the benefits of not having rakes scattered all over the course were greater than the benefit of having them.  I think it is truly possible and reasonable that bunker rakes can be removed and the nature of the bunker not be affected greatly.

Bunker rakes are another amenity, cost of replacement, reduced efficiency, and yearly maintenance all associated with such items should be evaluated.  This great game could be much better off simplifying and getting back to the soul of the game.  I say lets bring back the hazard and do away with sand features.

Golf is a great game and we could improve on our efforts to make it even more sustainable, affordable, and inclusive.  Bunkers as hazards is a good place to start, along with ball washers.

I say we begin a movement in golf to "bring back the hazards!"

We just need a good slogan, any suggestions?

Turf