Penneagle
Is Unsurpassed For Flawless Fairways
Penneagle was developed by Dr. Joe Duich to
be at home on tees, fairways and greens. While
not as aggressive as Penncross, the new variety
competes with Poa annua on fairways, and with
tripler mowers and clipping removal, will
crowd out the nuisance entirely. Penneagle's
salt tolerance makes it useful along coastal
areas and where effluent water is used.
Penneagle breeding began with 156 vegetatively
propagated bents, later reduced to 21. These
were crossed for turf performance and the
components were tested under a wide variety
of locations in the U.S. and Canada. Results
showed that Penneagle has a wide adaptability,
tight, more upright growth characteristics
than Penncross, and was finer leafed than
most other creeping bents. So, after 18 years
of research and 5 years of testing, the experimental
bent called PBCB was released as Penneagle
and received the Plant Variety Protection
(PVP) No. 7900009.
An early trial for Penneagle was on tees and
greens at the prestigious Congressional CC,
MD. They went into play in June 1978. Tees,
greens and fairways at Butler National in
Oak Brook, IL. and Oakmont GC near Pittsburgh
became showcases for Penneagle when the Western
Open and U.S. Open, respectively, drew attention
to the playing surfaces. These two courses
were instrumental in implementing the tripler
fairvay mowing management practice.
Penneagle is the surface of choice for the
U.S. Croquet Association, with courts all
across the country seeded with the fine-leafed
bent and is the preferred fairway bent on
many golf courses across the country.
