Super Bowl played on turf developed in Tifton

TIFTON — The biggest football game of the year will showcase one of the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences’ most accomplished turfgrasses.

Tifway 419, a turfgrass developed on the UGA Tifton Campus and released by world-renowned scientist Glenn Burton in the early 1960s, will be used in this year’s Super Bowl, scheduled this evening at Levi’s Stadium in San Francisco.

“Tifway has proven itself to be adapted time in, and time out, over decades and decades of use. It’s still performing well enough to be used in Super Bowls, World Cups, the Olympics and in a lot of other sports venues,” said Brian Schwartz, UGA Tifton turfbreeder.

Tifway 419 is one of the most popular turf varieties ever developed by UGA. It is used in Sanford Stadium, the home football arena for the University of Georgia Bulldogs.

The turfgrass variety is widely recognized in the Southeast as a top-notch grass. Schwartz said he is aware of only two grass football stadiums in the Southeast Conference that aren’t Tifway.

“It’s the benchmark we compare everything to,” Schwartz said.

Wayne Hanna, who worked with Burton before succeeding him as the head of the Tifton turfgrass research program, is not surprised at the success of Tifway 419. As for why the grass has been so successful for nearly 60 years, Hanna said it has all the qualities that sports programs look forwhen searching for a turfgrass.

“It’s a grass that’s tough, real wear-tolerant, has good color and one that’s disease and pest resistant,” Hanna said. “It’s one that has been most widely used on athletic fields around the world for many years. It has been around and been tested over time and is still doing a good job.”

Tifway’s name comes from a combination of “Tifton” and “fairway,” meaning it is highly suited for golf courses. It is also highly recommended for lawns, making Tifway a versatile variety.

For more information on UGA-bred turfgrass varieties, visit Georgiaturf.com.

Clint Thompson is public relations coordinator with the University of Georgia’s Tifton campus.