Pictured above is the rear working end of our GA24 aerifier.  We are using solid tines in a quad block to loosen the surface and create a path for oxygen and moisture to easily enter the soil profile.
The lower picture is the inside of the cup after the aerifier has passed over.  You can see the solid tines have penetrated to a depth between 3 and 4 inches.
The lighter color to the upper soil profile is the accumulation of sand after years of sand topdressing.  I am very proud of our soil profile, it is perfect for proper putting green turfgrass growth and is a true testament to our hard work in the past.  What we do today is for tomorrow!
All of the Heritage greens have now been solid tine aerified (you probably did not even notice).  We will next follow up that process on Thurs. with a deep vertical mowing (utilizing 2mm carbide tip blades on 1/2 spacing) and sand topdressing.  Vertical mowing at the proper depth and using the proper blades is the best way to manage upper level organic matter or thatch.  It is minimally disruptive to the surface and provides great ball-roll after clean-up.
This is a great example of just one more way 'The Crew' is being Green.  By reducing the amount of thatch on our putting surfaces we limit the food source for most fungal pathogen.  This in-turn reduces the amount of chemical inputs needed to maintain quality turfgrass at 1/8 of an inch.  Nothing better than quality cultural controls when managing an eco-system.