West Coast Turf Named Official Supplier to Arizona Diamondbacks' Stadium

Scottsdale, Ariz. - West Coast Turf, a leading supplier of turfgrass sod for athletic, golf, commercial and residential markets, has been named the official sod supplier to Bank One Ballpark, the home of the Arizona Diamondbacks® Major League baseball team.

Bank One Ballpark, sometimes referred to as the "BOB," is the first-ever retractable-roof facility to have a permanent natural grass field. The ballpark will use specially grown and tested sod varieties from West Coast Turf's series of farms. The turfgrass will be changed out periodically depending on the time of year, field wear and the off-season event schedule.

"Being designated as the official sod supplier to Bank One Ballpark and the Arizona Diamondbacks is a great honor for us," says John Foster, president of West Coast Turf. "The Bank One Ballpark is truly a unique facility and being recognized as the turf producer of choice speaks volumes for the quality of the product we grow. More importantly though, it means that Diamondbacks fans will forever be able to enjoy baseball the way it's supposed to be played, on natural grass."

According to Grant Trenbeath, head groundskeeper for the Bank One Ballpark, "We're happy to have West Coast Turf as our official turf supplier. Their attention to detail and the overall quality of the sod they supply helps make the challenge of maintaining a natural grass field in a retractable-roof facility much easier. It's a pleasure to work with them to provide the best playing surface possible."

In addition to its affiliation with the Arizona Diamondbacks and Bank One Ballpark, West Coast Turf is also sod supplier to Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Ariz., home of the Arizona Cardinals and Arizona State University Sun Devil's football teams, Qualcomm Stadium, Dodger Stadium, Edison International Field; Oakland Coliseum; 3-Com Park and the Los Angeles Coliseum. The company also supplies sod to many of the finer golf courses in the Phoenix/Scottsdale area.

Construction on the Bank One Ballpark began in 1995 and lasted for 28 months. Its massive nine-million-pound retractable roof can be closed in less than five minutes, allowing the stadium's air conditioning system to cool the internal temperature to 70 degrees in about four hours-a necessity when pre-game Phoenix-area temperatures sometimes exceed 100 degrees.

Though this environment might not seem to be conducive to healthy turf growth, Trenbeath and his crew pamper the grass with a specialized fertilization program, solid-time aerations, regular overseedings and a network of portable grow light towers.

Based in Palm Desert, Calif., West Coast Turf is a leading producer of turfgrass sod for athletic facilities, golf courses, commercial sites and residential properties throughout the Western United States. Through it's network of five sod farms in Arizona and California, the company grows several proprietary and non-proprietary turfgrass varieties to meet a wide range of soil and temperature requirements: Bermudagrass, Buffalograss, Kentucky bluegrass, St. Augustine, zoysiagrass, perennial ryegrass and fescues.