Tag Archive for: BIGGA

BIGGA announces the FTMI Class of 2022

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BIGGA announces the FTMI Class of 2022: The British & International Golf Greenkeepers Association (BIGGA) has revealed the 20 ambitious greenkeepers who will participate in the Future Turf Managers Initiative 2022.

Each year Jacobsen and BIGGA invite 20 up-and-coming association members to participate in the intensive training programme, which has been credited with developing some of the greenkeeping industry’s most influential course managers and head greenkeepers. This year Jacobsen and BIGGA celebrated the first FTMI graduate to achieve the links superintendent position at an Open Championship venue in the form of Royal Liverpool’s James Bledge.

BIGGA announces the FTMI Class of 2022

BIGGA announces the FTMI Class of 2022

FTMI was first hosted in 2013 as a two-day education event and since then has expanded around the world, with similar schemes being introduced in Spain, Portugal, Australia and New Zealand.

For 2022 the structure of FTMI has been adjusted to become a hybrid event that combines workshops at Ransomes Jacobsen’s headquarters in Ipswich, online education sessions and two days of education at BTME in January 2023. FTMI focuses on personal and professional development, rather than agronomy-based subjects, and utilises the expertise of leading course managers, dynamic trainers and industry experts to mentor and educate the next generation of industry leaders.

Candidates are selected based upon an anonymous judging criterion, with the panel gaining an insight into the achievements and ambitions of each applicant, who must be educationally active on a national and regional level.

BIGGA Learning & Development Executive Deb Burnett said: “As an increasing number of FTMI graduates achieve success in their careers, we are reminded of what an incredible learning opportunity FTMI is for BIGGA members. When the 10th FTMI class convenes this year, we’ll be welcoming some of those early delegates back as mentors and I look forward to seeing them inspire the 2022 class, who will then gain the knowledge they require to achieve similar greatness in their own careers.

“Our youngest candidate this year is 22, while the oldest is 47 and that shows how FTMI is available to all BIGGA members. All you need is the desire to learn and progress your career and I’m delighted that among the Class of 2022 we have such a varied mix of people who can share ideas and experiences and who have all got through to this stage based upon their own merits.”

The members of the FTMI Class of 2022 are:

  • Aaron Allibon, first assistant at Orsett
  • John Anderson, senior greenkeeper at Prestwick
  • Rhian Barton, assistant greenkeeper at Royal Liverpool
  • Andrew Barr, deputy head greenkeeper at Greencastle
  • Tom Bromfield, assistant greenkeeper at Trentham
  • Ray Cotgrave, deputy course manager at Pleasington
  • Marcus Davies, assistant greenkeeper at Wentworth Club
  • Michael Gibbons, first assistant at Dunham Forest
  • Sean Harvey, senior greenkeeper at Frilford Heath
  • Peter Lewis, senior greenkeeper/irrigation technician at Royal Liverpool
  • Darren McLoughlin, deputy head greenkeeper at Erskine
  • Matthew Milligan, first assistant at Rudding Park
  • Malcolm Mitchell, deputy head greenkeeper at Burghley Park
  • Wayne Mulrooney, deputy course manager at Great Barr
  • Robert Munro, assistant superintendent at Cabot Cliffs
  • Ryan Oliver, assistant greenkeeper at Hornsea
  • Adrian Parsons, assistant greenkeeper at Wenvoe Castle
  • Michael Russell, assistant greenkeeper at Ormskirk
  • Steven Thomas, deputy head greenkeeper at Prestonfield

Elliot Walters, deputy course manager at Robin Hood

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BIGGA CEO appeals for greater support

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BIGGA CEO appeals for greater support: As the UK golfing industry prepares itself for another bumper summer, the chief executive of the UK’s greenkeepers’ association has issued a rallying cry for the game to reinvest in golf club staff who make the game possible.

Speaking following the BIGGA Turf Management Exhibition (BTME), BIGGA CEO Jim Croxton said that with golf participation and membership booming, the time has come for the leading bodies in the game to make a priority of the workforce in golf clubs that facilitate our great sport.

BIGGA CEO appeals for greater support

BIGGA CEO appeals for greater support

BTME is the annual education conference and exhibition for golf greenkeepers and is held in Harrogate each year. With hundreds of hours of educational opportunities for greenkeepers and groundspeople, it is considered among the most influential events in the golfing calendar, particularly at a grassroots level.

BTME was unable to take place in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic but saw a successful return this year, albeit delayed due to concerns regarding the Omicron variant last winter. BTME 2022 saw 2,577 unique visitors attend the trade show, which represents a drop of around 40% on 2020. Over 70% of the visitors to the show were in senior ‘decision making’ roles, such as course managers and head greenkeepers.

Although numbers were down, the event was enjoyed by those in attendance with many exhibitors reporting valuable business done as the Harrogate Convention Centre’s exhibition halls buzzed with the greenkeeping industry reconvening properly for the first time in over two years. A common topic of discussion in the halls, conferences and social interactions was the challenges currently facing the industry.

Jim said: “When the pandemic hit, the industry came together to form a ‘wartime cabinet’ that supported the game through extremis. With fewer high-profile crises facing the sport, the emergency footing has abated. However, there remain a number of serious challenges, such as the supply chain issues for machinery and equipment and the cost and availability of water, fuel and raw materials such as fertilisers and sands. The labour crisis is another major issue that we simply must address to keep the sport healthy.

“For many years the main focus of the game has been growing the number of people playing golf. The pandemic effectively gave us 2 million extra golfers in the UK and that has brought significant additional revenue into the game. It’s now time for clubs to focus on the importance of their workforce, without whom the sport would wither on the vine.

“The success of this year’s Continue to Learn education programme at BTME has proved once again that BIGGA members continue to rise to the challenge that managing a golf course in the 21st Century brings. Today’s greenkeepers are better educated than ever before, overcoming the challenges they face each day to present stunning golf courses for their members to enjoy. Greenkeepers have held up their end of the bargain and now it is time for the golf industry to do the same.”

Among key areas of concern for Jim and the BIGGA team are the conditions that greenkeepers are expected to work in. While some forward-thinking clubs now provided modern, clean and comfortable facilities for their greenkeeping teams, many still force their team to use outdated facilities that are no longer fit for purpose.

Other significant areas of concern are salaries, particularly for entry level staff and those making their way through the ranks. Additionally, the incredibly-high expectations placed upon greenkeepers to present golf courses despite the often limited resources made available to them, which can cause significant stress and mental health problems.

BIGGA is an active participant in the Committee for Golf Club Salaries (CGCS), which this year issued a recommendation to increase salaries for golf club staff by 5 per cent to help with the rising cost of living, as well as an increased awareness of the vital role staff play in the success of a facility. However, the guidelines are recommendations that not all clubs adhere to.

Jim added: “I was at a gathering of golf club leaders last autumn and asked the attendees to put their hands up if they would be prepared to work in the facilities they provide for their greenkeepers. Only a minority raised their hands and that shows an awareness of how we aren’t looking after the staff who play such a critical role in the success of golf businesses and the wider sport. It is also, of course, important to point out the challenges that club managers and other staff are facing in a rapidly changing and demanding industry. Golf is a sport that is delivered by people at facility level; every club is autonomous and this leads to huge variations in pay, conditions and welfare for the staff members in those facilities.

“Greenkeeping is a wonderful profession with many physical and mental health benefits and a wide range of career opportunities. It’s time for golf clubs to put their staff first, invest in their wellbeing and for a framework to be put in place that ensures every facility in the country treats their staff in a respectful and appropriate manner.”

For more information about the British & International Golf Greenkeepers Association, visit www.bigga.org

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BIGGA launches ‘Plant a Tree for BTME’

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BIGGA launches ‘Plant a Tree for BTME’: The British & International Golf Greenkeepers Association (BIGGA) has launched a new scheme that will see exhibitors at its annual trade show and education conference encouraged to ‘Plant a Tree for BTME’.

The 2022 edition of the BIGGA Turf Management Exhibition (BTME) was held from 22 to 24 March at the Harrogate Convention Centre, but is anticipated to return to its regular January date in 2023. Exhibitors who sign up to attend the 2023 event will be given the option of purchasing a tree, to be planted at a nominated golf course.

BIGGA launches ‘Plant a Tree for BTME’

BIGGA launches ‘Plant a Tree for BTME’

It is hoped that over the years sufficient trees will be planted to create a network of ‘BTME community woodlands’ around the UK, with Harrogate Golf Club the first club to participate in the scheme.

With individual trees capturing up to 1 tonne of carbon dioxide from our air over its lifetime, the scheme will raise awareness of the carbon footprint generated by major events such as BTME and be a flagship initiative as BIGGA seeks to improve its sustainable practices, as is echoed at forward-thinking golf facilities everywhere.

BIGGA Membership Services Manager for Sustainability James Hutchinson said: “The idea of planting trees as a means of offsetting carbon generated by people travelling to attend BTME was first proposed by a BIGGA member a couple of months ago and it is something that struck me as making a lot of sense. Those who know me know that I’m a dendrophile – I love trees – and as we explored the possibility further we uncovered schemes such as the National Trust’s pledge to plant 20 million trees by 2030, so it just made a lot of sense to get involved.

“It is always important to take great care when selecting what trees to plant on a golf course as not all species are appropriate or will generate the desired result, but by working with courses that are eager to create areas of woodland for the wider community, we believe this scheme will help to raise awareness of the good work that golf courses are doing to protect the natural environment.”

Harrogate Golf Club’s course manager, Ken Ward, said: “An old employer of mine once told me, ‘we’re just custodians of this land’. That rang true with me. We’re not here for that long but we want to leave it in a better place than we found it. This is an opportunity to get our members and two local primary schools involved with a project on the golf course, which is a fantastic thing.”

Plant a Tree for BTME is just one of a number of initiatives that BIGGA has undertaken to reduce the carbon footprint of BTME. BTME returns from 24 to 26 January 2023 at the Harrogate Convention Centre. The event is free to attend and for more information visit www.btme.org.uk

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BIGGA and Campey announce award winners

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BIGGA and Campey announce award winners: The British & International Golf Greenkeepers Association and Campey Turf Care Systems have revealed the winners of the BIGGA Excellence in Communications Awards.

Whether using digital and social media, community outreach or by producing an article for the monthly journal of BIGGA, Greenkeeper International, the awards recognise those greenkeepers who have embraced communication as a vital tool available to the modern turf professional, helping to improve understanding and appreciation of the greenkeeping industry among the public or sharing ideas and best practice for the turf management community.

BIGGA and Campey announce award winners

BIGGA and Campey announce award winners

Three awards categories were up for grabs and the winners will receive their prizes at the BIGGA Welcome Celebration on the opening night of BTME 2022, which is taking place at the Harrogate Convention Centre from 22 to 24 March.

The Innovation and Thought Leadership Award is given to the BIGGA member who has written the most thought-provoking article for Greenkeeper International in the previous calendar year. The judges selected as the winner a feature written by Prestonfield Golf Club’s course manager Shaun Cunningham. Included within the February 2021 edition of the magazine, Shaun discussed the topic of out-of-play areas and whether a golfer’s enjoyment of a golf course depended as much upon the wider environment and landscape as it did the playing surfaces.

The New Media Award is given to a BIGGA member who has embraced the possibilities of digital media to raise understanding of what goes on behind-the-scenes at a golf course. This year’s New Media Award winner is John Rowbottom, greenkeeper at Woolley Park Golf Club in Barnsley. John began using social media as a bit of fun but quickly gained a large following with his entertaining look at life at this West Yorkshire golf club, often joined out on the course by his ‘turf dogs’. One video of the greens team preparing a bunker was viewed over 23 million times.

The Outreach Award seeks to recognise those BIGGA members who have taken their message beyond the normal work boundaries. This can be to the local community, schools or environmental groups. The winner of this year’s award is John Milne, head greenkeeper at Garmouth & Kingston Golf Club. John has presented in schools and at careers events to raise awareness of life at the golf club. He also invites students to the golf course to show how golf facilities can be beneficial for the natural environment. Activities have included primary school pupils planting trees and taking part in an on course wildlife safari, the establishment of an ecology group and encouraging wildlife photographers to visit the site.

Karl Hansell, head of marketing and communications at BIGGA, said: “At BIGGA we work tirelessly to raise awareness among the public about just what it takes to maintain a modern golf course. Greenkeepers too must do their bit if the message is to reach a wide audience and so I’m pleased that we are able to highlight the incredible work of these three BIGGA members, who go far beyond the requirements of their daily working lives to try and improve the lot of greenkeepers everywhere. The wide range of activities they have undertaken shows not only what a wonderful profession greenkeeping is, but how golf clubs can play a positive role in the health and wellbeing of the wider community.”

“Our thanks also go to Campey Turf Care Systems for enabling us to reward these three BIGGA members with such fantastic prizes. To see BIGGA, our members and the turf industry working together in such a great way gives confidence that there is a bright future ahead for the greenkeeping industry.”

BTME is taking place this week at the Harrogate Convention Centre, having been postponed from January 2022 due to the coronavirus pandemic. Registration is free and more details can be found at www.btme.org.uk

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BIGGA and GEO Foundation team up at BTME

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BIGGA and GEO Foundation team up at BTME: The British and International Golf Greenkeepers Association (BIGGA) has teamed up with GEO Foundation for Sustainable Golf to host a place for sports turf managers to meet and exchange ideas during March’s BIGGA Turf Management Exhibition (BTME).

GEO Foundation is an international not-for-profit, dedicated to helping inspire, support and reward credible sustainability and climate action across golf.

BIGGA and GEO Foundation team up at BTME

BIGGA and GEO Foundation team up at BTME

BTME takes place at the Harrogate Convention Centre from 22 to 24 March 2022 and during the event the GEO Foundation will be joined by a number of other partners to host the ‘Sustainability Lounge’, which will provide a dedicated space for attendees to find out more, get involved and join discussions about key sustainability issues with experts in their field.

In addition to its strategic support through partnerships with associations including BIGGA, the GEO Foundation assures the OnCourse programmes for grassroots golf facilities, new developments and tournaments, each of which can lead to the widely endorsed and externally recognised GEO Certified label.

During BTME, the Sustainability Lounge will be a gathering and meeting place and in addition to the team from GEO Foundation, experts from around the UK will often be on hand, including BIGGA’s very own sustainability champion, James Hutchinson.

James, who is Membership Services Manager for Ecology and Sustainability for BIGGA, said: “Of all the key topics up for discussion at BTME, among the most important will be the need for golf courses all over the world to adopt increasingly sustainable practices. With the changing availability of resources and rising costs, alongside an increasing awareness of the important role we can all play to protect the natural environment, golf has a massive part to play and I am excited that our colleagues at the GEO Foundation, and partners from other golfing bodies, will be joining us at BTME for what stands to be a wonderful opportunity to exchange ideas and discover new sustainable practices.”

The GEO Foundation will also be recognising Sustainable Golf Champions and will celebrate GEO Certified venues, with representatives invited to showcase what initiatives they have implemented at their golf facilities. There will also be prize draws for those who stop by to vote for a sustainability or climate action project shared by a fellow greenkeeper.

Kelli Jerome, Executive Director at GEO Foundation, added: “BTME is an important event in the golf industry calendar and the advocacy, education and engagement opportunities provided are important to golf’s sustainability progress. We are really excited about the space BIGGA has made available for the Sustainability Lounge and we’re looking forward to working closely with BIGGA and other UK golf associations to support and engage attendees – meeting, hearing views, answering questions and sharing inspiring stories from as many people as possible during the week.”

BTME is free to attend and registration and more information can be found on the BTME website, www.btme.org.uk

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