My first few weeks

Greenkeeper starter pack; 

Scottish weather repellent waterproofs..........check

Ability to dodge flying golf balls...................check 

The ability to function at 6am........................I try!

Back and arm muscles of steel to rake 20 bunkers......I’m working on it!

If you can tick all those boxes then you are in with a chance of being a greenkeeper. 

Before I started working at Hilton Park Golf Club, I thought that greenkeepers just cut grass all day, maybe moved the odd hole but how wrong I was. The list of jobs is endless and no doubt not recognised by many golfers including myself.

Before the grass starts growing there are a lot of jobs that need doing. My first week was prior to the season starting and focused on getting the courses ready for the start of the season. Tasks included putting out the yardage markers on some of the holes making sure that the holes were cut to fit the marker. The tee off mats had to be taken up (which weigh a tonne!) and then cleaned and broken tees removed. Other tasks included raking up fallen branches and twigs on both courses that could affect the path of the ball and looks untidy.

Due to the typical Scottish weather we had half a day inside in the sheds. I know what you are thinking; a nice wee tea break, read the paper, have a chat. Nope, shovelling sand into bags in preparation to be used for drainage on greens. Along with this, tasks such as vehicle maintenance are carried out, making sure that all vehicles are working well for when the rain decides to stop, as well as a general tidy up of the sheds.

Now that the season has started, some of my daily tasks have focussed on preparing the courses for certain events such as the medals or competitions. This preparation includes changing flags, moving tee markers and making sure the bunkers are raked well.

Another job that may go unnoticed by golfers, is the effort to improve drainage on the golf course. Gravel banding took place on some of the holes during the winter (see picture below). You may notice stripes throughout the fairway on some of the holes. This is there to try and allow the water to drain through the gravel bands. Over a few weeks, these gravel bands will become less intrusive to golfers as the grass starts to grow.

I hope this has given a small insight into my first 4 weeks of being a greenkeeper from a novice’s point of view. I hope to blog regular updates on my progress throughout the summer.

I’m off now to perfect my raking skills…..