GOLF
I
was fi rst given an opportunity to work as an apprentice greenkeeper at Rishton Golf Club. My role before Northenden was as course manager at Swinton Park Golf and Country Club. I also had some varying experience in similar fi elds (pun intended), ranging from contracts manager at a UK leading landscaping fi rm, to draining the family farm’s meadows and rough pastures. Along the way, I have gained many qualifi cations including NVQ Level 3 in Sports Turf, PA1, PA2 and PA6, CS30 and 31 chainsaw certifi cates and Level 2 Health and Safety in the Workplace. I also hold football coaching qualifi cations as I used to work as an academy goalkeeper coach at Blackburn Rovers.
I have worked and continue to work with some great people, but my main inspiration comes from my late grandfather. Seeing the amount of hours he used to put in on the farm, day in day out - 365 days a year, laid a foundation within me that only few can relate to. Getting up at 2.00am from a young age was my normal and, looking back now, it seems like madness. It set me on a good path with my work output and belief that hard work pays off . Another great inspiration
for me is golf - I have played from a young age to a good standard.
The soil type at Northenden is mainly silty clay. We have two holes that were built on an old tip, so they prove to be a signifi cant ongoing challenge in prolonged dry spells, due to hydrophobic soil conditions. This is created by sunken ground fi nding its way deeper into the pockets of space, as rubbish beneath decomposes and creates very shallow soil and a rather strange unevenness on two fairways. The greens are constructed to USGA standard and they were built in 2005. We have a mixed sward, including poa, bents and some fescue. The tees vary from native soil to 50/50 rootzone and a few which are something inbetween. The tees have been confi rmed for renewal in the long-term development plan and it was agreed that we could strip, level and turf three holes of tees per year. The construction means that the level of precision required with nutrient inputs and disease pressure, leaching etc. is greater. Given our wet, shaded site, our location and the amounts of rainfall we receive, chemicals leach through the sandy soil profi le at a much faster rate than in a
The more golfers that appreciate the level of work,
regulations and f inance involved, the better chance we become respected and appropriately rewarded
PC February/March 2021 15
“
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124 |
Page 125 |
Page 126 |
Page 127 |
Page 128 |
Page 129 |
Page 130 |
Page 131 |
Page 132
