Golf GETTING Personal...
Jon Gamble ‐ he may be a Liverpool fan!
Who are you? Jon Gamble, greenkeeper at Welshpool Golf Club.
Family status? Married with two boys.
Who’s your hero? Stevie Gerrard.
What would you change about yourself? I’d interact with people more.
What’s your guilty pleasure? I like lager and curry.
What’s been the highlight of your grounds career so far? Winning the R&A scholarship.
What are your pet peeves? People who don’t care about presentation.
If you could go anywhere right now, where would it be? Cuba.
What’s the best part of your job? Feedback. … and the worst? Sheep dung.
Do you have a lifetime ambition? I want to be the course manager of a links golf course. Favourite record, and why? Silver Blue by Roxette.
Who would you choose to spend a romantic evening with? Rita Ora.
If you won the lottery, what is the first thing you would do? Buy a machinery fleet.
Which three people, living or dead, would you invite to a dinner party? Nelson Mandela, Stevie G and Seve Ballasteros.
If you could be anyone for a day, who would it be and why? Mo Salah.
Do you have any bad habits? I can’t think of any. ... or any good ones? I pay attention to detail. Do you go to bed worrying about work? No. Do you read (and what)? Industry magazines.
What’s the best advice you have ever been given? “If you’re going to do a job, do it properly in the first place.” What's your favourite smell? Curry.
What do you do in your spare time? I have two young boys. They take up a bit. But, golf and football too.
What’s the daftest work-related question you have ever been asked? “Can you clear snow from the greens?” What’s your favourite bit of kit? Our fairway mower.
What three words would you use to describe yourself? Committed, lucky, glad.
What talent would you like to have? I can’t fade a golf ball. It would be really useful to push it that way.
What law/legislation would you like to see introduced? It would be great if golfers had to respect the course as much as we do.
36 I PC JUNE/JULY 2018
charades, echoing long grass with his hands]. Up here, even without the sheep, you’d never get growth like that.”
“The soil temperatures take longer to warm up, so they’re low more often. It means the inputs are lower and the growth is comparatively slow.”
Jon studied for his Level 2 and Level 3 qualifications at Walford College and is currently undertaking an HNC via distance learning. “When you study your HNC, you have the option to apply for one of these R&A scholarships I’ve won. There are 280 in the world.” “They show you a half‐hour presentation and request that you apply in writing. They assess you via that application form, followed by a Skype interview stage.”
“They ask you what you see in your future, where you’d like your career to head, what you already know about the R&A and its work. Then, they called me. There were two or three of us who were selected from my intake.” “Once selected, they provide you with £600 funding for the academic year to use at your discretion. Another perk is the opportunity to work on major tournaments as greenkeeping staff.”
It was all about the opportunity to work on tournament golf and to get out there networking with key professionals. I’ve never done tournament golf
”
“I received a list of possible avenues and chose to do four days at Murcar Links and one day at Royal Aberdeen, working on the R&A Amateur Championships.” “They take you on for as much as you can commit to and, realistically, that’s why I applied for the scholarship. It wasn’t for the 600‐ quid.”
“It was all about the opportunity to work on tournament golf and to get out there networking with key professionals. I’ve never done tournament golf. And I love links golf.”
“I loved the course when I viewed it online. I think it’s about £145 per round, which shows the kind of level they’re working at and the quality of the course.”
“Looking at the presentation, everything on the course is just awesome. It seems as though there is a kind of aura around their golf club. I’m hoping they’ll offer me a round once I’m finished.” “I know I’ll love doing it. I’m confident in my own abilities, so I’m not nervous at all; just excited. The ultimate goal for me is to be the course manager at a high‐ quality links.”
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