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Toro A Cut Above At Cruden Bay

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Toro A Cut Above At Cruden Bay: The performance of Toro’s Reelmaster 5410-D mowers on the fairways of Cruden Bay Golf Club, the traditional Scottish links course in Aberdeenshire, is preferred over all others.

Course manager, Alister Matheson, comments: “The first thing I noticed about the Reelmaster in the demo was the way it handled the ground. The course at Cruden Bay follows the original lie of the land to great effect and as a result the fairways have a few humps and hollows. This didn’t pose a problem to the RM5410, its quality of cut was by far the best. As a result, we decided to buy two.”

Toro A Cut Above At Cruden Bay

Alister and his team are proud to present their perfect example of firm and fast undulating natural links fairways, back after five years thanks to a particularly dry end to spring. As Toro’s UK distributor Reesink Turfcare’s David Raitt says: “The game originated here in Scotland and this is the way links courses should look at this time of the year. Many foreign golfers, especially Americans, love this set up for links golf because it represents how the sports should be played in the natural environment.”

The grass looks like this when the ground is dry and there is little moisture for the plant so it goes dormant. When enough rain comes, which it undoubtedly will, the grass will come out of dormancy and its familiar green colour will return.

Not that any of this has been a problem for the Reelmasters brought in for the fairways, as Alister confirms: “They can cope with all conditions.” The fact that the RM5410-D is designed with improved operator comfort in mind, did not go unnoticed by Alister either: “This machine is so much nicer to the driver,” he says. Alister’s right: tilt steering, a deluxe suspension seat, improved visibility and lower operating noise, all go a long way to enhancing the operator experience and helping to reduce fatigue.

Alister completed the order by selecting the Multi Pro 5800-D sprayer for the Championship course, which is ranked 24th in the country by the Top 100 Golf Courses, and primarily chose the machine for its increased tank capacity: “We had a tank capacity of 700 litres before, whereas the Multi Pro 5800-D can hold 1136 litres. This will be far more cost effective, and productive to use.” But it was in the demo that Alister realised just how “robust and reliable” the Multi Pro is too, and that sealed the deal.

Alister has a formidable CV with many of the golfing greats on it. Before his ten years at Cruden Bay, he spent five years at one of the best clubs in the world, Royal Dornoch, and before that was at the club that needs no introduction, The Wentworth. However, it could be said that Cruden Bay is the club delivering some of his biggest challenges, due, mainly, to the club’s location.

Alister explains: “Here at Cruden Bay we have true Scottish light and dark seasons. In the summer, we can have up to 21 hours of sunlight a day, in the winter, only seven hours. Plus, the growing season is much reduced here to just five months of the year. We have a sharp easterly wind to deal with and the usual challenges of being a sandy links course; we’ve been known to have sand dunes as high as three-story buildings! And all this against the backdrop of the North Sea.”

But with a team of nine full-timers and a machinery replacement programme which sees machines selected on their individual merit, it’s easily handled by the team and fleet.

So, what’s next for the top Scottish club? Alister is working towards a new Toro irrigation system for installation this winter on the greens, tees and approaches, which will ensure precise irrigation of the course even in its windy, exposed location. Until then, we leave Alister, the team and the club’s members enjoying improved fairways, thanks to Toro.

For more information, visit: reesinkturfcare.co.uk

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Sierrablen Plus A Game Changer

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Sierrablen Plus A Game Changer: Course Superintendent at Castleknock Golf Club in Dublin, John Jennings, always used to have difficulty with achieving longevity from the fertilizers he was using – that was until he applied ICL’s Sierrablen Plus Stress Control 15-5-22 +2MgO.

Located in the leafy suburbs of Dublin, Castleknock Golf Club is one of the finest parkland courses in the country. With its undulating greens, the course is designed to test golfers while maintaining that all important element of fairness. There are a number of memorable holes on the course, most notably the 9th and 18th, and two par 3’s over water that share a double green, with the clubhouse providing a stunning backdrop.

Sierrablen Plus A Game Changer

Tasked with keeping the course in impeccable condition is John Jennings. John started his career at Castlebar Golf Club before moving to the Grange Golf Club in 1984 – where he worked for 16 years.

In 1999 John accepted the position of Assistant Superintendent at Carton House where he worked under John Plummer. During this time he undertook the responsibility of the grow-in of the O’Meara and Montgomery Courses. He spent four years in this position before taking the role of Course Superintendent at Castleknock Golf Club in 2004 – which corresponded with the opening of the course.

Now a vibrant club with a growing membership which currently stands at approximately 900 members, Castleknock can see up to 40,000 rounds of golf a year played on the course. As you would expect, to cater for this high amount of usage the course is maintained to the highest standard.

Generally, John does not encounter too many issues, which is testament to his work, but he does admit to a slightly problematic area on his fairways.

“I have used many controlled release fertilizers over the years and struggled to get longevity and colour due to the high sand content in my fairways. However, since I began using Sierrablen Plus fertilizers two years ago it has become a game changer.”

John is one of many turf managers who has benefited from using a range of products in the Sierrablen Plus portfolio. This is largely thanks to the Poly-S and PACE technologies which are contained within each analysis. They have been scientifically proven to provide consistent feeding, enhanced longevity and a low-scorch risk. Furthermore, its small-sized granules allow for even coverage and equal nutrient distribution. These fertilizer products offer a wide choice of analyses for proper nutrient input for every growth phase of the turf, and John has certainly noticed significant improvements since the product.

Featuring high potassium content to strengthen cell walls, John applied the analysis to his fairways in September 2017 and despite the incredibly harsh winter, it was still having a positive effect in March 2018. John was so impressed with the product that this year he applied Sierrablen Plus Stress Control to his tees and was pleased to see remarkable progression so soon – again in unfavourable weather conditions.

“I am extremely impressed with the early response and sward density achieved when using the product, giving uniform growth that lasts 6 – 7 months. I will continue to use it and would highly recommend it to anyone,” he said.

For further information, please contact ICL on 01473 237100 or visit www.icl-sf.co.uk or www.icl-sf.ie

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Fineturf A Fine Choice

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Fineturf A Fine Choice: Reesink Turfcare has welcomed Fineturf Machinery as its new appointed dealer for Toro golf and fine turf machinery, Toro grounds machinery, and TYM tractors in the Lincolnshire and North Nottinghamshire areas.

Having been carefully chosen by Reesink, Fineturf Machinery steps into the role of dealer for the area vacated by Chris Sellars Groundcare, as Nigel Lovatt, regional manager at Reesink, explains: “We looked no further than Fineturf Machinery to take on this role. It is a company that is well established with a fantastic reputation and has expanded significantly in recent years. It has the same goals and ambitions as we do for the area and has invested in new staff to ensure these are achieved.”

Fineturf A Fine Choice

Simon Hutton, managing director of Fineturf Machinery, says he is delighted to become an official Reesink dealer and service centre for Toro and TYM: “We’re looking forward to our association with Toro golf, groundscare and TYM products and hope our depth of knowledge across the golf, groundscare and sports turf industry will benefit new customers, with existing customers gaining direct access to more premium turfcare brands.”

Chris Sellars Groundcare will continue to work closely with Reesink to provide warranty support throughout the transition period, as Nigel confirms: “We enjoyed a good working relationship with Chris Sellars Groundcare for many years. But 2018 sees a change in direction for them, and us. Chris Sellars Groundcare, Reesink Turfcare and Fineturf Machinery will all work together to ensure a smooth transition period for customers, and we wish the greatest success to Chris Sellars with its future endeavours.”

For more information, visit: reesinkturfcare.co.uk

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CMAE A New John Deere Supplier

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CMAE A New John Deere Supplier: John Deere has confirmed a new official supplier agreement with the Club Managers Association of Europe (CMAE), to assist the association’s vision of being the leading organisation for club management educational programmes.

John Deere is an industry leading, full range supplier of sports club maintenance equipment including mowers, tractors and Gator utility vehicles. The CMAE is a non-profit professional association which is the leading authority for club manager education.

CMAE A New John Deere Supplier

“We are delighted to partner with the CMAE and so make ourselves available to its membership for advice and support,” says Carlos Aragones, John Deere’s European turf sales & marketing manager. “Continued education is a core pillar of the John Deere philosophy and we look forward to supporting the CMAE in its quest to increase club manager education across Europe.”

The CMAE’s director of education Torbjorn Johansson adds: “As the CMAE continues to grow and evolve we are always pleased to welcome industry leading brands such as John Deere. Our stated aim is to continue with our evolution and execution of educational programmes.”

Under the terms of the agreement, both organisations will begin working together on the lead up to the CMAE’s annual conference, which will take place in November this year in Marbella, Spain.

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

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Ernest Doe A New Etesia Dealer

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Ernest Doe A New Etesia Dealer: The Ernest Doe branch in Esher has been appointed as a new Etesia dealer and will be distributing the complete Etesia range throughout Surrey.

The renowned Ernest Doe brand can be traced all the way back to June 1898 when Ernest took the lease on a blacksmiths shop at Ulting near Maldon, Essex. From this small shop, work in those days consisted mainly of shoeing horses and repairing agricultural implements.

Ernest Doe A New Etesia Dealer

It is safe to say that business prospered significantly over the years but Ernest Doe is still very much a family firm. Current Managing Director Colin Doe is the fourth generation of the family to have taken the helm during the company’s 100+ years of trading.

Ernest Doe now boasts a network of branches in the South and East of England and are trusted providers of quality products and first-class service facilities. Of the 19 branches, the Esher depot based in Surrey is the only branch purely dedicated to groundcare machinery.

Insistent on working only with the most reliable and top performing brands, Ernest Doe is delighted to be working with Etesia – according to general sales manager Andy Turbin.

“Etesia is a brand that we have known about for a number of years and we have a lot of customers who use the equipment so we thought it would be good to get the franchise and support these customers. Quite simply, it seemed a great opportunity for us.

“The Esher branch has a massive customer base including contractors and local authorities – so the Etesia equipment will be ideal for them.”

Specialists in manufacturing high quality grass cutting machinery for both the professional and domestic market, Etesia’s extensive range of products have been in consistent high demand for a number of years. It is for this reason that the company’s vast dealer network continues to grow. From the UK to Ireland, Etesia dealers are providing their customers with innovative solutions for their green space requirements.

Ernest Doe’s Surrey based customers will now be able to choose from Etesia’s 12 product families which includes ride-on mowers, scarifiers, brush cutters, green technology and pedestrian mowers – something which Steve is particularly excited about.

“I think the Etesia pedestrian mowers will arguably be the most popular with our customer base. They are well respected machines in the marketplace, extremely versatile and are capable of cutting and collecting in all conditions.”

For further information, please contact Etesia UK on 01295 680120 or visit www.etesia.co.uk.

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