GolfManagement Europe

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Nick Holmes, managing director at the luxurious Rockliffe Hall, talks about opening, and the level

of expectations at the five-star resort page 19

all eyes on crocodile golfWith a growing reputation for quality golf products, Crocodile Golf has one eye on global expansion

issue 72may 2010

ThE EssEnTial ManaGEMEnT publicaTion for EMEa Golf club opEraTors

may 2010 GME 3

publisher’s editorial

Walt Disney was once quoted as say-ing: “Do what you do so well that they will want to see it again and bring their friends.”

Disney got many things right in his rela-tively short life and he was spot on with this quote. and while I’m in the mood for quotations, let’s have a look at another, this time from the Greek philosopher Socrates: “The way to gain a good repu-

tation is to endeavour to be what you desire to appear.”

Now while Socrates may have been one of the wisest and most forward-think-ing men ever to set foot on this planet of ours it’s fair to assume he wasn’t talking about golf resorts when he made that comment.

But it came back to me while on a visit to a recently opened hotel and golf course in Oxfordshire. Built originally in the early 18th century as a family home it’s now being marketed as a ‘resort’ – in fact the word appears in its full title.

However, my experience suggests that while the golf course – which opened recently to some fanfare – is excellent and the whole golf operation is run very professionally, the same high standards are not applied across the board.

In 13 years of publishing this magazine and staying at high-end ‘resorts’ in this country and abroad I have never wit-nessed such poor standards in a hotel.

Without wishing to harp on about this one venue – which I have decided will

remain nameless – I should just point out that the restaurant closed at 9pm, it had no room-service offering and there were dead wasps served up in my breakfast!

What’s more, the standard of the rooms were sub-standard and the level of service poor. If a resort is being mar-keted as a ‘quality’ venue, that quality should be applied across all cost centres not just to the golf operation.

Having checked the traveller’s on-line oracle, Tripadvisor.com, I found I was not alone in being disappointed in this resort – which just goes to reaffirm how essential it is to maintain high quality throughout.

For – to finish with another quote – as the founder of amazon, Jeff Bezos, said: “If you make customers unhappy in the physical world, they might each tell six friends; if you make customers unhappy on the Internet, they can each tell 6,000 friends.”

He wasn’t talking about golf resorts either, but in the days of worldwide in-stant communication, failing to live up to one’s claims may be the first nail in one’s economic coffin. GME

Quality needs to apply on and off the course

Michael lenihanlenihan@portman.uk.com

Crocodile Golf sharpens their teeth as they broaden their horizons across Europe.

7

Duncan Weir of The R&a describes how it develops the game of golf globally.

16

Howard Swan discusses his distinguished career which has spanned more than 40 years.

25

Owned by Sage founder Graham Wylie, Close House will open for business in 2011.

37

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“In 13 years of publishing this magazine... I have never witnessed such poor standards in a hotel.”

4 GME may 2010

headline news

Colin montgomerie has greeted the decision to make Gleneagles the home of the PGa National academy for Scotland as a welcome and much-need-ed initiative to grow the game in the country.

Gleneagles, which will stage the 2014 Ryder Cup, already enjoys a reputation as a golfing mecca. and for montgomerie, the move to site the country’s PGa National academy there is as timely as it is fitting.

He said: “It is one of many important grass roots initia-tives being put in place to ensure we grow the game in Scotland and capitalise on the benefits of hosting the Ryder Cup.”

The resort is also a PGa Partner of long-standing and PGa chief executive Sandy Jones said: “We’ve enjoyed a fruitful relationship with Gleneagles for many years and our Scottish regional office has been based there since 2002.”

federations align in international GEo support

The two millionth vehi-cle manufactured by Club Car rolled off the production line last month.

In a special ceremony marking the manufactur-ing milestone, Gary michel, president and CEO of Club Car said: “One of the hallmarks of Club Car over the years has been innovation and the ability to produce vehicles that meet – and sometimes even antici-pate the needs – of our customer.

“Zero-emission low-speed vehicles, which reduce the dependence on oil and provide an environmentally friendly mode of travel, are an example of that ongoing commitment.”

michel praised Club Car employees adding: “We have a great team of people who come to work with one thing on their mind every day: How do we improve on yesterday?”

The ceremony was attended by Club Car associates, executives from parent company Ingersoll Rand and a number of local political and civic leaders.

KPmG’s Golf advisory practice has published what it describes as a practical guide for developers and golf course owners.

Entitled A Blueprint for Successful Golf Course Development, the report features ten key steps to successful golf course devel-opment and has been writ-ten in collaboration with leading professional advisors and industry suppliers.

Topics covered include: market and financial feasi-bility studies, master plan-ning, golf course design, clubhouse design, golf construction, water management and irrigation,

human resources and recruitment, golf course operations, golf marketing and PR and sustainability.

andrea Sartori, head of KPmG’s Golf advisory practice in Ema, said: “This is an invaluable guide to the golf course development process and a must-read for all developers and golf course owners.

“Developers, who have not had a resource that maps out the steps required to create a successful golf course, resort or real estate

development to date, will now have all the information they need within this one

document and presented in a practical, simple to understand way, featuring professional advice from the best sources in the industry.

“I would like to thank all of our contributors for their

input into this guide which I believe will become one of the most important and most referred to resources for golf course develop-ments internationally.”

new role for Gleneagles

Five of the world’s most proactive Golf Federations are the first to announce their commitment to multiply the social and environmen-tal benefits of golf and synchronize their sustainabili-ty programmes.

Through multi-year part-nerships with the Golf Environment Organization (GEO), the Federazione Italiana Golf, The Nederlandse Golf Federatie, The Federação Portuguesa de Golfe, The Svenska Golfförbundet, and the Dansk Golf Union join a growing number of golf and environmental organisations, businesses, scientists and

thought leaders who recog-nise that pro-actively addressing the needs of people and the planet will make the golf industry stronger and the game more enjoyable.

The motivation for these federations is the recogni-tion that sustainability is a common denominator issue that spans organisations and geo-political borders; that golf can and should get behind comprehensive guidelines, criteria and recognition programmes; and that having an Environmental Partner brings greater credibility and effi-ciency to their own efforts.

Whilst the core function of these federations is to govern the administration of golf in their respective coun-tries, more and more nation-al bodies are recognising that sustainable operation and growth are perhaps the largest external factors affecting the future health and development of the sport.

Jonathan Smith, CEO of GEO said: “at a time when golf is recognising that global issues need global solutions, a comprehensive sustainability framework enables, and indeed depends upon, diverse parts of the industry to come together. It is about identify-ing common goals and embracing multiple roles.”

KpMG publishes a ‘blueprint for successful Golf course Development’

may 2010 GME 5

news

Burhill Golf and Leisure, the golf and property management company has stormed into The Sunday Times Pricewaterhouse Coopers Profit Track 100, which ranks Britain’s 100 private companies with the fastest-growing profits.

The group, which oper-ates ten UK golf courses and is privately owned by the Guinness family, has seen profits rise 47 per cent a year from £1.8m in 2005 to £5.8m in 2008.

“This is a company that is making golf work,” said Burhill Golf and Leisure CEO, Colin mayes.

“The Burhill formula is focused on high quality golf courses, operational effi-ciency, outstanding custom-er service and close working relationships with our trading partners to deliver quality standards to all our members and customers.

“This is a professionally run, profitable golf business,” added mayes.

Colt mackenzie mcNair has reported clear signs the golf industry is now emerg-ing from the economic chal-lenges of 2009.

as a clear indicator of the growing business confi-dence across Europe and the middle East, Cmm has witnessed a significant increase in the number of businesses looking to hire top-flight professionals into

key management positions across all facets of the golf industry.

Richard Wood, director of Colt mackenzie mcNair, said: “Whereas 2009 saw businesses reducing head-count to counter the chal-lenges of reduced cash flow, 2010 has started in a different vein.

“It is also interesting to note that more clubs and

resorts are beginning to use our services to recruit the best executives through a targeted and strategic recruitment approach as opposed to the old way of advertising and personal networking.

“as demand picks up it becomes increasingly impor-tant to have a clear and effective recruitment strate-gy to identify the most

appropriate individuals for each role,” continued Wood.

“During the first three months of this year, it has been hugely encouraging to witness an increase in business from our existing clients, particularly multi-site golf operators, who have recognised how recruiting properly can lead to excep-tional results.”

industry showing signs of recovery claim cMM

burhill ranked among the top 100 companies

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6 GME may 2010

news

Syngenta has appointed Rod Burke as the compa-ny’s new turf and land-scape portfolio manager. With a wealth of experi-ence of developing new fungicides and herbicides within the Syngenta busi-ness, Burke will now focus on introducing new turf and amenity manage-ment and agronomy solu-tions across Europe, africa and the middle East.

Wildernesse Golf Club has become the latest venue to benefit from significant water and cost savings since installing Toro’s renowned Golf De-coder Controller irrigation system. Irrigation consult-ant Irritech Limited was commissioned to design the 18-hole course’s new system after its old system reached the end of its useful life.

Colin Montgomerie’s first course design in his native Scotland opened in may. Designed in association with European Golf De-sign, Rowallan Castle Golf Club is set within one of Scotland’s finest coun-try estates, complete with 1,000-year-old yew trees, trout streams, two magnificent castles, and stunning views to ailsa Craig and arran in the Firth of Clyde.

Police officers are to step-up patrols at Silverdale Golf Club to ensure the UK’s last remaining Lady’s Slipper orchid doesn’t get stolen. The Lady’s Slipper orchid is Britain’s rarest wild flower – with cuttings changing hands for anything up to £5,000 – and the protected site is home to the last remain-ing flowering plant in the country.

in briEf;

Last month saw the announcement by the PGa’s of Europe, that its premier stroke play champi-onship was to return after a six year break.

at a meeting in London, Terra Tour Services, the owners of Pravets Golf and Spa, agreed with the PGa’s of Europe to underwrite and host the event for three years starting in October 2011.

The new competition will be named the PGa Professional Championship of Europe.

This will be the first interna-tional professional golfing event ever staged in Bulgaria, where Pravets is just one of a number of superb new courses and resorts being developed.

Lachezar Todorov, CEO of Terra Tour Services, said: “We are delighted to host the

premier event for non-tour-ing PGa professionals across Europe and look forward to welcoming them to Pravets next year.

“The sponsorship shows the commitment to putting Pravets and Bulgaria in the minds of golfers and tourists and we look forward to welcoming not only the players in 2011 but golfers and guests from across Europe this year and in years to come.”

The Peter Harradine-designed course at Pravets Golf and Spa resort, situated a mere 40 minutes drive from Sofia, is scheduled to open in June 2010.

With the stunning Stara Planina mountain and picturesque Lake Pravets as its back drop, it is sure to provide a tough but fair challenge for the cream of Europe’s PGa professionals.

Pravets is the first and only club in Bulgaria to be managed by an internation-al golf management company – Braemar Golf, based at the Home of Golf, in St andrews.

pravets to host showcase pGa’s of Europe event

a brand new John Deere irrigation system is being installed on 27 holes at The Oaks in Carshalton, Surrey.

It includes a total of 147 sprinkler heads, decoders and a John Deere eaurora controller, which will be linked to the Internet, and is the company’s newest controller, able to manage up to 250 decoder stations.

The club has identified that as water is becoming a more expensive resource, its efficient management and economic use is becoming increasingly important in order to control costs.

“Our old irrigation system, which only covered the greens and four tees, badly needed replacing,” said head greenkeeper Phil Benn.

“We had several major leaks last year, and lost qual-ity on the greens as a result.

“Our director of opera-tions mark Burridge and I considered repairing the old system to make it last for a few more years, but really a brand new one seemed to be the most cost-effective way forward, to guarantee good quality greens this year.

“after reading about the new John Deere system we had a presentation on the equipment and specifica-tions, and decided to run with that.

“It was their competitive quote that led to the deci-sion to install the John Deere system.”

Crown Golf has trans-ferred its lease on the middlesex-based Trent Park Golf Centre.

The popular 18-hole pay-and-play public golf course, with large clubhouse and driving range, is reputed as one of the best-conditioned public golf courses in London.

Crown Golf has traded the property since December 2004 following the acquisition of the former american Golf Corporation group of clubs. american Golf had taken the lease on Trent Park in 2000.

In may, the property reverted to the landlord, Jeremy Sturgess, who traded

the business between 1992 and 2000 and who stood as a parliamentary candidate for the Enfield Southgate constituency on behalf of the Better Britain Party.

Sturgess currently lives in Egypt, where he is develop-ing ancient Sands Golf Resort, a $500m resort devel-opment in El Gouna.

crown transfer Trent park lease

John Deere irrigation system at The oaks

may 2010 GME 7

on the cover

facTfilE;

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Crocodile Golf Products have ‘bitten’ deep into the European golf industry over the past 15 months, and their now established range of replacement cylinder mower blades and bottom blades is being specified

across many major courses throughout the UK and mainland Europe, including Vikla Golf and Country Club, near Limasol, Cyprus.

Crocodile Golf’s range of replacement parts is manu-factured from fully hard-ened and tempered, high carbon and chromium alloy steels, which is manufac-tured to withstand the rigours on course.

a sign of Crocodile Golf’s rapid development is the latest launch of tines for the golf and greenkeeping sector.

Commenting on this new venture, managing director, Ian marshall commented: “Crocodile Golf Products are rapidly becoming a one-stop shop for high-quali-ty replacement wearing parts.

“The current economic climate has fashioned everyone into becoming more value-for-money orien-tated and any product that can save money without compromising quality or performance has to be seri-ously considered.”

With regard to the quality of the products, marshall added: “Whether you are hollow-tining the greens or merely slitting the fairways, ‘Crocodile’ tines provide both impact and wear resist-ance to the most demand-ing of jobs.

“This I believe makes Crocodile Golf Products an obvious choice for any golf course irrespective of size or budget.”

Crocodile Golf’s new brochure also includes rota-ry blades, filters and other amenity products that are now available from the Crocodile empire.

anyone interested in becoming a customer or a distributor of Crocodile Golf products throughout Europe, africa or the middle East, are invited to contact Ian marshall directly. GME

“This I believe makes Crocodile Golf Products an obvious choice for any golf course”

crocodile Golf sharpens their teeth across EMEa region

8 GME may 2010

news

Close House Hotel and Golf Club, owned by Sage founder Graham Wylie, has started the second phase of a continued £7.5 million development of his golf, hotel and conference facili-ties.

The £2.5 million state-of-the-art clubhouse will feature floor to ceiling glass windows with panoramic views across the golf course and Tyne Valley, as well as one of the many lakes in the grounds.

It will be clad in ancient stone sourced from the exist-ing estate to ensure it remains in keeping with other Grade II listed build-ings in the area.

Keeping business in the region was a priority for Wylie, (pictured far left) who purchased the 18th Century hotel and golf course in 2004 from Newcastle University.

morgan ashurst have been appointed to carry out the building work, and after donning his hard hat for the occasion, Wylie said: “It has always been my vision at Close House to create a premier golfing venue in the North East, and with the Championship golf course and clubhouse due for completion by spring 2011, our aim is to bring business to the North East from around the UK and beyond.

“We are delighted to have appointed morgan ashurst as the contractors

for the clubhouse project; their portfolio speaks volumes for the quality we are striving to achieve at Close House.”

Duncan Kidd, morgan ashurst operations manager said: “We are thrilled to be chosen to construct such a flagship leisure development here in the North East.

“We have a proven track record in delivering high quality leisure facilities, and we will be using all this expe-rience to help us deliver the best possible facilities for Close House Golf Club.”

approximately 60 jobs will be created throughout the project, from the construc-tion of the building through to employment of staff when the new club house and championship ‘Colt Course’ opens in 2011.

a Golf academy, driving range and Custom Fit Centre will be open to the public this year.

Thomson Perrett and Lobb has been appoint-ed to consult on and oversee important design work on two historic courses close to London – The Berkshire Golf Club and The Richmond Golf Club, Surrey.

The Berkshire has appointed TPL to analyse the playing strategy on both courses and return its 69 bunkers to a more traditional look, while using modern construc-tion techniques and specifications.

Tim Lobb said: “We are looking at incorporating the heathland elements, including heather, native grasses and rougher edges into the bunker complexes, to give them an authentic look but with a slightly more modern feel.

“They will be construct-ed to the highest techni-cal specification to ensure good playability, maintenance and longevity.”

an in-depth analysis and consultation will take place for the remainder of this year, with work like-ly to start next year.

Golfers will be able to play for free at a West Wales club to mark the opening of new facilities, thanks to a £35,000 grant from Ryder Cup Wales.

Glynhir Golf Club near ammanford are celebrating their centenary by bringing their facilities bang up to date, changing a driving

range into a short game area.

Five new par three holes were opened by Ryder Cup Wales chairman, John Jermine, as part of the lega-cy to Welsh golf of hosting one of the world’s biggest sporting events at Celtic manor in October.

Glynhir captain, Richard Blockwell, says the new facil-ities will make a massive difference to the members and the future of the club with the ability to encour-age youngsters to take up golf.

“We had a driving range which was under used, so we have been able to turn it into five par three holes which will give people a chance to learn the game and to practice their short game,” he explained.

“We are also offering free membership for juniors up to the age of 18, providing they are in full-time educa-tion, and we are keen to extend our links with schools.

“The more youngsters we can encourage to play, the better. anyone who is new to the game can try it on the new par three holes, without having to face the more daunting task of going onto the full course.”

Glynhir boost thanks to ryder cup Wales

Wylie gets phase two underway at close house

a Chinese government ban has failed to stop construction of golf courses, according to Beijing-based newspaper, China Daily.

The government rein-forced its ban of the devel-opment of golf courses last year, having originally legis-

lated in 2004 following concerns about land grabs.

according to Li Jianqin, head of law enforcement and supervision at China’s ministry of Land and Resources, finding illegally-built golf courses is at the top of the ministry’s agenda.

The paper also reported that the approval of a plan to build golf courses on the island province of Hainan, which aims to become a resort destination, does not mean other local govern-ments can ignore the 2004 ban.

china to seek out ‘illegal’ courses

may 2010 GME 9

news

Rickerby, the E-Z-GO golf car and utility vehicle dealer based in Hexham, has reported further sales success in the north east of England with the latest RXV golf car.

Fleets of various sizes have been delivered to Burgham Park Golf Club near morpeth, Sharpley Golf at Seaton in County Durham and Rockliffe Hall near Darlington.

Burgham Park Golf Club, located in Northumberland countryside, has been owned since 2001 by two Irish businessmen, John Fallon and William Kiely.

Now nearing the end of a ten year improvement plan, their new electric RXV golf cars replace a former fleet of petrol powered buggies.

“We purchased the buggies in march 2009 and income is up 60 per cent,” said Kiely. “Obviously they are much quieter and they have been received really well by both members and visitors.

“The battery top up system is excellent; it takes about 30 seconds a car to check the electrolyte levels.”

Ian Knight, director of golf, at Rockliffe Hall is responsi-

ble for a fleet of 26 electric RXVs, a Refresher vehicle and two six-seater Shuttles, all from the E-Z-GO stable.

“Our aim is to be the premier resort of choice in the North of England,” he said, “and to achieve this

we must provide the ulti-mate experience for our guests, be it in the hotel, at the spa and on the course.

“That’s why we’ve select-ed Rickerby as our preferred supplier of resort vehicles,” he said.

The most famous golf course in Dubai will be closed this summer as Emirates Golf Club under-goes major renovations.

The club is undergoing a number of improvements during the summer season, club officials have

confirmed, with the majlis course being closed from June 1 to September 30.

The club has announced “significant investments” that include the refurbish-ment of the clubhouse, improvements to the majlis course and the introduction

of a boutique events venue, the Royal majlis.

The series of improvements will start with a major enhancement of the iconic clubhouse. Leaving intact the instantly recognisable Bedouin Tent façade, the interior of the clubhouse will

undergo a complete upgrade with new furnish-ings.

an upgrade to the swim-ming pool area and a great-ly anticipated on-site spa will complete the refurbishment, adding to the club’s recrea-tional facilities.

Emirates to close for major refurbishment

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10 GME may 2010

news

The Garia Edition Soleil de minuit – which has been designed exclusively for Top Marques Monaco 2010 – is the most expen-sive golf car ever made. Costing €39,000, the Garia Edition Soleil de minuit features a carbon roof, two-coloured hand-stitched luxury seats and alcantara roof lining to create a unique golf car.

Rain bird has successfully launched GSP Services which provides technical support to Rain Bird cen-tral control users subscrib-ing to a Global Service Plan. Via remote access Rain Bird engineers can carry out maintenance, troubleshoot and backup data on your control system.

Mirimichi has become the first golf course in the americas to receive Golf Environment Organiza-tion Certified status which signifies that mirimichi has met comprehensive and advanced sustainability requirements, and uses them to both drive con-tinual improvement, and communicate the story behind their success.

PowerPlay Golf, the dynamic two-flag version of the Royal and ancient game, has announced plans to team up with Kingarrock, Scotland’s spiritual home of hickory golf, to create a fascinat-ing event which blends the old and the new.

John Deere has announced that all its mannheim-built tractors will be fitted with the official CESaR Scheme Datatag security system as standard, starting later this year.

in briEf;

The newly formed Federation for Norwegian Golf courses (FNG) has been accepted as a member in the European Golf Course Owners association.

marcel Welling, president of the EGCOa, said: “We are very happy with the initi-ative taken by the Norwegian golf course owners to start a national

association, and for the EGCOa it is important to have another member that completes the co-operation of owners in Scandinavia.”

Besides Norway, EGCOa members include Sweden, Finland and Denmark.

Scilla Treschow Hokholt, international contact person for FNG said: “We believe in the importance of an owners association in our country.

“With the many courses we have in our growing market we see a big poten-tial for our association.

“We choose to be member of the EGCOa to be able to communicate with members in other coun-tries, to learn from them and share our experiences with them.”

norway pledge allegiance to the EGcoa

The Celtic manor Resort has appointed a golf sales manager as it seeks to maximise the benefits of hosting the Ryder Cup.

Seán Clancy takes on the brand new role having held previous sales management positions at Carr Golf Travel, and Portmarnock Hotel and Golf Links in Dublin.

Clancy is tasked with building golf sales still further at Celtic manor, which enjoyed a record year for golf visitors in 2009.

He will be responsible for generating bookings from groups of golfers covering a broad spectrum from local companies and societies to overseas golf travellers and corporate clients.

“I am very excited about joining The Celtic manor Resort in this Ryder Cup year,” said Clancy.

“I have been involved in the golf travel business for the last seven years and it is

a real thrill to be starting in a new position at such a pres-tigious sporting venue.

“I was a senior marshal at the Ryder Cup in Ireland in 2006 and my duties included escorting the players’ wives, media and VIP officials around the course.

“It will be great to again be closely involved this year as part of my actual job.

“The Ryder Cup captures everybody’s imagination and I’ve already found that there is a real buzz about Celtic manor within the golf industry at the moment.

“I’m looking forward to making sure as many golfers as possible get the opportu-nity to play the resort’s three fantastic championship courses.”

celtic Manor appoints Golf Manager

a former club pro has purchased a manchester golf club from liquidators – and is inviting residents of the village to have a say in its future.

Standish Court has re-opened after being bought by former club manager, Stuart mcGrath.

He headed a consortium of unnamed local business

people to form a new company and lease the buildings and the course from the owners, morris Homes and Persimmon Homes.

mcGrath said: “This is an exciting time for the club. I have entered into a new lease with the land owners and have their full backing with my plans.

“I want to thank the many former members who have indicated that they want to join the new club.”

mcGrath was quick to stress his desire to involve local people in the future of the club, and intends to call a meeting to allow the new proprietors to share their ideas for the future and garner public support.

McGrath looking to establish standish

may 2010 GME 11

news

alan mcGregor has announced that he will retire later this year as chief executive of St andrews Links Trust.

The recruitment process has already begun with The Trust seeking someone with experience of a similar senior role to take over at the Home of Golf.

“It has been a privilege to lead the organisation for 13 years and to work with such an excellent team of people,” said mcGregor.

“We have made great progress in developing the courses, facilities and service at the Links and in delivering a first class experience to our golfing customers.

“It has been extremely satisfying that the Links is now widely regarded as an exemplar for successful and sustainable golf course management.

“I am confident that my successor will take over a vibrant organisation,” concluded mcGregor.

aspire Golf Centre, near aberdeen, has reopened following the completion of extensive work to repair damage caused by last winter’s floods.

a freak combination of prolonged torrential rain and a spring tide led to an exceptional rise in the level of the River Dee that left parts of the popular golfing facility partially submerged

after the river burst its banks last November.

The water engulfed the driving range and flooded the ground floor of the golf centre, including the driving bays, teaching studios and greenkeepers’ sheds.

Staff at aspire soon had the nine-hole course re-opened but the driving range and teaching facilities required extensive repair.

The centre has now offi-cially reopened and managing director John Duthie believes that the facilities are now better than ever.

“It was a blow when we realised the extent of the damage caused by the water,” said Duthie, “but we were determined to create something positive from our misfortune and everyone

has worked tremendously hard to get to the stage where we’ve been able to make improvements to the facilities here at aspire.

“We had to wait until everything dried out before replacing all of the damaged equipment, and we’ve even acquired 30,000 brand new golf balls to replace those destroyed during the flood.”

aspire Golf centre re-opens following major flood

McGregor to retire as links Trust main man

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12 GME may 2010

news

Golfpark De Haenen, situ-ated on the outskirts of Breda in the Netherlands, is the first club on mainland Europe to take delivery of the latest hybrid greens mower from Jacobsen, the Eclipse 322.

Commenting on the purchase, Golfpark owner Hans de Wilde said: “We are delighted to be the first club in Europe to take advan-tage of the new technology in the Eclipse 322.

“I first saw the mower at the Golf Industries Show in 2009 and although we’ve had to wait a little while, it’s been worth it.

“The Eclipse has exceed-ed my high expectations and they will be a consider-able asset here at Golfpark De Haenen.”

The diesel-electric hybrid was delivered by local distributor, van der Pols, with a petrol-electric version to be delivered later this spring.

a new company offering a range of buggy related solutions – including GPS and batteries – is rapidly establishing a foothold in the market.

Golf Solutions (Europe) Ltd has recently installed their low-cost, cart-based GPS units into several of the macDonald group Resorts including Portal, Hill Valley, Spey Valley and Botley Park, all of whom have seen an impressive increase in buggy rentals as a direct response of the GPS installation.

In addition, the company can also boast the likes of mentmore, Whitefields,

Lords, Carton House, moy Valley, Knightsbrook, Inchmarlo and Palmerstown House on their ever growing customer base, further enhancing their reputation – which the company claim – makes them a leader in cart based GPS systems in the UK and Ireland.

Eamonn O’Keefe of Golf Solutions (Europe) said: “We believe that the key to our success has been the ability to offer value for money.

“Traditionally, GPS cart systems have been very expensive and clubs have been asked to sign long term contracts.

“However Golf Solutions are able to offer a whole range of financial options over a much shorter term (12 months) with monthly or seasonal payment plans to suit most customers.

“These payment terms enable many golf clubs to not only cover the cost of GPS but to produce a further revenue centre for their course.

“all golfers are prepared to pay a little extra for a facility such as GPS,” added O’Keefe. “So by charging just £1 per head extra for a buggy with GPS, the system will more than pay for itself.

“It is a fact that carts fitted with GPS will be hired out on average 15 per cent more times per season, again driv-ing additional revenue into your business.”

In addition to GPS, the company has added to their product portfolio a range of lithium buggy batteries, which brings main-tenance free technology to the marketplace.

These new batteries reduce electricity use and offer improved perform-ance. Lithium technology has been around for a long time and now finally availa-ble to the buggy market.

Gps and battery technology solutions now available

Club Car recently announced a marketing agreement with Gary Player and Black Knight International to promote the companies’ respec-tive brands throughout the world.

Under the terms of the agreement, Black Knight International – which includes Gary Player Design – will work with Club Car to introduce the company’s vehicles, equipment and services at courses and develop-ments where Black Knight is affiliated.

“as Club Car strength-ens its presence in inter-national markets, our association with Black Knight International is a great fit,” said Robert mcElreath, Club Car’s vice president of Global marketing.

Celtic manor Resort’s director of golf, Jim mcKenzie, has taken time out of his preparations for the Ryder Cup to pay tribute to the Toro turf maintenance machinery helping him ready The Twenty Ten Course for the prestigious tournament.

The resort has been an exclusively Toro user since the early 90s and, following the opening of the challeng-ing 7,493-yard, par 71 course specially constructed for the famous tournament, mcKenzie has added a number of new machines to his already extensive fleet.

“We’ve been a 100 per cent Toro user since 1993,” mcKenzie reveals, “and in that time we’ve never once used another make of machinery – we have such a good relationship with Toro, distributor Lely UK and our local dealer, Ted Hopkins Limited, that we’d never consider going elsewhere.”

mcKenzie has also invest-ed in some new mowers to tend the resort’s other two 18-hole championship cours-es – The Roman Road and The montgomerie.

“We’ve bought some new 14-bladed Greensmaster Flex 21 pedestrian triple greensmowers for use on the other two courses,” added mcKenzie. “We are looking a little further ahead than just the Ryder Cup!

“Our other courses are also open 52 weeks a year to players, who expect very high standards from Celtic manor.”

celtic manor on course for successful ryder cup

first Jacobsen hybrid delivered in Europe

may 2010 GME 13

news

HAWTREEGOLF COURSE ARCHITECTS

Since 1912

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a new pearl has been added to the necklace of outstanding golf resorts in the mediterranean with the opening of the luxurious Borgo Egnazia resort in the south east of Italy.

Located in apulia, the five star resort offers stunning vistas over the adriatic coastline, and is set to become one of the leading luxury family, golf and spa resorts in southern Europe.

Borgo Egnazia offers a uniquely authentic experi-

ence of southern Italy from the lush green fairways of the San Domenico Golf Course to the delicious Italian recipes carefully prepared in its restaurants.

Cristiano Cabutti, group director of sales and market-ing for Borgo Egnazia, said, “It is a privilege to be open-ing such a wonderful resort in one of the most beautiful regions of Italy.

“Borgo Egnazia is the ideal place for people looking for a relaxing golf break.”

Work has been completed on a £200,000 refurbishment project at Sheffield’s Tinsley Park Golf Course.

The investment from leisure operator Sheffield International Venues (SIV) has seen improvements to the clubhouse, including decorating the interior public areas and changing rooms in the building, which was originally the first Lord

mayor of Sheffield’s dwell-ing.

Other improvements include the addition of a café and bar into the down-stairs area of the clubhouse to serve hot and cold food and drinks, which will be open to the public and golf-ers.

The injection of funds is part of a wider investment plan which will see the

course receive further fund-ing for more substantial works in the next five years.

andy Carnall, golf manag-er at SIV, said: “This invest-ment project is good news for Tinsley Park because it is very much the start of a new future for the club.

“We will be working hard over the next five years to complete further work on the course to really bring all

the facilities up to a really high standard.

“The improvements will attract a number of golfers to this already popular course and will allow us to provide golf society days and corporate events, further increasing what we have to offer.”

SIV has recently complet-ed a similar £250,000 invest-ment project at Tapton Park.

£200,000 refurbishment complete at Tinsley park

borgo Egnazia to raise the bar in italy

GPS is making money for these golf clubs...Luton Hoo, PGA National Ireland, Portal,Carton House, Inchmarlo Golf Resort,Mentmore Golf & Country Club and many, many others...GPS is now more affordable than ever, with prices starting from just £17.50 per month, equivalent to less than 50p per day.Installation and mapping included!

Golf Solutions (Europe) Limited 0844 504 8096 sales@golfsolutionseurope.com

14 GME may 2010

company profile WEblInK; WWW.IRRIGaTIONCONSULTaNTS.CO.UK

If you’ve been lucky enough to attend one of the top sporting events in the United Kingdom in recent years, there’s a fair chance you will have already come across the expert handiwork of Robin Hume Associates.

Lord’s in cricket, Wimbledon in tennis, Twickenham, Murrayfield and Lansdowne Road in rugby union and Royal Ascot in horse racing. The list reads like a Who’s Who of the sports venues.

In golf alone, members of Robin Hume Associates (RHA) have been involved in major projects at five of the nine current Open Championship venues with St

Andrews, Muirfield, Royal St George’s, Royal Birkdale and Royal

Liverpool (Hoylake) among their clients.

The portfolio makes impressive reading and it is the company’s

reputation for excellence that has made RHA the largest, and most

established, independent consultancy practice in the UK and Northern

Europe specialising in irrigation and water management.

Adrian Mortram, (pictured above right) director at RHA said: “We pride ourselves on delivering value for money, no matter what the size of the project.

“The installation of an irrigation system is as important as the correct design to ensure that the client receives full value for the money. One thing we have always tried to do is to develop a long-standing relationship with our clients and nurture that over the years,” explained Mortram.

“Working with the St Andrews Links Trust is a perfect example of that. Although we finished working on their six links courses in 2001, they still contact us from time to time asking us for advice which we are happy to provide free of charge.

“We specialise in providing a tailored irrigation design which pays attention to detail, and a thorough and impartial tendering process all of which is followed up with on site monitoring and inspection to ensure the design and specification is implemented correctly.”

Founded by Robin Hume and also with Mike Martin (formerly of York Martin International) as a consultant, RHA has built on its burgeoning reputation and has consulted on more than 500 courses in the UK, Ireland and across the World.

With more than a century of combined experience, RHA offers impartial, practi-cal and expert advice in a wide range of irrigation related areas, and although the likes of St Andrews, Muirfield, Royal Liverpool and Royal Dornoch will inevi-tably grab the headlines, the company is keen to emphasise it takes just as much pride and effort in helping to deliver irri-gation solutions at smaller clubs.

Iain MacPherson, fellow director, (pictured below right) explained: “Our core business is not necessarily working on the likes of Muirfield and Royal Liverpool. It is at the well run members clubs where we also make our reputation count and this subsequently has promot-ed RHA by word of mouth.

an independent VoiceWith election fever having recently gripped the UK, it’s refreshing to learn of a company that prides itself on being truly independent as Peter Simm reports.

VoteRHA

may 2010 GME 15

“One of the reasons we have been successful is that not only do we oversee the design and installation of irrigation systems, but we also educate the client on how to successfully operate and manage their water resources.

“‘We suggest that over usage of the system is probably the biggest oversight. People want to see what their money has been spent on, however you need to use it properly understanding the design and specification,” says MacPherson.

“With the training that we offer, we can help get the message across that if you invest in a large capital asset it should be properly maintained and managed, and this large expenditure should be looked upon as a long term investment; even financed that way.”

With water conservation an issue that is growing more and more important with every year, the emphasis on designing and installing the correct irrigation systems has never been so vital.

Mortram added: “The cost of water is expensive and its incorrect application through poorly designed and functioning irrigation systems to areas not necessarily needing it can waste a significant amount of money.

“Every golf course should regularly have their irrigation system audited by a recognised professional. After all, this could save you money.”

The company recently designed and project managed the completely new irri-gation system at Royal Liverpool, and will

soon head north to begin new work at Muirfield ahead of the 2013 Open Championship.

“Muirfield has always watered its tees and greens manually by hand and for good reason because the old-style ‘fit and forget’ systems, which tended to be turned on at the start of the season and then left, were inflexible to operate and through lack of training and education were often misused,” said Mortram.

“Older automated greens and tees systems were often not tailored to what was required and so led in some cases to the areas being heavily over-watered.

“At Muirfield we are looking at relocat-ing and upgrading their present system with a new storage tank, pumping system, mains pipework and irrigation to the greens and tees.”

With projects like this and its close rela-tionship with the STRI, RHA can look forward to a bright and exciting future as it expands in the golf and sporting fields.

The company is currently involved in work at Gleneagles in Scotland, Muscat Hills in Oman, Palmerston Golf Resort in Cyprus and Lansdowne Road in Ireland to name but a few. There are plans to venture even further afield with Eastern Europe, the Middle East, China and India on the future agenda.

MacPherson added: “Emerging markets; the likes of the Middle East and especially India interest us and we feel our portfolio would stand us in good stead.”

It’s hard to disagree with that. GME

You have choices...

RHA. The Independent Irrigation Consultants

+44 (0)1939 210417www.irrigationconsultants.co.uk

16 GME may 2010

from the r&a

At the end of every year we take a moment to reflect on what we have achieved in terms of our golf development responsibility to the game, as we need to ensure that the grants we award to projects around the golfing world have been well spent.

On an annual basis, our only source of income is The Open Championship surplus but for projects with an educa-tional purpose we can also access funds held within The R&A Foundation created by our founding club, The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews, in 2004.

In 2009, total golf development fund-ing from The R&A was £6.1 million and more than 300 grants were awarded. This represents a significant uplift on the prior year when £4.9 million was committed for our golf development work.

This increased level of funding was achieved despite the fact that The Open Championship last year was staged at Turnberry, a venue that, due to its remoteness, generally returns a relatively low level of operating surplus.

Overall, profit from operations in the year to 31 December 2009 was lower at £7 million compared with £9.1 million in 2008 when The Championship was staged at Royal Birkdale.

In truth, the costs of staging The Open are such that no championship makes a

profit on the ground and it is the sale of television rights to over 50 broadcasters worldwide that creates the surplus that, in turn, funds The R&A’s governance and golf development roles.

Since we started publishing this level of financial information in 2004, some £44.7 million has been committed for governance and golf development activi-ties.

Our initial target of £50 million to be spent in this way by the end of 2010 will be exceeded following a successful 150th Anniversary Open Championship here in St Andrews.

Optimising the spread of resources is a skill we have developed through golf development work gained on every conti-nent. We offer new ideas and achieve more working in partnership.

That is why two-thirds of our develop-ment funding is channelled through national organisations affiliated to The R&A in 126 countries spread throughout Europe, America, Asia, Africa and Oceania.

These bodies are, of course, best placed to judge what will advance the game at national level and in international compe-tition.

The Golf Foundation was the largest single beneficiary in 2009 with a grant of £540,000 to assist its work in England, Scotland and Wales while the Asia-Pacific

our Development YearThe R&a director of golf development, Duncan Weir, (pictured top left) describes

how the governing body discharges its golf development responsibility to the game.

WEblInK; RaNDa.ORG

may 2010 GME 17

Golf Confederation received £250,000 in support of its work in staging the inaugu-ral Asian Amateur Championship, played at Mission Hills in China.

Our work in the field of student golf continues to grow. The R&A Foundation Scholarship programme supports over 100 individual players helping them combine elite amateur golf with academic study.

A total of 13 universities also receive support for their student golf programmes and funding is provided for student golf tournaments, including the annual Palmer Cup match played between Europe and the USA.

The returns on this investment can be measured in performance in competition. R&A Scholar Leonardo Motta from Milan, Italy was outstanding in Europe’s 2009 Palmer Cup victory, taking three points out of four, including a singles win over then world number one amateur, Morgan Hoffman.

However, the biggest categories in The R&A golf development programme cover work at grassroots level and the funding of PGA coaching.

In 2009, we awarded almost £1 million in coaching grants to 57 of our national affiliates with the top three recipients, Wales, Zambia and Poland, sharing more than £100,000 worth of funding.

Our grassroots development work is focussed increasingly on projects in Eastern Europe, Asia, South and Central America and in 2009 work in 17 coun-

tries was funded from a £1.1 million budget.

Projects receiving assistance included sending prospective referees abroad to attend R&A Rules Schools, building public access golfing facilities in Cambodia and ongoing support of the Japeri Project in Brazil, an initiative that links attendance at school to playing golf and improves life’s prospects for more than 100 local boys and girls.

Maintaining the link with The Open Championship, we also support the grass-roots development work of five Open Champions; The Palmer Cup, the Faldo Series in Europe and Asia, the Paul Lawrie Junior Foundation and the Ernie Els and Greg Norman Foundations.

Supporting amateur championships is critically important and events in 24 countries received close to £750,000 in 2009 from The R&A, while, almost £1 million was spent on junior playing equip-ment, professional and special needs golf and the purchase of greenkeeping machinery in five Sub-Saharan African countries.

Our golf development responsibility to the game mirrors our ambition for The Open Championship; to reach more people in more countries than any other major championship.

Full details of The R&A’s golf develop-ment and governance activities can be found in The R&A Review 2009-10, with copies available on request and down-loadable from www.randa.org. GME

r&a Golf Development Grants 2009

Code: GME/05/10/GEO

Ransomes Jacobsen are proud to be a premier partner of GEO

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may 2010 GME 19

club focusWEblInK; ROCKLIFFEHaLL.COm

With subscription fees four times that of its neighbours, Rockliffe Hall boldly opened its doors last year to a hail of publicity.

The new resort, found in 375 acres of Alfred Waterhouse-designed countryside in County Durham close to the North Yorkshire border, was a grand project with plenty to shout about.

The luxurious 61-room hotel, which includes apartments and suites, three restaurants and a 50,000ft² spa (one of the largest in the country) came at a price however.

With a Hawtree-designed course thrown in for good measure, the hotel’s managing director says the total project costs came to a thundering £55 million. Annual subscriptions were pitched at £2,250.

“The membership is quite expensive for this part of the world, but we stuck to our guns,” says Nick Holmes (pictured above) assuredly.

“We knew what we had invested in the course, we knew our members would have great rounds and that they’d always get access to it.

The north east of England has a new luxury resort with a championship course and a history to match. But as Mark Alexander finds out, Rockliffe Hall has ambitions that stretch far beyond County Durham.

holmes aims big at rockliffe hall

20 GME may 2010

facTfilE;

Rockliffe HallHurworth-on-Tees

DarlingtonCounty Durham DL2 2DU

England

TEl; (44) 01325 729999faX; (44) 01325 720464

EMail;enquiries@rockliffehall.com

ManaGinG DirEcTor;Nick Holmes

DirEcTor of Golf;Ian Knight

club founDED;2009

“A year ago, we got comments about how we could possibly justify the price, but I don’t hear that any more because as soon as they’ve played it, they don’t need an explanation. They get what they pay for.

“You can build a golf course for £1 million, but you’re looking at ten times that at Rockliffe and much of it is unseen; it’s below the ground.”

Like the rest of the resort, the course doesn’t pull any punches. Lead designer Marc Nicholas Westenborg says the generous portion of land assigned to the golf course allowed a number of Tiger tees to be included in the five-tee complexes. The result is a track that extends to an eye-watering 7,800 yards.

Not that many people will play it at that length, or at all if plans to cap member-ship at 300 are realised – there are currently 150 members.

“It’s about positioning ourselves,” says Holmes. “The last thing we want to be is overused. But it’s not just about overplay-ing the course. Rockliffe Hall has been constructed to a standard that could take 20,000 rounds a year easily. It’s about the people coming here getting a five-star experience.”

With rounds currently peaking at about 6,000, it seems that five-star treatment will be dished out on a course free of Saturday morning bottlenecks and tee-box snarl-ups. But how did the tranquil village of Hurworth-on-Tees come to have a brand new resort with a sleepy giant of a course on its doorstep?

Although the history of the place dates back to 1774, it wasn’t until the mid 1800s that Alfred Backhouse got his hands on the estate and promptly set about establishing the grandeur of Rockliffe Hall principally by commission-

ing Alfred Waterhouse to rebuild and re-landscape the main building and grounds. A succession of owners followed including Lord Southampton, the Brothers of St John of God and eventually Durham County Council which used it as a community centre.

In 1996, Rockliffe Park was bought by Middlesbrough Football Club, which was looking to establish new training facilities suitable for a club wishing to compete at the highest levels.

The investment of football capital not only safeguarded Rockliffe Hall’s future but also entered it into an unfamiliar world. “We’re adjacent to the football academy, we have many of the footballers staying with us and the manager stays in the grounds,” says Holmes, “so we’ve become part of an extended family.”

The head of the family is Steve Gibson, a self-made millionaire and reportedly the 10th richest man in the North-east. The Boro chairman has an impressive portfo-lio of businesses which he supports across the board.

“What’s been achieved at Middlesbrough Football Club, when you look at the numbers, has been remarka-ble,” Holmes explains. “Steve thinks big, so when he’s involved in something he wants it to be the best. He’s 110 per cent supportive of all his ventures and his managers, and that includes me.”

Holmes has been at Rockliffe for two years overseeing the build-up to the resort’s grand opening. His resume glis-tens with many of the staples of the UK leisure market. Gleneagles, Cameron House and Craigandarroch have all bene-fited from his expertise, so it made perfect sense to continue his career at a resort with an equally beguiling array of prod-ucts.

may 2010 GME 21

“Opportunities like this don’t come along that often, certainly not on this scale,” he says with a north English brogue. “And the quality – every part of Rockliffe has been developed on a world-class basis. There are no weaknesses. We’ve got a stunning course as well as the spa, the hotel and the restaurants. It’s a great opportunity.”

With 205 staff on his books, Holmes says one of the greatest challenges was bringing Rockliffe’s many facets online in time for the opening. “The challenge of getting everything working from day one to the logistics and timings of going from a handful of employees to 200 and all the organisation that entails was considera-ble.” he says.

“We’ve invested a lot in training and development in terms of making sure we hit the ground running. After all, as we’re charging top dollar, we didn’t expect our market to be forgiving.”

With green fees set at £95 for visitors (£55 for residents) and premier suites costing £430 a night, Rockliffe is certain-ly mixing it up with the top dogs of the UK resort market.

Whether these prices survive will depend on the local market feeling suffi-cient flush to splash out as the UK slowly climbs out of recession. Looking forward, Holmes maintains an infectious, if under-stated confidence about the resort, and in particular about the course.

“We know the quality of what’s been built here, and there are enough of us

who’ve been around to know it could host a Tour event,” he says positively.

“Graeme Storm has based himself here and he’s saying we’re up there with Celtic Manor and Gleneagles. We know we’re capable of hosting an event and decisions about that will be made for marketing and commercial reasons, but that’s the road we want to go down.”

Storm, a former French Open and British Amateur champion, could have a point. The course is long enough and the management team behind it is certainly happy with their offering.

In fact, this autumn, Rockliffe will host the modestly titled Champion of Champions tournament in which every club in Northumberland and Durham County will be invited to enter their men’s champion for a once-for-all decider in September.

There’s also talk of a high-profile LGU-sanctioned event and a major amateur tournament in the offing.

So, does all this point towards a Ryder Cup bid? “It be would misleading to say that,” Holmes says adamantly.

“I know the Belfry, I know Celtic Manor. I know the type of courses we’re talking about, and we would sit comforta-bly in that company. This place has the potential to do that, but that becomes the headline doesn’t it?

“There are many other things to do,” added Holmes, “but it is a potential venue in the future, although maybe beyond my time.” GME

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22 GME may 2010

geo certification

It was back in the early spring of 2007 that the first sod was turned on a small area of scrubland at Ransomes Jacobsen’s manufacturing plant on the outskirts of Ipswich in Suffolk.

This was the beginning of an 18 month construction programme to produce a unique three-hole golf course, the brain-child of David Withers, managing director at the turf maintenance equipment manu-facturer’s European headquarters.

“I know there were many sceptics who thought that the golf course was going to be a directors’ playground, but what I had in mind, right from the outset, was a small course that would be the ideal showcase for the products we manufacture here in Ipswich,” he said.

“As one of the leading manufacturers of golf course equipment, we had estab-lished relationships with many of the companies and organisations across the golf sector, so I contacted some of them to float the idea and to see if it might be possible.

“With their support, and that of our parent company, Textron, I’m glad to say, we managed to pull it off!”

The company has a commitment to environmental best practice and their ISO14001 accreditation, the international standard for environmental management and their ELMO project, an innovative mower recycling initiative, are examples of the leadership role across the industry.

So, right from the beginning, it was decided that environmental considera-tions would be one of the prime drivers behind the construction of the course.

The Golf Environment Organization was consulted and it was agreed that the project, although small in scale, should carry through recognised best practices and principles in environmental sustaina-bility.

Swan Golf Designs were subsequently appointed as the architects whilst Rain

Bird provided consultancy and equip-ment for the irrigation.

Interesting areas of natural vegetation and individual trees were retained; unavoidable vegetation removal was mini-mised, and in some cases heather was stripped and stored, then transplanted back onto the course later in the process.

The landscape and planting plan was designed by Mike Wood to complement the existing native vegetation and to further enhance the landscape character and ecology of the site. Only native species were used for scrub and tree planting and close attention to detail was particularly important to increase habitat diversity without damage to areas of exist-ing ecological interest.

The drainage system is based on sustainable principles including the crea-tion of gentle slopes to shed water into open swales, and ultimately feeding into the new water feature.

The pond design is a key component of the project as it has introduced a signifi-cant body of new open water and wetland into the business park. The wetland margins, with plants sourced from local donor sites, were carefully considered to ensure that the pond naturalised over time.

Very little material was imported into the site, and topographic changes were scaled to create interest by remaining authentic to the original site and surroundings.

Much of the 5,000 m³ aggregate removed from the pond was recycled into the shaping over the entire area. The timber decking area which overlooks the pond, use materials that are FSC certi-fied.

The grass seed mixes were selected to benefit from the latest advances in breed-ing for adaptation to changing climate, disease resistance and modern playing demands.

St andrews, Gleneagles and Celtic manor; what does a small, three-hole golf course, situated on an industrial park in Suffolk, have in common with these

prestigious courses? Kevin Marks visited Ransomes Jacobsen, to find out.

rJ national gains GEo seal of approval

WEblInK; RaNSOmESJaCOBSEN.COm

may 2010 GME 23

Fescue, bent, ryegrass and meadow-grass species were chosen, as well as native wildflowers appropriate to the free-draining soil conditions. The grass mix also allows Ransomes Jacobsen to test and demonstrate their mower range on differ-ing sward types.

All of the species were specifically selected to reduce irrigation requirements, and to facilitate the adoption of a no fungicide and insecticide policy for the long term management of the course.

In terms of long term management, water consumption is minimised by keep-ing the area of maintained turf as small as possible. Irrigation water comes from an on-site bore hole and recycled water from one of the industrial processes within the manufacturing plant.

Keeping the maintained turf area small reduces machinery wear, fuel consump-tion and emissions, and machinery used to manage the course has been produced through processes which are ISO 14001 environmentally accredited.

Initial seeding took place early in September 2007 and an Indian summer resulted in excellent conditions for germi-nation and early establishment of the sward. Growing in continued through the spring and summer of 2008 and in July 2008 Rory Ferguson, (pictured right) was employed to manage the course and the adjoining seven-a-side football pitch, which doubles up as a noise testing area.

“It was always envisaged that we would apply for GEO Certification,” Ferguson commented, “and we began the process in 2009 with a self assessment to bench-mark ourselves and to highlight areas for improvement.

“As the course had been constructed to strict environmental guidelines and we were continuing to manage it within that structure, we were reasonably happy in that area. However, it highlighted the fact that we should be doing more to encour-age biodiversity.

“You have to appreciate that we are on an industrial park, but are fortunate to have woodland margins running along-side the course. We’re in the process of erecting bird and bat boxes in this area and a log pile has been constructed behind the second green.

“Ducks populated the pond in a short space of time and we’re building nesting rafts this spring.

“We had adders on the course last summer and a family of foxes are regular visitors.

“On February 23, 2010, GEO’s evalua-tor Keith Duff, formerly with Natural England, spent a day on site reviewing our processes to ensure that we were candidates for accreditation, and shortly afterwards, we were notified that we were to be awarded GEO certification,” concluded Ferguson.

To be acknowledged by GEO and stand alongside illustrious participants that includes the Old, New, Eden, Strathyrum, Balgove, Jubilee and Castle at St Andrews together with Gleneagles, Celtic Manor, Loch Lomond, Riviera Cancun in Mexico, the Montgomerie in Turkey, Klosters in Switzerland and Mirimichi,

Justin Timberlake’s golf course in Tennessee, is no mean feat for a three-hole course in an industrial location in Suffolk.

Jonathan Smith, chief executive of GEO said: “We are delighted that the RJ National has attained certification as it demonstrates a pioneering approach from a short course.

“It also shows that you don’t have to be a high profile, internationally recognised facility to reach and maintain environ-mental standards in the management of golf courses.

“By protecting and enhancing ecosys-tems and biodiversity, maximising resource efficiency, reducing waste and conserving their cultural heritage and local landscape, Ransomes Jacobsen has shown its commitment to environmental best practice in a golf course context,” concluded Smith.

The final word goes to Ransomes Jacobsen’s managing director David Withers who said; “We have been supporters of GEO ever since the organi-sation was established, back in 2004.

“We have been involved with several of their initiatives, the latest being the Guidelines for Sustainable Golf Developments, which was launched in March at the European Institute of Golf Course Architects World Forum of Golf Architects at St Andrews.

“We have further supported the organi-sation with the accreditation of our golf course and I’m still amazed that we sit there among some of the most illustrious courses in the world!” GME

“We are delighted that the RJ national has attained certification as it demonstrates a

pioneering approach from a short course. It also shows that you don’t have to be a high profile, internationally recognised facility to reach and

maintain environmental standards in the management of golf courses.”

24 GME may 2010

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may 2010 GME 25

in personWEblInK; SWaNGOLFDESIGNS.COm

Dotted throughout conversation with Howard Swan are references to ‘the profession’.

He talks about the profession of golf course architecture in reverential tones. He has a real empathy and passion for it.

A quietly spoken man despite a reputa-tion for forthrightness, Swan seems to swell with pride when talking about ‘the profession’, his family and his father.

His father was initially a greenkeeper and a groundsman before becoming a landscape architect with the National Coal Board in the Northumberland and Durham coal field.

“That’s how he got his interest in design,” said Swan proudly.

“He didn’t really design many golf courses. He would certainly have suggest-ed he built and designed them rather than designed and built them, but he enjoyed that immensely and I was able to share that with him for 15 years before he died.”

Swan senior became a contractor and built a lot of golf courses – many with the great Henry Cotton – and young Howard saw how it was done at his father’s knee.

But initially that was meant to be as far as it went. Newcastle-born Swan junior had no desire to follow in his father’s footsteps. He explained: “My father had tendered for a job on a public golf course in Bedford, in 1971 or 72 – Mowsbury

It would not be unreasonable to describe Howard Swan as an elder

statesman – a man who lives and breathes golf as

publisher Michael lenihan recently discovered.

no swan song yet for statesman howard

26 GME may 2010

Park, an 18-hole municipal course designed by Fred Hawtree.

“Golf Landscapes won the bid and my father found himself not being able to cope with all the work, so I left the company I was with and started in ‘the profession’.

“I enjoyed the architectural part of it to a point that when I left Golf Landscapes after my father died I said I would never, ever, get involved in construction again. And I never have.”

Maybe Swan’s enthusiasm for better and further education stems from his own experience as a teenager. Having taken his A levels he applied to medical school, only to be rejected – not on merit, he feels.

“It was a profession which was very much closed, hierarchical,” he said. “If your father had done a professional job you stood a better chance of getting in. I suppose it still rankles with me a little that people with worse grades than me at A level got into medical school and I didn’t.”

Undeterred by his rejection at medical school, he went on to earn a degree in biological sciences, followed by a masters degree in business studies. He also went on to gain numerous qualifications relat-ing to his chosen career and regards education and training as massively important to those looking to enter the profession.

And, credit where it’s due, for Swan, despite many people initially chiding him for it, has been partly responsible for the influx of better educated and better-trained golf course architects.

He said: “A lot of people might criticise me for encouraging people to join the

profession but I always believed there was a need to keep the profession evolving and progressing. And we did that through education and training. I have no regrets to think that I have encouraged and been responsible for an influx of talent into the profession.

“There probably is a glut of architects currently but just because you are educat-ed and trained in a profession doesn’t mean you are guaranteed work. I still think it was the right thing to do.”

Gaining a solid all-round education certainly aided Swan, not least because when he became a golf course architect he wasn’t qualified.

“When I left Golf Landscapes in 1987, I did quite a lot of work with Martin Hawtree as a project manager, providing the service alongside him on various projects at home and abroad.

“I wasn’t technically trained as an architect when I set up, hence my striving to educate myself as much as I possibly could since. I never trained as an architect at university. I’m not sure there was any necessity for golf course architects to be trained as golf course architects per se, but they have to understand the game, the landscape and the engineering – all the facets of laying out golf courses.

“I’ve spent an awful lot of time becom-ing educated – and educating others – and I still am, as I have an awful lot to learn.”

One of Swan’s big bugbears about the industry currently is the tendency towards design and build – yet, as he readily admits he was guilty of it himself earlier on in ‘the profession’ before he came to oppose it so determinedly.

“I’ve spent an awful lot of time becoming educated – and educating others – and I still am, as I have an awful lot to learn.”

may 2010 GME 27

He said: “I fight hard these days in the profession that there should not be a design and build mentality.

“They may not be insured to do it; they may not have the expertise historically in terms of designing, but they do it. That causes me a slight problem in devaluing the profession to which I hold quite a lot of endearment.

“But I admit we did a lot more of that kind of work towards the end of my father’s career. However, it was manage-ment work and there was a lot of design work within it.

“Sadly, I still believe we have a profes-sion which is unvalued because there are too many people who say “we can design this” – and they do, whether it’s secretar-ies, greenkeepers or professional golfers.

“I wouldn’t teach anybody how to swing a golf club because I’m not good enough – I haven’t been educated in doing that. I use the word designer rather than architect because I think that’s a crucial distinction between the two terms.

“I don’t consider myself a designer because all I do is practise as an architect. I don’t play golf professionally; I have one profession and that’s architecture.”

Rallying to the cause, he continued: “It’s not a new thing. Look at the great triumvirate. I’ve been fortunate to work on a lot of Braid courses, some Vardon courses and one JH Taylor golf course, and they were all very good golfers. And they all practised, to different extents, as golf course designers.

“They called themselves golf course ‘architects’ but interestingly they worked with technicians. JH Taylor worked with grandfather Hawtree; Braid, and to a less-er extent Vardon, worked with John Stutt. These were contractors, guys who were greenkeepers and technicians – who had vision and experience of playing loads of different golf courses.

“My father built all of Henry Cotton’s golf courses. He was the engineer; he probably did as much of the design work as Henry, but Henry took the accolades for the design... as an architect. Yet I don’t think Henry would ever say he was an architect – he was a designer.

“I think we’re too complicated, too elaborate, too expensive in many cases, which does nothing for the furtherance of the profession.”

At the age of 64 Swan shows no signs of retiring, though his family is in place to pick up the baton should he choose so to do.

“My son William is here as an architect and my daughter Amy does a lot of marketing and PR. I think my father would have been immensely proud and touched by that,” he smiled proudly.

“I think I’m very, very fortunate to have done what I’ve done, and to still do what I do; and to still want to do what I do.”

He’s right: his father would be proud. And so should golf course architecture. Because, for all the ripples Howard Swan has created, ‘the profession’ is much the better for having him in it. GME

www.europeangolf.co.uk - info@europeangolf.co.uk – Tel. +44 (0)800 915 5201

Greens l Tees l Short Courses

Lee Westwood Darren ClarkeRichard Finch

Endorsed by top European Tour professionals

All year round natural play on asynthetic green

28 GME may 2010

Yamaha have been making golf cars for over 35 years making them one of the oldest manufacturers in the business. Their plant at Newnham in Georgia, USA produces a steady stream of differ-ent products, giving Yamaha more than a

healthy slice of the global golf car market.

Think Yamaha and the mind goes back to the

Japanese giant corpora-tion famous not only as

vehicle producers but the world’s largest piano makers. Indeed, the company’s intensive research into metal alloys for use in acoustic pianos

gave Yamaha’s wiz kids a wide knowledge of build-ing the lightweight yet

sturdy and reliable metal constructions easily

applied to the making of piano frames, parts for motorcycles and marine engines.

And so Yamaha became the world’s second largest producers of motor-cycles and the largest

producer of outboard engines on the planet.

Diversification followed apace into all-terrain vehicles, boats, snowmobiles, personal watercraft, Formula 1 racing engines for a time, wheelchairs, even remote-controlled helicopters. Making a golf car was a breeze after that.

Today, Yamaha Golf Car design is influenced by all the experience gained from these different fields and of course by their current world championship winning Moto GP motorcycles which triumphed again in 2009 in the hands of Valentino Rossi.

As an engine producing company Yamaha stands up against the best.

As Brian Swinden, sales manager of Golf Cars explained: “Our mantra is evolution not revolution. We have two core Golf Car products powered by elec-tricity or petrol and we are the only manufacturer that builds its own bespoke golf car engine.

“Yamaha have that capability our competitors don’t. We sell more petrol cars than our competitors for that reason. We are the premier brand and whilst generally perceived to be more expensive than our competitors our customers appreciate the reliability and build quality of our products.”

There is no difference in price between the Yamaha G29E 48 volt car powered by Trojan batteries or the Yamaha G29A

yamaha in focus WEblInK; yamaHa-mOTOR.CO.UK

Brian Swinden of yamaha Golf Cars talks to John Vinicombe about the brand and his ambitions for the coming season.

Why Yamaha is alwaysthe professional’s choice

may 2010 GME 29

petrol car that has the Yamaha four-stroke, 350cc, petrol Golf Car engine. Sales in the UK are about 50-50. The 48 volt electric model is the most powerful of its type in the industry with regenerative braking and on board diagnostics and if required a Delta–Q on board charger.

“There is no doubt that the popularity of electric cars is increasing and I believe we will see significant new battery tech-nology adding to the ‘reasons to buy’,” vows Swinden.

Yamaha also has an LPG conversion available for the four-stroke Yamaha G29 which enables them to offer a complete range of power sources to the industry.

“We go to the customer and try to find out which power source suits them – elec-tric, petrol or LPG rather than the other way round. We carry out site surveys to determine if there is suitable electrical power available, where the cars will be stored etc.

“We also carry out course risk assess-ments. All of this is done before we offer a suitable golf car solution for their individ-ual requirements.

“We provide a direct leasing operation rather than operating through an external finance house and additionally utilise a dealer network for purchases, giving us unrivalled customer service levels in the field.

“Feedback is extremely satisfying particularly with regards to the reliability, serviceability and the lifespan of a Yamaha Golf Car.”

Yamaha have left no stone unturned. They also produce a light utility range for course work plus variations like food and beverage cars and people carriers with seating for up to eight people.

Biggest UK customers include the Ashbury courses in the Devon holiday resort with 400 cars. It is, in fact, the largest single user of golf cars in Europe.

St Andrews Links Trust have used Yamaha for many years originally opting for course ranger mopeds before the golf car era.

Wentworth is another prestige address where the Yamaha logo predominates and Yamaha also supply the largest group in Europe in Crown Golf who recently extending a long standing relationship for a further five years.

Size as you know isn’t everything and Yamaha supports all levels of the industry big and small in exactly the same way.

Overall the company’s golf car business has not been greatly affected by the econ-omy tightening. From the Yamaha Motor UK Ltd headquarters at Weybridge Surrey where the regional Golf Car Service is conducted, Swinden was reas-suringly upbeat.

“Business is fairly buoyant and as good as we can reasonably expect given what the golf industry is going through at the moment. Cars are seen by clubs as a means of generating revenue and that is helping them to produce revenue in a business where other revenue streams might be slow.” GME

The right choice.visit www.toro.com

Turf Equipment & Irrigation Solutions

©2010 The Toro CompanyAll rights reserved

may 2010 GME 31

synthetic surfacesWEblInK; SOUTHWESTGREENS.EU

There can be few better and more memorable experiences in the game than playing golf in the mountains.

Whether it be in the Alps, Dolomites or Pyrenees of Europe or further afield in the great mountain ranges of North and South America, a round at altitude is like-ly to live long in the memory and leave

you gasping (literally) for more.Of course, there is one major

drawback about opting to head for the hills in search of a game as the weather tends to dictate when golf can be played possi-

ble. A mountain resort might have the most beautiful course in

the world but it’s not much use if it spends six months of the year under

snow.That has always been the big frustra-

tion about playing in the mountains, especially if you want to practice over the long winter months, but a course in Europe believes it has found a solution to the problem by creating Europe’s first

nine-hole course featuring synthetic turf on the greens and double tees.

Installed by Southwest Greens, and Golf et Paysage, France’s leading golf course builder, Jiva Hill Golf Club will open officially this summer and could

transform the way courses in similar loca-tions are built in the future.

Situated in the Jura Mountains, just 15 minutes from Geneva and with Mont Blanc almost within touching distance, Jiva Hill has a location to die for and golf-ers will be able to enjoy a 12-month season with the opening of the innovative and forward-thinking new lay-out.

Kevin Holinaty, president of Southwest Greens EMEA, said: “Jiva Hill is a luxury hotel with a sports theme and is on a unique geographical location.

“There is everything there from eques-trianism to water-ski-jumping and they have now put in golf, but because of the nature of the location, it’s virtually impos-sible for a hotel facility to maintain a natural golf course to an acceptable standard.

“What they wanted was to have a golf course they could play all-year round, while functioning well. We put the greens in last summer and they stood up excep-tionally well to a very hard winter.

“Obviously, there will be occasions when it snows heavily when the course will be shut but that is the same as anywhere. What our greens and tees allow for is the ability to play all year round when there is no snow.

Synthetic golf surfaces have evolved in recent years, with full-sized greens being installed on remote mountain courses as Peter Simm reports.

an all-weather solution

32 GME may 2010

“For instance, I was there over the winter and there was a lot of snow over-night, but within 20 minutes the green and tee on one of the holes had been cleaned and the hole was playable.”

While Southwest Greens have installed synthetic golf greens for some of the lead-ing players in the world including Sergio Garcia, Retief Goosen, Vijay Singh, Jim Furyk, and Justin Rose, they were enter-ing new territory when they were approached to help at Jiva Hill.

Working with an installation team of 14, Holinaty spent two months installing a total of 7,500m² synthetic surfaces at the mountain resort on a scale previously unheard of on the continent.

He explained: “What Makes Jiva Hill unique in terms of our product within the synthetic turf industry is that it’s an example of a real golf course setting embracing synthetic solutions.

“Most of the projects that have gone in the ground to date in our industry have been small pitch and putt courses with greens no bigger than 200 m2 to 300m².

“This is the first course in Europe and possibly in the world to have average-size greens of 600m² which is on a par with natural courses. Basically, the concept of this course was to create a venue that’s virtually the same that you would see in a natural course.”

Holinaty revealed that the firm has now set up a special EMEA construction department to manage large projects of a similar scale and their influence is set to spread across Europe as a result.

He said: “As a company, the grass roots of Southwest Greens was always the resi-dential putting greens but we have grown the market considerably in Europe.

“We are one of the main pioneers of the market on the European continent. It has matured dramatically and the golf course industry has now embraced synthetic products.

“It will never happen that all natural greens are replaced by synthetic ones. But there are many situations and appli-cations for the product and things are starting to take shape now that people realise that.

“We want to provide a professional solution and we want our customers to realise that the process is exactly the same as if you were building a natural golf course.”

As you would expect from a company that has forged an exclusive partnership with Nicklaus Design, Southwest Greens prides itself on using the best materials, designers and craftsmanship in producing an outstanding custom-made product.

And it is this reputation for attention to excellence that has led to Southwest Greens working on new large-scale projects in Caen, in France, Moscow, Russia and a move indoors, where they have been commissioned to install – once funding is finalized – 14,000m² of synthetic grass practice facilities for the Indoor Golf Arena, which is set to become the world’s biggest and most diverse golf training centre.

Holinaty said: “We believe that the product is only as good as the process administered. We make sure we use the right materials and use the right turf and our installation process is very compre-hensive.

“It’s very important to us how the greens perform and we work backwards in the technical process by asking ourselves the question “What do we need to accomplish to create a product that has the same performance characteristics that you would expect to find on a natural green?’

“It’s the most comprehensive approach in our market and because of it, players can hit approach shots from any range onto our greens and we can control the speed of the putting surfaces.

Keith Haslam, managing director of Braemar Golf, who commissioned Southwest Greens to install 5,000m² of synthetic surfaces at a new nine-hole course at Pavlovo, near Moscow, said: “We looked at all the suppliers of synthet-ic turfs and were very impressed with Southwest Green’s proactive approach.

“Kevin came up with a great solution and we have recommended them for another couple of projects.”

Jon Standing, founder of the Indoor Golf Arena, said: “Southwest Green’s putting surfaces are of true professional calibre and unparalleled quality and that it is almost impossible to tell the difference between their turf and the real thing.

“Without any doubt, Southwest Greens will contribute to Indoor Golf Arena by providing the ability to practice golf with the same high standards experienced at the top golf clubs.”

Things are certainly moving in the right direction for Southwest Greens, who have also just completed a three-hole course for Club Med in Mauritius.

“I think it’s a great idea and means that Club Med can now promote to golfers, and because of maintenance constraints, it’s something that they would have been incapable of doing with a natural prod-uct.”

So does anyone fancy a holiday in Mauritus? GME

“What Makes Jiva Hill unique in terms of our product within the synthetic turf industry is that

it’s an example of a real golf course setting embracing synthetic solutions.”

may 2010 GME 33

Weller Designs Limited Golf Course ArchitectsBishops Mead House, West Street, Farnham, Surrey GU9 7DU

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advertisement feature WEblInK; CROCODILEGOLFPRODUCTS.COm

Crocodile Golf Products can reflect on substantial growth and market penetra-tion since its launch in early 2009, with this growth evident not just in the UK but across the globe.

As part of the Ralph Martindale Group, Crocodile Golf provides the golf course and amenity industry with a top class selection of replacement cylinder mower blades and bottom blades, and their high quality ‘cutting edge’ technolo-gy has been well received by the industry over the past fifteen months.

This established manufacturer of 135 years standing has a

proud reputation for steel based production and

yet their move into this range of high quality cylinder products is a quite recent develop-

ment. Only since the late

1960’s have they actively become

involved in the replace-ment rotary grass and turf care

product sector.

The launch of their new Crocodile Golf web site in March last year marked the start of an aggressive marketing campaign towards the UK golf and fine turf sector. This, coupled with the appointment of two new sales managers, emphasised the level of investment that has been made in this range of products.

Over 200 golf clubs across the UK have responded to this campaign with signifi-cant sales of replacement blades to courses such as Avisford Golf Club, South Staffs Golf Club, Cotgrave Golf Club – part of the Crown Group – Wentworth and a number of prestigious courses within the Dundee and Tayside area of Scotland.

recessionary pressuresCrocodile Golf Products were also able

to capitalise on the recession, as manufac-turers of top quality replacement parts enjoy a huge surge in demand as both private golf courses and other amenity managers seek to maintain (and even improve) the quality of their turf manage-ment.

Even more acutely where the budgets are under even greater pressure, both the

With the global recession having had a devastating effect on the majority of the UK manufacturing industry, its refreshing to discover

one company that is bucking the trend as Phil Evans reports.

crocodile Golf enjoys Global Expansion

34 GME maRCH 2010

may 2010 GME 35

Watermation 2000Irrigation Systems

“The staff at Watermation 2000 have over 30 years experience in designing, installing and maintaining the

finest golf course irrigation systems in the UK.For all your irrigation needs call Watermation 2000”

Jacks Barn, Common Road, Shelfanger, Norfolk IP22 2DR

Telephone: 01379 641651Fax: 01379 640866

www.watermation2000.co.uk

private golf course sector and the munici-pal sector has to keep its fleet of profes-sional grass cutting equipment on track.

The lack of funding for capital invest-ment in new turf equipment across the board has only added to this manufactur-ers’ sales growth chart!

product DevelopmentTowards the end of 2009, Crocodile

Golf products added an extensive range of unique ‘Crocodile’ golf-hole cutters to its developing product range. They have also applied their extensive skill and expertise in ‘cutting-edge’ technology to the manufacture of a range of agronomy tools and soil samplers plus an extensive range of rotary lawn mower blades, tines, aerators and slitter blades.

Consistent with the manufacture of their cylinder blades, all of the products are made from precision ground, hard-ened and tempered carbon and alloy steels which are rolled in their own in-house hot rolling steel mill at Willenhall in the West Midlands.

Crocodile Golf products also recently joined forces with grass machinery specialists Broderick Grass Machinery in order to distribute its growing range of products throughout Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic.

As a premier manufacturer of quality replacement lawn mower blades for the professional user, Crocodile Golf sees this as further indication of their rise in profile during 2009 and into 2010.

In addition, as part of its expansive growth strategy, Crocodile Golf Products has also appointed the multi-million Euro, Danish-based company Grene as its distributor of quality replacement lawn mower blades throughout Scandinavia.

With over 140 golf clubs in Denmark and a further 540 in Sweden and 155 in Norway, Grene are ideally placed to enter the Scandinavian turfcare market.

Traditionally established as Europe’s largest distributor to the agricultural and forestry sectors, product director, Karl Povlsen believes that Crocodile Golf products will provide the perfect platform on which to establish Grene in the Turfcare arena, first of all throughout Denmark and then into Sweden, Norway and Finland.

On a recent visit to the Wolverhampton factory earlier this year, Povlsen (pictured above right), with Crocodile Golf ’s busi-ness development director, Paul Tanner, added that the inherent quality of the products coupled with Grene’s unique ability to supply the market on a timely and effective basis would create a formi-dable partnership throughout the golf industry.

EMEa DistributorsAny one interested in becoming a

customer or a distributor of Crocodile Golf products throughout Europe, Africa or the Middle East, are invited to contact managing director Ian Marshall via the contact details on page seven . GME

ELY

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ppcgolf.com/propertyGolfPPC

may 2010 GME 37

the colt courseWEblInK; CLOSEHOUSE.CO.UK

“I firmly believe that the only means whereby an attractive piece of ground can be turned into a satisfying golf course is to work to the natural features of the site in question.”

The words are those of the legendary course designer Harry Shapland Colt – but they were spoken by Scott Macpherson, who, as well as being a modern-day architect of some repute, is, it turns out, quite a student of the history of golf course design.

And that interest has certainly benefited those who get to play the new champion-ship course at Close House, at Heddon on the Wall, near Newcastle.

The new course, which opens next summer, is not only named after Colt but is also built along the lines Macpherson believes the man himself would have chosen given the same tranche of land.

“It’s a wonderful environment,” said Macpherson, a partner in Turner Macpherson Golf Design.

“The property dates back to the 1770s with a historic protection order on the landscape. It’s almost like a botanic

garden. They have a number of different species of trees consisting mainly of native British hard woods, and there was a ladies’ walk through the trees down to the lake alongside the ha-ha wall.

“It was a classic English landscape and we wanted to make every hole as unique as possible. Trying to come up with the vision for the design we fell upon Harry Colt, who to my mind is probably the greatest and most influential golf course architect – certainly for me the best in England.

“He had created some of the great English courses and we had what we considered to be a great English site,” added Macpherson.

“It felt like that was a better model than going down the American design route. That wouldn’t have looked right in the environment we were working in.

“I researched 30-odd Colt courses and it came to me quite quickly that this was definitely the direction to go: his use of natural features – always one of his strong principles – and the fact he was very much into strategic design.

David bowers talks to Scott macpherson, about the new Colt course at Close House, near Newcastle, which is scheduled to open in 2011.

back to the future at close house

mic

k V

ard

y

38 GME may 2010

“For example, he didn’t like the second hole to be a par three. That was off the back of some of his experiences as a secretary. He knew that if there was a back-up on the second hole, there could potentially be a back-up on the first, and his office was in the clubhouse and they’d be straight in to see him,” smiled Macpherson, a New Zealander, now based in Edinburgh.

The man who quite literally bought into Macpherson’s vision of a 1930s Colt design, was Graham Wylie, the owner of Close House and the man who co-found-ed the successful Sage accounting soft-ware company.

The son of a Scottish miner, Wylie amassed his fortune having designed his first Sage programme while still a student at Newcastle University.

And it was his connection with the university that has led to the construction of the new course at Close House.

Macpherson explained: “As I under-stand it he’d come through the university and wanted to give something back.

“He wasn’t the type to want a bust erected or his name over a sports centre and they said they had a property which was up for sale, but they wanted to continue to use the sports facilities. I believe there were ten or so sports pitches.

“And within that complex, which they’d owned for about 40-odd years, was the mansion house. That was a more attrac-tive deal to Graham so he purchased it and in order to give something back gave them certain privileges to continue to use the property.”

The pitches were laid out in such a random manner, among 150-to-200-year-old oak trees, that it was only in the summer when the students returned home that the fairways of a 1960s-built golf course were mown out.

During the rest of the year the course was partially unplayable as the various pitches were marked out over the fair-ways.

Initially the idea was to build a champi-onship course, extending the existing course from its meagre 5,500 yards. But Wylie decided to purchase more land and, subsequently, next summer Close House will have two courses, with a new champi-onship course and the original extended to 6,000 yards.

In the meantime Wylie also purchased some adjacent farmland and relocated all the university’s sports pitches.

Macpherson added: “The dilapidated mansion house has been turned into a quite stunning and successful boutique hotel. It’s in a beautiful location overlook-ing the Tyne and looking down towards Newcastle.”

Small wonder Wylie, who was born in Hawick and moved to Tyneside when he was six years of age, is so revered in the north-east. And that reverence will soon extend to golfers lucky enough to experi-ence this new lay-out, as Macpherson explained: “One of Colt’s principles in routing was the orientation of holes.

“He really didn’t like parallel holes – holes that played back and forth – and we worked hard among the restrictions we had, to unlock a routing where there is no two-hole sequence that plays in the same direction.

“As soon as you finish one hole the next goes off in a different point of the compass. It’s constantly changing and something we’re really proud of. The site itself has quite a high degree of elevation change, almost 90 metres, which is enor-mous in terms of golf.

“The only course to compare it with – and it goes back to the same period and was designed by Alister Mackenzie who

mic

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ard

y

may 2010 GME 39

was one of Colt’s partners at one stage – is Pasatiempo, in California. It has a simi-lar fall and is of a similar period.

“So we then had to determine how best to use that elevation. I think we’ve handled it pretty well. There is no cardiac hill: from the 11th hole it’s all downhill. The climbs on the course are staggered during the first ten holes.

“The holes that really go up the slope are two, five and ten. Once you’re at ten

you’re almost at the highest point on the course; 11 plays over a small saddle and then it’s all back down to the clubhouse.”

He continued: “The name Colt worked very well for our client as he has a very strong equine interest. So that’s how the name was settled on; the other course was previously just Close House, it had no name, so once we’d settled on Colt the yin and yang of the name Filly was a natural fit.

“And the Colt will buck…”Another challenge they had to cope

with in the grounds was the remains of a medieval quarry, a listed monument.

“It’s a no-touch area just left of the 11th tee,” explained Macpherson. “You can still see the outlines of it now and around the outside there is ridge and furrow from the old ploughing days.

“When the university got involved we had various archaeologists come and look

at it trying to date it, because the width and form of the ridge and furrows dictates their importance.

“They were said to be produced by oxen rather than horses and they could tell that by the width and the way they moved round. Generally horses would go straight up and back and these are wider as oxen always turned slowly around the corners because they weren’t very manoeuvrable animals.”

It is this interest in history and what many people might consider the minutiae of the terrain that has helped make Turner Macpherson an in-demand practice. Greg Turner runs the Australasian side of the business and Macpherson the European arm.

The latter’s passion for history, particu-larly that of St Andrews where he lived for six years, led to him writing the well-received book St Andrews: The Evolution of the Old Course.

It is an interest that has served him well in his profession.

He said: “The evolution of the Old Course is something I’ve been quite passionate about and that’s rolled over into my design work in that I feel I have a better understanding of the history of design.

“Colt too was hugely influenced by what was going on at St Andrews and that

was probably why he had the love of the undulations. I think it’s enhanced our ability as a practice to design and to understand course strategy better.”

Close House’s Colt course is Turner Macpherson’s first venture into the European market, but it certainly won’t be the last if first impressions are any guide. The company is also currently consulting with Royal Wellington GC in New Zealand for a 27-hole renovation.

Macpherson added: “We’re a small company and the Colt course may be, for some people, the first time they hear of Turner Macpherson Golf Design. It’ll be the flagship course for us certainly and we believe it will hold its head really high.

“Our long-term business plan is to focus on high quality bespoke designs, personal attention to each design, and high client satisfaction. Also, as we say in the office, anybody can make courses hard, but it’s hard to make them fun. And making courses fun to play has been the key to our design success.

“Good golf courses get built on the ground – we’re in the business of produc-ing good golf courses and not ‘a lot’ of golf courses.” It’s the sort of quote one might have expected from Harry Colt.

Maybe someday a new generation of architects will be citing Macpherson as their benchmark. GME

“The name Colt worked very well for our client as he has a very strong equine interest. So that’s how the name was settled on”

‘Specialist in Golf Course Construction’

Repton Short Course at Rudding ParkRoyal Birkdale, Royal St George’s

Carnoustie, Goodwood

BAGCC

John greasley limitedAshfield House, 1154 Melton Road, Syston, Leicester LE7 2HB

Telephone: 0116 269 6766 Fax: 0116 269 6866

Email: johngreasleyltd@aol.comwww.johngreasleyltd.co.uk

40 GME may 2010

my view WEblInK; ECOSOLVE.CO.UK

Golf de La Boulie in Versailles, Paris, is the latest French club to benefit from Ecosol Turfcare’s Drill ‘n’ Fill aeration.

Established in 1901, the top class venue is part of one of France’s leading Sports Clubs, Racing Club de France, and has frequently hosted the French Open tour-nament.

It boasts two 18 hole courses, La Forêt and the oldest, La Vallée, both of which have an extensive, undulating parkland layout, with plenty of trees.

The greens are very old and were built on a poorly draining base. The soil is clay with a terracotta drainage layer at a depth of 40cm. “Due to this construction, we have been having problems with greens that were slow to drain after heavy rain,” said director, Jean-Franck Burou.

“The greens were very compacted and the grass growth weak.” Ecosol Turfcare was called in last September to Drill ‘n’ Fill all 18 greens on La Forêt course, built in 1968. So satisfied was Burou, that he consolidated with a return visit this spring to Drill ‘n’ Fill the older course, La Vallée.

The unique Drill ‘n’ Fill aerator can gently fold back turf and penetrate soil to a depth of 31cm, backfilling instantly with sand and a soil amendment such as Ecosol’s own zeolitic Sportslite.

This will relieve compaction and allow improved drainage as water percolates down the ducts which remain open for months and accelerate the infiltration rate.

Backfill can be tailor-made for each green according to turf conditions to give a soil exchange with sand, zeolitic or ceramic amendments and blends of nutri-ents.

Removing the soil allows lateral move-ment in the rootzone, releasing compac-tion and the increased percolation reduces the spongy, soggy conditions often seen in clay-based greens. Deep holes and good soil amendment encourage deep, strong roots and result in better grass growth on the green. There is a choice of drill depths and diameters.

At La Boulie last autumn, Ecosol Turfcare wanted to improve soil exchange on the compacted, slow draining course which was also showing poor grass growth. The team took to France, three Drill ‘n’ Fill aerators and a SQRL debris collector and treated the 18 greens, aprons and approaches – two hectares in total.

Drills were 31cm long and 20mm wide. Backfill was a locally quarried medium-fine French sand, kiln dried to ensure complete hole-filling.

The 2010 operation on La Vallée was similar, with three aerators and two SQRLs and although it was hampered by frozen greens, requiring a late start in exceedingly cold weather, the French greenkeepers were extremely supportive.

“They provided an excellent shift system of highly motivated and enthusias-tic greenkeepers under Guillaume Grall, who had already witnessed the beneficial effects of Drill ‘n’ Fill on the first course,” reported Ecosol operations manager, Nigel Berry.

“Although we injected 60 tonnes of material, the job was very smooth and efficient.”

It was felt that the local sand used in the first job had been a little fine, so this

l’entente cordiale!

Three Drill ‘n’ Fills, two SQRLs, 60 tons of backfill

and two hardworking teams completed Ecosol

Turfcare’s latest anglo-French initiative. article by

Penny Comerford.

may 2010 GME 41

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year the backfill was imported from the UK, with a 95:5 mix of Ecosol Turfcare’s DA30 Kiln Dried sand and Sportslite, which has the additional benefit of retain-ing water in the rootzone – important in France where water used for the irrigation of sports grounds is rationed.

Burou had previously used Drill ‘n’ Fill to good effect at Besancon Golf Club, so had no hesitation enlisting its services for La Boulie. “The results have been very satisfactory in all instances,” he comment-ed.

“At La Boulie, there has been a net improvement in the drainage level and also from being able to introduce sand into these clay greens. This has resulted in a ‘tightening’ of the greens and they are now much firmer with better grass growth.”

He was impressed that the Drill ‘n’ Fill operation had been so rapid – three or four days for the whole course – and had not stressed the surface. Play could resume quickly afterwards, pleasing both members and greenkeepers.

“The Ecosol team provided good work, performed by reliable staff who did not hesitate to undertake several continuous long days,” added a clearly impressed Burou.

“The greens are already firmer and draining faster.”

The autumn 2009 visit to Golf de La Boulie was part of a serious French campaign for Ecosol Turfcare.

The team moved on from Versailles to south-west France, tackling poor drainage at two clubs at Pau and Arcachon near Bordeaux.

Pau Golf Club 1856 boasts the oldest course in the country and had Drill ‘n’ Fill on 21 greens. At Golf International d’Arcachon, Ecosol drilled one hectare of

greens, backfilling them with 28 tonnes of DA 30 and Sportslite soil amendment which had been exported from the UK especially for the task.

“The French market remains a very important one for Ecosol Turfcare,” said managing director, Bretton King.

“Many clubs have very old courses with clay-based greens and they are find-ing that our aeration system, backed up by excellent attention to detail, efficiency on the ground and after-sales service, is working wonders for them.

“In addition to that, the strong Euro, and the fact that we can supply backfill material has resulted in a cost-effective and convenient operation for European clubs.” GME

“the strong Euro, and the fact that we can supply backfill material has resulted in a cost-effective and convenient operation for European clubs.”

42 GME may 2010

the last word

Rory mcIlroy’s recent victory at Quail Hollow made him the fifth youngest player ever to win on the PGa Tour (if you count Tiger twice!)

When I saw that fact it reminded me of a similar title I held many years ago. It was pointed out to me when I was 16 that I was, according to those in the know, the youngest player ever to win a leg in a league match for The Tramway arms darts team.

I soon realised that there was every chance some whippersnapper with a penchant for bitter shandy could come along and take that honour away from me.

So we reworked my title and made me the oldest player ever to be the

youngest player ever to win a leg in a league match for The Tramway arms darts team.

I wasn’t, clearly, as people had been playing for the team long before I joined. But as the records for such a title started only at the point I took on the self-appointed role there could be no dispute.

Sadly, to this day, it remains the biggest (only) sporting honour I’ve landed. The Tramway arms no longer exists and neither does my fledgling darts career – although I have main-tained the required physique.

It made me think about such unoffi-cial recognition – it always amuses me when I receive an email from an old

friend of mine who signs off his emails with ‘Probably the only award-winning golf writer never to have won an award’.

Phil mickelson, of course, used to be referred to as the ‘best golfer never to have won a major’ a title that has also been bestowed on Colin montgomerie and, latterly, Sergio Garcia. Leftie has put that sobriquet to bed but the other two may never live it down.

George Best was often referred to as the ‘best player never to have played in a World Cup finals’; GmE’s very own michael Lenihan was once described as ‘the best golf magazine publisher never to get within five inches of six-foot’; and Jeffrey archer was once categorised by this very correspondent as ‘quite possibly the worst author ever to appear on the best-sellers’ list’.

In desperation, as I enter my 48th year, I searched for a new title and I am pleased to say I have found it: I am, unofficially – though official recog-nition may not be far off – the ‘worst golfer to ever have been lucky enough to play some of Europe’s top courses’.

It’s a bit of a mouthful but it sums up my current situation rather neatly. GME

rory joins an elite club in search of destiny

“I am, unofficially – though official recognition may not be far off – the ‘worst golfer to ever have been lucky enough to play some of Europe’s top courses’.”

David bowerseditorial@portman.uk.com

+44 (0)1394 380800 | ppcgolf.com

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