Golf The TOP Program
In my Quail Hollow home
Ohio State University intern, David Blair, relates his experiences on the TOP Program, including an eighteen month stint at Quail Hollow Golf Club in North Carolina, the home of the PGA’s Wells Fargo Championship
G
rowing up in Birmingham, I loved the outdoors. Never was I found sitting around the house, but always out riding my bike, fishing, playing rugby and, best
of all, on the golf course. Now, at twenty- seven years of age, who would have thought I would have travelled around the world pursuing my passion for the outdoors, and it is golf course management that has kept me interested and active in the industry for over ten years. At the age of sixteen, I had completed my
GCSE exams and had chosen not to stay on at school. This choice was made on the
28 I PC DECEMBER/JANUARY 2016
principle of not yet knowing what I wanted to achieve in life. My parents would find me on the golf course most days, and they encouraged me to enquire about possible employment. After speaking with Richard Wallis, Director and Golf Course Manager at Wishaw Golf Club, he offered me a part time position with the team. This included mostly bunker work, general course clean up and basic machine maintenance. After a couple of months, I was offered a full time position which I accepted. As I was given different tasks and more responsibility, I realised there was an art, a range of sciences and technical knowledge involved
with this line of work which I found extremely interesting. Working at Wishaw Golf Club was a great
experience as I was a part of a small team. This meant I was exposed to in-house construction of greens and tees, bunker renovations and irrigation installations. Jamie Wade, a good friend of mine from school, also got involved in the industry around the same time as myself. We worked at Wishaw together for a short time and, over the years, Jamie and I have been able to share knowledge and guide each other through our careers. He is now proving to be an integral link in the maintenance team at The Belfry in
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