F.O.Y.
F i e l d o f t h e Ye a r
Ludwig Field,
University of Maryland
CHALLENGES
One special challenge has been a diminishing budget with increasing expectations. In 2009, we opened a $500,000 golf practice facility and were
made to maintain the course ($41,000 per year) with no budget increase.
The next year saw a ten percent budget cut which stretched our budget even
thinner. So creativity, a lessened dependence on contracted help, and a lot of
hard work allowed us to continue to provide the high quality playing surface
that our teams deserve. Without the student-athlete, we would not have jobs
Level of Submission: College
Category of Submission: Soccer
Head Sports Turf Manager: PJ Ellis
Title: Director of Grounds, University of Maryland
Full-time staff: Mac Wallace, James Franck,
Neville Kelly, Casey Rezendes
Other crew to recognize: Kurt Klinger, Alex
Steinman, Ignacio Rodriguez, Trey Whelton, Curtis
Lazar, Patrick Sajak, Seth Whitehill
Original construction: 2006
Turfgrass variety: Patriot bermudagrass
Rootzone compostion: 100% sand
Overseeding: We overseed with perennial rye
starting in late September and continue weekly applications for 4 weeks totaling 15 lbs. of rye seed/M.
The ryegrass germinates in the fall and becomes
the dominate turf in the early spring before being
chemically transitioned out of the field in late May.
Drainage: Subsurface drains wrapped in gravel
with bridging sand on top. Smaller field drains
move water to larger perimeter drain to be carried
off field.
L to R: Alex Steinman, Neville Kelly, Kurt Klinger, P.J.
Ellis, men's soccer coach Sasho Cirovski, Casey
Rezendes, Jamie Franck, and Mac Wallace.
36 SportsTurf | December 2012
www.sportsturfonline.com
