Tag Archive for: Award

Otterbine Reveal Contractor Award Winner

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Otterbine Reveal Contractor Award Winner: Water Garden Ltd, a family business based in Portsmouth, have been crowned winners of the has won the prestigious 2018 Reesink Turfcare UK Otterbine Contractor of the Year award.

The company achieved the highest Otterbine sales figures for 2018 thanks to their knowledge of the product, belief in the brand and support from Otterbine and its UK distributor Reesink Turfcare.

Otterbine Reveal Contractor Award Winner

Andy Staves, managing director of Water Garden Ltd, explains: “We were delighted to hear we’d won the award as the whole team has been working really hard this last year. We pride ourselves on having an expert group of staff who have a deep technical understanding of all the products we deal with. Customers can trust we know what we’re talking about and having quality products to back that up is vital.

“We don’t deal with the cheap and cheerful, we want the best, which is why Otterbine is the principle supplier for our aerating fountains,” he says. “Anything else simply doesn’t come close to the quality they offer.”

Even with such a dedicated sales team, the company can only go so far without the right back up and support from the manufacturer, says Andy: “We have a really close relationship with Reesink and Otterbine, in particular Reg Varney, the international region manager, who’s really helpful. Any issues we’ve had, they’ve been tackled head on without hesitation, and resolved quickly, allowing us to give the best possible service to our customers. It’s imperative we get the support we need, when we need it, and that’s what Otterbine and Reesink provide.”

Water Garden Ltd has recently benefitted from Otterbine water management and product training courses, adding to the company’s extensive knowledge of the brand.

Reesink’s national sales representative for Otterbine, Pete Newton, comments: “Water Garden Ltd is incredibly deserving of this year’s award. It is a delight to work with them and particularly rewarding to work with a company who recognises the importance of quality products and who has expert knowledge in the industry. We hope our close partnership continues for many years to come.”

With such a successful year for the company, it’s hard to reflect upon just one stand out moment says Andy: “We’ve had so many great installations this year, particularly with the larger fountains. We have a lot of customers who want not only quality water aeration but also stunning visual centrepieces for their golf course, private estate or wedding venue. Everyone has been delighted with the results – we haven’t had a single complaint, and we intend to keep it that way.”

For more information, visit: reesinkturfcare.co.uk

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Award For Beccles Town Groundsman

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Award For Beccles Town Groundsman: Beccles Town have been crowned winners of the Suffolk FA Groundsman of the Year sponsored by Ransomes at the first time of asking.

The club had never previously entered the competition, which is open to clubs in the county at Step 7 and below.

The five members of the Judging Panel visited this year’s seven entrants on Thursday and were unanimous in their choice of Beccles Town as winner.

Chris Brown and Shaun Soloman are joint groundsmen at the club, who play in the Premier Division of the Hadley & Ottaway Anglian Combination.

Tony Adams of Claydon, the 2017 winner, was runner-up and Bryan Simmonds of Bacton United 89, who won the competition in 2016, was third.

Beccles Town will receive £200 to be spent on groundscare equipment, with Claydon receiving £100 and Bacton united 89 £50.

The groundsmen from all three clubs will be invited to attend the Suffolk FA Awards Ceremony later this year to receive their prizes.

Coddenham Athletic, Leiston St Margarets, Old Newton United and Westerfield United, whose groundsman is Ipswich Town’s 1978 FA Cup Final winning goalscorer Roger Osborne, were the other four clubs to enter the competition.

Beccles Town Vice-Chairman Mark Jermey, who nominated Chris Brown and Shaun Soloman, said: “I am so delighted for Chris and Solly, who have transformed College Meadow over the past few years.

“They have transformed not only the playing surface but the facilities at College Meadow. Their most outstanding quality, aside from hard work, is their ability to enthuse others to donate time and resources.”

Ipswich Town FC Head Groundsman Ben Connell, who led the Judging Panel, said: “I have been impressed with the groundsmen’s innovation and can-do attitude in making and servicing their own machinery to help maintain their football pitches.

“This has influenced the quality we have seen today.”

Phil Jeggo, Regional Pitch Advisor for the Institute of Groundsmen, said: “It is very encouraging to see the increase in the number of entries this year in the county.

“Full credit to all the volunteer groundsmen for producing high-quality standard pitches in the challenging conditions we’ve experienced over the past 12 months.”

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Greenkeeper Award Nominations Double

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Greenkeeper Award Nominations Double: The number of entries into Toro’s Student Greenkeeper of the Year Award last year increased with over double the amount from employer nominations.

This is a fact attributed to commitment to career learning from golf club employers, course managers and head greenkeepers, says David Cole from award sponsor Reesink Turfcare.

Greenkeeper Award Nominations Double

“These results were hugely pleasing to us. It demonstrates the faith employers have in the abilities of their students. We’re aware that without those who nominate their greenkeepers we wouldn’t find the talent we do, hence why we applaud those who let us know about their bright and shining stars.”

Proving the point in 2018 was course manager Steve Oultram from The Wilmslow Golf Club who nominated Daniel Ashelby winner of the Student Award and course manager Jon McMullen from Lee Park Golf Club who nominated winner Danny Patten for the Young Student Award.

Steve is heading to the Golf Industry Show in San Diego in February as part of his prize for nominating Daniel, while Jon has won a trip to Vidauban Golf Club in the South of France, one of the most exclusive European golf clubs there is, for nominating Danny.

Steve views the all-expenses paid trip to San Diego for nominating Daniel in his bid to win the coveted trophy as a great opportunity to bring home to Wilmslow first-hand knowledge on the latest products and services to benefit the golf industry.

He says: “I’m really excited about my trip to the Golf Industry Show, it’s going to be really beneficial to network with some of the industry’s leading people in golf and learn about what we may expect to see in the UK, and at The Wilmslow Golf Club, in the near future.”

Meanwhile, as only the third winner of the Young Award, Danny Patten has cemented his position as one of the very best young greenkeepers in the country, and Jon is excited to have the chance to visit Danny at Vidauban Golf Club.

He says: “Vidauban is known as one of the finest golf courses in the world and it’s a very exclusive club, so to see it myself, and to hear about Danny’s time there, is something I wouldn’t miss. It’s going to be amazing to experience the course and the way it’s run; it’s an example of excellence, so taking in as much as I can while I’m there is going to be a top priority.”

David Cole, managing director of Reesink Turfcare who was first involved in the awards in 1993, says: “We are very proud of the status the Student Award holds within the industry and the opportunity it has provided for career advancement over the years. The fact that employers are showing they do too by nominating their talented greenkeepers is a promising sign for the future of the industry.

“It’s important to remember that it’s not just the students who benefit from winning, their nominators do also. Not only do they receive an all-expenses paid trip abroad, but we mustn’t forget that the winners’ success is testament to the excellent support they receive from their employers, who we are delighted to be able to recognise.”

Both employers and lecturers can make nominations. Visit reesinkturfcare.co.uk/sgoty to find out how to make a nomination into the 2019 awards.

For more information, visit: reesinkturfcare.co.uk

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BIGGA Award For Harleyford GC

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BIGGA Award For Harleyford GC: The greenkeeping team at Buckinghamshire’s Harleyford Golf Club has been recognised for its incredible performance in preparing the course for The Matchroom Sport Championship at a prestigious industry awards ceremony.

The greenkeeping team at Harleyford was tonight (22 January) announced as winners of the BIGGA Awards 2019 Championship Performance of the Year sponsored by Rigby Taylor just five years after the club was declared bankrupt.

BIGGA Award For Harleyford GC

Course Manager Craig Earnshaw and members of the Harleyford team accepted the award at the BIGGA Welcome Celebration hosted by Jacobsen, taking place on the opening day of the BIGGA Turf Management Exhibition in Harrogate, North Yorkshire.

Harleyford, which is the home course of European Tour star Tyrell Hatton, has a team of six greenkeepers whose office is 1.5 miles from the golf course – meaning a 15-minute drive from the maintenance facility to the first tee.

The team has not only been commended for its incredible work in preparing the course to a standard worthy of hosting a professional tournament, but the staging of the event didn’t go without incident.

When stormy conditions and heavy rain on the eve of the tournament completely washed out the club’s bunkers, the team worked through the night to replace the sand, with even Craig’s fiancée, Tracy Forth, being enlisted to cut rough and blow fairways.

The tireless efforts of the team paid off and Harleyford has been chosen to again host the PGA EuroPro Tour’s Matchroom Sport Championship once again in 2019.

Craig said: “This is mad, I can’t believe it to be honest. When you look at who I was up against, I am really just a little short for words. I didn’t think we would win. The guys on my team were amazing and they’re a real credit to the golf club.”

BIGGA Chief Executive Officer Jim Croxton said: “I’m delighted that the team at Harleyford was nominated for this award as they are a fantastic example of what can be achieved with a talented and determined team led by an exceptional course manager, as Harleyford has in Craig Earnshaw. For the club to bounce back from bankruptcy to the hosting of the PGA EuroPro Tour is quite remarkable and to then overcome the stormy conditions that plagued the build-up to the tournament is exceptional. Congratulations to everyone at the club and good luck for 2019!

“Congratulations also to the Gullane Golf Club and Carolina Golf Club teams, who were both worthy finalists after hosting exceptional tournaments during 2018. All are a credit to BIGGA and the greenkeeping industry as a whole.”

BTME 2019 runs until Thursday 24 January and features more than 159 exhibitors from all aspects of the turf management industry. The exhibition is a celebration of the golf greenkeeping industry in the UK and each year more than 5,000 greenkeepers, trade members, club managers and other representatives come together to network and share the latest education and innovation opportunities.

Visit http://btme.org.uk/ for more information.

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Keith Gallacher Wins Sprayer Operator Award

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Keith Gallacher Wins Sprayer Operator Award: The prestigious title of Amenity Sprayer Operator of the Year (ASOY) has been won by Keith Gallacher, Head of Complete Weed Control South West and East Scotland.

ASOY recognises and rewards top sprayer operators across the amenity industry. It aims to improve standards, by identifying the best practice of individuals to enhance results – and share their experiences across the industry.

Keith Gallacher Wins Sprayer Operator Award

Presented for the second time at BTME Harrogate this week (22 January 2019), the ASOY Awards are organised by the Amenity Forum, and sponsored by ICL and Syngenta, in association with BASIS.

As well as the overall top operator, Keith was the winner of the Landscape and Industrial using vehicle mounted equipment category.

Two other category winners were also recognised by the Awards. Ryan Shepherd of Hortech won Landscape and Industrial sprayer using a knapsack, while Andy Baker won the category for Sports turf using a boom sprayer or knapsack.

Keith has a wealth of industry experience and is an expert in all spraying methods. His clients range from local authorities, housing associations, golf courses to large facility companies and businesses within the construction industry. He predominantly undertakes highway spraying, but also has business operational responsibilities associated with running the Complete Weed Control South West and East Scotland franchise.

Keith commented “I take pride in best practice – it’s the culture that is bred within CWC and is encouraged from Head Office. We are a team of like-minded individuals that strive to be the best. For me, Professor John Moverley is an inspiration. I believe that our industry as a whole needs to get behind him and the work of the Amenity Forum.”

Commenting on Keith’s success, from a record entry in the fourth annual ASOY Awards, Professor John Moverley, Chairman of the Amenity Forum, said: ‘‘What is done to maintain amenity areas impacts upon every UK citizen every day and is important to ensure healthy and safe environments fit for purpose. This work depends upon the input of highly professional operators fully trained and qualified. A key element in the task is the use of authorised and safe chemical spraying.

The Amenity Forum Sprayer Operator of the Year Awards seek to highlight the very best practice and identify those individuals who go above and beyond in their work.

I congratulate all those who were shortlisted, the category winners and especially our overall winner this year – an excellent ambassador for the sector. Thanks also to our sponsors who make all this possible.”

ICL Landscape and Industrial Manager, Mark Pyrah, added: “As an organisation we recognise that high levels of professionalism and commitment to best practice are essential in order to ensure that products remain available.

Sprayer operators like Keith, and the other entrants of ASOY, who are not only able to spray accurately, but also demonstrate a professional stewardship of the products, are helping to raise standards across the amenity sector.”

Glenn Kirby, Syngenta Turf UK Technical Manager, highlighted that the Awards demonstrate the amenity industry’s positive approach to safe and sustainable spray application.

“Keith has shown he has outstanding skills and works to very high standards to achieve the best possible results. He has proved a successful winner by showing that best practice can deliver efficient, cost effective and, above all, safe amenity spraying.

“Syngenta recognises that the skills of the sprayer operator are paramount in achieving the full potential from all applications and assuring future sustainable use,” he added.

Stephen Jacob, BASIS CEO commented: “The safe and appropriate application of plant protection products is essential to maintaining the environment in which we live, and it’s clear that Keith is a true advocate of these principles.

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