Toro On Board At Chigwell GC

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Toro On Board At Chigwell GC: Chigwell Golf Club in Essex has taken delivery of its second Toro fleet as it proves itself a winner in the eyes of its membership.

For a golf club managed by its membership, investment in the course is central to achieving a happy collective says course manager Jeff Foulger: “We have an active membership who are very much involved in the decision-making of the club, along with the board of directors and general manager Ben Driver. When the members were presented with the five-year plan for the course, which had been put together by a special committee made up of members and included further investment in Toro machinery, the membership agreed it by a landslide. The plan highlighted the positive difference Toro machinery had made and would continue to make to the course.”

Toro On Board At Chigwell GC

And not just that, but when you consider the main points of the plan, which includes maximum course playability all year round, quality greens, tees and fairways, and bunker maintenance and improvement, alongside the usual course management and maintenance work, it’s clear to see that Toro is integral to all.

Jeff continues: “We need Toro on board to help us tackle the plan, there’s no two ways about it. There’s a lot to do but it’s all achievable with the seven-strong team we have here and a reliable fleet of equipment on board.”

And joining the club in this latest fleet deal, delivered by Reesink Turfcare, is a Toro TriFlex 3420, Groundsmaster 3500-D, three Greensmaster Flex 2120 pedestrian mowers, two Greensmaster pedestrian mowers, a Workman MDX-D utility vehicle and a Pro Force debris blower.

With a CV including top international clubs it’s a role Jeff, who joined the club three years ago, is taking in his stride. “This role at Chigwell Golf Club sees me return home and come full circle career-wise. Not only is it my home club, but it’s where I started my career.”

And it’s a career which has taken him all over the world to the likes of Augusta National Golf Club in Georgia, USA and K Club in County Kildare, Ireland, and Jeff continues: “I’m really excited to be back where it all began, I can’t wait to bring some of the different aspects and ideas I’ve learnt from some of the best clubs in the world to my home club.”

Chigwell Golf Club has also undertaken a major course review with the original course designers who have made recommendations for improvements, while retaining the fundamental character of the course.

Jeff concludes: “The board of club directors has prioritised available revenue for the continued development of our course, which is regarded as our prized asset. That’s an exciting position to be in and one of great responsibility, but with all the right partners on board such as Toro and Reesink, it’s entirely achievable.”

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Cricket Club Slams Vandals

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Cricket Club Slams Vandals: The chairman of a cricket club has voiced his anger after their pitch was vandalised ahead of an all-important title decider.

Players and officials at Bradenham Cricket Club were left devastated last week after groundsman Brett Gates arrived to find the outfield desecrated with tyre marks.

Mr Gates subsequently took to social media to call out the “mindless damage”, branding the offenders “muppets”.

And now Tim Evans, chairman of the club, has blasted those responsible for spoiling a highly-valued community asset.

“It is just so disappointing to see,” said Mr Evans. “Whoever’s done this has just mindlessly driven round the pitch and even on the square as well. You can still see the circles where they have gone round.

“We’re fortunate that the ground itself was not that wet at the time. It was a bit damp but, had it been wet, the damage would’ve been much worse.

“We’ve had a really good year and Brett and others have put in untold work on the outfield to keep it looking nice – not just for the club, but for the whole village.

“It is just so frustrating – after all the hard work that’s been put in – to see the pitch ruined by some idiots who think they are clever. They’ve achieved nothing by doing this, other than making a complete mess of something in their own village.”

As Bradenham First XI prepares for its final game of the season at home to table-toppers Great Melton on Saturday (August 31), the club feels the pitch could barely have been damaged at a worse time.

A win will see second-placed Bradenham leapfrog their rivals into top spot, handing them the Norfolk Cricket Alliance division three title.

“Having this match against Great Melton on Saturday is all the more reason to be disappointed about the damage,” added Mr Evans.

“We’ve cut the grass and been round the pitch with a roller which has flattened out the marks as best we can ready for the weekend.

“Bradenham’s promotion has not been confirmed yet as there are all sorts of other factors that come into it, but as far as we know and as far as we’ve been told, it looks 99pc sure that we’re going up.”

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Landini Tractors Back At SALTEX

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Landini Tractors Back At SALTEX: Landini tractors new to the turf management and groundscare sectors will feature at this year’s Saltex event on October 30/31 at the National Exhibition Centre, Birmingham as manufacturer Argo Tractors raises the profile of its Italian marque.

The compact and mid-range models are well-suited to turf care, grounds maintenance and related applications, providing high levels of productivity and fuel efficiency, and a safe and comfortable working environment for operators spending long hours at the controls.

Landini Tractors Back At SALTEX

“Landini is an established range of products from one of the World’s largest agricultural tractor manufacturers,” notes Adrian Winnett, UK & Ireland managing director at the Argo Tractors group.

“They benefit from considerable resources in terms of design and development, manufacturing and distribution, and owners can rely on comprehensive parts and technical back-up from us and from our independent dealers.”

While the complete Landini range extends to highly sophisticated tractors with up to 225hp for agricultural tillage operations, the focus at Saltex will be on the smaller models in the range, mechanical drive compact tractors from 54hp to 75hp, and full-size mid-range tractors from 70hp to 113hp.

“These products are well suited to groundscare and turf management applications thanks to a choice of specifications and features that enable buyers to find the best build for their needs,” says Adrian Winnett.

“You can go for a simple unit for light grounds maintenance duties or one with heavier-duty build and more comprehensive transmissions and implement drives to handle larger implements or equipment with greater demands for power and hydraulics.”

Argo Tractors decided to return to the Saltex event as part of a campaign to raise the profile of its Landini range, show new models added to the line-up and engage face-to-face with potential customers and prospective new dealers.

“As the undisputed number one shop-window for the groundscare and turf management sectors, we felt it was the right time to showcase our latest products at Saltex,” says Mr Winnett. “We look forward to welcoming visitors to our stand to see these tractors in the metal.”

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Transformation At Teesside GC

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Transformation At Teesside GC: In the last 10 years Teesside Golf Club at Thornaby, Stockton-on-Tees has undergone the biggest transformation of any club in the area, both on and off the course, which has been altered dramatically with the introduction of new tees, ponds and bunkers and the planting of more than 30,000 trees.

The 18-hole parkland course is situated on what used to be the old Stockton racecourse, while the clubhouse was originally a granary to which ships coming up the Tees delivered their grain. This has been fully renovated and extended, and future plans include improvements to both the practice and course facilities. Additional significant investment has more recently been made in new drainage, irrigation and John Deere course maintenance equipment to take the course and its presentation up to the desired level.

Transformation At Teesside GC

Supplied as a John Deere Financial lease package by dealer salesman Alastair Briggs of Greenlay at Cramlington, the latest equipment includes a new 9009A rotary rough mower; a used 3235C fairway cylinder mower that was specified for the practice area, but also fills in as back-up fairway mower; 2653B & 2653A tees & surrounds mowers, the latter an older machine that was refurbished as part of the deal; and a 2500B greens triplex mower.

Greens chairman Tony Foster joined Teesside Golf Club’s committee last year, and straight away consulted with long-serving head greenkeeper Gary Evans over the choice of new equipment and supplier. “Downtime is an invisible but huge cost,” says Tony. “We don’t want our greenkeepers to be in the workshop, we need them out on the course, which is our most important asset.

“Repairs and breakdowns were becoming uneconomic, not only in terms of the maintenance expense but also the time it was costing the club – it was not cost-effective for us to keep having to repair an ageing fleet. It had got to the point where it was simply unsustainable, so the timing was right to bring in some new kit.

“We’ve bought a few John Deere machines over the years, and we did look at other makes, but no-one did as much as Alastair and Greenlay to get the deal. They put on a robust series of demonstrations, which showed off all the key equipment and their capabilities really well to the greenkeeping team. They also spent a lot of time with us on the different finance options and quotes, to get the deal just right for the club.”

Transformation At Teesside GC

Gary Evans picks up the story: “There’s a huge amount of grass here, with big areas of rough to cover,” he says. “We’re cutting around 160 acres across 18 holes, compared to a normal average of about 120 acres – plus I like to cut the grass as often as possible, to keep it tidy and clean, so there’s a lot of work involved to achieve this.

“Therefore, the first machine we considered was the 9009A TerrainCut, as the rough was what we were really struggling with. It needed two men and machines before, but the John Deere did the job on its own in different cutting conditions, with no problems. We then went for the 2500B greens mower with QA5 cutting units, and the 2653B utility mower was the final choice – the older model has never failed us, so that was a no-brainer.

“It’s all about making the team more efficient and giving us more flexibility to cope with the course conditions, weather and timing of operations. The better the cut quality and finish, the better the course is for the golfers, it’s that simple.”

“Greenlay and John Deere gave us the confidence that they could provide the right back-up and support, which is the basis of a good working relationship,” Tony Foster adds. “Their whole approach to delivering a complete package of advice, equipment and training also meant we could promote the investment to both our members and new golfers as a really positive benefit to the club.

“I’m a great believer that you need the right tools to do the job, and with these John Deere machines we have them.”

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£40,000 Mower At Inverness Castle

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£40,000 Mower At Inverness Castle: Highland Council is planning to use a £40,000 remote-control lawn mower to target difficult-to-reach steep slopes around Inverness – including at the city’s famous Castle.

While the lush green banks by the castle and the River Ness are regarded as a major tourist attraction, they come with serious grass-cutting problems.

The local authority, while aware that keeping these areas well trimmed contributes significantly to the visitor experience, acknowledges that the safe maintenance of the banks has presented significant challenges.

Over the last three summers it had employed a contractor with specialist equipment to safely maintain the steep slopes.

But next week, at the City of Inverness Area Committee, councillors will be asked to consider buying their own machinery and completing the work in-house.

Purchasing the equipment would also allow enhanced maintenance of similar locations throughout the city.

The health and safety concerns associated with cutting the steep banks including the castle and river banks are being drawn to the attention of councillors.

They will be asked to approve the funding from the Common Good Fund for the 2019 season contractor, costing £14,430.

But officers are recommending the direct purchase of their own machinery at a cost of £40,000.

This would include a contribution from the Common Good Fund of £20,000. The remaining capital cost, plus the annual maintenance and operational running costs of the machine, would be met by the service.

In a report before the committee members, amenities manager Debbie Sutton says: “If the option to purchase a remote mower was approved then the added value this could facilitate would be cutting at numerous locations throughout the city including General Booth Road, Suilven Way, Leachkin Road, Scorguie Drive, Overton Avenue and Balnafettack Road.

“In addition to this, numerous other steep bank locations could be identified which have not previously been considered as safe to cut.

“Furthermore, outright ownership of this machinery would give the council greater control over the timing of the operation to ensure that it takes place at the most appropriate time rather than depending on the availability of the contractor.”

Over the last three years, a contractor has been engaged to cut the north side of the castle banks and the banks of the River Ness two or three times per summer using a remote-controlled mower.

Ms Sutton continued: “Whilst this has resulted in a high standard of maintenance of these areas, better value for money for the council could be achieved through the outright purchase of this type of machine.”

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