Golf
“There is no point designing a good course if it isn’t well built, and there is no point building a good course if it isn’t well maintained”
thought, at the time, the greens were revolutionary in their speed and smoothness. Nevertheless, I don’t suppose anybody today would want to change places. It was an era when motorcars could be (and invariably had to be) started with a crank handle, and agricultural fields harvested with reaper and binder. Even in the early 1950s, scythes and sickles were familiar equipment in greenkeeping sheds. Tractors had no cabs. Nobody had heard of a stimpmeter. Since then, green speeds and surfaces have been perfected by several improved techniques and a carefully planned combination of operations. Plant breeding has produced new strains of grasses to add to the maintenance-mix, thereby rendering overseeding almost routine, but state of the art modern mowers are also responsible for the ability to cut greens ever closer when expedient to do so; and, therein, lies an anomaly. It is never a case of cutting as close as possible, standing back and everything in the garden will be lovely. Nothing replaces the day-to-day judgement of the man on the spot, and this is where understanding comes in.
When and why are the key factors in the equation, not simply a mad quest to get greens as fast as possible and let the devil take the hindmost. It is said, with truth, that a little learning is a dangerous thing and one of the problems with club committees is that their composition is ever changing. That is the reason why the time is fast
approaching when full-time, highly qualified green staff should be left largely to their own devices. That is not the same thing as saying they shouldn’t maintain close contact with those they serve, but true understanding can only be achieved by fuller trust. You only have to examine the make-up of workforces to appreciate that greenkeeping is now a career for life, not a fall back if all else fails. Those who take advantage of the training under the auspices of the GTC, the clubs and a number of colleges, find that they are made aware that a proper grounding includes an approach that is both theoretical and practical. Confidence is boosted by actually taking part in various activities, but confidence is greater with the knowledge of why it is being done. Emphasis is also placed on presentation
skills and the ability to put the message over in front of, say, a gathering of members. In addition, working as a team gains vital credence. The real value of the GTC workshops, to which I have referred, is that support grows for this modus operandi and that an exchange of notes with kindred spirits is another excellent way of learning. Top class golfers will confirm that talking amongst themselves about handling various situations in the heat of battle is often every bit as beneficial as hitting a thousand balls on the range. Knowing what to do is important, but knowing what not to do can be equally valuable, although sometimes it boils down to a question of opinions and likes and dislikes. However, the setting for a golf course and the climate in which it is situated are determining factors between right and wrong. Here, Augusta National has been something of a distraction to those who believe you can grow azaleas, dogwood and magnolia on a seaside links, or adopt the “green-everywhere” dogma that is a direct contradiction to the sustainability doctrine that is preached widely in the UK. Augusta is a law unto itself on many
FEBRUARY/MARCH 2012 PC 43
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