Golf
GETTING Personal...
Alistair Morrison - a young man with some difficult choices to make; Michelle or Jennifer?
Who are you? Alistair Morrison, greenkeeper at Durness Golf Club in the Scottish Highlands.
Family status? Single, no children.
Who’s your hero and why? Being a Rangers fan, Ally McCoist and Barry Ferguson were both heroes of mine when I was growing up.
What would you change about yourself? More time off work in the summer months, especially weekends.
What’s been the highlight of your career so far? During my time at Brora Golf Club, I got the opportunity to volunteer at Kingsbarns Golf Links at two Dunhill Links Championships. But I also travelled to Switzerland with a group of other Scottish greenkeepers to volunteer at Crans san Sur Sieere for the European Masters, which was a great experience
Do you go to bed worrying about the next day’s workload? Yes this can often be the case, especially during bad weather when I have a big workload.
What are your pet peeves? Golfers leaving cigarette ends on the course.
What’s the best part of your job? I enjoy being my own boss and get a lot of satisfaction coming off the course the morning of a competition when it is looking at its best.
… and the worst? Machine breakdowns.
Do you have a lifetime ambition? To win the league with my local football team, although this is looking unlikely!
Favourite record, and why? Being a Teuchter*, I listen to just about anything and everything. I do enjoy listening to Runrig for a bit of motivation at work.
Who would you choose to spend a romantic evening with? That’s a tough one! Would be a close call between Michelle Keegan and Jennifer Aniston.
36 I PC APRIL/MAY 2017
difficult at times. It makes life a little crazy at times, especially around open competitions in the summer months, but being my own boss is also an advantage when it comes to my personal life.” What would you consider to be the state of our industry?
If you won the lottery, what is the first thing you would do? I would love to build my own house.
What’s the best advice you have ever been given? Go with your gut feeling, if you’re considering doing something, just do it.
What do you do in your spare time? Play and watch a lot of sports, get to Scotland football matches when I can and enjoy a beer at the weekends.
What’s the daftest work related question you have ever been asked? Do you ever change the holes?
What’s your favourite piece of kit? Not that I have one, but I think the TruTurf Greens Iron is a fantastic piece of kit.
What three words would you use to describe yourself? Impatient, passionate, eager.
What talent would you like to have? I would love to play a musical instrument.
What law/legislation would you like to see introduced? Not a law as such, but I would like to be able to spray our fairways.
*Teuchter ('tju:xt:r) is a Lowland Scots word originally used to describe a Scottish Highlander, in particular a Gaelic-speaking Highlander.
“I would say the industry is strong, there’s always ongoing improvements coming from all directions.” “Are we undervalued? Yes, especially in rural areas where golf isn’t so popular. I get very tired of trying to tell people that I don’t just cut grass for a living. I think clubs need to do more to educate members of just how important we are; no greenkeepers = no golf course.” The location of Durness makes attending industry shows, seminars and demo days somewhat difficult. “I haven’t been to any recently, but hopefully, in the near future, this will change. Being so far north means that attending these events usually means lots of travelling for me.” And what does the future hold for this little golf club at
the top of the world? Alistair is hopeful that the recently opened North Coast 500 coast road (to be known as NC500) will allow more golfers to seek out the pleasures of playing his course. “It can only be for the better,” he comments. The route begins in Inverness and heads west towards Kyle of Lochalsh, up the scenic west coast to Durness and across the most northerly stretch to John O’Groats, then back down to Inverness again, covering a total of 500 miles, no doubt singing a certain Proclaimers song all the way! The new road has already made the top ten in a number
of ‘best coastal roads in the world’, such is the spectacular scenery and landmarks it encompasses on its route.
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