Making a Mark

GREENKEEPER INTERNATIONAL GI MARCH 2010 Inside... DInside...iffERENT SFocusTROKE on S FOR Fungicides diffDr TerryE MabbutREN T FOLKgets technicalS DrThe Terry Unseen Mabbett discusses theIrrigation relationship between trees and turf System Irrigation matters uncovered Turf Professionals Horses SPOrts turf prOFEssiONALS (and Tennis) ARE INTERVIEWED IN Our TALKING HEADS FEATURE for Courses FeaturedEpsom and Wimbledon GEttiunderN theG radar THE BASICS RIGHT Laurence Pithie MG on Course Management Making a Mark Golf GI meets The Course Manager Course making his mark at Longcliffe, in Feature this month’s Golf Course Feature Make us your of cial golf course equipment partner John Deere Golf engineers products for every inch of your course. We take you beyond precision course grooming with products that feature intuitive use, safety and comfort. Want to keep your staff working more ef ciently? For a professional demonstration, contact your local John Deere dealer today. www.JohnDeere.co.uk Freephone 0800 085 25 22 C 692.1 E C_692_1_E_210x297.indd 1 08.02.2010 12:27:28 Uhr WELCOME FROM THE EDITOR BIGGA President Sir Michael Bonallack, OBE Board of Management Chairman – Paul Worster Vice Chairman Andrew Mellon Past Chairman Peter Todd Board Members Chris Sealey, Gary Cunningham, Archie Dunn, Ian Willett, Tony Smith, Elliott Small, Mark Dobell Chief Executive John Pemberton [email protected] Head of Learning & Development Sami Collins [email protected] Head of Membership Department Tracey Maddison [email protected] Contact Us BIGGA HOUSE, Aldwark, Alne, York, YO61 1UF [email protected] www.bigga.org.uk Tel – 01347 833800 | Fax – 01347 833801 GREENKEEPER INTERNATIONAL The official monthly magazine of the British & International Golf Greenkeepers Association Limited. Editorial Whatever doesn’t kill you, Communications Manager / Editor Scott MacCallum Tel – 01347 833800 Fax – 01347 833801 makes you stronger [email protected] Design Design and Production Editor Now that we have reached March there So, as I say, someone up there Tom Campbell must be hope that we have finally obviously feels golf deserves a bit of a kicking Tel – 01347 833800 emerged from the toughest winter in 30 and it’s not helped by the Tiger Woods Fax – 01347 833801 situation. [email protected] years… although I wouldn’t bet on it. As I write we are waiting for another yet I watched his televised statement – the Advertising batch of snow to make an appearance and approach Tiger and his advisors took goes Sales Executive since December we haven’t gone more than a down better Stateside than over here where we Kirstin Smith week without some Artic-like weather making a are a little more cynical. Tel – 01347 833800 nuisance of itself. But the point I’d like to make is that several Fax – 01347 833802 [email protected] Following on from two successive duff of Tiger’s Blue Chip sponsors deserted him as summers, it is just what the game of golf soon as the Kiss ‘n Tell stories began to appear. Sales Executive needed as we struggle through a recession, However, when we have similarly high Jill Rodham Talking of which I personally don’t think we’ve profiled footballers carrying on in near identical Tel – 01347 833800 seen the worst of yet. fashion – if the press, and those home grown Fax – 01347 833802 [email protected] Sure the indicators might be that it ended in Kiss ‘n tell stories, are to be taken at face value the last quarter from the country’s perspective, – but the same vilification doesn’t get heaped but the consequences of the last two years will on them. require us, as individuals, to tighten our belts While as far as I’m aware, their sponsors Printing Warners Midlands Plc, The Maltings, Manor and pay out more in tax and insurances for haven’t done a runner, or if they have, not in Lane, Bourne, Lincolnshire PE10 9PH Tel – 01778 391000 | Fax – 01778 394269 several years to come. such a public manner. The knock-on of having less disposable Maybe it is just me but people do seem to Contents may not be reprinted or otherwise reproduced without written permission. Return income will have more people looking delight in giving golf a bit of a kicking and postage must accompany all materials submitted at the value they get from their golf club the fact that the game’s Poster Boy has fallen if return is requested. No responsibility can be assumed for unsolicited materials. The right is memberships, possibly resigning and becoming off his pedestal has seen giant dollops of reserved to edit submissions before publication. one of the increasing band of nomadic players, schadenfreude descend on the game. Although every care will be taken, no responsibility is accepted for loss of manuscripts, and so the vicious downward spiral which Anyhow it seems that golf must have walked photographs or artwork. Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the Association, afflicts golf club finance continues. under a ladder or broken a mirror because and no responsibility is accepted for such No doubt over the last year Course Managers so much has conspired against it in the last content, advertising or product information that may appear. Circulation is by subscription. everywhere will have examined working couple of years but you can be sure that the Subscription rate: UK £50 per year, Europe and practices and budgets and made cuts were the game will bounce back. Eire £65, Rest of the World £95. The magazine is also distributed to BIGGA members, golf clubs, implications are least severe, but I’m sure many As the old saying goes, “Whatever doesn’t kill local authorities, the turf industry, libraries and will be asked to revisit those budgets. you makes you stronger”! central government. You would hope that golfers’ expectations levels would be reset in light of restricted resources but we all know that is a faint hope of that and, anyway I don’t know of any turf professional who would not fight tooth and nail Scott MacCallum to maintain the standards he or she has built Editor ISSN: 0961– 6977 up over the years. © 2010 British and International Golf Greenkeepers Association Limited MARCH 2010 GI 3 CONTENTS GI A look at what’s inside the magazine this month COURSE FEATURE MARCH 2010 Longcliffe Golf Club has long never had winter greens and not been regarded as one of the seen any real damage done by best in the east midlands frost. If the greens were so bad that Making a Mark and when the job of Course damage would be done the whole Manager was advertised in course would be shut,” explained Greenkeeper International Peter. in 2008 it was an attractive “I still get questions from mem- Scott MacCallum meets Peter Sands, who has proposition to a number of bers about it now and I reassure been in charge at Longcliffe for the last two years experienced greenkeepers them that it’s ok to play on frosted FEATURES The man who got the job was greens. The only time there might Peter Sands, who had been Deputy be a problem would be like recently, Course Manager at West Hill Golf after the snow, and the sudden Club, in Surrey, and since taking thaw with movement on top. All the up the reins two years ago he has time that it is hard it’s not going to brought his own stamp to what was cause any damage that wouldn’t be already an excellent golf course. irreparable in the spring.” Peter arrived on the retiral of The move has been warmly wel- Walter Cole, who had been an insti- comed by the club, not least by the tution at Longcliffe for 46 years and pro shop, because societies, who’d 19 Different Strokes been responsible for nurturing the previously not book in the winter careers of many young greenkeep- months because they knew Long- ers who went on to become Course cliffe played on temporary greens Managers, while, at the same time, and tees, are returning and there is for Different Folks producing a fine course. It was more revenue coming in. never going to be easy for Peter to Peter’s success at interview could make his mark quickly. be traced to having identiﬁ ed simi- But that’s exactly what he did. lar issues to those of the experts the Dr Terry Mabbett discusses the Having come from the Home club had commissioned. Counties, where courses were kept Ex-Woodhall Spa Course Man- on main greens and tees wherever ager and consultant, Peter Wisbey, possible Peter saw no reason to sat on the Interview Panel and had relationship between trees and change his thinking just because views on a number of issues which he happened to have moved 130 matched those of the successful miles north. candidate, while Peter (Sands) turf “The very first thing I did was ideas on bunkering also matched to get rid of the winter greens and those of another specialist, who winter tee mats,” said Peter, who had looked at the course.. started work in February 2008. Prior to visiting Longcliffe the “I’d come from a course which club had engaged architect, Simon 24 Making a Mark Peter Sands, Course Manager at Longcliffe Golf Club, talks to Scott MacCallum about what he has achieved in the two years he has been at the club 24 GI GI 28 Getting the 24 MARCH 2010 MARCH 2010 25 Basics Right GI_MAR_10.indd 24-25 4/3/10 09:35:32 Laurence Pithie MG looks at what is required to ensure your course is as good as it can be 32 Reinventing the Wheel (Part 2) Lee Manvell updates the Powakaddy wheel story – the development of which was aided by BIGGA Course Managers.

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