GOLF
A lot of owners wanted these golf courses, but they didn’t realise how much they cost to run and manage, turf management is big money. They couldn’t believe that they could buy a BMW 3 Series for the same price as a fairway mower
” Aerial view of the stunning beachside location
two thousands when golf course construction and development in Asia was a big thing, and it only slowed down a few years ago. If you were really keen and passionate about what you did and worked hard, you could make your own luck and opportunities would come up. Having a good network of friends and getting on with different people like architects, machinery suppliers and fertiliser suppliers was good. It was quite a tight-knit community with a lot of expats, and everybody in South East Asia knew each other, and you’d meet up at golf shows.” “So, when we went in there, we built the courses, did all the specifications for the turfgrass types and irrigation - that would either be Toro or Rainbird - and put machinery packages together. Back in those days, there was a lot of money around so we’d make a list of what we wanted and the owners would pretty much buy it all, so it was a bit of a dream job. In my first job in Hong Kong on the island, there was no
Ninety percent of my operators were ladies, and they were the best. The men couldn’t operate the machines to the same standard, and they didn’t take care of them either. When you go around Hong Kong and China, you’ll
”
notice, even today, that a lot of the operators are women
Rick with a new Foley grinder, part of the workshop improvement plan 38 PC June/July 2020
expense spared at all, the owners wanted it to be world-class standard, so we were there to advise, and it was all done properly and professionally. If we said, we needed X amount of greens mowers and X amounts of aeration equipment we got it.”
“Over the years, as things moved on, you had to open up and operate the golf course, and that is when things tightened up a bit. A lot of owners wanted these golf courses, but they didn’t realise how much they cost to run and manage, turf management is big money. They couldn’t believe that they could buy a BMW 3 Series for the same price as a fairway mower.”
“Because golf was quite new to a lot of people at a detailed level, they knew very little about maintaining courses. One of the interesting things I found working in Asia for so long was that, at my first course, we had to train all the staff. And they would all be fishermen and fisherwomen, and they lived in a little village, and they’d never seen mowers or a golf course. They didn’t know
anything about it. But, as it turned out, the best operators in terms of operating the machines and looking after them were women. Ninety percent of my operators were ladies, and they were the best. The men couldn’t operate the machines to the same standard, and they didn’t take care of them either. When you go around Hong Kong and China you’ll notice, even today, that a lot of the operators are women.” “Later on, the course had to be operating, and you had to rely on your green fees and things did tightened up. When you were doing machinery replacement programmes, you had to be a bit more careful about what you picked and make sure it was the right machine for the course. Not being too extravagant and making sure the machine was going to serve the purpose of that specific site and job.” “That’s why the specialist machines, like the Air2G2, are good because you can use it on any area or soil type and there’s no disruption to play. In the old days, golfers
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