Plant growth regulators have proven to be one of the most effective labor savers for turfgrass managers.

There was almost no way to foresee the extent of this year's price increases. Rising crude oil prices have impacted almost everything that makes up a superintendent's budget. Fertilizer, turfgrass seed and sod, irrigation equipment and diesel fuel costs have forced superintendents to either go over budget or make some drastic cuts.

The largest line-item expense in most golf course maintenance budgets is labor, which means that many superintendents can cut overtime or scale back hours in an effort to save capital in one area in an attempt to mitigate unforeseen price increases in other areas.

Many superintendents can reduce mowing of bunker faces in half with the use of PGRs.

Scaling back hours might sound simple, but it isn't easy. Golfers assume conditions will meet long-standing expectations. But there are a few equipment innovations and technologies that might help superintendents hedge the largest line item in their budgets. Larger mowing decks, longer-lasting chemicals, plant growth regulators and advances in irrigation technology all can help golf course crews operate more efficiently.

In an online Golfdom survey, readers were asked, "What equipment or technology saves you the most labor?" Out of 45 respondents, 40 percent said plant growth regulators saves them the most labor; 20 percent said irrigation technology; 13 percent said aeration core harvesters; 13 percent said longer-lasting chemicals; 9 percent said mechanical bunker rakes, and 4 percent of respondents said larger mowing decks eased their labor woes.

Larger mowing decks can help save some time, but significant time and labor can be saved by triplexing greens, if golfers allow it.

"One of the most important labor-saving technologies in our arsenal is (plant) growth regulators, which has decreased our fairway-mowing frequency from four days a week to two to three days," says Tim Sanchez, director of grounds of Woodmoor Pines Golf and Country Club and neighboring King's Deer Golf Club in Monument, Colo.

Sanchez estimates that he saves between eight and 16 hours each week with reduced fairway mowing, and the fuel savings of keeping a mower in the shop more often is an additional savings. Plus those man-hours can be spent elsewhere on the course to get additional work done.

Some courses can save even more using PGRs. Superintendent Mark A. Livingston of Ridge Creek Golf Club in Dinuba, Calif., says PGRs can save him up to 40 man hours a week, much of it on his large practice facility.

"Our practice facility is 25 acres and requires six hours to mow. PGRs reduce the down time for maintenance and increase the revenue by extending hours of operation," Livingston says. "We also have 101 deep bunkers that require hand mowing of steep faces. Again, the mowing interval is increased allowing labor to go elsewhere."

Of course, being able to save on labor depends on the club and the type of expectations from golfers. Even courses that use PGRs regularly on greens and fairways might not be able to cut mowing because of expectations from golfers.

At The Club at Crested Butte, superintendent Stephen Rue values how PGRs suppress Poa annua seedheads and helps create fuller, healthier grass plants, but he can't skip mowing without members of the high-end club noticing. He walk-mows greens — at less than one-tenth of an inch — and approaches every day, and fairways get cut every other day, whether they need it or are just getting cleaned up. He says the only way to really save labor at the course is to reduce bunker grooming.

The same is true at Berkeley Hall Golf Club in Bluffton, S.C. Its 770 members expect its 36 holes to continue to play like they're in tournament-ready condition.

"We are basically spending over our budget," says Danny Malone, superintendent of two layouts. "We've cut back a little on pine straw and mulch, but we'll continue to walk mow greens and tees every day."