Tag Archive for: selected

Greenkeepers selected to join Wentworth team

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Greenkeepers selected to join Wentworth team: Members of the British & International Golf Greenkeepers Association (BIGGA) will gain an unrivalled behind-the-scenes look at preparations for the BMW PGA Championship this September after being selected to join the Wentworth Club’s greenkeeping team for the duration of the event.

Supplementing Wentworth Club’s inhouse greenkeeping team will be 24 volunteers from across the greenkeeping association. The volunteer BIGGA members will fully integrate with the Wentworth greenkeeping team and take on important maintenance tasks to help prepare the course for play each day.

Greenkeepers selected to join Wentworth team

Greenkeepers selected to join Wentworth team

Wentworth Club Courses and Grounds Manager Daniel Clarke said: “We value our relationship with BIGGA highly and given every member of the Wentworth greenkeeping team is a part of the association and has access to the training and education it offers, we know how committed and capable these volunteers will be as we prepare the West Course for the DP World Tour’s flagship event. Over the years the BMW PGA Volunteer Support Team has evolved from being a helping hand to now being an instrumental part of the in-house greenkeeping team and I’m excited to welcome them all to Wentworth Club in September.”

The BMW PGA Volunteer Support Team is just one of a number of exclusive and career-defining initiatives made available to members of BIGGA, the UK’s only dedicated membership association for golf greenkeepers. Head to www.bigga.org.uk for more information.

The BIGGA members who have been invited to join the Wentworth team as volunteers for the duration of the BMW PGA Championship are:

  • Wayne Aris, Langley Park GC
  • Callum Atkinson, Prestbury GC
  • Tom Barnett, Drayton Park GC
  • Euan Bogle, Lanark GC
  • David Bruce, The Gleneagles Hotel
  • Martin Coe, China Fleet CC
  • Luke Fitzpatrick, The Buckinghamshire GC
  • Calum Forsyth, Carrbridge GC
  • Jack Hall, Lutterworth GC
  • James Hook, The Bristol GC
  • Greg Jones, JCB G&CC
  • Ryan Lindsay, East Sussex National GC
  • Daniel Long-Greatorex, JCB G&CC
  • Thibault Marcazzan, Le Touquet
  • Charlie Munn-Cocks, Camberley Heath GC
  • Stanley Murphy, Ealing GC
  • Scott Patrick, Prestwick St Cuthbert GC
  • Daniel Rigby, Chigwell GC
  • Andrew Sellars, The Grove
  • Matthew Shaul, Ashby Decoy GC
  • Tom Silcock, Prestbury GC
  • Ben Sixsmith, Ganton GC
  • Philip Slater, West Herts GC

Ross Traill, Kilmarnock (Barassie) GC

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Toro winners selected as volunteers

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Toro winners selected as volunteers: To be selected is a honour like no other and two previous winners of the Toro Student Greenkeeper of the Year Awards have been successful in gaining a place as a volunteer at the 150th Open at St Andrew’s in July.

The 2018 winner Daniel Ashelby from Reddish Vale Golf Club and last year’s winner Matthew Milligan from Rudding Park will help prepare the Old Course’s famous fairways for the international event at the home of golf.

Toro winners selected as volunteers

Toro winners selected as volunteers

When it comes to the opportunities that come with winning the decades old competition – and to shine a light on the fact that there is still time to make nominations into the 2022 event – we talk to Daniel Ashelby about what’s happened to him since being crowned champion four years ago.

“Since winning I’ve gone onto be head man at Hartford Golf Club in Cheshire and now I’m working at my dream club. Both roles have given me some absolutely fantastic experiences. At Hartford, during the pandemic, I was running the course by myself and that taught me to trust my instincts and put so much of what I’d learnt over the years into practice.”

Attending Massachusetts Winter School for Turf Managers as part of his prize for winning the Student Greenkeeper of the Year Award set off a passion for education and Daniel is now in his final year of his degree in golf course management.

With educational, international, all-expenses-paid prizes for the winners, runners up and nominators, there’s nothing to lose by nominating your best candidates into the 2022 competition.

And of course the future opportunities for the winners are endless, as Daniel says: “All the networking, learning experiences and personal development that transpire from winning the award have contributed greatly to me being in this position now.

“Being selected as a volunteer for The Open is literally a dream come true. Only those who have the right attitude, skills, ambition and qualifications succeed, and I do think winning the award had a role to play in this. There’s a correlation to the type of people I’ve met on the journey and the paths I’ve been put on that have led here. They go hand in hand.”

So what about those lecturers and employers who think they have a shining star in their midst? What would Daniel say to those those people who have the power to change one of their students or employees lives?

“Just do it. Putting that person’s name in the hat is the first step to opening up a world of possibilities and opportunities,” he says. “And if you’re thinking about nominating somone you’ve nominated before, do that too! Don’t let them feel knocked back if it didn’t work out the first time. Since then that person has grown up, evolved and has a better chance than ever before.”

Nominations into the 2022 Toro Student Greenkeeper of the Year Awards can be made now until 31 May online at BIGGA. This year’s finals will be held on 5-6 September.

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UK greenkeepers selected to support The R&A

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UK greenkeepers selected to support The R&A: The 150th Open at St Andrews is set to be a historic event with record crowds witnessing the world’s greatest players contest the Claret Jug and a team of almost 50 greenkeepers from golf clubs all over the United Kingdom and further afield will be supporting the home greenkeeping team as they prepare the Old Course’s famous fairways.

Each year The R&A requests the assistance of British and International Golf Greenkeepers Association (BIGGA) members in the staging of the event. Every full BIGGA member who has been with the association for at least two years is eligible to apply for a place on the Volunteer Open Support Team and those who are selected are given incredible access to golf’s greatest championship, supporting every match with bunker raking duties.

UK greenkeepers selected to support The R&A

UK greenkeepers selected to support The R&A

The history of the Volunteer Open Support Team began at St Andrews in 1984 following years of complaints from golfers and the governing body that bunker raking at The Open was inconsistent. Walter Woods BEM, links superintendent at St Andrews at the time, proposed that members of the Scottish & International Golf Greenkeepers Association (SIGGA), which existed prior to the formation of BIGGA in 1987, could be enlisted on a volunteer basis. Having a deputised band of trained greenkeepers on site would also provide the home greenkeeping team with additional support, should the need arise. The Volunteer Open Support Team was formed and has attended every Open since, providing hundreds of BIGGA members with incredible memories and inspiring them to achieve greater things both in their careers and at their home facilities.

Joining the BIGGA volunteers will be Gordon Moir, BIGGA President 2022, himself a former links superintendent at St Andrews and an industry veteran who supervised the hosting of five Opens. Gordon will begin his presidency at the BIGGA Turf Management Exhibition (BTME) 2022, taking place from 22 to 24 March at the Harrogate Convention Centre.

BIGGA CEO Jim Croxton said: “The 150th Open will be a spectacular celebration of the sport of golf and in some ways the Volunteer Open Support Team recognises the vital role greenkeepers have played over the centuries in the development and prospering of this wonderful game, so we are thankful to The R&A for providing this opportunity for BIGGA members each year. The Open is the world’s greatest golf tournament and this is set to be the biggest and best instalment ever, so everyone at BIGGA – including those members who form the home St Andrews greenkeeping team – is looking forward to playing our part in the hosting of the championship.”

This year’s BIGGA Volunteer Open Support Team features a record number of first-time team members and each year is provided with accommodation, subsistence and uniform for the event. Restrictions may be in place as a result of the coronavirus pandemic and any necessary adjustments to working practices will be made clear to BIGGA members ahead of the championship.

The 150th Open takes place from 10 to 17 July 2022. Applications for the BIGGA Volunteer Open Support Team for The 151st Open at Royal Liverpool will open later this year.

Here are the BIGGA members who will be assisting the home greenkeepers for the duration of The 150th Open:

Robert Acheson, Thonock Park; Daniel Ashelby, Reddish Vale; George Barr, Worthing; Robert Bemment, Elsham; Simon Bone, Royal Wimbledon; James Bonfield, The Hertfordshire; Adam Brackley, Heworth; Tim Brown, Hockley; Michael Budd, Richmond Park; Steven Carmichael, Dumfries & Galloway; Stuart Christon, Middlesbrough (Brass Castle); Paul Clarkson, Sherborne; Mark Cleverley, Ludlow; David Davies, St Annes Old Links; Jack Fairbairn, Shipton; David Forbes, Faughan Valley; Dean Franks, West Sussex; Michael Gibbons, Dunham Forest; James Gilchrist, Harborne; Andrew Harding, Boyce Hill; Darren Hexley, Muir of Ord; Stevie-Jon Hood, Ljunghusens, Sweden; Jamie Hughes, Lyme Regis; Paul Law, South Staffordshire; Craig Littlejohn, Douglas Park; David McCormick, Royal Porthcawl; Matthew Milligan, Rudding Park; Tiffany Mills, Ryston Park; David McCormick, Royal Porthcawl; William Morton, Llanishen; Ronnie Myles, Buchanan Castle; Ian Nichols, Orsett; George Nock, Enville; Joshua Raper, Hosel EV, Germany; Scott Rigby, Gathurst; Scott Robertson, Strathmore; Harry Roe, Alwoodley; Andrew Sellars, The Grove; Chris Sheehan, Chorlton-cum-Hardy; Niels Sorensen, Randers, Denmark; Craig Surgeon, Kirkcaldy; Rick Tegtmeier CGCS MG, Des Moines, USA; Mark Thompson, Galgorm Castle; Ross Traill, Kilmarnock (Barassie); Sean Tully, Meadow Club, USA; Jeremy Ward, Bradford Moor; George Watton, Ludlow; Aidan Wright, Camberley Heath.

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Toro selected as a founding partner

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Toro selected as a founding partner: The R&A has named The Toro Company as a Founding Partner and Official Golf Course Maintenance Partner for its planned community golf facility at Lethamhill in Glasgow, Scotland. The development aims to make golf more accessible, appealing and inclusive for people of all ages and backgrounds by creating an open and affordable pathway into golf that helps drive the future of the sport.

At the heart of facility, The R&A is committed to showcasing the gold standard in golf course maintenance, turf care, equipment innovation and development. To that end, they have selected Toro to join them in the development and fulfilment of their mission.

Toro selected as a founding partner

Toro selected as a founding partner

As part of this role, Toro will be the exclusive supplier of all course maintenance equipment to the new facility. Development is now underway for this new family-focused venue, which is to include a nine-hole course, putting greens, short game area, adventure golf and a driving range for visitors to enjoy a wide range of golf activities, including shorter forms of the sport.

In addition to providing an equipment fleet and irrigation products to the facility, Toro will have the first option to partner with The R&A on potential future developments. Toro also plans to provide a grant to be used toward the development of a greenkeeper apprenticeship, as well as for efforts that promote the global development of the game of golf.

“We are delighted to become a Founding Partner of this unique project,” said Peter Moeller, vice president of international at The Toro Company. “The R&A’s commitment to developing the game of golf and making it accessible to the broadest possible community is very much in line with Toro’s own mission and objectives. It is both humbling and exciting to see Toro’s equipment and irrigation solutions advance The R&A’s sustainability efforts, and we look forward to helping its team bring plans for the new facility to reality.”

Martin Slumbers, Chief Executive of The R&A, said, “Toro has a world-renowned reputation as a supplier of high-quality equipment and solutions for golf course maintenance and so was a natural choice for us in selecting a partner for the new facility. We look forward to working alongside them in the development of the new venue and providing golfers with excellent facilities so that they can fully enjoy playing the sport in a variety of formats with family and friends.”

For more information about The R&A and its initiatives, please visit randa.org. Toro’s full line of equipment and irrigation products for golf courses can be found at toro.com.

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