Coming To Terms With Artificial Pitches

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Coming To Terms With Artificial Pitches: Eric O’Donnell, Managing Director of Sports Labs, adds insight into the recent highly publicised debate in Scotland regarding players’ reluctance to playing top league matches on artificial pitches.

PFA Scotland released a press statement regarding the state of pitches in the Scottish football Leagues with the headline statement requesting the ban of artificial turf pitches in the Scottish Premiership.

There were many other points raised such as a request for increased monitoring, testing and support to groundsmen, but these were naturally overlooked in the mainstream media coverage.

This demand had the foundations of a player petition, however there was no differentiation between players who train and play on artificial surfaces because their Club has one, or those training or playing on natural pitches. This demand needs to be tempered against the implications of such a measure and not a knee jerk reaction based on a player petition.

This petition was carried out by the PFA Scotland with their members, however, it is a much more complicated debate as to what is right for the development of the game in Scotland. They only called for the ban on artificial pitches in the Premiership when their members spread across four leagues.

There are many contributory factors to this discussion, such as player safety, participation numbers, player performance and the well highlighted financial impact of utilising artificial surfaces.

The headline-maker, it’s stating the obvious to say that any future ‘ban’ would have significant implications for the clubs involved in a number of ways – promotion and relegation, clubs’ long term planning and of course the day to day commercial consequences. All of these would require any proposed ban to be phased in over an agreed and likely lengthy period of time to allow the clubs affected to consider fully, then prepare for, the implications specific to their league status/circumstances at that time.

Currently, there are three artificial pitches in the Scottish Premiership, Hamilton, Kilmarnock and Livingston, however if we look at other leagues there is a much larger presence of artificial pitches with little negative publicity. So, we pose the question can we learn from the other leagues and the systems they have installed? Do they actually differ to ours, or are the players just more accepting of the artificial surface in these territories?

  • 69%Norway–11 of top 16 clubs in their premiership use artificial
  • 56% Sweden–9 of 16 clubs in their premiership use artificial
  • 42%Finland–5 of 12 clubs in their premiership use artificial
  • 25%Scotland–3 of 12 club sin their premiership use artificial
  • 14 clubs out of 42 (33%) in the four Scottish professional leagues.

To ban artificial pitches in the Premiership would, of course, have a direct impact on grass roots acceptance and will likely have negative impacts on player pools, wider club staffing and crucial internal club structures – perhaps the most concerning from a football development perspective being the youth set ups.

The PFA ultimately used a closed petition with their members but referred to some studies previously carried out such as a player survey in 2012 and the player perception APP carried out with Sports Labs and the Scottish FA. The player perception APP rated surfaces by the players, but also asked a series of questions to understand surface better to improve them.

Many findings came from the player perception APP data which was used by the PFA to shape their demands in the press release, but the mainstream media focused on the poor ratings on the Premiership artificial pitches. There was quite substantial data to suggest there was under performing natural pitches across all leagues, particularly with the two largest clubs in Scotland not making the top 10 of which an artificial pitch achieve. There were also clear findings that players preferred artificial pitches for some criteria and natural pitches for other performance rating criteria. The data can be interpreted many ways.

So, what exactly did the PFA Scotland press release say:

Following consultation via a research survey, the PitchRater App results from season 2017-18 and recent club visits, our members in the Premiership call for the following:

  • Regulation be introduced prohibiting clubs from having artificial surfaces while playing in the Premiership
  • Increased and random testing of all pitches be introduced, including grass pitches

  • Grass pitches must be kept to a high standard and there should be sharing of best practice between all club groundsmen at Premiership level
  • The SPFL should work with PFA Scotland to use the results from the PitchRater App to introduce its own marking system and to continue to improve pitches
  •  Players’ marks to be used by the Scottish FA for Club Licencing purposed rather than those of referees
  • Pitches falling below a certain standard will have an improvement and support plan put in place, which will be monitored

  • In conjunction with Hampden Sports Medicine Clinic, a centralised reporting system should be introduced, with mandatory participation by all 42 clubs reporting instances of injuries and where/how they occur
  •  This would create a database used for research and comparison into injuries to be used for the sharing of recovery rates and techniques
  • In addition to the above, proper research must be introduced immediately into the affect artificial surfaces have longer term on players, especially wear and tear on body/ joints.
  • Attendance from each club’s head groundsman at the annual Pitch Conference, run earlier this season, must be made mandatory.

If the request was upheld can the clubs maintain their balance sheets with external facility charges now on a head-on collision. Playing hours on artificial pitches are considerably more compared to natural. One of the benefits of having the artificial surface is the improvement in social interaction with the local community. Both Hamilton and Kilmarnock have commented on the positive impact of being able to train and play locally. Kilmarnock previously travelled to Glasgow to train.

There was reference to long term injuries, wear and tear but the reality of testing data collection would tip the scales in the opposite direction against natural. There are no safety standards on surface hardness, surface traction not to mention ball surface interaction for natural pitches. So, the question must be posed; how does one quantify the surface hardness and deemit safe and in playable conditions for natural or artificial. There is a distinct difference in natural turf quality during different times in the season.

For artificial turf there is tight FIFA tolerances set and they continually evolve through ongoing research. We can at least say all artificial surfaces in the Premiership in Scotland have a shock absorbing performance of 60- 70% softer than concrete, in line with FIFA Quality Pro tolerances. We can also say every surface has a rotational resistance performance 30 – 45 Nm in line with FIFA Quality Pro tolerances. Furthermore, there is surface deformation and ball surface interaction tests. Surely the motion should be to quantify what is a good natural pitch in modern times? Would that not help re-align pitch quality and safety?

Unlike any other league, Scotland implements random spot checks three times a season on artificial, so why are the players not accepting of artificial? We want to use the data and feedback to improve the products used. We have the opportunity to improve surfaces for all users if we can marry the player perception with quantifiable data.

There were many positive outcomes of the player perception APP such
as an interactive Scottish Artificial and Turfgrass Seminar with ground staff to support them, the presence of a leading UEFA turf consultant and the inauguration of an active groundsman’s forum.Using the player feedback, engaging with the groundsman and using quantifiable test protocols based on player feedback is a very good option. So, in summary, we revert back to considering all implications and having a balanced debate for the development of the game. Is banning artificial in the Premiership the right move or as we have suggested sure there not be a call for information and investigate other corrective action that can be taken to listen to players and imp rove artificial and, yes, natural as well.

Scott MacCallum Chats To Ben Hastie

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Scott MacCallum Chats To Ben Hastie: Scott MacCallum caught up with Ben Hastie, the man with the toughest job in turf maintenance as he prepared for…

There is some debate about which sporting turf suffers the greatest damage when hosting the particular event for which it has been so lovingly prepared.

Rugby Union has a case to be made, with 16 men mountains pushing against each other in modern day scrums, exerting tonnes of pressure onto the turf. Motocross is another, while cross country running, with

a huge eld of competitors on a wet day, leaves quite an impression. But there is one sport, and one event in particular, which undoubtedly comes out on top in the damage to turf stakes.

The Cheltenham Festival is hands-down the winner, and Head Groundsman, Ben Hastie, is the man who has to watch turf, he has spent 12 months lovingly nurturing, being churned up on a scale which would have most turf professionals breaking out in a cold sweat and seeking out the nearest padded cell.

And no, I’m not talking about the turf which braces itself for the influx of thousands of beer-drinking punters to the Guinness Village. Although the shortest routes to the various bars do take quite a pounding.

Ben and his team ensure that the 28 races over the four days of the Festival take place on track which is as safe, and aesthetically pleasing, as is possible. With an average of 120 horses each day, every one equipped with four legs and four mighty hooves, on ground which can range from fast and rm to good soft and, soft and heavy, it’s certainly no easy task.

“I would say that horses, given the weight and speed that they are travelling, cause more damage to turf than in other sports,” said Ben, as we spoke a month, before the Festival.

“We can have the course looking absolutely perfect and just one horse running round can make it look like a churned eld. Last year we had ground which was soft, heavy in places and the hoof prints were going in literally a foot. It is hard work for the horses but hard work for us too to get the track back in shape for the next race,” said Ben, recalling the meeting which took place in the middle of the Beast from the East, about which more later.

So, how does the Cheltenham team ensure that the stage – watched by 70,000 visitors each day and many millions more on television screens across the world and often described as “The Greatest Show on Turf” – is at its best for each one of the races?

“Our racing season starts with a meeting in October but prior to that I’ve already identified an area of saved ground for every bit of the track which then doesn’t get run on until the Festival. It means the ground we use at the Festival in March hasn’t been run on for a whole year. If we experience poor conditions we also have the option of moving the rail to protect ground, something which we can do here because, like the likes of Aintree and Ascot, we are bigger than most courses and our track is wider,” said Ben.

“In terms of stability that is a massive help to us, while we make good use of germination sheets to attract a bit more light and heat to specific areas. We are also constantly seeding and over-seeding when conditions allow while we have a system which allows us to pre-germinate to get the seed to ‘chit’ a little bit earlier to get it advanced from where it would be normally. We nd that is a big help.”

The team is also road testing lighting rigs, specifically for the winners’ enclosure.

“The enclosure sits behind the stand and while that’s ok in the summer when the sun is high, during the Festival it doesn’t get sunlight and heat. After each race the rst four come into the winners’ enclosure with the rest going to the unsaddling enclosure, which has an astroturf surface so

we don’t need to worry about that. However, the winners’ enclosure is turf and with four horses for each of the 28 races having buckets of water thrown over them to cool down and walking around trampling the soaking wet turf we do struggle with it. So

we are testing the lighting rigs to see if this will help improve this area.

“We are constantly thinking about what we can do to help weak areas. We are a winter sport and the sun is just not high enough to make a difference when we need it. Fences never move and the take off and landing areas tend to get a lot of damage so trying to get these areas to come back when soil temperatures are very low is a bit of an issue. That’s the reason we have the saved ground,” he explained.

There are 16 racing days a year at Cheltenham but the racecourse is never quiet with something on most days, ranging from pony racing to music festivals – complete with campers – and charity runs.

As to the race days themselves they are full on with a race every half an hour, split across the two courses – the Old and the New – the New generally hosts the steeplechase races and the Old the hurdle races.

To cope, Ben’s regular team of 12 is in ated considerably for regular race meetings and even more so for the Festival.

“I have a team of 50 treaders, supplied by an outside contractor, which goes out with forks and treads in each hoof print, ipping it back and making it as level as possible. The team splits up around the course into groups of two or three and they each cover around 100 yards of track until they arrive at where the next team started.

“As soon as racing is nished for the day the team is straight out with soil

and seed and ll every single hoof print created that day. The job is usually nished in the morning because of lack of light. In some conditions you get hooves going in up to a foot, theseThe holes are lled with soil so the horses for the next races have a level playing eld. It’s so important for the safety to horse and rider.

“Sometimes we will use a ring roller and roll in front of the team pushing some of the divots back into place to give them a bit of a hand but generally it’s all done with their feet and a fork.”

For a regular meeting, Ben marshals a staff of between 90 and 100, while at the Festival this grows to around 130.

“During the Festival we bring in teams from other racecourses including Aintree, Nottingham, Warwick and Wincanton. It’s really good for the guys from the smaller courses as it allows them to see how a big event is run, but it is also great for me because I know that they know what they are doing because they do the job every single day. They are a massive help for me. We are a big area and I need eyes and ears everywhere,” said Ben, who added that three weeks after the Festival he and some of his team go and help out at Aintree for the Grand National.

So, in many ways, for the week of the Festival Ben is in a similar position to a Golf Course Manager during The Open Championship or at the Ryder Cup when there is an army of people to manage.

“I won’t be able to speak with every one of them every day but we have a briefing meeting at the beginning of the week and the treaders are split into teams of 10 with a team leader for each and I speak with them. “I have a really good Assistant

Head, Tim Fewster, and he works closely with all the teams. Even when the ground conditions are really good there is still plenty of work to be done looking after the fences and the like. During a race many things can happen, when I’m in other areas of the course so I rely of them to be able to resolve any issues which might come up.”

A Festival day for Ben begins at 5.30am when he meets Clerk of the Course, Simon Claisse, and between them they walk the course, checking for any going changes and discussing any other issues which may need resolving before racing begins.

“I’m then managing the guys and making sure jobs are being before I go to bed I’m thinking about what I need to do the next day. I’m a bit of a geek when it comes to it,” said Ben, who started as a golf greenkeeper at Cherwell Edge Golf Club in Banbury before moving to Kirtklington Golf Club before a chance to take his love of horse racing into his professional life when a job came up at Cheltenham.

Racing is a close kit society and Ben is a regular at the Head Groundsman Seminars which bring them all together on a regular basis. “I get on really well with the other Head Groundsmen. We are having a seminar at Sandown next week and a day at Wimbledon where Neil (Stubley) will be looking after us.”

In many ways the difference between Head Groundsman at Flat and National Hunt courses are much greater than those of links Course Managers and parkland Course Managers in golf, and in more ways than the at guys can carry out their day to day work in shorts and the National Hunt guys in thermals.

“In summer we don’t irrigate at all while at courses are being irrigated constantly because they want to produce safe ground. We don’t have
any horses running in summer so we don’t need to worry about the going. We actually want to let the course crack in the summer so that it self aerates

and lets the roots go a bit deeper in search of water. It also means that we keep our water supply for when we need it from October onwards.”

There is another real plus as well for Ben and the team. “It also means that we can all get our holidays during the summer!” Speaking with Ben he doesn’t need

to mention, although he does, that he gets up every morning with a spring in his step, never failing to look forward to what work is going to bring him that day. He is genuinely someone for whom you feel believes he has one of the best jobs in the world.

“In terms of National Hunt we are the biggest course in the country, if not the world, and from that point of view there is no other job I’d rather have.

“During the Festival we’re in the papers all the time and we will have 70,000 people each day and many more on TV and I do think that I’ve had a large part to play in making it happen.

“When we get positive comments about the track, how it looks and how it rides, it makes me and the team hugely proud of what we have achieved.” And so they should as, after all, it is “The Greatest Show on Turf”.

Five Years On Yet Still, Turf Matters

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Five Years On Yet Still, Turf Matters: This issue of Turf Matters marks our fifth full year in production and the time seems to have just flown by.

We first appeared in January 2014 with a major look at St George’s Park. I will forever be indebted to Alan Ferguson for opening his doors to a magazine which while perfectly formed in my mind hadn’t actually appeared in print.

Five Years On Yet Still, Turf Matters

Since then we have grown issue by issue and covered many of the top sporting events the preparation for two Ryder Cups – Gleneagles and Golf Club National – two World Cups, Wimbledon, Royal Ascot, Aintree, Six Nations Rugby, Test Cricket, World Athletic Championships and a host of others. We’ve profiled Hackney Marshes, Loughborough University, and carried out an in-depth examination of the issues surrounding rubber crumb.

While the magazine has developed, so has our accompanying website and the numbers of people visiting the site, or opening our ezines, have increased at an extremely gratifying rate. We’ve also added a number of comprehensive Turf Matters TV interviews within the last couple of years, as well as our fabled 20 Questions, which do draw out some fascinating confessions from the interviewee!

But back to the magazine. I am extremely grateful to everyone who has contributed over the last five years whether that be by submitting to an interview from yours truly, contributing articles yourself or believing in the title sufficiently to take out an advert with us. I know Sinead and Marie have worked very closely with a growing number of you and I hope that your involvement with Turf Matters has exceeded your expectations. If not we would be more than happy to sit down and have a chat about how forging closer relationships can be of mutual benefit.

Finally, I’d like to pay tribute to Tim Moat. He’s the man who makes Turf Matters look as good as it does. Tim and I have known each other for close to 25 years and his work designing the magazine has ensured that we stand out from the crowd.

We will continue to strive to make Turf Matters the best publication we possibly can, covering all the important turf related sporting events and delving into the work of the groundsmen who maintain our top schools and universities – the unsung heroes if you like.

Thanks for reading our magazine and don’t hesitate if you feel you’d like to offer a potential feature or some advice which would help us.

Greenkeepers’ Acclaim For Meeting Ryder Cup Challenge

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Greenkeepers’ Acclaim For Meeting Ryder Cup Challenge: For years the greenkeepers have remained the ‘unsung heroes’ behind tournaments and big events. For sure this year’s Ryder Cup coverage was focused on the players and the matches, but there has been far wider acknowledgement of Le Golf National as perfect hosts, and unprecedented praise for the role of the greenkeeping team.

During his opening speech, European Captain, Thomas Bjorn, singled out Alejandro Reyes, Golf Course and Estates Manager at Le Golf National, with appreciation for his pivotal contribution in crafting the course setup. In the final euphoria, Ian Poulter took the time from his jubilant celebrations personally to meet, greet and embrace the greenkeeping team on the 18th green.

This time, the European Tour created its own promotional video of what goes on for course preparation behind the scenes. Other broadcasters and media took advantage of a peak into life in the greenkeeping sheds, to show video footage of turf management practices and personal experiences from the Turf Team Challenge website.

Greenkeepers’ Acclaim For Meeting Ryder Cup Challenge

Syngenta’s Daniel Lightfoot, using his Master Greenkeeper experience gained as Course Manager of Bearwood Lakes Golf Club, spent a full week with the LGN greenkeeping team in its preparations and over the full tournament.

“It has been a fantastic experience, to share such an incredible week with so many highly talented and fully committed greenkeepers,” he said. “And it has been very welcome that all the work has been so widely appreciated.”

Daniel believes volunteering at Le Golf National has been an extremely valuable experience for greenkeepers’ personal and career development.

“You get to learn new skills and techniques from the best in the business – both the resident teams on the course and from the other volunteer greenkeepers involved. But equally valuable is learning to work as a team and the great comradery and friendships that develop from meeting the challenges of preparing and delivering a great tournament venue.”

And it doesn’t get any bigger or better than Le Golf National. Alejandro Reyes himself has been a keen volunteer at events across the world, citing it brings a new perspective for greenkeepers, and can be an inspiration to introduce new things on their own courses.

“For sure, I love to do tournaments! Between the European Tour and the PGA Tour, I’ve lost count of the number of tournaments I’ve worked on. And every time you work on one you see something different,” said Alejandro.

“You get a picture of something and think ‘ah, that could work on my course’ or ‘we could do it better if we did it like this’.

“I am incredibly grateful for all the courses and superintendents who gave me the opportunity to see what they did through volunteering, so it’s a chance to give something back.”

Alejandro acknowledged it’s an investment in time for greenkeepers to be away from the course. “But the experience that they bring back is extremely valuable. Also it’s good for the team to welcome other people and to share experiences.”

Kerr Rowan, Course Manager at Sand Golf Club, near Jonkoping in Sweden, pointed out his key learn from working at Le Golf National has been to focus on attention to detail. “I think we run at a pretty high standard, then you come here and you think, ‘No we don’t!’. Out there it’s fantastic, so for me it’s about being a little bit more switched on.”

If there is one thing he’ll take back on the turf quality, it would be the incredible density of the turf surfaces across the Le Golf National course. “I’m just amazed by it. They’ve really tuned in their fertiliser strategy and it’s got me thinking a lot about fertiliser, brushing and density and watering and thinking, how can I be as good as here, or at least as good as I can be for the resources I have?”

Improving turf density, smoothness and consistency for players has been the key driver for using Primo Maxx II for Tournament preparation at Le Golf National. The team pointed ut that players would experience the same playing conditions and pace in the morning, as the last players out in the afternoon.

Lucas Pierre, Alejandro’s right-hand man and Head Greenkeeper for the Albatros Course, also reported the difference with the fairways this year using Primo Maxx II, compared to last year without.

“When you were cutting the fairway every day, you had to empty the box every five minutes; this year, it’s like the guys are saying ‘you never empty the boxes’ it’s perfect for us.

“You save on time; the quality of cut is better; turf looks better; you have better roll. We have more consistency. It really helps.”

For Lucas, the relationship he has developed with Syngenta has been very important. “For us, this could be one of the successes of the Tournament,” he said.

Managing such a big greenkeeping team – of some 180 volunteers and course greens staff – has been a challenge in itself. Stefan Carter, Senior Greenkeeper at Wentworth, highlighted the atmosphere had been fantastic.

“There’s been a lot of people, putting a lot of hours in. It’s a great bunch of guys and women from around the world. We all shared stories and shared experiences, which has really made it a happy place.”

He welcomed the chance to see the range of jobs involved and the opportunity to do a bit of everything.

“!t’s the way that they refine every detail and the finishing touches that sets it apart. To be part of the biggest golf event in the world has just been so fantastic,” reported Stefan.

“The networking here can change your career; it’s not just one week’s work, it’s a potentially life changing opportunity.”

For Swedish greenkeeper and mechanic, Johan Olsson, the mantra learned at his Le Golf National time has been to ‘check, check and check again’, just to make sure everything is set up precisely and will work perfectly and consistently out on the course.

“Then, when they’ve finished the morning session, it’s check it all again, ready for the evening. It’s just been the biggest thing you can experience, as a greenkeeper or mechanic.

“Watching 180 guys move out in the morning; it’s unbelievable, and something I can really recommend,” he added.

Wendy O’Brien, Golf Course Superintendent at Jurmala Golf Club in Latvia, highlighted just how much fun the whole greenkeeping team had, but also the opportunities for seminars and career development, along with the chance to glean the knowledge of others.

“For example, I have capillary concrete in my bunkers back home, so it’s been great to talk to others about their experiences and how they best manage them.”

She welcomed the professionalism of all the greenkeepers and organisational staff that had ctively encouraged and integrated women working on the team throughout the preparations. “We are all used to working as a minority group, but to be treated exactly the same and given the same responsibilities and jobs for our skills alone has been a great experience,” added Wendy.

Chloe Gallagher, of Sunningdale Golf Club, concurred. “Being part of a team with a dozen or more women has been really different and a great experience.

“It’s a fantastic industry for women and it’s given a showcase for what we can achieve. In the future the industry is going to be equal across the board, which I think is really good.”

South Africa’s Leopard Creek Country Club Golf Course Superintendent, Neville Wenhold, found the whole process of handling the pressure of a big tournament fascinating.

“Alejandro has made it a lot easier for us because he’s so professional at what he does. He makes it clear what expects from the team. He prefers for us to make sure that we are doing the right thing, rather than just pushing, pushing, pushing and making a mess along the line.

“He’s the key to everyone doing such a good job. The standard out here has been unbelievable. I’m taking a lot back home; new ways of doing things. It’s been really good learning from these guys.”

The BBC on-line commentary team summed-up the team’s performance perfectly at the end of the event:

“As the sun sets on Le Golf National, the Ryder Cup organisers are getting the presentation ready on the 18th green. The greenkeeper must be having kittens.…” “He deserves a pint or 10. What a course it has been this week. I’d say it’s the best course I’ve ever seen in a Ryder Cup. Let’s get it back again asap.”

Hagg’s Castle’s Silver Lining

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Hagg’s Castle’s Silver Lining: It wasn’t the best day that Scott Ballantyne, Course Manager at Glasgow’s Hagg’s Castle Golf Club, had ever experienced, and the fact that it was just before Christmas merely compounded his misery, but there has been a glorious silver lining to that particular cloud.

“It was the Friday before Christmas 2016 and someone popped in to tell me that there was a burst drain at the back of the 1st green,” recalled Scott.

“We went to investigate and what we found was just like a river spewing out sewage and it was coming from the Shieldhall Tunnel project, the £100 million city sewage project which involved a tunnel being dug under the city,” explained Scott, adding that he has since become something of an expert on the Shieldhall Tunnel.

The tunnel, now completed, runs underneath a significant part of the golf course, including the 7th hole, the 2nd tee, the 17th and 18th tees, the 16th and all the way up the length of the 17th, in total around 600 metres of golf course. Issues occurred when the drill bit struck unexpected rock.

“I’d never been given an indication that there might be a problem but it happened and we had to deal with it. We dealt with the mess that Friday and then shut down over Christmas for two weeks,” recalled Scott.

Hagg’s Castle’s Silver Lining

With festivities over everyone returned to work and when the tunnellers turned on their drill it all happened again – an ill-smelling recurring nightmare.

“We cleared it with squeegees for the second time and sacrificed two bunkers which we decided we’d have to rebuild. We told the tunnel constructors that we couldn’t keep clearing up the mess every time it happened so we told them just to go for it and we’d sort it out at the end. We shut down the 16th and 17th holes while they worked and insurance paid for the damage to the course.”

With the course returned to its full glory there was some revenue left over and this was put to good use with a superb new chipping area alongside the club’s brand new maintenance facility.

“It was always the plan to make the existing practice green bigger, but when we looked at it we realised we could put in what we have now – a bunker and full size pitching area surrounded by a fence, much of which we’d already bought to protect the workers who were building the maintenance facility.”

Knowing that the club had the money for the project but still looking for the best result without spending money unnecessarily, Scott turned to Rigby Taylor to examine the options and it turned into a great opportunity to use a new product – Rigby Taylor’s R Duo 50-50 blend of poa reptans and Browntop bents.

Everyone was confident having witnessed successful trials of the mix a Loch Lomond Golf Club during which it was starved, fed and shaved but what it hadn’t faced was the hand which the Beast from the East dealt it.

“It was March and we had just put down a bag of seed when the weather turned and the temperature went minus for a couple of weeks A couple of days after it went in the ground froze solid or a couple of days,” recalled Scott.

But what do you know? It came through it beautifully to the extent that David Carson, Scott’s Rigby Taylor man, and RT’s top man in Scotland, thought that the club had changed course.

“I drove past one day and when I looked in I could see a beautiful green sward on the new area. I immediately thought that they’d decided to turf the area and not tell me!” he said.

He was wrong and if the extreme weather had allowed doubts of its success to enter his head they soon disappeared as he saw first hand the cover that the seed had produced and chatted to Scott about how well the R Duo had come through.

Had they gone down the route that David had falsely suspected and turfed the area it would have cost around £6,500 to turf to the standard a club of Hagg’s Castle’s standing expects but by seeding it cost a few hundred pounds – and Scott still has the other bag he thought he might need but didn’t.

“The mix is clever because the germination point of fescue is slightly earlier than the bent so it accelerates the ameliorating process and you get a quick maturation process at a cost which is not breaking the bank. What you are doing is eliminating the battle of having to rid of the cauliflowers and getting it down to acceptable poa,” explained Scott, adding that he’d be more than confident about putting using R Duo on putting greens as well as chipping greens.

David also looks on the work at Hagg’s with a considerable amount of pride.

“Jayne Leyland was confident that it would do well but if you were playing by strict agronomy rules you are not going to get the STRI saying put poa on but this is the modern world and demands change.

“We have played it low key, we didn’t even put the mixture in our catalogue, and just thought we’d see how it went and are delighted with the results we’ve seen here,” said David.

Money was also saved on the new chipping area by merely adding another 25 yards to the three metre high fencing which had been bought to protect the guys building the maintenance facility from errant shots from the adjacent driving range.

All in all the project has been a huge success and turned what was a foul smelling disaster into a
major plus for the golf club.