The art of greenkeeping is about clear sight and informed decision making...
consider the implications of each - hollow tining versus deep scarification to remove organic matter, for example. We need to choose the route that will most likely be successful, affordable and that you are capable of completing.
This means taking into account the budgetary requirements for each approach and the level of investment required. The speed of progress does depend on having the available tools to do the job but, again, we need to be realistic. In the end, we need to agree our best plan of action.
Buy-in
Once the best strategy for achieving the goals has been decided, we then need to communicate it to your stakeholders to get the consent to proceed (be they Proprietor, Captain, Ladies Captain, Chairman of Green, Green Convenor, Committee, Secretary, General Manager, membership, staff or even visitors).
This must be done in a way that uses understanding to generate support and the desire to succeed. Your agronomist’s report should be focused to assist in this regard. Presentations can be very persuasive (with the help of your agronomist), newsletters, emails, and notices can all help get the message across. Your various stakeholders
68
should all know that you have an objective and structured plan that, if actioned properly, will improve the situation. This will mean explaining the planning process and how you intend to implement it. It is important to obtain full support, because you won’t make any headway if your work gets shunted behind the fixture list. We need everyone to support the effort.
At last!
With the objective defined, the strategy agreed and budgeted for, we can start implementing the plan. Thank goodness for that! As agronomists, we do try to lay out a detailed plan with contingencies but, obviously, we are in the hands of the elements. It would be wrong to expect the recommendations be completed in full, no matter what.
Again, the skill of
greenkeeping is about reacting to conditions to work towards achieving our goals. The greenkeeper is by far the most important element in this process, and successful ones have drive,
determination and awareness to take advantage of all available opportunities.
Close control
We will keep evaluating the situation through the implementation phase to keep a close grip on playing qualities, and to see what
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124 |
Page 125 |
Page 126 |
Page 127 |
Page 128 |
Page 129 |
Page 130 |
Page 131 |
Page 132 |
Page 133 |
Page 134 |
Page 135 |
Page 136 |
Page 137 |
Page 138 |
Page 139 |
Page 140