GOLF Getting Personal
Jason Connaughton - he’s not a Katie Hopkins fan. But, is anyone?
Who are you? Jason
Connaughton, Course Manager at Yeovil Golf Club.
Family status. Married to Andrea, with two beautiful boys (Finn 6 and Feidhlim 1).
Who’s your hero and why? I have two heroes. My dad Jody, who is currently winning his fight with stage 4 cancer; I haven’t heard him complain about it once! And my wife Andrea. She gave everything up to bring up our two boys and she’s doing an incredible job.
What’s been the highlight of your grounds career so far? Getting to the point that I’m at now. Hopefully, something tops that in the future.
If your younger self saw you now, what would he think? You need to get to the gym.
Which famous people wind you up? Katie Hopkins.
What job would you love, other than your own? Motorsport engineering.
What is your favourite film? Shawshank Redemption.
What was the most
embarrassing moment in your life? At a job interview, finding out that my mother in law had decided to call the golf club a few days before to try and seal the deal!
What scares you? Having a daughter.
What would your
autobiography be called… and who would play you in the film? Lost in Translation. No idea who would play me though.
What is your favourite sport? Golf.
What would you cast into Room 101? Katie Hopkins.
Which historical time and place would you most like to visit? I’d love to go back and see the Roman Empire in full flow.
Do you have a lifetime ambition? To hopefully go to
26 PC April/May 2020 the Masters.
Which three people, living or dead, would you invite to a dinner party? Milligan, Cleese and Everett.
What’s the best advice you have ever been given? Enjoy what you do, and you will never work a day in your life.
What’s your favourite piece of trivia? A snail can sleep for three years.
What’s your favourite smell? Bacon cooking.
Which three albums would you take to a desert island? Stevie Wonder: Songs in the Key of Life, Jordan Rakei; Cloak and Jurassic 5; Power in Numbers.
What’s the daftest work- related question you have ever been asked? What temperature does the greens iron actually get up to?!
What’s your favourite piece of kit? Toro ProCore 648 and the moisture meter.
What three words would you use to describe yourself? Patient, kind and loyal.
What is the single most useful thing you could tell a 16-year-old groundsperson/ greenkeeper? Get yourself out there. Volunteer for events and talk to others in the industry. You never know what might come of it.
What law/legislation would you like to see introduced? Better control on benefit fraud.
Garden Machinery. “I like Toro equipment, but I do believe in buying the right machinery for the job for me. It just happens that always seems to be Toro for cutting machinery and John Deere for utility vehicles/ tractors.”
In the past year, Jason has seen a significant increase in worm casts, with the withdrawal of suppressants from the market. “This year has been bad and it’s getting progressively worse, but it’s also been wetter. However, I don’t think we are suffering as bad as some places. They have been a big problem on tees; we have kind of adapted to it, getting the guys to switch
beforehand, just to try and knock them off. The team have been great - you see them getting off the machine and scraping the rollers off because they know it needs to be done.” “Last year, we had an issue with chafer grubs down on the Newton, where we lost a fair chunk of the seventh fairway and we lost a bit on the sixteenth on the Old course - mainly in the rough. We put some chafer traps out with the pheromone, and we didn’t get one, but that doesn’t mean we haven’t had activity since. To repair the damage, we just dressed it out and seeded it. We have to start being as adaptable as possible.”
Club history
In late 1907, The Yeovil and South Somerset Golf Club was founded. The original course was laid out over nine holes at Abbey Farm. In 1920, the club was renamed to Yeovil Golf Club and land was purchased at its present location at Babylon hill. Nine holes were built in that year and designed by Charles Hugh Alison. In 1936, it was decided that the course would be extended across Bradford Hollow to eighteen holes and that more land would be rented from the north farm. The extension was completed and opened for play in 1938.
In 1954, the owner of the land passed away and the entirety of the land that the course was situated on went to auction. The members of Yeovil Golf Club successfully purchased the land for £6,000.
In 1989, Yeovil Golf Club approached neighbouring Newton house about the possibility of purchasing some land to build a nine-hole course. A deal was struck and forty-four acres were purchased. The STRI were chosen as course designers and construction started in 1990. One year later, the nine-hole Newton Course was opened to members.
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