Quick answer
The big fans on golf courses move air across the putting greens. The moving air cools the grass and soil, dries the leaves and soil surface, and helps the grass keep cooling itself in hot, humid weather.
- Fans sit beside greens where air movement is poor, such as where trees block the breeze.
- They are most common on creeping bentgrass greens, a cool-season grass that struggles in summer heat.
- Turf fans are powered equipment managed by course maintenance staff, so leave them alone when playing nearby.
You may have noticed really big fans on golf courses and wondered what they are and what they do.
What are the big fans on golf courses for?
The big fans on golf courses move air across the putting greens. The moving air cools the grass and the soil, dries the leaves and the soil surface, and helps the grass keep cooling itself in hot, humid weather. Research shows that greens with fans have lower soil temperatures and better roots in summer.
This article explains what the fans are, what they do and who makes them.
What Are the Big Fans on Golf Courses? (Detailed Description)
The large fans are placed beside putting greens where air movement is poor, for example where trees block the breeze. They are most common on greens planted with creeping bentgrass, a cool-season grass that struggles in summer heat and humidity.
Most of the big fans stand 10 feet tall or less so the air moves across the surface of the green.
According to the USGA Green Section, a fan placed more than 20 feet from the green is unlikely to benefit the whole putting surface. The goal is to increase air movement by 3 to 5 mph across the entire green.
The fans come in different shapes and sizes, which leads to the different types of big fans you might come across on golf courses.
Here is a short video that shows what a large fan on a golf course looks like in operation:
Types of Big Fans on Golf Courses
There are several types of big fans on golf courses.
The most common type you will see are:
- Stationary turf fan
- Mobile greens fan
- Smaller golf course fan
- Larger golf course fan
Stationary Turf Fan
Stationary turf fans are mounted on a pole beside a green and wired to a permanent power supply. Not every course has them. Courses install them at greens where air movement is poor.
These fans stay in place from year to year, but they do not run all year. In the Southeast they generally run from Memorial Day to Labor Day, according to a USGA Green Section Record article.
The same article says the most popular fans have 5 to 7.5 horsepower motors and can oscillate. Usually one fan serves one green site. It does not cool the whole course.
Mobile Greens Fan
A mobile golf course fan, or greens fan, is an important tool for any turf manager.
A portable fan is mounted on a trailer so staff can tow it to whichever green needs it.
This lets a course move fans around to treat the areas under the most stress.
Smaller Golf Course Fan
Smaller golf course fans are roughly 38 to 47 inches across. For example, the TurfBreeze range from SubAir Systems includes 38-inch and 47-inch models.
According to the 2020 TurfBreeze product manual, the 47-inch, 3-horsepower model throws air 125 feet at 3 mph and is rated at 65 dB at 50 feet.
Larger Golf Course Fan
Larger golf course fans are around 5 feet across. The TurfBreeze range includes TB-59 models with 5-horsepower motors and a 62-inch, 16-horsepower model.
The same manual lists the 5-horsepower TB-59 models at 5.4 to 5.8 mph at 150 feet and 60 dB at 50 feet.
What Do the Big Fans on Golf Courses Do? (5 Important Benefits)
With the basics covered, here is a closer look at what the big fans on golf courses actually do.
Here are five important and related benefits of big fans on golf courses.
Air Circulation
A golf course fan increases air movement over the green. This dries the soil and shortens the time the grass leaves stay wet.
Drier leaves and soil mean less pressure from turf diseases, according to the USGA.
In addition, the increased air circulation helps to dry dew more quickly, which can reduce the chances of foliar diseases developing.
Lower Green Temperature
Creeping bentgrass greens struggle in summer heat. Long periods of heat stress can leave greens thin, with shallow roots, and more open to disease and algae.
Two common ways to keep bentgrass greens cooler are fans and syringing, which means applying light amounts of water to cool the turf.
The fans move air across the grass, which lowers the temperature of both the turf and the soil. A Virginia Tech researcher writing in Golfdom reported that surface wind speeds of 9 mph can reduce soil temperatures by 4 degrees. SubAir says its TurfBreeze fans can lower surface temperatures by up to 10 degrees and soil temperatures by about 4 to 6 degrees.
Lower temperatures help greens get through hot, humid weather. In Auburn University research summarized by the USGA, greens cooled by fans around the clock had lower soil temperatures than greens without fans.
Protect the Roots
Fans help bentgrass greens hold on to their roots through summer. Bentgrass roots suffer and die back when the soil gets hot.
This matters because roots take up the water and nutrients the grass needs. When roots die back, the grass is less able to absorb both.
Greens with shallow roots can thin out.
A fan helps by cooling the soil. In the Auburn University research, fans increased root length and root weight while lowering soil temperature.
Boost Turfgrass Transpiration
Turfgrass transpiration is the process by which water vapor escapes from grass.
Transpiration cools the plant. In very humid, still weather it slows down. Fans dry the turf surface and let transpiration continue, as a USGA update noted.
Fans help to create a wind that evaporates water from the grass, increasing transpiration rates.
Evaporate Moisture
Golf course greens are some of the most well-manicured and delicate landscapes in the world.
A key element in maintaining these perfect conditions is moisture control. Too much moisture can lead to problems such as disease, fungi, and prolonged recovery times from mechanical damage.
On the other hand, not enough moisture will cause the grass to stress, turn brown and become brittle, which affects playability.
In order to ensure proper moisture levels, groundskeepers rely on a variety of tools, including soil moisture sensors, weather stations, and irrigation systems.
Where air movement is poor, a fan is another useful tool for moisture control.
By evaporating excess moisture from the surface of the greens, fans help to maintain the ideal balance for healthy turfgrass. In addition, they can also be used to cool greens during hot weather, further protecting against stress and damage.
Fans are not free to run. A 2009 USGA article said most courses budgeted $60 per fan for every horsepower per month. Running fans 24 hours a day during periods of heat and humidity is common. Modern fans are also quieter than older ones. The TurfBreeze manual lists its 38-inch to 59-inch models at 59 to 65 dB at 50 feet.
Who Makes the Big Fans on Golf Courses?
One well-known maker of golf course fans is SubAir Systems of Graniteville, South Carolina, which sells the TurfBreeze range.
SubAir offers a range of turf products and services, such as:
- SubAir Hydronics
- TurfBreeze fans
- TurfWatch monitoring
Final Thoughts: What Are the Big Fans on Golf Courses For?
Turf fans are used on many golf courses to improve airflow where heat, humidity and still air put greens under stress.
They are powered equipment managed by the course maintenance staff, so leave them alone if you play near one.
Related posts:
Sources
USGA Green Section (using turf fans in the Northeast, 2011)
USGA Green Section Record (the costs of blowing wind, 2009)
USGA (update from the frontlines: bentgrass putting greens, 2013)
USGA (cooling creeping bentgrass putting greens, 2018)
Golfdom (impact of turf fans on creeping bentgrass greens, 2015)
SubAir Systems (TurfBreeze)
SubAir Systems (TurfBreeze product manual, 2020)
ResearchGate (Crop Science paper on shade and airflow on bentgrass greens)
USGA (turfgrass and environmental research)
Reviewed October 2026. We corrected the fan sizes, speeds and distances against the maker’s manual, removed unsupported claims about frost, weeds, pests and cooling a whole course, removed two companies we could not confirm as golf fan makers, and added running season, cost and noise details, using the USGA Green Section, Golfdom and SubAir Systems.