Smokey says: Only you (& your club) can prevent golf course fires
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6M52sV7Wrro
Golfers are urged to swing with care after scientists at the University of California, Irvine, proved that titanium-coated clubs can cause course-side vegetation to burst into flames.
Orange County Fire Authority Capt. Steve Concialdi said Wednesday that the results confirm a suspicion investigators have had for years: that titanium alloy clubs were the cause of at least two blazes on area golf courses, including one that burned 25 acres at Irvine’s Shady Canyon in 2010.
“The common denominator was each golfer used a titanium club, and hit the ball just out of bounds next to dry vegetation where the ground was extremely rocky,” he said.
Investigators who were “laughed at” when they first floated the golf club theory have been vindicated, according to Concialdi.
“After striking the rocks with the titanium club, we saw sparks that were 3,000 degrees and lasted one second,” said James Earthman, a chemical engineering and materials science professor at UC Irvine and the lead researcher on the study. “If that spark reached dry foliage, it would ignite almost instantly.”
While most golf clubs have steel heads, Earthman said the titanium alloys are used in some clubs because they make them lighter and easier to swing, especially when chipping balls out of tough spots off of the fairway. While those titanium-coated clubs are fine away from dry areas, when they graze small rocks they can cause fire. He said while some companies have noticed the issue with titanium alloys, and discontinued use, the clubs are still in circulation.
