Tag Archive for: resilience

Enhancing Fairway Resilience at Burnham & Berrow

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Enhancing Fairway Resilience at Burnham & Berrow: Burnham & Berrow Golf Club has successfully enhanced fairway resilience and improved turf quality following the integration of ICL’s H2Pro TriSmart into its water management programme. The initiative was driven by the club’s preparations to host Final Open Qualifying for The 152nd Open Championship at Royal Troon in 2024.

Like many links courses, Burnham & Berrow faced significant challenges during the severe drought of 2022. Despite an extensive irrigation system, maintaining uniform turf coverage proved difficult, highlighting the need for a long-term solution. Course Manager Rich Whyman, working alongside the R&A’s agronomy team, adopted a strategic approach to water management, incorporating H2Pro TriSmart as a key component.

Enhancing Fairway Resilience at Burnham & Berrow

Enhancing Fairway Resilience at Burnham & Berrow

Applied at 10L per hectare throughout the 2023 and 2024 seasons, TriSmart was used in conjunction with reseeding, targeted nutrition, and irrigation refinements. The surfactant’s proven ability to enhance soil moisture retention and improve drought tolerance played a critical role in restoring and strengthening fairway surfaces.

“We’d seen how TriSmart helped improve moisture control in other areas of the course, so we had confidence it could play a key role in strengthening the fairways,” said Rich Whyman, Course Manager at Burnham & Berrow Golf Club.

Since implementing TriSmart, the club has reported measurable improvements, including stronger, more uniform turf coverage, better moisture retention during dry periods, and greater consistency across playing surfaces. Volumetric Moisture Content (VMC) testing has further confirmed more stable moisture levels across the course.

“We’ve seen a real difference in how the fairways respond to dry spells. Areas that struggled in the past have held up far better, and the consistency across the course is much improved,” added Rich.

Burnham & Berrow’s enhanced course conditions have been instrumental in meeting the standards required for Final Open Qualifying, providing firm and consistent playing surfaces for elite golfers. TriSmart has now become an integral part of the club’s ongoing agronomic strategy, supporting long-term turf health and resilience.

“H2Pro TriSmart has played a vital role in improving the resilience of our fairways. Over the past two years, we’ve seen a noticeable increase in turf density and consistency, even during prolonged dry spells. It’s become an essential part of our water management strategy, helping us maintain the high standards required for hosting a Final Open Qualifying event,” said Rich.

Burnham & Berrow’s efforts have been recognised with a nomination for the BIGGA Awards 2024 Championship Performance of the Year, highlighting the club’s commitment to excellence and innovation in golf course management.

Please contact ICL on 01473 237100 or visit www.icl-sf.co.uk or www.icl-sf.ie  if you are in Ireland.

For more news and insightful views, you can follow ICL on Twitter @ICL_Turf

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J Premier Pitch delivers resilience

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J Premier Pitch delivers resilience: While they’ve been using J Premier Pitch at the Lamex Stadium for the last three years, the grounds team at Stevenage Football Club cite this season as the best they’ve ever had in terms of plant strength and surface performance.

After germinating in just five days earlier this year, Head Groundsman James Fennessy also notes the fantastic resilience demonstrated by the Johnsons Sports Seed mixture, which has meant they’ve seen no disease on the stadium pitch this year.

J Premier Pitch delivers resilience

J Premier Pitch delivers resilience

Overseeing a team of five, across the stadium, training ground and an academy site, James began using Johnsons J Premier Pitch after seeing the results at other clubs. “Every stadium environment is different and, because of that, you can never be sure how a seed is going to take. Our corners are open, meaning the pitch is exposed to the elements and we have some areas that don’t get any sunlight during the day so it’s about finding a seed that suits the setting – J Premier Pitch has performed fantastically!”

“We had a seven-week window to complete our renovation this year and started by putting 20 bags of Premier Pitch down at the end of June. We couldn’t believe it when we started to see germination within just five days, which then gave us the maximum time to get the pitch ready for play.”

The combination of highly rated perennial ryegrass cultivars in J Premier Pitch not only deliver rapid establishment, but exceptional wear tolerance, disease resistance and a camera-friendly finish – something that James also praised. “The plant is extremely well rooted and gives us great colour year-round which has been ideal for presentation. In addition, the sward is incredibly dense which means we don’t think we’ll need to do any pre-winter overseeding this year – reducing both workload and cost.”

Seed from across the DLF portfolio, specifically the Masterline range, is used at the training ground and academy site where James again comments on the importance of resilience. “The demands on the surfaces here are actually far greater than at the stadium so it’s absolutely crucial the seed we put in the ground is going to be hard wearing. This year they are good and strong, still performing well as we head towards winter.”

“All of the seed we get from DLF is backed up with fantastic technical support from our Regional Technical Manager Craig Spooner, who keeps us up to speed with updates to formulations.” He concludes, “It’s always good to learn about the work going on behind the scenes, which keeps us reassured that what we’re putting in the ground is always being improved to perform at its very best.”

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