referring to the drawings , it was found that the use of a water absorbing polyacrylate such as acrylamide / potassium acrylate copolymer , cross - linked , a whitish granular odorless copolymer , will produce efficacious results when used as a vehicle for absorbing standing rainwater on outdoor athletic playing fields . as shown in fig1 - 4 , the method of the invention provides for spreading granular water absorbing polyacrylate over the standing rainwater . in fig1 , a schematic of a playing field surface ( 10 ) having standing rainwater ( 12 ), water absorbing polyacrylate polymer ( 20 ), such as acrylamide / potassium acrylate copolymer , cross - linked , is distributed over the standing rainwater ( 12 ). the polymer ( 20 ) may be sprinkled by hand over areas of a playing field surface where standing water is concentrated . the polymer ( 20 ) may also be spread over a wider area of the play field surface by use of a broadcast spreader . after the polymer ( 20 ) is spread over the standing rainwater ( 12 ) on a playing field surface ( 10 ), the rainwater water ( 12 ) will be absorbed from the playing surface ( 10 ), after only about five minutes , leaving a gel - like material ( 22 ) formed from the combination of the polymer ( 20 ) and rainwater ( 12 ) as shown in schematic form in fig2 . this gel - like material ( 22 ) may then be collected for disposal by being scooped up from the playing surface ( 10 ) by means of a shovel ( 26 ) or other means to remove the gel - like material ( 22 ) from the playing surface ( 10 ). as shown in schematic representation in fig4 , any remaining amounts of the gel ( 22 ) produced after the polymer ( 20 ) is applied to the rainwater may be simply raked into the field surfaces ( 10 ) by means of a rake ( 28 ). raking the remaining gel ( 22 ) into the field surface will have only a minimal effect on the playing surface ( 10 ). it is thought that the use one pound of water absorbing polyacrylate polymer ( 20 ) will absorb at least 250 times its weight of the standing rainwater ( 12 ). acrylamide / potassium acrylate copolymer , cross - linked , is the preferred water absorbent polymer ( 20 ) because its potassium composition would not materially affect or damage turf grasses . consequently , such potassium acrylate could be used on both grass and dirt surfaces to produce the gel - like end product from the accumulated rainwater . potassium acrylate might be used on football fields , golf courses , or the infield dirt surfaces and the outfield and infield grass of baseball fields without anticipating any deleterious effects from its use . a water absorbing polyacrylate polymer ( 20 ) such as sodium acrylate will have similar water absorbing medium properties as potassium acrylate and sodium acrylate will produce a gel - like material in combination with rainwater as an end product similar to that produced by potassium acrylate . while use of sodium acrylate may have some long term deleterious effect on the turf grasses due to its sodium ( salt ) based nature , or to grass areas where field drainage runoff is anticipated , sodium acrylate could still be utilized with efficacy on the grass - free field surfaces of an athletic field . in the case of the baseball infield ( 30 ), shown in schematic in fig5 , either potassium acrylate or sodium acrylate might be utilized as the polymer ( 20 ) to be applied to absorb rainwater on the infield dirt surfaces such as the catcher &# 39 ; s and batters boxes ( 32 ) around home plate , the infield surfaces ( 34 ), the pitcher &# 39 ; s mound ( 36 ), and the base paths ( 38 ). because of the ability of potassium acrylate or sodium acrylate as the polymer ( 20 ) to absorb many times their weight in water , only a relative minimal amount of the polymer ( 20 ) material is needed to prepare a playing surface , such as baseball field , for play after a heavy rain downpour . when the infield surface ( 30 ) has been completely saturated and play has been suspended , it is suggested that twenty pounds of the polymer ( 20 ) material be spread evenly over the entire infield including the catcher &# 39 ; s and batter &# 39 ; s boxes ( 32 ) around home plate , the infield surfaces ( 34 ), the pitcher &# 39 ; s mound ( 36 ), and the base paths ( 38 ). after waiting about five minutes the gel - like material ( 22 ) will be formed by the combination of the polymer ( 20 ) with the rainwater . the gel - like material ( 22 ) can then be raked into the dirt surfaces of the infield ( 30 ) as illustrated in fig4 and the field will be ready for resumed play . if the infield ( 30 ) is not completely saturated with rainwater , especially areas around the pitcher &# 39 ; s mound ( 36 ), the polymer ( 20 ) may be applied as needed , allowed time to absorb the rainwater , and then raked into the dirt surface until the playing surface is ready for play . it is thought that one pound of polymer ( 20 ) such as potassium acrylate or sodium acrylate will absorb up to 30 gallons of standing water . in areas of standing water , the gel - like material ( 22 ) produced from the polymer ( 20 ) may accumulate into a thick mass . in such situations , the gel - like material ( 22 ) may be removed with a shovel as illustrated in fig3 for disposal . attempting to rake a thick mass of the gel - like material ( 22 ) may slow the drying process . as shown in schematic representation in fig6 and fig7 , the granulated water absorbing polyacrylate polymer ( 20 ) whether potassium or sodium based , may also be placed in a water absorbent bag ( 40 ) such as a bag made from tightly woven cotton . a plurality of bags ( 40 ) containing the polymer ( 20 ), such as potassium acrylate or sodium acrylate , may be placed directly on a playing field surface ( 10 ) where rainwater ( 12 ) has accumulated . about five to ten minutes after application , the standing rainwater ( 12 ) will be absorbed by the bags ( 40 ) and produce the gel - like material ( 22 ) which will be held and confined by the bags ( 40 ). after the rainwater ( 12 ) is absorbed into the bag ( 40 ) and the resulting gel - like product ( 22 ) is produced , the bags ( 40 ) with the gel - like material ( 22 ) contained therein can be readily picked up and transported for disposal . the bags ( 40 ) may be made of different sizes . the bags ( 40 ) may be provided with a removable water impermeable outer bag as a lining bag ( 42 ) to prevent unwanted moisture from entering the bag ( 40 ). the removable impermeable lining bag ( 42 ) will facilitate storage of the absorbent bags ( 40 ) containing the polymer ( 20 ). multiple bags ( 40 ) may be placed in a lining bag ( 42 ). ( 20 ). the lining bag ( 42 ) will be removed before the bags ( 40 ) are place on a playing field it is suggested that no more than one - half ounce per gallon of bag ( 40 ) capacity of the polymer ( 20 ), such as potassium acrylate or sodium acrylate , be used . amounts of the polymer ( 20 ), such as potassium acrylate or sodium acrylate , in excess of one - half ounce per gallon of bag ( 40 ) capacity might result in the bag ( 40 ) being torn or ripped as the gel - like material ( 22 ) is produced when the bag ( 40 ) with the polymer ( 20 ) is exposed to the rainwater . it is expected that a bag ( 40 ) configured to hold one gallon by volume that contains approximately one - half ounce of water absorbing polyacrylate polymer ( 20 ), whether potassium acrylate or sodium acrylate , will absorb up to one gallon of rainwater and will weigh approximately eight pounds when the water is fully absorbed . similarly , a bag ( 40 ) configured to hold fifteen gallons by volume that contains at least eight ounces of water absorbing polyacrylate polymer ( 20 ), whether potassium acrylate or sodium acrylate , will absorb up to fifteen gallons of rainwater and will weigh approximately one hundred twenty - five pounds when the water is fully absorbed . it is thought that the method of the present invention and many of its attendant advantages will be understood from the foregoing description and it will be apparent that various changes may be made in the arrangement of the steps thereof without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention or sacrificing all of its material advantages , the methods described herein being merely exemplary embodiments of the invention .