Why does the St. Augustine grass in my yard grow tall and hard rather than branch out as runners?

Question:The grass in my yard seems to grow tall and has little buds on the tops of the blades. They are almost stalks rather than blades. They are also kind of tough and hurt your feet when walking on them. It's like they're little pieces of wood (not quite that hard though). I've fertilized and watered plenty but the yard looks different than my neighbor's whose yard you could walk on with bare feet like carpet.

Answers:
It does not sound like st augustine to me.