You want impressive? You got impressive! Tiger Woods called it the “best course in Europe” and he is talking about a course that is just four years old!
Laurence Gale MSc meets the Course Manager at The Grove, Phillip Chiverton
In theGROVE!
GOLF has become more accessible in recent years. One company which has been at the forefront of opening up the sport is Troon Golf, a luxury golf management company who have, in the past seventeen years, built up a portfolio of close to two hundred quality golf facilities around the world.
Dana Garmany founded the company in 1990, with Troon North Golf Club as its flagship. His remit was to give golfers, regardless of ability, the opportunity to play a quality course with interesting challenges.
The company’s expansion began at the acclaimed Westin Turnberry Resort in Ayrshire, Scotland. The portfolio now includes golf courses, resort and private club developments in the Caribbean, Dubai, Mexico, Hong Kong, Australia, Continental Europe as well as Great Britain.
One of its newest resorts is The Grove in Hertfordshire. Opened in 2003, The Grove features championship golf and luxurious accommodation in the heart of England, only thirty minutes from London’s West End and Heathrow Airport and within the M25 corridor. Often referred to as “London’s Country Estate,” The Grove was formerly the home of the Earl of Clarendon. The house has been restored and converted into a luxurious five star 227-room hotel complex, whilst the grounds contain beautifully manicured gardens and an eighteen hole golf course of the highest standard
16 The course was designed by the
renowned golf architect, Kyle Phillips, whose portfolio includes the Kingsbarns course in Scotland. The Grove was constructed in 2001 and officially opened in 2003 when the hotel complex was completed. Gary Player said of it “The Grove is without doubt one of the finest facilities I have ever seen anywhere in the world.” It has, in four short years, earned the reputation of being ‘the best pay and play course in the country’. With over 27,000 rounds of golf being played each year, running close to its design capacity, how has all this been achieved?
M J ABBOTTS were contracted to build the course, remodelling and shaping the land under the direction of Kyle Philips and his experienced ‘shaper’. The design concept was to bring the characteristics and topography of a links course inland. Over 300,000 cubic metres of soil were moved during the construction. The land yielded many interesting features, including two old lakes which were subsequently dug out and re-lined. A series of pumps were installed to regulate the water, these lakes now form a wonderful backdrop and wildlife corridor for the course.
COURSE Manager at The Grove is Phillip Chiverton, who became involved in the project over six years ago during the topsoil strip stage of construction. He has plenty of greenkeeping
experience, having started his career in
the early 80s working at several clubs including Bridport and West Dorse Golf Clubt, Wentworth and ten years at the Buckinghamshire Golf Club. Phillip’s Head Greenkeeper is Andrew Whittaker, and there are eleven greenkeepers, an irrigation
technician/first assistant, two mechanics and one full time administrator. He also enlists the help of six casual staff between May and October. A comprehensive training programme is in place for all the staff. It combines both in-house and external training. The staff are all relatively young and are qualified to various levels ranging from NVQ level 1-4. Much of this training is carried out by Andrew who has set up a simple matrix programme to ensure that they are trained in the basics of greenkeeping such as dew sweeping, divoting tees and fairways, bunker raking and equipment usage The Grove also employs eight full time
gardeners, and an arborist, who work in tandem with Phillip’s team of greenkeepers.
The machinery list at The Grove is
impressive. The sheds are full of top of the range equipment. All machinery is purchased outright. Most of the turf maintenance equipment is Toro and includes ten electric Toro Workmans. Tractor models are Kubota. Mowers are kept in prime cutting condition. Cylinders and bottom blades are regularly sharpened and reground in-house. With so much regular top
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