How to Repair a Golf Ball Divot on the Putting Green

Each time a golf ball hits the putting surface, it leaves a mark. Proper golf etiquette dictates that you repair any damage to the putting surface, especially damage due to a ball.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Divot Tools
• Golf Balls
• Putters
• Golf Balls

1. Look for a golf ball mark on the green near your ball. This would be where the ball landed.

2. 

   Use a ball mark repair tool to fix the divot left from the ball.

3. Insert the ball repair tool into the outer edge of the ball divot, with the prongs angled at 45 degrees. Gently work the turf up and back into place by gently pushing up and forward.

4. 

   Repeat step 3 around the entire ball mark as necessary.

5. 

   Pat down the ball mark with a putter, until the mark is as smooth as the rest of the putting surface.

6. Continue on with your game.

Tips & Warnings

• It's okay to repair more than one ball mark on each green. In fact, it is good practice to repair at least one additional ball mark - your fellow golfers and the course greenskeepers will appreciate it!
• Repair any ball marks that are in the line of your putt for the smoothest possible surface.
• If ball marks are not fixed within a certain time frame, the grass will die.
• Golf course personnel may ask you to leave the course if you don't repair divots on the putting green.

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[bjp7834]

on 8/4/2009 Please just make sure you repair your ball mark. I hate nothing more than to get to a green and see multiple ball marks that were not tended to. It is horrible etiquette!

on 8/8/2006 If the pitch-mark is repaired incorrectly, the green will take longer to recover than if the player had done nothing at all.

The proper way to repair a pitch mark is to insert the repair tool at a 45 degree angle just outside the lip of the "crater" and then PUSH the repair tool toward the center of the "crater," essentially "pulling" the green closed. Repeat around the opposite sides if necessary, then press the area down flat with your putter.

Never use your repair tool to "pry-up" or "dig" the bottom of the pitch-mark back up to the level of the green. Doing so will badly damage the tiny roots of the grass and will only cause more damage. Remember: greens are more delicate than the stuff growing in your front yard! They must be treated gently!

on 8/8/2006 Stick the prongs of a good ball mark tool (not the one pictured on this sight) at various points just outside the edges of the mark. Twist the tool in your hand while the prongs are in the ground, in short 1/4 turn twists. This will pull the surrounding turf in toward the center of your ball mark. Turns should be made with a slight tendency toward raising the turf in the center of the mark. One of these twists around the four sides of the mark should do the job. Tamp the site with the sole of your putter for a smooth finish. The grass will fill the small pinhole voids in a couple of days.

on 11/22/2005 Although it's a common mistake, the mark left on the putting green by a golf ball is properly called a "pitch-mark". A "divot" is the damage made by a club, usually an iron, while swinging.

on 11/22/2005 The handiest tool for ballmark (divot) repair is located here: www.divotmaster.com