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NEWS ARTICLES

Greenkeeper Diaries: Broadway

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NCG chats to trainee Nick Gardener about the life of a greenkeeper…

Course: Broadway Golf Club
Name: Nick Gardener
Position: Trainee greenkeeper

You were a professional golfer. What brought you into greenkeeping?

I was looking for a job and I was considering going back to university to train as a teacher. I went to my club at the time and the professional said they were looking for an apprentice greenkeeper.

At first, I thought it would tide me over but I loved it. I loved the science behind it. You are not bound to a desk, or stuck in a building. I took up the apprenticeship and I have never looked back.

What’s the best part of the job?

It ties in with my lifestyle. I can get up in the morning and be done by 2 or 3pm. Then I can go and train for my race days. I race for an amateur cycling team, Cycle Studio Core Telecom RPC Team.

What don’t golfers understand about your role?

They don’t understand what we have to take into account [in preparing a course]. They don’t understand the science behind it or the processes we go through to design, build or maintain a course.

They think it all happens by magic. A lot of things have to be thought through. For example, how you care for your machinery can affect the grass. It is all hard work and takes a lot of skill.

What is involved in becoming a qualified greenkeeper?

I study at Myerscough College. It’s a further education course. A lot of the work is done practically and through video analysis. We actually use our phones now. It could just be a two minute video to upload.

We might be changing a hole, having a chat about it and talking about health and safety. There is theory behind it as well, disease for example, and you can carry through for a maximum of two years. I will finish by the end of this year.

If you could ask golfers to do one thing, what would it be?

It would probably be to respect greenkeepers and acknowledge their hard work. I could say repair pitchmarks but golfers don’t know the work that goes into the job and I’d like acknowledgement for staff and the work they do to get a course into great condition.

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Cricket: Free Trip On Offer For Groundsmen

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A free trip to Headingley beckons for members of the Lincolnshire Cricket Groundsmen’s Association. The association is providing free transport from Lincoln to the Yorkshire stadium on Monday (March 27) to meet award-winning head groundsman Andy Foggerty and to learn about his pre-season preparations. Members will then visit the rugby ground next door to speak to Ryan Golding.

Tea and coffee will be provided on arrival and, after a free buffet lunch, the will be the opportunity to ask Andy questions before departure at around 3pm. The transport leaves Lincoln Lindum at approximately 9.15am. Alternatively, members can use their own transport and meet at Headingley.

The trip is free to fully paid up members of the CGA but is also a good opportunity for those not directly involved in ground preparation – such as club coached, chairmen and players – to view what is required at the highest level.

Anyone interested in the visit should contact Martin Deans at martindeans@btinternet.com or call 07971087891.

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Increasing Awareness

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In a statement last week, the Amenity Sector welcomed the ECHA’s committee for risk assessment statement that glyphosate is not a carcinogen, mutagen or toxic. This re-affirms previous statements and conclusions. The adopted opinion will go through a normal editorial check before it is sent to the European Commission. This is an important stage in the re-approval process for glyphosate. In the cycle of events, the current approval for glyphosate runs to the end of the year, hence the European Commission and Member States will be considering renewal of glyphosate as an active substance in pesticides later this year. The ECHA opinion is important in this process.

In considering weed, pest and disease management, the Amenity Forum supports an integrated approach always considering all the options. Glyphosate is an important element in such approaches and vital in maintaining amenity areas, keeping them safe, healthy and fit for purpose.

For further information, please contact the Forum admin@amenityforum.net

Queensbury GC Facing £10,000 Bill To Repair Damage

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“BRAINLESS idiots” on quad bikes have left a golf club facing a bill of up to £10,000 after badly damaging two greens.

Queensbury Golf Club was targeted by three people on quad bikes on Saturday.

Club secretary Richard Guest said: “We are absolutely distraught. They have destroyed the third green. They have also damaged the second green. It could cost in the region of £10,000 to repair.

“The third green will have to be completely relaid. Both greens are out of commission and in two weeks’ time the season starts.”

The club’s social and marketing chairman, Nigel Brunt, wrote on Facebook: “We would like to thank the brainless idiots who thought it would be fun to drive around Queensbury Golf Club on quad bikes causing serious damage to a number of the greens.

“Nearly 200 local people enjoy playing at the club and will now be penalised over the coming months due to this pointless selfish act! Not to mention how much time and money it will take the club to repair the damage.”

Mr Guest added: “I would say the third green is out of action for a minimum of six months. I don’t think we will play on it again this year.

“The second green, we might be able to play on it soon.

“They are rutted. They have been spinning around on them. They have rutted everything up.

“I am absolutely distraught, especially with all the hard work that has gone into the course by the groundstaff. It is soul-destroying.”

Mr Guest said he was at the club when the yobs struck at about 5.30pm to 6pm and could see them from a distance.

A spokesman for West Yorkshire Police said: “Police are investigating a report of a small group of quad bikes causing damage to land at Queensbury Golf Club at about 5.45pm on Saturday.

“Officers are also aware of a number of other reports relating to damage caused to land by vehicles in the Tong and Wyke area on Saturday afternoon and these are being looked into to establish if they are linked.

“It is possible that these vehicles may have been caught on people’s dashcams and anyone with similar footage which may assist this investigation is asked to contact the Bradford South Area Neighbourhood Team on 101, quoting crime reference 13170124827.”

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Warrington GC Strikes It Lucky With Bailoy

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When Warrington Golf Club’s course was struck by lightning the voltage burnt out its 30-year-old irrigation controller and the club found itself in the market for a new system, which is where Bailoy stepped in.

Warrington Golf Club course manager John McLoughlin explains: “The lightning picked up one of the irrigation cables and burnt out the controller. The system we had was an original Bailoy SC3000, still going strong after delivering us 30 years of service, but it understandably couldn’t withstand the power of a strike from above!”

Investigating different manufacturers comparing price and products soon led John back to the original manufacturer, Bailoy and its latest GTI PC system, and John says it was the product’s straight forward operator experience and application precision that sealed the deal: “What impressed me most about the GTI PC was its adaptability. The team now irrigate in the preferred measurement of millimetres rather than minutes. We abstract from a pond and also have access to a mains water feed, so managing water usage in a sustainable manner is extremely important for the club. Better controlled water application via the new software and daily monitoring of the greens’ moisture levels has allowed for greater control of the greens playability in a, pleasingly, more sustainable manner.”

John and his greenkeeping team of seven are also finding the GTI PC incredibly easy to use. “Compared to the other products we looked at this one seemed the most user-friendly. We’ve had our first full season using the software and we can now vouch for this first hand.”

The club also opted for ongoing GTI Support, choosing the Gold level. This backup service, although not yet used by John, is reassuring to have. He says: “I’m glad we haven’t had to use this yet, as it of course means there’s no product, installation or setup issues! But having it means there’s no need to worry if something does go wrong, Bailoy will be available to investigate the situation.”

The GTI PC comes with Remote Access, which John is very much looking forward to using this year. “One of the other key benefits is that we will be able to manage the software remotely; with changeable weather patterns it is of the upmost importance we can make real time decisions at the push of a button. Controlling the system out in the field will also offer an operating exercise that had previously not been possible.”