How to remove grass or sod effectively without renting a sod cutting machine or special tools.DIY

I tried a few hacks for removing grass. Here is what I found out and what worked best for me. I tried removing grass with a homemade sod cutting setup, I tried to remove grass with a saw, I tried to remove grass with a chainsaw. What worked best was removing grass with a yard fork. There is a lesson about removing grass, if you are looking for a shortcut to clear grass for a patio, there isn't one. Harsh reality, it's hard work no matter how you look at it.