2/25/2015 8:02 AM
I have been very happy with ours. We have push up greens where the top 5 or so inches is in good shape due to aggressive aerification and topdressing, but the rest of the soil is not so good. We have used a drill and fill close to a dozen times, but the soil is rough.
Up until getting the HiO we still had to use a 2-piece shell cup cutter with a mallet. Now, I use the HiO myself, and enjoy it. I would recommend trying to find a course close that has one and let you try it on your greens first. With our poor soil it works great because we could not use traditional cup cutters, so I am comparing the HiO to the 2-piece shell and mallet cutter. Whoever cuts cups at your course may prefer a traditional cutter due to the negative aspects listed below.
The negatives:
It is a little awkward to use at first, and it is very heavy. I have had a few small parts break, but that may be because our soil is just so bad, and having to really pound on it. It can hurt your wrists if you use it improperly (you almost have to let go right before impact to not continually jam up your wrists). It will also not pull the plug well when the greens are completely saturated (I know this is an issue with traditional cup cutters as well, but seems to be magnified with the HiO). It is expensive, and the replacement shells are expensive too.
All this being said, I am the one who uses it and I have personally loved it and would hate to go back to the mallet. It cuts a really nice clean hole.
If ours were stolen, I would order a new one right away.
Billy
p.s. Also, if you have a little frozen soil on top, but still need to set cups for a busy day, the HiO will cut through that easily.