Almost every introductory turfgrass management course emphasizes the importance of proper turfgrass identification. Although emphasized, too often the reasons “why” are not explicitly stated. Most end users will likely say that there is one type of grass with the remainder of the vegetation being weeds on any given athletic field. Turfgrass professionals, however, know this is not the case. This article discusses the significance of being able to identify the different species of turfgrasses that are found on athletic fields and parks.