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John Deere Partners Solheim Cup

May 10, 2018/in Machinery, News, Press Release/by Steve Mitchell

John Deere Partners Solheim Cup: John Deere, one of the world’s leading golf course equipment suppliers, is confirmed as the latest big-name partner to commit to The Solheim Cup at Gleneagles, taking place from 9th-15th September 2019. John Deere will be the Official Golf Course and Turf Maintenance Machinery Event Partner at Gleneagles for the […]

Climate Change In Cricket

May 10, 2018/in Industry News, News, Press Release/by External Source

Climate Change In Cricket: Cricket has always been a sport at the mercy of the weather. In the 1930s, county cricket clubs in England were headed for financial ruin after a succession of wet summers. Twenty years later, persistent rain saw desperate clubs experiment with blankets, rubber mats and suction machines. As recently as the […]

John Deere Partners Solheim Cup

May 10, 2018/in Machinery, News, Press Release/by Steve Mitchell

Climate Change In Cricket

May 10, 2018/in Industry News, News, Press Release/by External Source

Full Sized Blog Element (Big Preview Pic)

John Deere Partners Solheim Cup

May 10, 2018/in Machinery, News, Press Release/by Steve Mitchell

John Deere will be the Official Golf Course and Turf Maintenance Machinery Event Partner at Gleneagles for the 16th edition of the biennial match. The John Deere brand has a long association with professional golf having been a title sponsor on the PGA Tour, Official Supplier to the PGA Tour for 25 years, Official Supplier to the Ladies European Tour and a partner at numerous Solheim Cup events.

In addition, John Deere is also the partner of choice for Gleneagles, where the company exclusively provides golf course maintenance machinery and equipment for use across all three golf courses.

John Deere’s partnership at The 2019 Solheim Cup will include on course branding, a display of John Deere products in the Spectator Village and utilising the association and event collateral for customer promotions and incentives at dealerships worldwide.

Carlos Aragones, John Deere European turf sales & marketing manager, said: “The Solheim Cup is one of the biggest events on the 2019 sporting calendar and we are delighted to be a part of it. We are very proud of our history of collaborating with major golf events and our association with both The Solheim Cup and Gleneagles is very important to our brand. The countdown is now on and we are very much looking forward to next year’s event.”

Scotland’s Sports Minister Aileen Campbell said: “John Deere is a global company and an innovator in its field, and the partnership with The 2019 Solheim Cup is evidence of the significant international pull that both Scotland – the Home of Golf – and The Solheim Cup have in the sporting world. We look forward to working with them and our other partners to stage an outstanding event.”

Ross Hallett, IMG Executive Tournament Director, added: “As we build towards The 2019 Solheim Cup, we have been overwhelmed with interest from within the golf industry. Announcing John Deere’s support today is another important step as we work alongside VisitScotland in fulfilling their ambition of hosting the best Solheim Cup to date.”

The recently appointed European Captain and VisitScotland Ambassador, Catriona Matthew, will be looking to return the trophy to Europe in 2019 after an inspired USA team retained the trophy by 16½ to 11½ points, in front of record crowds in Iowa. Organisers are now aiming to set a new record for a European edition in 2019.

Themes of equality, innovation and experience will be threaded through all the event’s communications as The 2019 Solheim Cup aims to engage both the traditional golf audience and the wider sport fan, raising the profile of women’s golf both in Scotland and internationally.

The Scottish Government and VisitScotland have been long-time supporters of the women’s game, having partnered with the Ricoh Women’s British Open and the recently significantly enhanced Aberdeen Standard Investments Ladies Scottish Open, which took place as a co-sanctioned LET and LPGA event for the first time last year.

The 2019 Solheim Cup will not only showcase the stunning assets of Scotland, the Home of Golf, but also build on the legacy of the successful 2014 Ryder Cup at Gleneagles. It will underline that Scotland is the perfect stage for major golf events as it seeks to help inspire a new generation of children to take up the game invented in their home country.

For more information, visit: www.deere.co.uk

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Climate Change In Cricket

May 10, 2018/in Industry News, News, Press Release/by External Source

Climate Change In Cricket: Cricket has always been a sport at the mercy of the weather.

In the 1930s, county cricket clubs in England were headed for financial ruin after a succession of wet summers. Twenty years later, persistent rain saw desperate clubs experiment with blankets, rubber mats and suction machines.

As recently as the summer of 2012, three of England’s 13 ODIs were abandoned due to rain, while no result was possible in two of their seven Test matches with West Indies and South Africa.

That’s why the sport must take notice of a report published by Climate Coalition, the UK’s largest climate change action group, in February.

The document names cricket as the sport that will be hardest hit by climate change in England, stating that “wetter winters and more intense summer downpours are disrupting the game at every level”.

That was reiterated by Glamorgan Head of Operations Dan Cherry, who warned that climate change could “fundamentally change the game”.

“The less cricket we play, the fewer people will watch it, the less they will come to the ground and pay to enter, the less chance there is for young people to be inspired,” said Cherry.

This change, it seems, has already begun.

In international cricket, 27 per cent of England’s home one-day internationals since 2000 have been played with reduced overs because of rain delays. The rate of rain-affected matches has more than doubled since 2011, with five per cent of matches abandoned completely.

Part of the problem with climate change in England, though, is that it’s not always straightforward to identify.

“In this country, you’re relying on the weather,” says Steve Birks, head groundsman at Nottinghamshire, who are available at 5/2 to win the 2018 County Championship in the latest cricket betting.

“One week it’s 27 degrees, and the next its central-heating weather again. You can’t rely on it being red hot for a week.”

British weather has always been famously unpredictable. Yet Birks, who will prepare the Trent Bridge pitch for England’s Test match with India in August, reveals there are subtle differences now.

“The rain is getting tropical, it is getting heavier,” he says. “We’re getting thunderstorms more often when it rains – I think that’s when you can tell the difference. But then that’s when the new outfield comes into its own.

The new outfield Birks is referring to is the product of a £600,000 grant from the ECB to Trent Bridge – plus the Swalec Stadium and Headingley – to renovate its outfield in 2008, including a new turf surface, drainage and sprinklers.

“The drainage at Trent Bridge is now second only to Lord’s,” he says. “It can take up to 25mm per hour in most places on the square.

“Beforehand, it was just a clay-based outfield with land drains in. Now it’s got a root zone up to 150mm, drains every five metres, and pop-up sprinklers in between drainage. It really takes it away.”

The new drainage system is too efficient, according to ex-England captain Kevin Pietersen, who claimed in 2014 that it resulted in the pitch for England’s Test match with India becoming “dry and lifeless”. He was not the only one, either, with other players and pundits declaring the surface to be slow and unfavourable to entertaining cricket.

Birks apologised at the time but says it had nothing to do with the drainage, which allows the surface to retain as much moisture as is required.

“We knew the 2014 pitch was coming to the end of its life, but it’s trying to fit in when you’re going to dig it up,” he says. “When you dig it up and take it away, you can’t play on it for two years.

“They deal with it in Australia, where the temperatures are twice as hot as here. Last year we mowed the square slightly longer, so that plenty of moisture stays in it.

“Our pitches start with maybe 32 per cent moisture in. That’s plenty.”

Birks understands, however, the extra scrutiny that comes when the national team is in town. “There is a lot more pressure when you’re dealing with England,” he says. “You want the pitch to be fair. Whatever England ask for you try and give them.”

The importance of delivering the right pitch is as much financial as it is tactical. Weather swings have the power to cruelly impact on a country’s finances, while international cricket – especially Test matches – must entertain if it is not to be squeezed out of the cricketing public’s consciousness.

“We lost our first ODI last year because it rained all day,” says Birk. “It’s a massive financial hit, particularly if it’s an ODI.”

Birks says that measures against climate change are likely to increase in years to come, but – for now at least – he is confident that Trent Bridge’s infrastructure can withstand the elements.

“Our new drainage system can take most of the storms we’ve had so far,” he says. “Whatever gets thrown at us, it’s our job to deal with it.”

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Half Sized Blog Element (Multi Author Style)

John Deere Partners Solheim Cup

Climate Change In Cricket

John Deere Partners Solheim Cup

Climate Change In Cricket

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John Deere Partners Solheim Cup

Climate Change In Cricket

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