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Duncan Ross At Hurlston Hall

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Duncan Ross At Hurlston Hall: The condition of a golf courses greens is what a head greenkeeper is often judged on, and Duncan Ross’ surgical precision has ensured they are the go to contractor for Hurlston Hall Golf Club.

The completion of the latest two greens are the latest in a project that has seen nine completed. For Chris Ball, former head greenkeeper at Hurlston Hall who recently took up the role as links manager at Hillside Golf Club, working with Duncan Ross on a long-term drainage project generated a refined understanding whilst solving the clubs’ problem greens.

Duncan Ross At Hurlston Hall

“For us they are a local company and when you factor in getting other companies in from the North West of England there’s not many specialising in drainage.” Chris said. “I think Duncan has refined his methods over the years and it’s almost like key hole surgery.

“We’d done seven greens previously with Duncan and we’ve been going around the course targeting the nine worst and the ones that have just been completed were the last two that were screaming out to be done.

“You can immediately see the difference in the greens, but you’ve still got to do your bit as a greenkeeper and maintain the organic matter.

“I can’t fault the work they do, and the fact now is that he knows what he’s doing, and we now know what he wants to do beforehand and that’s key. The first year everyone was still learning, we put holes in the greens for aeration but this would slow them down as when it came to taking the Turf up it would fall apart, and now we know not to do anything when Duncan is coming in because it makes it more efficient for them and prevents adding time onto the project.”

Having gone through the process of getting to know how one another works the other aspects of being able to use a local contractor have become more prominent. All of the materials used on the project are locally sourced, which keeps costs down with no compromise on quality.

And when it comes to drainage quality is paramount. Like everyone else, Chris was under pressure to have the course open, but because of the weather in the North East of England his focus was primarily on providing the best greens possible during the peak golf season.

“They all perform great in the summer which is key,” he said. “I’d say they’ve improved play in the winter if we have a normal winter, but what’s happening now is the greens are drier than the rest of the course and people still can’t play because the rest of the course is under water.

“We’ve definitely got better performing greens for longer but in the North West of England it’s seriously wet. But when it does stop raining they dry out a lot quicker and you know you can withstand the torrential down pours in the summer because the drains are going to take care of it.”

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

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Fast Greens At Knole Park GC

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Fast Greens At Knole Park GC: Located within the boundaries of Knole Estates in 1,000 acres of outstanding Kent parkland and with 600 deer roaming freely around the estate is a club like no other. 

Knole Park is one of the most unique courses in the country; not only for the aforementioned reasons, but also for the fact that this one course plays home to two clubs. 

Fast Greens At Knole Park GC

Course manager at the club, which is home to Knole Park Golf Club and Sevenoaks Town Golf Club, is Gavin Kyle who has been at the club for 15 years. Gavin keeps a regular annual machinery replacement programme and this year he had a focus on choosing the right machines to create firm, true, fast surfaces, which is where Toro joins the story.  

 “It is important to consistently maintain a challenge for players,” says Gavin. “It’s for this reason that recent years have seen us extend the course by 200 yards, with further extension planned in the next year. There is a fine balance between offering a good game to all golfers, including those with a five handicap and below. We have players of all abilities across our two-club membership including a lot of scratch players and our greens needed an update this year to offer a consistent challenge to all.  

“When choosing our next greens machines we checked out the market, going through rounds of demos from distributors. If I’m honest I haven’t bought Toro since I’ve been at Knole Park, so for 15 years! But Toro is renowned for its greens machines in particular so were naturally included on the demo list. What appealed with the Greensmaster TriFlex 3420-H machines, which we went for, was that they’re hybrids. I sought to reduce the risk of hydraulic leaks on the greens and I wanted the advanced control these machines can offer.” 

The TriFlex Hybrid’s electric cylinder circuit is designed to eliminate up to 90 percent of hydraulic leaks, and the Turf Guardian leak detection system provides immediate audio and visual indication of possible leaks. Plus, the electric cylinders have less drag and spin more freely than hydraulic motors providing a sharp cut which leads to firmer and faster greens, exactly what Gavin is after. “Firm, true and fast greens is what we’re all after and the Toro TriFlex is helping us achieve this at Knole Park,” he confirms.  

Providing the advanced control Gavin mentioned is the machines’ Info Centre, which has an easily customised clip for different heights of cut as well as other operational settings to give complete machine control on cylinder speed, hours of function, system voltage for cylinders and diagnostic descriptions. It’s this that provides the advanced control that appealed to Gavin in the TriFlexes.  

But as Gavin goes on to say, it’s never just as simple as the machines: “A machine is often only as good as the backup that comes with it. We’re dealing direct with Reesink Turfcare for the first time and we’ve found that to be a great experience so far.” 

It seems opportune that Toro arrives back at Knole Park for the first time since the 1970s in the year that it hosted the Tillman Trophy, the tournament widely attributed to changing the face of amateur golf. We’re sure with Toro on side, Gavin and his greenkeeping team of six will change the challenge of the course for all its members.

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

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Apprenticeships At Leicester City

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Apprenticeships At Leicester City: Leicester City Football Club has become the latest in a length list of Premier League Football Clubs to choose Myerscough College as their apprenticeships delivery partner. 

 The implementation of the Apprenticeships Levy has seen the club invest heavily in the recruitment of new apprentices and also taken the chance to upskill existing staff to a higher level of competency. 

Apprenticeships At Leicester City

As part of National Apprenticeship Week, we caught up with the team as they prepared the stadium pitch for an FA Cup fixture. As part of the day we also allowed Leah, Josh and Ryan the chance to explain why they chose an apprenticeship and what skills they are developing. 

As part of their apprenticeship Josh, Leah and Ryan will learn a wide range of skills, and rotate across sites also working at the Belvoir Drive training complex. This ensures their experiences are as varied as possible as they learn the complexities of the job. They’re supported with regular college tutor visits, technical workshops and access to a sophisticated e-portfolio and virtual learning environment, where they can log their training and complete any associated knowledge assignments. Myerscough has a proven track record in apprenticeship delivery and this blended approach has delivered significant success over the past decade. 

Grounds Manager at Leicester City, John Ledwidge, shares his vision for the award winning team, and the need to be at the forefront of learning, innovation and technology: “For us it’s always about a team effort. It’s vital that we maintain our playing surfaces to the highest standards possible and we embrace any innovation technologies that allow is to achieve this. Apprenticeships allow us the chance to recruit new workers into our team and to shape their training to our model of excellence. The Apprenticeships Levy has allowed us to now enroll seven members of our team onto apprenticeship programmes at level 2 and level 3. 

 ‘’We have also recently recruited three new team members straight onto apprenticeships. This is a significant investment from the club and allows us for succession planning and internal team development. Myerscough College come highly recommended and we look forward to seeing our apprentices develop. We have exciting plans for the future and hope our new apprentices play a big part in our future success.” 

 Employer Services Manager at Myerscough College shares his thoughts on recruiting apprentices: “We assist employers across the country to recruit and train apprentices. It’s fantastic that Leicester City have chosen us as their sportsturf apprenticeships provider and I am looking forward to seeing the journey the apprentices make as they develop in their new roles.  

 ‘’If any employers are unsure about Apprenticeships, or the recruitment process, then they can get in touch with our expert Employer Services Team who will support them every step of the way. This service is completely free of charge to all businesses choosing Myerscough College as their Apprenticeships provider.” 

For more information, visit: www.myerscough.ac.uk

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Koro Field Topmaker At Provo GC

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Koro Field Topmaker At Provo GC: Golf courses find their home in a variety of places, but Provo Golf Course, based in the Turks & Caicos Islands, is located on the edge of a 40-square mile island, which makes it one of the more unique locations, providing with it the unique challenges of Caribbean weather.

Whilst the thought of an endless summer brings golfers to the resort, the perpetual heat allows thatch to grow in vast quantities, leaving course superintendent, Tim Mack, seeking an alternative more effective machine than his current system, to remove thatch from his fairways and roughs.

Koro Field Topmaker At Provo GC

Online research and further examination in person at a GCSAA tradeshow culminated in the decision to use the KoroÒ FIELD TOPMAKERÒ (FTM) with UniverseÒ rotor, with a particular focus on removing thatch rather than removing the surface completely.

“Providenciales has an arid and hot climate. We have 365 days of growing weather (nothing goes dormant), which means we produce an ample amount of thatch,” Tim explains. “Also, weed and insect pressure are high due to no eradication from temperature changes.

“In other words, everything is a perennial, there are no annuals here. Some other unique challenges relate to being on a 40-square mile island in the middle of the Caribbean Sea. We have no natural fresh water sources, so we utilize R.O. water – which is very expensive – blended with some well (brackish) and reclaimed water (brackish). Salt management is a major component of our management strategies.

“I think the Universe® rotor for the Koro® FTM® is a fantastic tool for thatch management, but currently, we are using the FTMÒ with Universe® rotor, for a turf conversion project, changing from Bermuda to Seashore Paspalum. After eradicating the existing turf with several pesticide applications, we were able to strip 30 acres (front 9 wall to wall) with the machine in 3 weeks, which we were very impressed by. We will use the same strategy for the back 9 next summer.”

Koro Field Topmaker At Provo GC

Despite the initial purpose of the machine being to remove thatch, Tim has used it on a number of other areas around the course, taking full advantage of what the patented Universe® Rotor and KORO® FTMÒ offer. In replacing his previous machine, he believes he now has much more powerful, efficient and cleaner end product, something that’s vital for surface hygiene in a continuous growing environment.

Using the Koro® to its full extent means with the 10mm Universe® blades, I have been able to strip the first 9 holes, and with the 3mm Universe® Finesse blades we will be going into future operations for verti-cutting fairways and larger tees a couple of times a year, as well as other plans.  It is a very versatile and well-built piece of equipment, and we are very happy that we chose to purchase a KoroÒ FIELDTOPMAKER® complete with Universe® rotor.

“We are very pleased with the efficiency and accuracy of the machine.  Also, Richard Campey and his team have provided great support.

For more information, visit: www.campeyturfcare.com

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New Sales Director At MTD

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New Sales Director At MTD: MTD have announced the appointment of Tony Whelan as the new Director of Sales and Marketing for their Specialty Turf Products division. The new role will see Tony grow the specialty turf sector of the business, working on both the golf and sports turf sectors.

Tony has worked in the industry for a number of years holding both domestic and international roles in sales and marketing, previously spending 15 years at Rain Bird.  Here he was also responsible for working with key accounts including Pebble Beach. Tony also enjoyed over 4 years as Sales Director at Jacobsen where he was involved with distribution, before taking responsibility for the running of the factory-owned stores in the US. As the Director of Sales and Marketing at MTD Specialty Turf division, he will be looking to develop the current products as well as exploring new opportunities in the market.

New Sales Director At MTD

Commenting on his appointment, Tony adds “I was approached for this position and it was the product range that really sold the job to me. I spoke to some contacts in the UK about the Cub Cadet INFINICUT® and ATT TMSystem™, as well as getting feedback on the Cub Cadet RG3 in the States, and everyone said how truly fantastic the products are. Joining a company is about more than just good products though and after spending time at the MTD facilities it was clear it operated with a good organisational culture, supported by some great individuals. Having people like John Coleman and Vinny Tarbox driving the products forward is a great plus.”

“I’m really excited to leverage my passion and understanding of the industry with a company that are investing in advanced technology and techniques to improve efficiency for the users. As the INFINICUT® brand continues to grow in the US, we’ll be looking to explore new opportunities, especially in the baseball market.”

As a self-confessed ‘golf fanatic’, Tony spends a great deal of his time away from work enjoying the sport and when not on the course he enjoys spending time with his wife and two daughters.

For more information, visit: www.cubcadetturf.com

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