2010 Australian MastersVictoria GC goes back to its roots2010 Australian MastersVictoria GC goes 
back to its rootsResearchCoring and carbsResearchCoring and carbsWater ManagementCurlewis taps into sewer miningWater ManagementCurlewis taps 
into sewer miningThe Pulse ΠVolunteersHelping hands or hindrance?The Pulse ΠVolunteersHelping hands or hindrance?A love of the linksFrom St Andrews to TurnberryA love of the linksFrom St Andrews 
to Turnberrywww.agcsa.com.auVOLUME 12.5 SEPT-OCT 2010WINNER OF 8 AWARDS AT THE 2010 TOCA INTERNATIONAL COMMUNICATORS CONTESTISSN 1442-2697 New HEADWAY MAXX works faster, harder and smarter than any other fungicide. Be the ˜ rst to experience HEADWAY MAXX, call your Syngenta agent or contact the Syngenta Technical Product Advice Line on: Freecall 1800 067 108 or visit www.greencast.com.auNew HEADWAY MAXX.*  The only fungicide that controls and prevents all major turf diseases ƒ in one.A first for turfƒPythium, Dollar Spot, Winter Fusarium, Brown Patch.®Registered trademark of a Syngenta Group Company. ABN 33 002 933 717. All products written in uppercase are registered trademarks of a Syngenta Group Company.  Syngenta Crop Protection Pty Limited, Level 1, 2-4 Lyonpark Road, Macquarie Park NSW 2113. AD09/195. RENARD SYN6242AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT     1SUBSCRIPTION FORMI wish to apply for:One year™s subscription to Australian Turfgrass Management(Six editions per year) PLEASE TICK BOXONE COPY PER EDITION $55.00 O/S ONE COPY PER EDITION $95.00Prices include GST.Winner of 23 awards at the TOCA International Communicators Contest 2006 - 2010JOURNAL2009 Australian OpenLa Perouse perfection Œ NSW Golf Club2009 Australian OpenLa Perouse perfection Œ NSW Golf ClubSwitched onArenas embrace growth lightsSwitched onArenas embrace growth lightsResearchBentgrass variety trials
Managing water repellencyResearch
Bentgrass variety trials
Managing water repellencyGreener pasturesYering Meadows springs to lifeGreener pasturesYering Meadows springs to lifeWater and EnvironmentNeangar Park and Victoria GCsWater and EnvironmentNeangar Park and Victoria GCsVOLUME 11.6 NOV-DEC 2009www.agcsa.com.auWINNER OF 23 AWARDS AT THE TOCA INTERNATIONAL COMMUNICATORS CONTEST 2006 - 2009WINNER OF 23 AWARDS AT THE TOCA INTERNATIONAL COMMUNICATORS CONTEST 2006 - 20092010 Australian 
Women™s OpenCommonwealth™s call up2010 
Australian 
Women™s OpenCommonwealth™s call upAustralian Masters ReviewTiger tames Kingston HeathAustralian 
Masters ReviewTiger tames Kingston HeathIndustry AccoladesHAL honours McMaughIndustry AccoladesHAL honours McMaughThe PulseReflecting on ‚09The Pulse
Reflecting on ‚09Machrihanish DunesTaking a step back in timeMachrihanish DunesTaking a step back in timewww.agcsa.com.auWINNER OF 23 AWARDS AT THE TOCA INTERNATIONAL COMMUNICATORS CONTEST 2006 - 2009WINNER OF 23 AWARDS AT THE TOCA INTERNATIONAL COMMUNICATORS CONTEST 2006 - 2009VOLUME 12.1 JAN-FEB 2010JOURNAL


JOURNALORDERS CAN BE MADE SECURELY ONLINE THROUGH www.agcsa.com.auName: .............................................................................................................................................Company: ........................................................................................................................................Postal Address: ...............................................................................................................................Town/Suburb: ....................................................................State: .............Postcode: ......................I enclose cheque for (amount):.......................................................................................................Please charge my credit card: MasterCard .......................................................... Visa .........................................................................................Card Number:  __ __ __ __   __ __ __ __   __ __ __ __   __ __ __ __ Expiry Date:_____/_____Cardholder Name: ...........................................................................................................................
Address: .................................................................................................................................................................................................................................Signature:. ...............................................Funds have been paid by electronic transfer to Westpac BSB 033 380 Acc 382426Please send me more information about becoming an AGCSA memberForward to: Australian Turfgrass Management Suite 1, Monash Corporate Centre, 752 Blackburn Road Clayton, VIC 3168 FAX: (03) 9548 8622  Australian Turfgrass ManagementPublished by:Australian Golf Course Superintendents' AssociationABN 96 053 205 888Production:Editor:  Brett Robinson Ph:(03) 9548 8600 brett@agcsa.com.auArt Direction & Design: Jo Corne Ph: (03) 9548 8600
jo@agcsa.com.auAdvertising: Melissa Wallace Ph:(03) 9548 8600 melissa@agcsa.com.auAGCSASuite 1, Monash Corporate Centre752 Blackburn Road, Clayton, VIC 3168P: (03) 9548 8600
F: (03) 9548 8622E: info@agcsa.com.au
W: www.agcsa.com.auAGCSA BoardPresident:  Allan DevlinDirectors:  John Odell Pat Pauli Bryce StrachanGeneral Manager
John Neylan
john@agcsa.com.auEvents ManagerSimone Staplessimone@agcsa.com.auBusiness Relationship ManagerMelissa Wallacemelissa@agcsa.com.auAdministration and MembershipLyndel Conwayinfo@agcsa.com.auAdministrationAllison Jenkins
admin@agcsa.com.auAccountsPhilip Horsburghphilip@agcsa.com.auAGCSATechAndrew Peart and John Gearyandrew@agcsa.com.au
jgeary@agcsa.com.auHR & Best Practice ManagerDaryl Sellardaryl@agcsa.com.auProudly supported byPrinted ByImpact Printing69-79 Fallon StreetBrunswick, VIC 3056Copyright © 2010 The AGCSA believes that material sourced and produced for Australian Turfgrass Management is accurate, but gives no warranty in relation thereto, and disclaims liability for all claims 
against the AGCSA, its subsidiary companies, its employees, agents or any other person which may arise from any person acting on the materials contained within. No portion, in whole 
or part, may be reproduced without the written permission of the AGCSA.SUBSCRIBE NOW2     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTCONTENTSCOVER PHOTO: THE VICTORIA GOLF CLUB: One of the Melbourne sandbelt™s famed courses, The Victoria Golf Club will host the 2010 Australian Masters in mid-November. Pictured is the par 3 16th. Photo: Brett Robinson.     

FEATURESA super pilgrimage  Π 
From St Andrews to Turnberry 14A few weeks after this year™s Australian Turfgrass Conference, seven Australian superintendents embarked on the trip of a lifetime to attend the 2010 
Open Championship at St Andrews and visit some of Scotland™s most famous courses. Daryl Sellar, 
Idris Evans, Leigh Yanner, Adam Lamb, Shane 
Greenhill, Mark Couchman and Robin Doodson 
ruminate on their travels to the home of golf.
.  Class acts 22 Through the implementation of best practice 
water management strategies, two of Melbourne™s 
leading private schools ΠScotch College and Wesley College Πhave ensured their future irrigation requirements. Grounds managers Michael Smith and Rob Savedra look at their respective projects 
and the considerable improvements in efficiences 
that have been achieved.Trans-Tasman travels 44Continuing the touring theme, Rob Halsall from Melbourne-based G&BS Australia recounts the trans-Tasman study tour completed by six Melbourne-based superintendents earlier in the year. OPINIONVolunteers ΠHelping hands? 28The Pulse asks superintendents if volunteers still comprise an important part of course management 
operations and whether they are becoming too 
difficult to manage.AGCSATECH UPDATEPlague proportions 34After some favourable habitat conditions and heavy inland rainfalls earlier this year, John Neylan looks at 
the impending threat of locust plagues which have 
state agricultural and horticultural authorities on 
high alert as we head into spring. COVER STORY: Victoria heads back to its roots Π2010 Australian Masters preview 6 The events surrounding the 2002 Australian Open will be long remembered in the turf management 
profession, and for Victoria Golf Club course superintendent Ian Todd not a week goes by where he doesn™t reflect on that fateful first round. Eight years on and the course is gearing up to host the 2010 JB Were Australian Masters and as ATM editor Brett Robinson discovers Todd and his crew are determined to put the events of ™02 behind them and showcase the sandbelt course which has undergone a number 
of significant changes. AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT     3     Contributors to Australian Turfgrass Management Volume 12.5 (September-October 2010) Dyson Appleyard (VGA); Rob Barnes (Kogarah GC); Rob Bradley (Curlewis GC); Stephen Chapman (Barossa Valley GC); William Cheatley (Traralgon GC); Rob Christie (Marysville CGBC); Glenn Cross (Mt Lawley GC); Shaun Cross (Byron Bay 
GC); Mark Couchman (Cromer GC); Jeremy Cutajar   (VGCSA); Peter Dernoeden (University of Maryland, US); Peter Donkers (Long Reef GC); Robin Doodson (Sanctuary Cove GC); John 
Duncan (Jamberoo GC); Idris Evans (The Western Australian GC); Jinmin Fu (Wuhan Botanical Garden); Shane Greenhill (Sorrento GC); Casey Groves (Sunraysia Daily); Rob Halsall 
(G&BS Australia); Kirsty Herring (Cooroy GC); Mark Jennings (Box Hill GC); Adam Lamb (Barwon Heads GC); Steve Lewis (TGCSA); Peter Lonergan (GCSAQ); Ben Matheson (Proserpine 
GC); John Neylan (AGCSA); Andrew Peart (AGCSATech); Eddie Ruis (Portland GC); Rob Savedra (Wesley College); Daryl Sellar (Turfwise); Sam Sherriff (SAGCSA); Michael Smith 
(Scotch College); Steve Smith (Katoomba GC); Dave Thomson (Bermagui CC); Ian Todd (Victoria GC); Brad Tucker (Whittlesea GC); Ling Urquhart (Bargara GC); Brock Weston (TGAA ACT); 
Darren Wilson (Wembley Golf Complex/GCSAWA); Craig Wright (NSWGCSA); Leigh Yanner (The National GC).Don™t expect much sense out of me after this edition. By the time you read this my wife Katherine will be just about to pop out our second and I™ll be gearing up 
to become the sleep-deprived wretch that I was some four years ago when the ‚Hurricane™ (our first, Kristian) changed my life forever. As all second-time-around parents know, in the long (very long) months leading up to the birth of number two you can™t but help reflect back on what you would do differently and 
what you™ll change when raising the second. As much as it may surprise, I have many and 
varied shortcomings Πno, being a Kiwi is not one of them Πand a few of those have been 
graphically highlighted in the early years of fatherhood. For a start I will remember to be more vigilant when strapping bub into the high chair so as to prevent he/she plummeting head first onto the tiled kitchen floor at six months of age. I 
will also remember to make sure that junior™s hands are clear of the garage door hinge when 
I shut it. I will learn to laugh and not fly off the handle after finding poo smeared all over the 
walls and carpet of our rented unit. I will not let the father-in-law sign up number two as an 
Essendon member the day after he/she is born. And, I will remember Mother™s Day (oh yes, 
never again)! I could go on and on until the end of the page but you get my drift.Just as I am reflecting as we enter spring Œ after which must be said has been a lovely wet winter down here in Melbourne, the wettest I™ve certainly experienced since arriving in Australia Œ you can be guaranteed that one superintendent in particular will be ruminating 
as well.  In fact for Victoria Golf Club superintendent Ian Todd there hasn™t been a week go by in almost eight years when the spectre of one day in 2002 doesn™t enter his thoughts.I had barely hopped off the plane from the UK when the events of the 2002 Australian Open tournament unfolded and while not being in the industry then I can clearly remember the headlines and the ramifications it had. Now with the 2010 Australian Masters set to tee 
off in two months time, the first major tournament Victoria has hosted since that Open, it is 
still evident having caught up with Ian recently that the events of that fateful first round still 
cut deep for him and the crew, almost half of which remain today. Looking back at my predecessor™s preview of that tournament as part of my research for this edition™s cover story, the headline in ATM Vol 4.5 read ‚Victoria Golf Club Œ Hard and Hungry™. Needless to say I don™t think poor Phil had intentionally wanted to put the mockers on Ian and his team, and hopefully our look at what has transpired in the years since the 
2002 Open in this edition won™t do the same. Certainly the impression that I got from spending some time with Ian is that there is a definite resolve within the crew to showcase their course and reinstate it in the eyes of the 
golfing public as one of this country™s great layouts, which it rightly is. Last year™s Masters 
at Kingston Heath was a huge success and this year™s tournament is guaranteed to be even 
bigger and there is no better opportunity for Victoria to firmly put the past behind it.  In the intervening years there have been a number of subtle changes made to the course and the work undertaken by Ian and his team, in conjunction with the club™s designers, has certainly pushed some boundaries, especially the revegetation work which is nothing short 
of impressive. I™m sure we all wish Ian and his crew the best of luck for their preparations 
for this year™s Masters and during tournament week. Hopefully by then number two will be 
sleeping 11 hours a night and I™ll be awake enough to catch all four rounds. Enjoy the read.Brett Robinson,EditorRESEARCHGetting to the core of carbohydrates 38US researchers have examined the effects of coring on rates of photosynthesis and whole 
plant respiration and quantified carbohydrates 
in creeping bentgrass roots and leaves during 
summer. WATER MANAGEMENTWater reclamation project to revive Curlewis 46Curlewis Golf Club near Geelong is about to follow in the footsteps of Sydney™s Pennant Hills 
Golf Club by installing a sewer mining plant. 
Superintendent Rob Bradley outlines the project which will help revive the club.Also in this edition...
Foreword Thinking 4Tech Talk Œ Shade management 36Country Profile - Cooroy GC 48News 52Around the Trade 57AGCSA Bookshop 58State Reports 60 4     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT4     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTFOREWORD THINKINGJOHN NEYLAN, AGCSA GENERAL MANAGERAs we wait impatiently for spring to approach after a ‚real winter™ Œ well, here in Victoria 
at least Πand reflect on what we have been doing over the past nine months, we turn our heads 
towards the year ahead and start planning for the 
next cycle of AGCSA activities.We have completed our six month planning review to see what we have achieved on our action 
list, understand why we did not manage to complete 
some tasks and to set a few more actions for the 
remainder of the year. As part of this process the 
board will be taking part in a planning day with 
staff so that we can focus on the needs of the 
membership of the AGCSA and wherever possible to undertake some new initiatives. This review will be across all areas including:  Research;  Technical services;  Education and accreditation;  Promotion of the association and the 
greenkeeping profession;  Australian Turfgrass Management Journal and AGCSA website;  Resource materials; and  Trade partnersAs part of this process the board will be speaking to members to get their general thoughts and ideas 
of where the association is at and where it should be 
heading. Once we have completed this process we 
will be surveying all our members. In recent times we have had a good response to various surveys regarding the conference, our 
publications and other issues such as the use of 
soon-to-be-banned chemicals. We appreciate the 
feedback that we get (both complimentary and 
critical) as it helps to provide the future direction of 
the AGCSA. It is also very important to remember that at any time if you have a concern please contact either 
myself or one of the board members. We would 
prefer to hear about your concerns directly so that 
we can deal with them as quickly and practically as 
possible. As we move through this planning process we also realise that we need to undertake an internal 
review of how we manage the AGCSA. With all sorts of governance issues that surround associations, 
our auditors have pointed out to us that we need to 
tighten up on a few areas. In particular we need to get all our policies and procedures completed. To this end it is a timely reminder for all clubs and course superintendents to make sure that all their 
procedures are in place, both in the maintenance 
area and in the clubhouse. Planning is a critical part 
of managing any organisation, club or business and 
I know what it is like to get caught up in the day-to-
day activities. However, it is essential that it is done.Education and training continues to be at the forefront of our minds and we continue to encourage 
members to take any opportunity for further 
training that may present itself. In recent times we have provided accreditation points for industry-
sponsored seminars that are being taken around 
the countryside. These seminars have engaged very 
experienced, knowledgeable and well respected 
scientists that understand the practicalities of 
maintaining high quality turf areas. The AGCSA will be running more water management workshops in September and October 
with a focus on regional areas and we also plan 
to undertake some ‚walk and talk™ days also in 
regional areas. These days will involve some short presentations on key turf management issues 
followed by a course walk and chat about turf and Fail to plan or else plan to fail||AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT     5AGCSA MEMBERSHIPMEMBERSHIP UPDATEWelcome to all new members of the AGCSA and thank you to all members who have renewed their membership; we hope that you enjoy the benefits that come 
with the joining the industry™s peak body.For all who would like to become a member of the AGCSA, please complete the application form opposite or apply online via our website 
www.agcsa.com.au.  For those who have not yet renewed their membership, your renewal pack will 
be despatched and the associated benefits will 
be reinstated as soon as your membership fees 
have been processed.  Please also remember to 
update your apprentices™ details to ensure they 
receive their free AGCSA membership.If you are yet to receive your renewal reminder or if you have any questions regarding your own 
or your staff™s membership, please contact Lyndel on (03) 9548 8500 or at info@agcsa.com.au.LYNDEL CONWAYAGCSA MEMBERSHIP COORDINATORthen an open slather discussion forum. These days 
will be informal and open to current members and 
those who we hope to be future members. With the annual conference recently finished, it is an opportune time for AGCSA superintendent, assistant superintendent and sports turf manager 
members who attended the conference to join the 
AGCSA Accreditation Programme (AAP). AAP members only need to attain 30 points over a two-year period to remain accredited and 
with upwards of 17 points available if you attended 
the Gold Coast conference, it makes sense if 
you™re not currently a member to join. The AGCSA Accreditation Programme aims to:Promote the profession; Build a culture of career-long training;Reward those that achieve a high industry 
standard and actively stay updated; Give programme members ‚an edge™ when negotiating pay rates or seeking employment; 
and Give clubs a clear choice when employing 
course maintenance staff.Points can be earned through attending the annual conference, sanctioned education days 
and formal TAFE courses.  Further points can be collected by attending education days and 
workshops hosted by the various turf related or state 
associations or at sanctioned industry trade days.  
Members who gain education at tertiary institutions, 
hold multiple association memberships, conduct 
research or trials, publish papers or articles, give 
professional presentations or deliver sessional 
teaching are also eligible for additional points.
6     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT2010 MASTERSResolve. Look the word up in the Collins, Oxford or Macquarie and a number of 
definitions are offered. In the first instance it means ‚to decide or determine firmly™, ‚to express 
formally™, ‚to make up one™s mind™.  Its alternative 
meaning is ‚to dispel, ‚bring to an end™, ‚settle™, 
‚conclude™. Come November both meanings of the word will have particular significance for one group 
of turf management professionals. It has been eight years since Victoria Golf Club was last in the national golfing spotlight and few will 
forget the events surrounding the 2002 Australian 
Open. Of those hit hardest by that tournament, you 
can place Victoria™s course superintendent Ian Todd firmly at the top of the list.  Those who know Todd will appreciate that he is a pretty optimistic character, the sort of chap who 
looks at the cup half full rather than half empty, but 
even the most optimistic can turn pessimist and the 
events of the 2002 Open have certainly had a far-
reaching impact. Now into his fifteenth proud year as Victoria™s chief custodian, Todd finds himself gearing up for one of the most important tournaments of 
his career. With the likes of Woods, Garcia and 
Villegas all confirming their presence, the 2010 
JBWere Australian Masters this November has all 
the hallmarks of being bigger than last year™s event 
which saw more than 107,000 spectators flock to 
Kingston Heath.  Already the mainstream golfing press is talking up the Masters as redemption for Victoria, but the 
club doesn™t see it as putting right the wrongs of 
the past. Rather the tournament will provide a grand 
opportunity for Todd, his dedicated maintenance team and the club as a whole to reinstate Victoria™s 
reputation as one of the sandbelt™s most challenging 
and naturally spectacular layouts.  Many aspects of the course have changed since the 2002 tournament and Todd is hoping that most will be pleasantly surprised at how these 
alternations have improved the playing surfaces and 
their natural surroundings.fiMy aim has always been to get Victoria to a place where I think it can get to and this tournament 
will help that,fl says Todd, who will preside over his third major tournament after preparing the course 
for the 1999 Australian PGA Championships and 
2002 Open. fiI love the place. It™s one of my favourite courses in the world and I have a real affection for 
the course and the club and I want the tournament to promote that to the golfing community and 
industry. And I think it deserves it. fiI haven™t sat down with crew and talked about the 2002 Open as yet. We™ve certainly 
talked intermittently about the Masters and that 
will obviously increase as the tournament gets 
closer. But I don™t have to say too much to get the 
guys pumped up; they know how important this 
tournament is for us and the club.fiI™m a big believer in ‚fail to plan, plan to fail™ and we have been trying to put all the infrastructure type 
things into place since we found out we were hosting 
the Masters. I have had a number of conversations 
with (superintendent) Martin Greenwood at Kingston 
Heath in this regard to get an indication of the things 
to watch out for and to see, if given the chance 
again, what he would have done differently.fiIf there is anything that the 2002 Open has done, it has made me more aware of what could 
go wrong. I™ve always had a reasonably optimistic 
outlook but I now think of the worst case scenario rather than the best. From a turf point of view, we will focus heavily on presentation and hopefully that will 
showcase the course, and all who play and watch 
will appreciate its beauty.flREINSTATING CHARACTERAs if to purge the memories of 2002, Todd and his team have thrown themselves head-long into a The 2010 JBWere Australian Masters continues its tour of the Melbourne sandbelt come November with Victoria Golf Club set to host the likes of Garcia, Villegas and Woods who returns to defend his first title on Australian soil. While there will be plenty of discussion about the contenders, the course is set to come under intense scrutiny given the events which transpired last time Victoria hosted a major tournament. However, as ATM editor Brett Robinson discovers there is a real resolve within the club to put the past firmly behind it and showcase the impressive work which has been undertaken to the course in the intervening years. Victoriarootsheads back to itsVictoriarootsAUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT     7mountain of course improvement works, the likes of which are gradually helping to recapture some 
of its former glory. Old aerial photos dating back 
to the mid-1930s have been used to help shape 
a modern interpretation of the course which was 
initially devised by William Meader, Oscar Damman 
and Dr Alister Mackenzie in 1927. Some of the work, in particular the recontouring and resurfacing of greens surrounds and tee 
areas, started prior to the last Open. However, 
it has been over the past eight years that other 
projects, including the reconfiguring of Victoria™s 
menacing bunkers and the implementation of a 
groundbreaking revegetation programme, which 
have brought the most significant change. Almost 
every hole Πwith the exception of the par 5 9th Π
has been tweaked in some shape or form in the 
intervening years.The most notable change comes no sooner than stepping off the practice putter. Played as a 
long par three in 2002, the 1st is now a short par 
four measuring just 233m. The bunker complex has been shifted across to the left with the rough down 
the right hand side planted out with indigenous 
vegetation. The new bunkers have been kicked up to make them more in the golfer™s face and the front of the 
green has been opened up. In doing so it has made 
the hole fit in with the philosophy of the rest of the course, being more strategic than penal, and the 
pros will need to shape the right shot in order to set 
up an opening eagle chance. The tee shot to begin the inward journey also presents a new challenge. A championship tee has 
been constructed adjacent to the clubhouse terrace, 
adding 40m to the par four hole and bringing the 
fairway bunkers on the right into play. Holes 1 and 
10 will play as crossover holes during the Masters, 
but once the tournament has finished the new tee 
will most likely only be used for special events such 
as club championships and pennant matches.Further out on the course, the uphill par three 14th has also been modified considerably. Poor turf 
issues have been addressed by incorporating Santa 
ana couch oversown with fescue, recontouring the 
rise, while the front left bunker has been extended 
back towards the tee to improve aesthetics.  The par 5 17th has also changed in nature due to the construction of the club™s new irrigation dam. 
As well as pushing the tee back, fairway contours 
have been reshaped in order to accommodate the 
dam, while fairway bunkering down the left has also 
been refined.The roughs have received particular attention in recent years and a number have been planted out 
with fescue, while on a few holes Π10 and 12 for 
instance Πextra length has been added by pushing 
tees back. One of the Melbourne sandbelt™s most famed courses, Victoria Golf Club will play host to the 2010 JBWere Australian Masters from 
11-14 NovemberNow into his 15th year as Victoria Golf Club course superintendent, Ian Todd will preside over his third major tournament at the club 
after preparing the course for the 1999 Australian PGA and 2002 Australian Open8     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT2010 MASTERSElsewhere, many bunkers have received a tweak in order to improve aesthetics and recreate the arresting nature of Victoria™s famed hazards. 
As Todd explains, Victoria was designed with large imposing bunkers in mind, a feature which was lost 
somewhat during the latter half of last century. Using the old aerial photos as a template, a number of bunkers have been consolidated. On 18 
for example the three left hand side fairway bunkers 
have been joined up. Similarly, on 11 there are now 
two large traps either side of the green, while on 
6 the two left hand greenside bunkers have been 
merged and an island constructed.As well as reconfiguration, Todd, in conjunction with the club™s design consultants, has dabbled 
in different aesthetic touches around the outside 
of some fairway bunkers to create a more instant 
traditional effect. Called ‚chunking™, rather than 
turfing the edges a bobcat is used to ‚chunk™ them, 
creating an effect whereby the fescue edges look 
like they have been there forever and a day. On 
other holes some bunkers have been planted out 
with indigenous vegetation to provide yet another 
different look and feel.fiOverall I think these changes make Victoria a much more presentable and aesthetically pleasing 
course,fl says Todd.  fiFrom a playability point of view I don™t think it has changed that much. 
Basically the bunkering has just been tweaked 
to give them a more ‚Victoria Golf Club™ feel and 
greater consistency in the shaping. fiWe started the programme of broadening surrounds of greens that run into tees some 10 
years ago, getting rid of the long rough between 
and making the complexes flow. We cut greens 
surrounds and tee areas the same height so we 
have that seamlessness of cut. It™s more of a subtle thing that you don™t really notice until it™s pointed 
out to you, but it has been well accepted by the 
members.flLIQUID GOLDWater management issues have also been to the 
fore in recent years and like its illustrious neighbour 
Royal Melbourne a great deal of effort has been 
made to secure Victoria™s future water requirements. 
After enduring severe summers in the mid-2000s, 
the first integral component was the construction of 
a new 36.4 megalitre storage dam on the right hand 
side of 17 in 2007. Starting in early 2009, the second stage saw a major resistivity survey undertaken of the whole 
course. Initiated by a couple of members, the survey involved bouncing electric current through the soil at 
various locations around the course. Although not 
giving an indication of the quality of water, the survey 
helped to pinpoint five areas that would most likely 
yield bore water. To date the project has literally struck gold. Victoria has ended up getting 4.5l/s out of three 
bores (1.5l/s each), two of which have been 
commissioned (on holes 3 and 8) while the third 
on 6 will be commissioned following the Masters. 
Water quality from the new bores has been better 
than expected and the deep bore on 6 is running 
at around 400ppm. Once commissioned it will bring 
the number of Victoria™s production bores to eight. fiThe resistivity project has been great,fl says Todd. fiIt came about through a couple of geologists within the membership who gave up their time and 
devoted themselves to the project. They approached the club and said they would like to give it a go, so 
we have worked in together and it has proven to be 
successful. Right and below: Victoria™s roughs have received particular attention in recent years and a number have been planted out with fescue and indigenous speciesFACT FILE Œ VICTORIA GCFounded: 1903 Location: Cheltenham (current 
course was opened in 1927)
Designed by: William Meader, 
Oscar Damman and Dr Alister 
MacKenzie
Championship length: 6278m
Current Australian ranking: 10 
(2010 Australian Golf Digest)
Tournament history: Australian 
Open (2002, 1981 and 1961), 
Australian PGA (1999).
Superintendent: Ian ToddAssistant: Tay WilsonForeman:  Shaun Lehane
Course maintenance staff: 16
Greens: Suttons mix (maintained  at 2.0mm-2.5mm year round)
Fairways: Santa anaTees: Santa ana/fescue/PoaWater sources: Eight bores
Major projects: Revegetation 
project across whole course, 
bunker reconfiguration, 
incorporation of fescue roughs, 
tee and surrounds resurfacing 
and recontouring. Construction 
of 36.4ML dam (Sept 2007).
Did you know... course 
superintendent Ian Todd played six games for the Melbourne 
Football Club during the 1981 VFL season, kicking one goal. AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT     9fiWhile we haven™t fully addressed our water management issues, we now have the flexibility that we didn™t have in the past and an insurance that 
we aren™t going to lose vital areas of turf during the 
height of summer. What we did learn when building 
the dam over those really severe summers was just 
how resilient the Santa ana is. It didn™t get water for 60 straight days and I thought we were going to lose 
turf, but it was remarkable how it bounced back. It 
sort of went into summer dormancy.flVISION REALISEDOf all the projects Victoria has embarked on, 
however, it™s the course™s out of play areas which 
have undergone the most dramatic and pleasing 
transformation in the eyes of Todd. Although not without controversy, over the past five years an 
incredibly intensive revegetation programme has 
been instigated to further restore the course back to 
the glory of its 1930s image.Just as the character of the course™s bunkers are being reinstated, old photos of that era clearly show 
many areas of low growing indigenous vegetation 
interspersed with sandy wastes which gave the 
course a naturally rugged appearance. The aim of 
the revegetation programme has been to recreate 
that character and huge amounts of poor quality 
tree and shrub species have been removed which 
has enabled the indigenous seedbank to regenerate 
and thrive. The revegetation programme had its roots some 10 years ago, with Todd initially getting a couple of horticultural experts in to help identify 
between 15-20 core indigenous species (see table 
on page 10) to act as a base for future revegetation 
works. Despite showing promising indications early, 
plantings became sporadic due to the minimal 
resources at his disposal and with the programme 
not progressing at the rate he would have liked, 
Todd decided to up the ante.Approaching the club with a firm vision in mind, Todd impressed upon his management that a significant revegetation programme was something 
the club needed to embrace, not only for the 
aesthetic betterment of the course but also from an 
environmental and community benefit as well. Over the past five years an intensive revegetation programme has been instigated at Victoria to further restore the course back 
to its former glory. Pictured is the par three 7th which has become a centrepiece of works to date10     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT2010 MASTERSWith Melbourne™s wettest winter since 1996 having just past, Victoria Golf Club 
superintendent Ian Todd will be hoping  for Bureau of Meteorology predictions of an early 
and warmer than normal spring to come true 
as the club gears up to host the 2010 JBWere 
Australian Masters.  The Bureau is forecasting warmer conditions throughout Victoria, Tasmania and the southeast of South Australia during spring thanks to warm 
conditions prevailing in the Indian and Pacific Oceans, and should that eventuate it will give 
Victoria™s Santa ana couch fairways a nice kick 
start to the growing season. fiNow that we have some water, I can™t remember the last time the fairways were looking 
as good after last summer,fl says Todd. fiWe put out granular fertiliser applications in autumn to 
try and get them as healthy as possible and we™ll 
do the same at the start of spring. Traditionally in spring we have always gone out with Dynamic 
Lifter but we won™t be doing that this year because 
it can get a bit messy.fiWhat we would really like to achieve is a quick green up, get some vigour in the grass and 
then let it go back to its natural state, slightly off 
green with a brown tinge to it. I™m mindful of trying 
not to produce anything like Kingston Heath 
last year because at this stage our fairways are 
nowhere near as good as Martin™s. The aesthetics 
of the course is an important aspect and the 
colour of the fairways seem to blend in well with 
the roughs when allowed to fade out a little.flHaving been at Victoria for the past 15 years, Todd is very much a student of turf management™s old school and makes a point not to over manage 
Victoria, rather working with Mother Nature to enhance its reputation as one of the sandbelt™s 
most testing challenges.  fiYou have a play around with different products from time to time and see what works best, but 
you still go back to your basics and knowing 
what works for you and what doesn™t,fl says Todd. fiThat™s something that only experience brings. fiFor instance we played around a bit with paclobutrazol on the greens going back five 
years. We found it was marginally successful, but 
on these older type bentgrasses (Suttons mix) 
the recovery period is quite long and something 
that you don™t really want to go through during 
summer. fiAlthough we ended up reducing the amount of Poa, and you could actually call it reasonably successful, the quality of the putting surfaces on 
the greens was generally poor and the feedback 
we got wasn™t great. fiWe™ve certainly changed our practices with the tournament coming up and we have given 
the greens a couple of applications of ethephon 
for Poa seedhead suppression and we™ll probably go out with light rates of endothal to keep the Poa 
in check. We™ll be verti-draining for sure and will 
give them a couple of light dusts to try and get 
the surface as smooth and consistent as possible. fiWe cut greens at 2.0mm-2.5mm year round and I don™t think that will change much for the 
tournament.  The greens are 80-year-old push ups 
and still provide a great true surface and you don™t 
have to do a lot to them to get them up for a big 
event like this.fl Normally a par 72 with back-to-back par fives to complete both inward and outward nines, 
Victoria will play as a par 71 for the Masters 
with the 8th hole becoming a 448m par four. 
The club™s practice facilities will be used for the 
hospitality area and like the 2002 Australian Open 
the practice range will be at the neighbouring 
Cheltenham Golf Club.fiI™m a big believer in ‚fail to plan, plan to fail™ and so far everything seems to be falling into 
place,fl says Todd. fiThe wet winter has probably been of benefit to the course and providing we get 
a quick and warm spring we will be looking good 
for the tournament. fiThe course won™t play too differently from the 2002 Open, but a lot will be dependent on the 
weather. If it blows a bit it will play tough. I™m not 
too concerned about course records.fiWe are a 6200m course which is at the mercy of technology, but in the right conditions it will 
still provide a stern test. I™m just hoping that the players enjoy the course as much as I do and 
hopefully Tiger will be in the final group come Sunday.fl  Normally a par 72 with back-to-back par fives to complete both inward and outward nines (pictured is the 17th), Victoria will play as a par 71 for the Masters with the 8th hole becoming a 448m par fourMASTERS CLASS Œ VICTORIA PREPARES FOR THE ONSLAUGHTAUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT     11Seeing merit in their superintendent™s vision, the club increased expenditure from $3000 to nearly $20,000 which enabled Todd to buy in an enormous amount of stock. The benefit came in the seasons following with the crew able to harvest seed and 
propagate from those initial purchases. What presents today is a testament to how a dedicated and targeted revegetation programme 
can enhance and beautify the golf course landscape.
The project started by focusing on carries from tees 
to fairways with progress spreading to areas behind 
bunkers, in secondary roughs and out of play areas.  
Perhaps the most striking and recent example of 
what the project has achieved is on the 165m par 
three 7th where the entire right hand side from in 
front of the tee right up to and behind the green has 
been cleared, regenerated and planted out.fiThe idea was to start the programme out small, not only for us to get comfortable with it but also to 
demonstrate to the members what we were trying to 
achieve,fl says Todd. fiWe started in the most visible areas and although there were some concerns early on I think now it has finally gained support and acceptance, this past year in particular.fiIt was a vision we had a long time ago and I think the membership is starting to see and 
understand that now which is very pleasing. There 
were so many areas that were overgrown with poor 
tree species Πmahogany gums and even coastal 
tea tree.  Everyone knows tea tree is invasive and 
it actually chokes out the indigenous grasses and 
the seedbank, but once you cut it back and leave 
the area for 12 months what comes up is amazing. fiWhat we actually found is the tea tree kept the spray tanks away from some of those areas. That 
meant the heavy base chemicals couldn™t get into 
some of the roughs areas and when we cut it all 
back the indigenous seedbank was still viable and 
flourished.fiI think it (the project) has been a tremendous success. We now have an enormous amount of 
stock in the ground, a lot of resource to draw on and 
now we are starting to finetune areas where we can 
incorporate sandy waste areas with the indigenous 
vegetation. Although I have never been there, I have always admired Pine Valley and Hell™s Half Acre. To me that™s a blueprint of what we are trying to achieve 
but with our own indigenous vegetation. The revegetation project started in the most visible areas, such as carries from tee to fairway, and despite some early concerns 
the programme has finally gained support and acceptance throughout the clubCOMMON NAME BOTANICAL NAMEBroom Spurge Amperea xiphocladaGrass Trigger plant Stylidium graminafoliumWallaby grass Austrodanthonia caespitosaSmall Flower Wallaby grass Austrodanthonia setaceaCoast Spear grass Austrostipa mollisPrickly Spear grass Austrostipa stipoidesWeeping grass Microlaena stipoidesKangaroo grass Themeda traindraGuinea flower Hibbertia prostrataShowy Bossiea Bossiaea cineriaKnobby Club sedge Ficinia nodosaWattle Mat rush Lomandra filiformisLong Purple flag Patersonia occidentalisPale Flax lily Dianella longifoliaCoast Sword sedge Lepidosperma lateraleFor your nearest distributor call 1800 DURATURFExtremely Salt-Tolerant TurfgrassOutstanding Turf Quality
Beautiful Uniform Appearancewww.pggwrightsonturf.com.au12     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT2010 MASTERSA significant amount of work has been undertaken to clear vegetation and improve access in roughs and in and around tea treeThe revegetation programme had its roots some 10 years ago with 15-20 core indigenous species identified, including hibbertias (above) and sword sedge (below)fiWe tend to stick to a list of about 15 core plants which we have tried to promote. I love the hibbertias, ampereas and grass trigger plants which are fantastic when they are in flower. We have 
played around with silky and prickly tea trees, sword 
sedge, egg and bacons as well as wallaby grasses. 
We use some lomandra more as a bulking plant and 
we have also used bracken quite a bit. Although 
some members don™t like the bracken, it performs a 
purpose in that it is easily transplanted, it™s natural 
and it™s cost-effective. You just have to be careful 
where you put it. fiLooking back we are really happy with what we have achieved, although there is still a lot of 
work to be done and hopefully something that we™ll 
continue for 10, 20 even 50 years to come. A lot of 
these indigenous areas have been transformed from 
areas which had high concentrations of Parramatta 
grass and now you can™t even compare the two from 
a visual and playing point of view as well.fl Of course the concern with the Masters approaching is that a lot of that impressive work will 
literally be trampled underfoot. With the prospect of 
crowds in excess of 100,000, Todd is acutely aware of the likelihood of damage and has already had a 
number of roping discussions with IMG to ensure 
sensitive areas, like the 7th, are protected. fiI went over to Kingston Heath after last year™s tournament and walked around the course with 
Martin and the damage didn™t seem to be so 
great,fl recalls Todd. fiIn fact those areas which were trampled, a lot of the seed was dispersed into the 
ground. With a little bit of rain or irrigation they came 
back pretty quick, so I™m pretty confident our areas 
will bounce back.flPRESSING AHEADFollowing the completion of the Masters, the work is set to continue for Todd and his crew in their quest to further enhance the course. The revegetation programme will continue to expand with plans to 
address the carries on 2 and 10. There are also talks of resurfacing the 12th green as well as pushing the 
5th green back and bringing the top tees further in 
from the course boundary. One of the club™s big 
failings, according to Todd, is its practice facilities and that will become a prime focus in the 12 months 
after the Masters, while couch encroachment on the 
greens is another issue on the hit list.For now though the focus is well and truly on the Masters and the prospect of the hordes of golfing 
fans streaming to the Cheltenham course come 
the second week of November. Todd is confident of where preparations are at and the crew, which 
will increase in size slightly, is ready to step up into 
tournament mode.A couple of Todd™s staff know exactly what to expect having been a part of the Kingston Heath 
crew for last year™s Masters and in August Martin 
Greenwood stopped by Victoria to address the crew 
on his experiences and some of the things that he 
would have done differently in hindsight.fiMartin was fantastic,fl says Todd, who will preside over his third major tournament, after 
preparing the course for the 1999 Australian PGA 
and 2002 Open. fiIt was something that he really 
wanted to do. fiHe told the guys some of the major 
things to look out for and to be prepared for a fair bit 
of damage once all the infrastructure gets taken out. 
But the main thing he wanted to portray to the guys was the magnitude of the event and the scrutiny. Because of Tiger™s presence everything gets looked at and so it should; that™s what he brings to the table 
and we need to be prepared for that. fiEveryone at the club is certainly excited and potentially this year™s Masters is going to be bigger 
because Camilo and Sergio signed up prior to Tiger confirming. It will be an interesting tournament, 
although there is a little bit of trepidation mixed in 
with that given the number of people that are likely 
to turn up and the damage that may occur. fiI think and I hope the players will be pleasantly surprised when they come here. More than anything 
I hope it™s a feel good tournament. I™m really proud of the work we have achieved and we have a real 
resolve now to showcase that. The course is vastly different to when I started here 15 years ago and I™d like to think that it™s a better course as well.fl



14     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTST ANDREWSAs guests of the Toro company, seven Australian course superintendents, along with Toro representatives Peter Schumacher and Geoff Stephens, embarked on the trip of a lifetime to the 2010 Open Championship at St Andrews in July. As well as taking in one of the game™s great majors, the party also had the opportunity to visit a number of Scotland™s unique courses. Here Daryl Sellar, Mark Couchman, Adam Lamb, Leigh Yanner, Shane Greenhill, Robin Doodson and Idris Evans give some impressions of their journey to the spiritual homeland of golf.In July, the Toro Company invited 70 turf management guests from around the world to attend the 2010 Open Championship at the home of golf St Andrews. Among the group 
was a contingent of seven Australian course 
superintendents including Idris Evans (Western 
Australian GC), Leigh Yanner (The National GC), Mark Couchman (Cromer GC), Shane Greenhill (Sorrento GC), Adam Lamb (Barwon Heads GC), Robin Doodson (Sanctuary Cove) and Daryl Sellar 
(Turfwise Consulting). They were accompanied by Toro representatives Peter Schumacher and Geoff Stephens.As well as having the rare opportunity of walking inside the ropes while the St Andrews 
maintenance crew prepared the hallowed turf for the 
150th anniversary tournament, following the Open 
the group embarked on a golfing tour. Courses 
visited, and played, included the century-old Lundin 
Links, Gleneagles (home to the 2014 Ryder Cup), Blairgowrie Golf Club and Turnberry, home to course superintendent Euan Grant who recently presented at the 26th Australian Turfgrass Conference on the Gold Coast. For some it was their first trip to the home of golf and ATM asked all seven supers to put pen to paper and ruminate on some impressions they gleaned 
during their pilgrimage. DARYL SELLARTURFWISE CONSULTING, SAFor some it™s the Eiffel Tower, for others it™s Disneyland. For me, the opportunity to attend The Open at St Andrews was an opportunity of a lifetime and, frankly, one I never thought I™d get. The great thing about this trip was that everyone was there 
to make the most of it; to take in as much detail as 
they could and we all appreciated how great the 
experience was.St Andrews is an amazing place. Golf aside, the sense of history throughout the town engulfs you. 
Everywhere you look there is a story to be told and 
a healthy reminder of how young Australia is. But 
there is an ever present reminder of the significance 
the game of golf has played in the more recent 
history of the past 500 years or so. Golf shops 
seem never more than 20 paces apart and even the 
fashion houses have a golf flavour to their range.PHOTOS BY IDRIS EVANSsupersuperpilgrimageApilgrimageAUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT     15For all the fame and history, the Old Course just sits at the edge of the town. There are no formal gates, no regal driveway; it™s just there, innocently awaiting the next fourball to nervously play from the 
1st tee into the vast expanse of fairway that ‚no-one 
could miss™ and then the 18th green welcoming 
them back some four hours later.The course itself is an amazing reminder of how the game originated. The contours and undulations demand that imagination plays as much part as pure 
ball striking and that at least some part of your game 
will need to be played along the ground, even before 
you get to the green.The course meanders out towards the Firth of Forth, where the breeze stiffens and the cross over holes of 7 and 11 proudly defy modern safe golf 
course architecture, until it turns back for home from 
the 10th tee. Blind tee shots, ruthless bunkering, 
extreme greens, from the 2nd to the 17th they test 
every aspect of your game and your mind. The 1st and 18th seem so innocuous, almost a calming 
start and finish to the round, yet disaster has been 
witnessed at both.We were extremely fortunate to be given the chance to walk the course with the maintenance 
team from 4am on the Friday and Saturday of Open week as they set up for the day™s play. The amount of activity was great to watch and yet the 
atmosphere was calm and collected....at least to 
the observer! St Andrews played host to the 150th anniversary of the Open Championships in July with the Toro company inviting 70 guests 
from around the world to take in course preparations and the tournamentThe Australian contingent on the iconic Swilcan Bridge at St Andrews16     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTST ANDREWSWhile walking the course, you couldn™t help but imagine the great rounds that have been played there by some of the greats. But even more 
incredible was to imagine how little had probably 
changed since the days of Old Tom Morris.Highlights? I could fill this journal. Sitting in the stand watching groups tackle the Road Hole; 
standing on Swilcan Bridge, in the Valley of Sin, on the first tee, the 18th tee, stepping onto the 17th 
green, into the Road Hole bunker; watching the sun rise over the most famous course in the world; 
seeing a new champion (Louis Oosthuizen ) live out 
his dream from the most amazing vantage point; 
and sharing all this with colleagues and friends.But that wasn™t all. After the Open we then set out on a golfing odyssey, having the chance to play 
Lundin Links (a century-old links course, largely unchanged today), Gleneagles PGA course (site 
of the 2014 Ryder Cup), Blairgowrie Golf Club (a stunning heathland course) and the newest course 
of the St Andrews Links Trust stable, the Castle Course. But the highlight of that week for me was 
playing the Ailsa course at Turnberry Πa magnificent piece of land with a course that did it justice and 
Euan Grant as a wonderful host.MARK COUCHMANCROMER GC, NSW There are many memories from the recent tour to 
Scotland–not all of them turf/golf related (driving 
in cars can become a little sleepy). The first, and probably one of the highlights of the trip, was on the 
very first day when, having arrived in London, Peter 
Schumacher and I decided to make a house call 
to the new Emirates Stadium, home of the Arsenal 
Football Club, to see if we could say hi to head groundsman Paul Ashcroft. Three-and-a-half hours later we left with a great appreciation not only for the sheer magnificence of 
the facility but also for the fact that as turf practitioners 
we could stand out in the middle of arguably one 
of the best football playing surfaces and talk to 
someone that has a great passion and phenomenal 
knowledge of the sports turf management business. 
And believe me it is a business! St Andrews, and everything about the home of golf, is obviously somewhere that every golfer 
aspires to make a pilgrimage. To be able to go there while the Open Championship is on takes it 
to another level. I have been fortunate to visit St Andrews before, however, the town takes on a whole 
new life when the Open rolls in. Funnily, St Andrews is more than golf, it is history and the day when a 
group of us walked up to Old Tom Morris™s grave in the ruins of the cathedral was very humbling.From a course management perspective the opportunity to spend time out on the Old Course 
while the staff were preparing for play was one of 
those ‚you had to be there moments™. Hearing St 
Andrews director of greenkeeping Gordon Moir 
telling the staff on Saturday morning that fiwe need 
to get the greens slowed up a bitfl was certainly not 
the sort of thing that would roll off the tongue of 
many course supers (or members). Then to see the golf course prepared for a shotgun start to complete day two and get ready for 
the onslaught of day three without cutting or even 
rolling greens was the sort of thing that puts our 
jobs into the perspective that we sometimes need. 
Certainly the ‚minimalist™ approach that is adopted 
by St Andrews is, for me, what course management 
is all about and the conditions and grass types 
definitely lend themselves to that type of regime. The other fantastic thing about the experience was the opportunity to mix with other course 
management people from all parts of the world, 
getting to experience a little bit of their culture and 
the management issues and styles that they adopt 
in their workplaces.From the Open we travelled from one side of Scotland to the other and back stopping to play 
golf, do a little bit of sledging and see the absolute 
degrees of separation in course management styles 
and landscape. The links styles of Lundin Links, 
Turnberry and the Castle Course at St Andrews compared to the heathlands of Blairgowrie and 
Gleneagles was invigorating. The Old Course itself is an amazing reminder of how the game originatedAll fairways, tees and green surrounds were cut at 7.5mm with Toro 3250 greens mowersThe hive of Open operations Πthe St Andrews maintenance facilityAUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT     17To play a links course in the morning, drive for a few hours and then play on heavily treed and thick heather rough courses in the evening was fantastic. 
The polar opposite styles of turf management, 
presentation and maintenance of St Andrews to Gleneagles was very much an eye opener. ADAM LAMBBARWON HEADS GC, VICWhat I observed at the Old Course was very different from what I had ever imagined. I had created an image in my mind of what I expected. Watching 
past Opens on TV, looking at pictures in books and 
reading architect™s descriptions only gave me a very 
blurred vision of how I was actually going to see it.Approaching the town of St. Andrews the first thing that struck me were the peaks of the castles in 
the distance and instantly I got a sense of a special place ahead, rich in history and tradition. The first 
area of the course we entered on the Thursday 
morning, day one of the Open, was alongside the 
18th green. I was sucking in as much as I could walking down the road beside the 18th, iconic 
features all within view ΠThe Royal and Ancient 
clubhouse behind the 1st tee, Valley of Sin at the 
18th green, the dual 1st and 18th fairways, the burn 
across the 18th and to the front of the 1st green, 
Swilcan Bridge. I was in awe. By far the highlight of the trip was on the Friday and Saturday mornings when St Andrews superintendent Gordon Moir generously allowed us to walk the fairways while they were preparing the 
course prior to the day™s play. Everything about The Old Course seemed different and unusual. It was consistent throughout the entirety of the course and it almost made sense 
to me. Blind tee shots over the gorse to wide open 
fairways; huge knobs and deep hollows around 
the green made the positioning and angles for the 
approach shots critical; severely deep bunkers; 
huge putting surfaces with general flattish areas 
for pin locations; lean, tight and firm fescue/bent 
surfaces from tee to green; and beautiful seedhead 
throughout the rough areas that would make a 
majority of club golfers cry with unfairness. St Andrews is a course that many regular visitors say figrows on you the more you play itfl and until 
I play it I will not be able to fully appreciate the 
course as it should be. But certainly first impressions 
exceeded expectations and the experience has 
given me a taste of what it™s all about and I™m even 
keener now to return, even try playing it backwards 
Πanother unique aspect of the Old Course.Other courses we played following The Open included Lundin, Blairgowrie, Gleneagles and Turnberry. All were very different from each other and a good selection of courses for a trip with limited 
time.  All courses have their own unique character, 
it™s just that rare special something on a large scale 
throughout St Andrews that makes it great. We too have some great courses ΠRoyal Melbourne and Kingston Heath are two that I find, like the Old Course, leave me wanting to learn more about their 
mystique. ROBIN DOODSONSANCTUARY COVE, QLDTravelling ‚home™ for the 2010 Open Championship was truly a surreal experience for me. I had spent a 
fair bit of time in St. Andrews over the years but had 
never attended an Open Championship there.  My trip began in London where I was lucky enough to play a few of the UK™s best heathland courses. The Blue and Red courses at the Berkshire 
are highly regarded and the club plays host to the 
prestigious Berkshire Trophy each year. The contours and undulations demand that imagination plays as much part as pure ball striking18     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTST ANDREWSBoth courses were in fantastic condition as usual in spite of the long, dry summer. They played more like links courses with the ball running for 
miles. Course manager Chris Lomas has recently 
moved on and has been replaced by Ian Morrison, 
who coincidentally used to be my head greenkeeper 
during my days at the Wentworth Club. My next stop was Sunningdale where I spent time with course manager Murray Long looking at the 
operation there. Murray has carried out significant 
bunker renovations using Sportcrete bunker liner 
and has also used a new product called Blinder 
which uses pelletised rubber instead of aggregate, 
but produces similar results to Sportcrete. This was very interesting to see as we are currently installing 
Sportcrete at Sanctuary Cove. Meeting up with the rest of the Australian contingent we headed for the main event ΠThe 
Open. On Friday and Saturday morning we were privileged to join the greenstaff as they set up the 
golf course for the day™s play. The most impressive 
thing was how calm Old Course manager Gordon Mckie was each morning and that each of his 50 
plus staff new exactly what they were doing. Even after the suspension of play on the Friday afternoon, Gordon made the decision not to mow the greens at 
all on the Saturday. This was a pretty bold decision 
during a Major but was clearly the correct one. Walking the fairways before play was a real treat and we got to talk to a lot of the staff, R&A officials, 
even Tiger™s caddy. The attention to detail was very impressive and it was clear that all the staff were 
extremely passionate about their jobs. The Sunday afternoon was spent in the offices of Elmwood College which overlooks the 18th green of 
the Old Course. We all had to pinch ourselves that 
we had such an incredible vantage point to watch 
the final round on a glorious Scottish summer™s day. After the Open I returned home to Glasgow and visited my home course Williamwood which brought 
back some great memories.  The trip really was a 
once in a lifetime experience which was enhanced 
by the great bunch of Aussie supers that I had the pleasure of travelling with.SHANE GREENHILLSORRENTO GC, VICOn the flight over, I wondered what St Andrews and 
the UK would be like. Of course I had seen the Old Course on TV many times, but what would surround it?  What would surround the many courses of the 
UK?  I had visions of built up metropolises with golf 
courses holding out the grey cement walls of an 
encroaching urban population.I also wondered about the turf conditioning and quality. I had heard various reports about the turf standard being less than what is expected in 
Australia, with little focus on monostands of grass 
and uniformity. At times too the dryness of some 
fairways became quite startling during some Open 
tournaments, with other courses in the UK being 
quite lush green at the same time. My first impression of the UK was the vast areas of open farming land once you had left the built up 
area of London. All the courses we visited (including 
St Andrews) were surrounded by vast tracts of farm 
land and each course had a real open country feel, 
with little evidence of urban growth. This made for some spectacular vistas especially at courses such 
as Gleneagles and Turnberry.I found St Andrews to be a truly magical place. To visit the home of golf in Open condition in summer was just brilliant. From the sounds of the large gulls in the township to the roar of the air force jets taking 
off nearby just made it surreal. The Old Course was 
everything I hoped it to be and more. The oldest golf course in the world with all the unique features from 
the Road Hole to the Swilcan Bridge really made me realise I was walking on golf™s holy ground.I found the turf quality to be surprisingly good from reports I had heard. I even thought it looked 
better in person than on television which was 
surprising. All surfaces were a mixture of cool-
season grasses, notably bentgrasses, fescues and 
Poa. The greens were cut at 4mm with walk behind 
mowers. Bunkers were foot consolidated every day before they were raked to ensure perfect firmness and  consistencyThe unique heathland style plantings of the Rosemount course at Blairgowrie Golf ClubAUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT     19All fairways, tees and green surrounds were cut at 7.5mm with Toro 3250 greens mowers (with catchers). They had 11 of these mowers for the tournament which was a sight to see. The greens had some noticeable Poa annua invasion, however, they ran smooth and fast. The speeds were kept to around the 10 to 10.5 feet mark 
for the first two days, then 9 to 9.5 for the Saturday after the wind caused suspension of play on Friday.  Bunkers were intricately raked with a perfect wall to 
wall raking pattern and they were foot consolidated 
every day before being raked to ensure firmness 
and consistency. Despite being labour intensive, the 
results were exceptional.Fertilising of the Old Course is virtually non-existent. The fairways have been fertilised only once 
in three years while the greens had only a ‚touch™ of 
nitrogen to green them up for the tournament. Divot 
recovery was slow in the fairways and these have to 
be filled with a seeded divot mix to aid recovery. The 
greens have three topdressings a year using 300 
tonnes of sand applied in 100 tonne applications. 
This is carried out over the winter months and the 
greens are quite firm. No coring is carried out and 
the use of seaweed extracts is the only form of 
regular fertiliser used.The tournament itself was not surprisingly the biggest I have ever attended. The crowds were enormous and to view the golf was a lot more difficult 
than I thought it would be. The ropes basically follow the outward and inward nines and do not really 
allow close viewing of play in some cases. Bunkers 
that are in the middle of the course, such as Hell 
Bunker, can be out of view from the ropes and to 
get the best view you have to sit in a grandstand and 
wait for each group to go through. On the last day 
we stationed ourselves next to the Road Hole with a view up the 18th fairway. To get these prime seats we had to sit in the stand by 7:45am. Of the golf courses we played (Lundin Links, Blairgowrie, Gleneagles and Turnberry) they all had quite slow greens. Cutting heights for greens 
for all courses was 4mm. Poa invasion varied and fairways were quite lush in appearance without 
being fertilised. Striping was a common practice on 
all cut areas. The polar opposite styles of turf management, presentation and maintenance of St Andrews to Gleneagles (pictured) was very 
much an eye opener20     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTST ANDREWSWhat I will take back to my own course I think is a sense of wanting to develop its own character more. All of the UK courses had a special ‚feel™ that 
made them a memorable experience to play. IDRIS EVANS WESTERN AUSTRALIAN GC, WAPrior to heading to the Open, Geoff Stephens and I spent a couple of days in London visiting Lords 
and Wimbledon. On the Monday we played the East Course at Wentworth with course superintendent 
Chris Kennedy taking us on a tour of the exceptional 
golfing estate and greenkeeping facilities.Walking around St Andrews is one thing, but being there for the Open was a buzz.  The first thing 
that struck me was the undulations in the greens 
and the size of them. On the Thursday I stood by the 18th green watching play. Unfortunately the TV cameras had a close up of me which resulted in 
about 100 of my members sending text messages.  
You cannot get far enough away from them it seems.Being able to walk inside the ropes while the groundstaff were preparing the course gave me an 
appreciation for the renowned pot bunkers on the 
course and also the firmness of the turf. You can 
see why the pros putt from so far off the greens.  It 
seems that the true nature of links golf is also that 
maintenance is very minimalist, or for a want of a 
better word, sustainable. On the Monday morning after the Open we played Lundin Links.  At first the course didn™t offer 
much but as the round went on the layout and 
over all condition of the course grew on me.  The 
use of shared fairways was apparent, minimising 
maintenance and allowing the golf course to be built 
on a relatively small footprint of land.That afternoon we drove to Perth where we arranged a game on the Rosemount course at 
Blairgowrie.   This course had some of the best tree-
lined fairways that I have seen. The roughs were all natural ryes and fescues that looked like they had 
never been touched. What made this a bit of fun was 
the fact that we teed off at 6.30pm and completed 
the round in the light despite the rain and cloud 
cover at 9.50pm. Trying to find somewhere to eat at 10.30pm was one drawback to playing so late so a 
two-star Indian restaurant was it but we all survived.LEIGH YANNERTHE NATIONAL GC, VICI have always wanted to attend the Open 
Championship and I, like many other supers no 
doubt, have sat up late watching past tournaments 
on TV. However, television never gives a true 
indication of what the Old Course is really like, in 
particular the severity and size of the double greens. St Andrews has a lot of idiosyncrasies which would not be accepted in golf course design today. 
Take the Road Hole for instance; how many great holes are there in the world where you drive the ball 
over a hotel and then the second shot is played to 
a green that is protected by one of the most famous 
small bunkers in the world which is extraordinarily 
hard to play out of.  Then if you miss the green to 
the right you™re forced to play off a gravel track, a 
bitumen road or against a rock wall.The management practices employed on the Old Course are old fashioned and one could say 
behind the times, but it works and the quality of 
the surfaces are a real eye opener. Certainly the 
surfaces are not pure in grass species, but one thing 
noticeable is the lack of Poa annua. I admire the links courses and their traditions, particularly with 
low nitrogen inputs.  One of the best ways to prevent 
Poa annua dominating is the minimalist approach towards fertiliser use and the links land lends itself 
to this preferred management style.It was interesting that this approach cannot be used everywhere. The inland courses, where the soil is heavier and the temperatures vastly colder, have 
to rely on fertiliser and subsequently Poa is more prevalent. The inland courses were like playing golf 
in large cottage gardens, with fairways pattern cut, 
flowering roughs and silver birch tree-lined fairways.Catching up with Euan Grant and playing the Ailsa course at Turnberry was definitely memorable. Ailsa is completely different to other links courses 
that I have seen in Scotland. It wasn™t just sand dunes; it had some rocky outcrops and the surfaces 
were slightly different with more bentgrass evident in 
the greens and fairways. This trip also gave me the opportunity to meet the designer of The National™s Old course, Robert Trent Jones Jr.  Speaking with him at The Open was memorable and invigorating, gaining an 
understanding of his philosophies and his insight. 
We spoke about when he first set his eyes on the 
location of the Old Course and how they mapped 
out the layout through thick, undulating scrub and 
then the construction process.   ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSAll contributors wish to thank Toro for the wonderful 
opportunity to attend the 2010 Open Championship 
and for the hospitality afforded, in particular to 
Richard Walne, Peter Schumacher and Geoff 
Stephens, and to Gordon Moir, Gordon McKie and 
the St Andrews Links Trust staff during The Open.Final stop of the tour was Turnberry, home to course superintendent Euan Grant who spoke at this year™s Gold Coast conferenceHandles anything. Even Monday mornings.No matter what the week throws at your crew, the  7700 PrecisionCutŽ Fairway Mower can handle anything Œ  hill climbs, dense turf, even wet turf. No job is too hard.  With straighter steering, patented cut quality, the advantage of our time saving Quick Adjust cutting units and optional 
GRIP all-wheel-drive, these machines make mowing the 
toughest courses a breeze. Plus there is plenty of power 
under the hood to maximise your team™s performance Œ  just another good reason to get out of bed in the morning.1800 800 981 |  www.JohnDeere.com.auREAR ROLLERPOWERBRUSHES PLUS* Purchase a 7700 PrecisionCutŽ Fairway Mower and receive Rear Roller Power Brushes, plus an additional 2 years PowerGard Protection Coverage free. Offer ends 31st October 2010. See your local John Deere dealer for details.22     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTSPORTSFIELDSIn 2005 Melbourne-based Scotch College conducted a water audit with assistance from 
sustainability consultants. Since undertaking that detailed assessment, the college has actively 
taken a strategic approach to reducing its demand 
for potable water and consequently given water 
conservation and reuse a very high priority to point 
where now in 2010 a saving of more than 50 per 
cent has been realised across the whole facility.As well as setting a number of objectives, such as reducing mains water usage, developing 
water saving initiatives for the long-term, reducing 
environmental impact and maintaining the high 
standard of the college™s turf facilities, the audit also 
highlighted where water was being used.Irrigation of the college™s sports fields accounted for 55 per cent (30.8 megalitres) of the total amount 
of water used (56ML), with the remaining 45 per 
cent made up of irrigating garden beds and water 
used in school buildings. A number of water saving 
initiatives have been implemented since the audit 
that have helped reduce mains water consumption 
including:  Introduction of Australian natives and drought tolerant plants to garden beds;  Sub surface drip irrigation to garden beds, eliminating drift and evaporation;  Ozone technology to onsite laundry operation 
with potential reuse on lawns and gardens;  Water efficient shower heads, tapware and toilet 
fittings;    Junior School oval synthetic grass conversion 
(water savings up to 6ML p/a);  Automatic irrigation upgrade to sports fields; 
and  Drought tolerant, warm-season grass conversion 
to sports fields (about 50 per cent less water 
requirements than cool-season grasses).The consultants also investigated and reported on any potential alternative water sources that the 
college could use. These included:      
Rain water collection: A number of rain water collection tanks have been strategically placed 
around the school with a storage capacity of 
approximately 100,000 litres. This water is used 
for watering garden beds, trees and washing down 
plant and machinery.
Treatment and reuse of laundry water: The 
Boarders™ laundry discharges approximately 1ML 
of grey water annually into the sewage system. An 
ozone laundry system has been installed to treat 
the water by minimising energy, water and chemical 
inputs to the washing process. Further investigation is being explored to reuse, store and treat the 
discharged water for irrigation purposes to the lawns 
and garden beds within the Boarding and Junior 
school precincts.
Bore water: Investigation has been undertaken 
to explore the likely availability of bore water from 
an underground aquifer. Conclusions from the 
study were this water source would not provide 
sufficient flow to justify investment and potential Two of Melbourne™s leading colleges have taken significant measures in recent years to ensure their future irrigation requirements. Scotch College™s grounds manager Michael Smith and Wesley College grounds supervisor Rob Savedra look at their respective projects and the considerable improvements in efficiencies that have resulted.ClassactsClassactsAUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT     23future regulation of ground water retrieval also made this an uncertain and therefore unattractive option.
Gardiner™s Creek: The school has an extraction 
right of 6ML from Gardiner™s Creek which has been 
in use since 2005. The creek is located behind the school™s southern boundary and runs into the Yarra 
River. The school has invested in an ultraviolet (UV) sterilisation system to improve water quality and to 
ensure safe water.
Storm water harvesting: It was identified that storm water collection and reuse for irrigation was 
the best solution as an alternative water source 
given the school™s large internal catchment area 
and extensive underground storm water drainage 
network. Consideration was given to the type and 
size of the tanks required due to the large volume 
of water required to maintain the seven hectares of 
sports fields.IRRIGATION SELF SUFFICIENCYAfter four years of planning and construction, 
the school now has a water storage capacity of 
5.4 million litres. The storm water harvesting and 
irrigation reticulation master plan now allows Scotch 
to irrigate, maintain and present its sports fields at 
a high standard with safe conditions all year round.The project involved capturing storm water runoff from the school™s large internal catchment 
(about 8ha) and diverting this storm water through 
new and existing drainage networks to fill a 2.4ML 
water tank that was positioned underneath the 
school™s McKendrick soccer pitch and a further 3ML litre water tank positioned underneath the school™s 
Melville oval. The storm water is treated through gross pollutant traps preventing coarse sediments, grease, 
oil and organic material from entering the tanks. The 
water is then transferred from the tanks through an 
irrigation pump that pressurises the water through 
irrigation transfer lines that interconnect with new 
and existing irrigation systems within the sports 
fields.The tank structure was made from rectangular shaped recycled polypropylene modules, an 
Australian made product. The modules are 600mm long x 400mm wide x 1.35mm high and are tightly 
stacked next to each other and encased by a water 
proof heavy duty reinforced liner that is sandwiched 
between two layers of geotextile fabric. All joins 
within the liner are heat welded and pressure tested 
on site to ensure there are no leaks. The tank then 
sits neatly on a compacted 200mm crushed rock 
base (see photos above and on page 24).The perimeter of the tank excavation is filled with stabilised sand to lock the structure together and 
to ensure there is no movement. A 300mm layer 
of crushed rock is spread and compacted over the Left: Through the implementation of various water efficiency strategies in recent years, Melbourne™s Scotch College has realised savings of around 50 per cent, with future forecasting predicting 
even greater savings now that the school is totally independent of mains water for sports field irrigationAfter four years of planning and 
construction, Scotch College now has a water storage capacity of 5.4ML, comprised of two tanks 
situated underneath two of the college™s sports fields. A body building course for your greensSierraform GT™s unique slow release potassium formula builds strength into your greensThe slow release potassium feeds the grass plant as it needs it, resulting in a stronger grass plant that™s more resistant 
to cold, heat, drought and intensive wear. Sierraform GT helps turf maintain a higher bank of ‚available K™, which can 
minimise disease activity and shorten recovery time. Turf water 
consumption is improved as is the uptake of Ca and Mg. With Sierraform GT™s uniform granules, mower pick up is minimal.Give your greens the slow release potassium it needs!Contact Scotts or your local Scotts Distributor Œ Freecall 1800 789 338 or visit www.scottsaustralia.com24     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTSPORTSFIELDStop of the tank, approximately 500mm of clay and 300mm of existing topsoil was spread back over the 
tank to match finished surface levels. New automatic irrigation systems were installed and Santa ana 
couchgrass was laid to complete the project.When both are full the tanks will supply about one month™s summer irrigation requirements to the 
school™s sports fields (7ha). Early calculations have shown that about 10mm of rain over the site will 
harvest around 600,000l of water therefore 90mm of 
rain will fill the tanks Πa total of 5.4ML. Recent climate data over the past five years has shown that Melbourne receives approximately 285 
mm of rain from October through to April with an 
average monthly rainfall of 47.5mm. This information indicates that the tanks could fill up about three 
times over the 24-week irrigation window.As previously mentioned, in addition to storm water collection Scotch College has annual extraction rights from Gardiner™s Creek which is 
located along the southern boundary of the school. 
Water can be pumped from the creek, filtered 
through an ultraviolet sterilisation system to improve water quality and then transferred into both tanks if 
required. However, in order to protect the waterway 
environment, flow trigger points have been set. 
Bans or restrictions on the taking of water come into 
effect when flow levels are, low therefore this water 
source is not guaranteed.OVAL CONVERSIONAnother key project was the conversion of the 
school™s sports ovals to drought tolerant turf species. 
The aim was to convert the school™s sports fields 
from the traditional cool-season grasses (ryegrass/
Poa annua) to the more durable, drought resistant couchgrass thus reducing irrigation demands by up 
to 50 per cent.Problems synonymous with sports fields built 20 years ago included poor summer moisture 
retention, poor drainage and Poa annua infestation. These characteristics were all evident within the 
school™s sports fields.The soil on site was very fine textured, had a low drainage rate and was susceptible to compaction. 
As a result the grounds became hard and unsafe 
with little if any grass cover for protection during 
summer and the potential to become waterlogged 
during a wet winter. Despite this the grounds 
presented a reasonable playing surface under 
below average rain fall. Surface fall of the ground was adequate, however, there were localised high and low areas 
that required significant regrading. Four sports fields required new irrigation systems and one sports 
field™s existing irrigation system needed upgrading 
to improve water uniformity and efficiency due to 
unevenly spaced sprinkler heads.The programme of works required included:  Total spray out of existing cool-season grasses and removal of 20mm of surface with top field 
maker machine;  Double power harrow oval base;   Soil amendments added and then double rotary hoe;  Shape and laser level rough out;  Irrigation installation;  Final laser level;  Fertilise with turf starter;  Reset sprinkler heads to finished surface level;  Lay Santa ana couchgrass sod;  Topdress turf after establishment period. The oval conversions were staged over two years and began immediately after the last 
scheduled Associated Public Schools cricket match 
in November 2008 and 2009 giving about an eight 
week window during the school holiday period to 
complete the works and be ready for play at the 
beginning of the school year in February 2009 and 2010. The turf of choice was Santa ana.Given the timing of the project (during summer) the soil temperature was consistently over 20oC allowing the turf root system to establish at a rapid 
rate. It was noticed that the turf root depth was Another key project was the conversion of Scotch™s ovals from traditional cool-season grasses (ryegrass/Poa annua) to Santa anaStorm water runoff captured from the school™s large internal catchment (about 8ha) is diverted through new and existing drainage networks to fill the tanksAUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT     2550mm after only seven days and a further 200mm after 28 days allowing mowing of the turf to take 
place after three weeks. Appropriate signage was 
also displayed to promote the project as a drought 
recovery initiative. Approaching the cooler months the couch is oversown with ryegrass to give it protection from leaf 
burn due to wear, as well as enhance winter colour. 
These cool-season grasses are then transitioned out 
with Monument herbicide at the beginning of spring 
to remove competition and give the couchgrass 
additional sunlight and air to encourage new growth 
and the break of dormancy.FINE FUTUREAll the above projects have been covered 
comprehensively in the school™s ‚Environs™ newsletter 
which aims to keep the Scotch College community 
informed about how the school is responding to 
the considerable environmental challenges that it 
confronts each day.Through the implementation of the school™s water strategy considerable savings have been 
achieved. In 2004 records indicated the school™s 
total water use was around 70ML per annum and 
60 per cent (42ML) of this was used for irrigation 
purposes. In 2009 total water use was just 36ML, a saving of about 50 per cent and future forecasting 
predicts even more savings now that the school is 
totally independent of mains water for sports field 
irrigation.Conversion to more durable, drought resistant couchgrass has reduced irrigation demands by up to 50 per centApproaching the cooler months the 
couch is oversown with ryegrass to give it protection from leaf burn due to wear, as well as enhance 
winter colour26     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTSPORTSFIELDSSince 1999 Wesley College™s Glen Waverley campus has undertaken a range of 
complementary strategies, including water efficiency measures, investigating and developing 
alternative water supplies and using these actions 
within its educational programmes. That same 
year a bore was sunk to sure up a water supply 
for the future but proved to be too salty (7000ppm) 
and was not acceptable.The head of the campus convened a special committee to oversee and coordinate all 
environmental action. This committee initiated 
and supported many small scale water saving 
initiatives: Environment Improvement Plan implemented to improve stormwater quality. 
Internal water meter allows us to separate 
irrigation and domestic water use;    Installed water tanks;  Grounds compound area is self sufficient. Water from a 10,000L rainwater tank provides 
water for the wash down machinery facility, 
toilet and water for boom spraying wetting 
agents on grounds and 600 litre water cart for 
garden watering;  Design and construct fully automated, 
irrigation system for five hectares of grounds;  Conversion from spray irrigation to drip 
irrigation in garden beds;  Installation of Greymate subterranean system in Junior School lawn;  WaterMap, Water Management Plan and trade 
waste agreement with Yarra Valley Water;   Warm-season grass conversion; and  Desalination project. BROUGHT BACK TO LIFEWith water restrictions tightening, the grounds 
deteriorated in turf quality and surface hardness. 
With technological advances over the years and 
desalination units becoming compact and better 
value for money, it was time to reinvestigate 
making the bore viable again. Having contact with 
a hydraulic engineer who managed the project, a decision to purchase a desalination unit together 
with water storage facilities for 1ML was approved.The college embarked on its biggest capital investment for the grounds to ensure their future 
viability. Some 1100m3 of clay was excavated from the banks and laser graded with crushed rock for 
the foundations of four 250,000L tanks.The desalination unit was constructed off site and delivered on its skid as the tanks were being 
built. The tanks took four days to erect and once 
finished the unit was hooked up to the bore and 
filtration tanks filled with sand. Having worked through the teething problems and every case scenario of the desalination 
process, it took eight weeks from switching the unit 
on to filling the tanks. Currently, desalinated water 
is costing us 70c/1000L to produce compared to 
$1.05/1000L to purchase from Yarra Valley water. 
A total of 48,000L is produced per day with water 
quality measuring 250ppm.The desalination project has allowed Wesley to process water from an alternative source, with 
a direct savings of 6ML of potable water that would 
have been used around the campus. We would 
anticipate in the project™s second and future years 
output would be ramped up to about 10ML/year. 
The tanks are filled by this project and are not 
reliant on rainfall as our sole alternative source to 
town water.Now that the tanks are full with desalinated bore water, planning for the next stage is well 
under way. Stage 3 will consist of harvesting 
rain water from the extensive roof system and 
storm water drainage network to recharge the 
tanks. This will mean the bore will be used on an as needed basis and will truly be an alternative 
water source. A warm-season grass transition 
programme was also implemented now the water 
supply is assured, so quality of grounds will be 
more consistent. The students have a state-of-the-art, working model chemistry laboratory on site that produces 
drinking water from 7000ppm salty, rust coloured 
bore water. The benefits of having the unit have 
exceeded initial expectation. The college is 
excited with the project and it fits in perfectly with 
its Environment Improvement Plan strategies.It has been 10 years in the making but finally the bore is viable and a quality alternative water 
source is flowing onto the grounds, gardens, 
toilets and pool. It has been a team effort and now 
we can look forward to the future with another 
great tool at our disposal to show our turf trade 
skills. The Wesley and wider community are now enjoying five hectares of pure couch sporting 
surfaces that would not have been initiated during 
water restrictions unless we had this alternative 
supply of water.  - Rob SavedraWESLEY COLLEGE RIDES A NEW WAVEAfter some 10 years in the making Wesley College Glen Waverley Campus grounds supervisor Rob Savedra has a viable and a quality alternative water source and students and the wider community are now enjoying five hectares of premier couch surfacesWesley™s desalination unit produces 48,000 litres a day at 250ppmYour course™s watering needs seem to change by the day. Now your watering arc can change with them. Unlike other products, Rain Bird® 751 Golf Rotors with new Rapid-Adjust Technology featuring MemoryArc TM o˜er easy, top-adjustable rotation settings that retain the memory of their part-circle setting when shifting between full- and part-circle operation. This unique feature is designed to o˜er quick, dry arc adjustments not just during grow-in, but for the life of the rotor. So whether you need to ramp up watering during fertigation or conserve water in response to 
water restrictions, you can do it all with just a simple twist of your wrist. Now that™s The Intelligent Use of Water TMRain Bird AustraliaFreecall: 1800 424 044   Freefax: 1800 424 050   www.rainbird.com.au   Email: info@rainbird.com.au© 2010 Rain Bird CorporationNew Rain Bird Golf Rotors with Full, Part Circle Performance in oneUnmatched durability, uniformity and now, versatilityYour course™s watering needs seem to change by the day. Now your watering arc can change with them. Unlike other products, Rain Bird® 751 Golf Rotors with new Rapid-Adjust Technology featuring MemoryArc TM o˜er easy, top-adjustable rotation settings that retain the memory of their part-circle setting when shifting between full- and part-circle operation. This unique feature is designed to o˜er quick, dry arc adjustments not just during grow-in, but for the life of the rotor. So whether you need to ramp up watering during fertigation or conserve water in response to 
water restrictions, you can do it all with just a simple twist of your wrist. Now that™s The Intelligent Use of Water TMRain Bird AustraliaFreecall: 1800 424 044   Freefax: 1800 424 050   www.rainbird.com.au   Email: info@rainbird.com.au© 2010 Rain Bird CorporationNew Rain Bird Golf Rotors with Full, Part Circle Performance in oneUnmatched durability, uniformity and now, versatility28     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTTHE PULSEVolunteers are the lifeblood of many sporting clubs, particularly those in regional and country areas, and golf course superintendents will often rely on a dedicated core of volunteers to assist with general course duties. Despite the best of intentions, however, volunteers can create just as many problems as they solve. The Pulse asked superintendents whether it is becoming increasingly difficult to effectively manage volunteers as part of their course operations? fiAlthough they all want to help out in what is effectively their golf course, they definitely 
start running their own agendas. At one stage I ceased all voluntary help due to members 
taking issues into their own hands. We now have 
a volunteer coordinator who members liaise with 
on certain projects or task that they think they can 
undertake. Once they have discussed the proposal 
with the coordinator, I meet with him and set a date 
to implement this, see if the proposal is realistic 
and fits in with what we are trying to achieve. This is so we can allocate tools, vehicles, staff etc– as 
required. This is where we ran into trouble in the 
past with volunteers interrupting staff for assistance. Volunteers definitely have a place in our operation, but we need to be very selective in what, 
when and how they are used on the golf course. We 
are currently receiving free concrete from a major 
Bypass project, with loads being delivered with as 
little as 20 minutes™ notice. We have put together a 
specific volunteer team of 20 for this project to be 
on call. As we are using it for cart paths, without 
this added help obviously other areas of the golf 
course would suffer on those days. We also have a 
team of four that install the formwork to keep us well 
prepared in advance of any pours.A philosophy I have adapted is ‚keep it simple™. (e.g.: tournament preparations, divots, debris 
collection, weeding, mulching, sponsor signage 
etc–). It helps you out and they feel like they are putting something back into the club. On the OH&S 
front we have just taken out an insurance policy to 
cover all voluntary labour on the golf course, which 
works in conjunction with our in-house policy of no 
equipment to be used except for utility vehicles if 
they have a driver license. In closing, have a team 
leader on site, be well prepared, allocate a time slot and resources and then still expect some arising 
agendas!fl Shaun Cross, Byron Bay Golf Club, NSW~~~fiAs with the majority of clubs our size, volunteers 
form an integral part of our maintenance team. With 
only myself and an apprentice employed full-time, 
the presentation and development of the course 
relies heavily on volunteers. At Marysville we are 
fortunate to have three dedicated members who 
spend countless hours doing whatever they can to 
reduce our workload by doing whatever tasks are 
required. I can understand that in some instances, volunteers have been known to go off and do their 
own thing and as such become the potential for 
disaster, but in our case the volunteers always ask 
for direction as to what is required of them and 
they are never sent off without the knowledge that 
they are fully aware and capable to carry out the 
designated task. More often than not they are more 
than happy just to sit on a roughcutter.Our volunteers are treated the same as staff. We all have our breaks together, they are supplied 
with all the necessary safety gear and they are 
encouraged to give their input in discussions re 
improvements to course aesthetics etc. Having said 
all this, I must admit that we are very fortunate having 
such a dependable group of volunteers who I feel 
entirely comfortable with and that there are also a lot 
of members out there that have good intentions, but 
sadly not the capabilities.fl Rob Christie, Marysville 
Community Golf and Bowls Club, VIC~~~fiAt Whittlesea we do have Dad™s Army which comes 
in once a month to help out with certain tasks. I find 
that with only three on staff their contribution and 
value is quite good overall. In saying that, however, 
it does come with its share of headaches as far as 
knowing what to get them to do without making my 
workload more stressful. OH&S is a big issue with these volunteers as they are all of retiring age and for the most part don™t 
having any formal training in machinery safety and 
operations. For me the management of these people Helpinghands?HelpingAGCSAAGCSASERVICEProviding expert advice for  superintendents and golf clubs   to improve  course maintenance practicesContact AGCSA HR and Best Practice ManagerDaryl Sellar 0408 322 397 daryl@agcsa.com.auAUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT     29is becoming more difficult as time goes on as I don™t seem to have enough time in the day to carry out 
my normal duties and then have them ring every 
half hour wanting to know what to do next or to put 
more line on the whipper snipper or get them more 
fuel. The other problem that does arise is when they have had enough they just head home and leave 
things unfinished. That puts more pressure back on 
the ground staff to get it finished. The best way I find to limit the stress is to send out an email a week before they turn up and outline 
the jobs I need done. We have one man who is 
quite active and switched on so he has become the 
leader of the group and sets them tasks for that day. 
After talking to and watching the group of volunteers 
it soon becomes apparent who can do what in 
regards to operating certain equipment. They do create a lot of problems and I do get frustrated 
at times, but in general I think the volunteers are well worth the effort if they are set tasks that don™t 
become too complex and involved.fl Brad Tucker, 
Whittlesea Golf Club, VIC~~~fiWe are a country course and volunteers started this 
and many other courses. We have a register at the 
pro shop that volunteers have to sign time in and 
time out before any work is carried out. Their jobs are only to paint tee signs, tend to the gardens and 
help clean up after floods. The group we have do 
not use machinery at all and use tools that are on 
site only. They follow certain instructions from the 
staff and are not allowed to go outside of the square. 
This is the only way we can effectively manage to 
ensure their safety and address OH&S issues.fl 
John Duncan, Jamberoo Golf Club, NSW~~~fiWe have volunteers every Monday morning. They 
generally have their own agenda and I find myself in 
discussions most Mondays trying to justify our work 
programmes. I believe long ago there was a need for this sort of kindly help, but now with the skills required 
and the finish demanded by our members it is a 
professional™s job to maintain a golf course at an 
acceptable level. Machines are specialised, OH&S is certainly not high on the volunteer™s priority list 
and jobs left half done mean more work for my staff 
to finish. I have found our particular volunteers tend to lower morale within our staff with snide comments 
and a demand for equipment. We seem to be 
keeping a group of older members together for their 
camaraderie rather than for the good of the club. 
When the volunteers are offered to club directors 
to volunteer at their workplace they are quickly 
declined. When I am asked by members if they can help I tell them to volunteer at the Salvos, or somewhere it would be of benefit to the community. 
I™m not a big fan.fl Glenn Cross, Mt Lawley Golf Club, WA~~~fiAt Box Hill Club we have a dedicated team of 
up to 24 volunteers who come in fortnightly on a 
Friday morning for four hours. Their tasks range from general course clean-up of tree-lines and 
garden beds to bridge refurbishments and shed 
construction. The volunteers have saved the club a fortune in labour costs over the 15 years I have been here. 
Apart from their physical efforts, the volunteers 
also assist in being public relations officers. I can 
inform them directly on various projects the club 
is undertaking, problems that have surfaced and Providing expert advice for  superintendents and golf clubs   to improve  course maintenance practices30     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTTHE PULSEcan ask them to ‚police™ other members in regards to basic etiquette and current local rules. They are always willing to give input but ultimately they know 
that I must have the final say.To assist with any ‚rogue volunteer™ going off on a tangent, I have appointed a leader who liaises 
with me and then delegates tasks as age and 
experience suit. Volunteers with personal conflicts 
are segregated from each other, however, we make 
sure there is no loss of face by either party. 
Volunteers are covered by our insurance policy but 
we still minimise the risk by only allowing capable 
and qualified members to use power tools. Before 
setting out on their tasks, I address the volunteers 
on their duties and take questions. They are given instruction on use of carts and their routes. A Friday morning can be quite busy, but the work they do is 
well worth it.fl Mark Jennings, Box Hill Golf Club, 
VIC~~~fiHere at Bermagui Country Club we rely heavily 
on working bees to maintain gardens, trees and 
clearing debris around the course. What I have worked out is that if you give them garden bed 
maintenance every time you have a working bee 
the numbers drop off. Garden bed maintenance is 
better accomplished by getting your members to 
adopt a garden bed. Pride and competition gives a higher result. But make sure you control what™s 
being planted. Our members definitely respond better to the bigger tasks. At the moment the members are 
finishing the last pour on a 220m cart path and 
have done a wonderful job. They have also just 
completed a Boral block retaining wall on our 1st 
tee complex. Each year we appoint a working bee organiser/foreman who meets me the day before for allocated 
tasks. Quality control and criticism over quality must 
be approached with extreme diplomacy. To combat this, I usually appoint one of our staff members 
to work with them. It™s only for three hours and 
is a good investment I think. This also helps with equipment operation and any idiosyncrasies that 
older machines may have. Our small machinery fleet is the biggest challenge as far as getting volunteers around the 
course, so to get around this the members with 
small box trailers bring them along to the working 
bees.  At the moment OH&S is monitored very 
well and along with our staff member we are also 
fortunate to have a retired Sydney Water Board 
OH&S manager on our working bee team.fl Dave 
Thomson, Bermagui Country Club, NSW~~~Here at Portland Golf Club volunteers have become an essential part of our day-to-day workforce. With a 
staff of two we realise that if the course is to improve 
and not be just maintained we need input from 
members. Tree maintenance is a big issue here with tree-lined fairways and an abundance of wind, so if 
we can train volunteers to use chainsaws or to just 
pick up debris it takes this work off our hands so we 
can concentrate on the turf surfaces. I think the longer you get to know the individual volunteers the easier it is to match them to the right 
job, keeping them happy and reducing supervision. 
With volunteers come extra costs in safety 
equipment, hand tools, fuel etc– but committees 
don™t have to go far to see the bonus of a little extra 
cost for a lot less cost of paid staff and a better 
looking golf course.fl Eddie Ruis, Portland Golf 
Club, VICfiAt Kogarah Golf Club we have working bees once a month, coordinated by the club captain and the greens chairman. All works are formulated and approved 
by the superintendent and required materials organised prior to the working bee, including safety PPE. They start at 8am on a Monday, not good at a busy time to set them up with tools and transport, not to mention the late attendees you have to 
shuttle out to the various working bee location. OH&S is always an issue and inductions are made and sometimes to members who will never be seen again. Sometimes politics and small debates develop on who does 
what job and in what order the jobs get completed. Sometimes, follow up work may be 
necessary by course staff to lift worked areas up to the required standard. All in all, these are blokes who care about their club enough to want to give something back and working close to the greenstaff they tend to learn about what the 
greenstaff do on a daily basis. Just after noon, a few beers and a pie completes a day 
where some jobs got done, friendships are made and the golf course is the real winner.fl 
Rob Barnes, Kogarah Golf Club, NSW2010 CONFERENCE WEBCASTS NOW AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE FROM THE AGCSA. CONTACT LYNDEL CONWAY ON (03) 9548 8600 OR EMAIL info@agcsa.com.auAUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT     31~~~At Katoomba Golf Club we™ve kept our volunteer work to a minimum.  Along with inherent OH&S issues 
we™ve found that the time required to maximise their 
efficiency with certain tasks greatly reduces our own 
efficiency.  Often we find volunteers tend to wander 
off on their own tangents attempting to remediate 
what they perceive to be problems, not what we are 
asking them to help us with. We‚ve found keeping 
the tasks very simple, like weeding a garden bed 
instead of helping us trim the plants, keeps them 
in check and doesn™t take too much of our time to 
monitor.  Trimming plants can get out of hand very quickly!  Volunteers are always going to be a part of helping to maintain a golf course.  They always 
mean well and have good intentions.  As long as 
you can minimise the supervision they sometimes 
require they are always going to aid in your cause.fl 
Steve Smith, Katoomba Golf Club, NSW~~~fiThe volunteer support we receive at Traralgon Golf Club plays an important role in the ongoing 
presentation and upgrade of the course and without 
them the course would not be in the condition it 
is. With a groundstaff of five, comprising two full 
time and three permanent part-time, at times we 
need to rely on volunteers to have jobs completed. 
We are very lucky to have a dedicated group of 
around 10-15 members, known as ‚Dad™s Army™ 
that volunteer their time every Thursday morning 
for four to five hours. At other times such as leading 
up to our Pro-Am and Ivo Whitton events, rarely a 
day goes by that a volunteer is not up at the sheds 
asking if there is anything they can do which helps 
us out tremendously.fl William Cheatley, Traralgon 
Golf Club, VIC  ~~~fiI have recently moved from Hawks Nest on the mid-north coast of NSW to sunny Queensland and 
the argument for and against volunteer work on the 
golf course is completely different. At Hawks Nest we had plenty of help from volunteers whether we 
wanted it or not! There is a growing concern these 
days whether all that ‚extra help™ is worth it. Well, things have changed recently since I moved to the 
superintendent™s job at Proserpine Golf Club in the 
Whitsundays. I have a staff of two and rely heavily upon the help of volunteers. OH&S aside, I cannot 
expect to produce a quality course on my own 
without the extra hands. I have the situation where I turn up each day, go on with my daily routine and sometimes have 
guys coming up to me throughout the day offering 
a helping hand. Although I am unprepared for their 
unexpected arrival, I am keen to make the most of 
what I can get out of them. Mowing rough proves 
to be a very popular job! I have implemented a 
volunteer programme that involves training and 
signing off on jobs to cover the legal side of things.Every greenkeeper wherever they are in the world has been involved with volunteers and will 
have plenty to say for and against them, but if you 
ask me, bring them on, because when it comes 
down to it the more hands the better here at Prossy!fl 
Ben Matheson, Proserpine Golf Club, QLD~~~fiI think volunteers are valuable if you need them but on the proviso that they work 
for you and not for themselves. I am used to running smaller courses with smaller staff numbers and budgets. At these courses I won™t say I rely on them because that is when it can become a problem, but I will say at times they are most helpful. I never give them any task that is vital to be done on the day and failure to turn up will leave me short. Having said that, up here I have a dedicated bunch of volunteers 
that currently exceeds 20 and growing. They do simple tasks such as using weed wands 
on Crow™s Foot (once trained), trimming trees (person on the chainsaw must have their ticket), operating a front deck (three regulars on this all signed off on SOPs) and other 
simple tasks. This all works very successfully mainly due to good communication. We have a notice board stating when someone is due to turn up, where they intend to work, what 
they intend to do and any requirements they need. They don™t randomly turn up; they 
have their usual crews and days. If you need them, having a good friendly relationship 
is a must and a free BBQ and beer periodically goes along way. They aren™t staff and can™t be treated as such but that™s not to say practices can™t be corrected or stopped 
when needed.OH&S  probably needs to be more strict here than with trained staff. This area will always be a work in progress and for now the basics are covered Πsite inductions, SOPs, sign in/out register. Providing all the above efforts are largely outweighed by their results, 
most of the time it is worth it and in my case will see jobs get done that we would normally 
not find time for.fl Linc Urquhart, Bargara Golf Club, QLDGet your signed copy of Thom Nikolai™s book.  THE SUPERINTENDENT™S GUIDE TO CONTROLLING GREEN SPEED. This great book, now on special, through the AGCSA Bookshop 03 9548 8600 or info@agcsa.com.au32     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTAGCSATECH UPDATEWith spring on our doorstep most superintendents will be thinking of renovations and the approaching summer, but as John Neylan reports state authorities are warning all sectors of the agriculture industry, including turf, about the impending threat of locust plagues. TechAnalytical, Diagnostic and Consultancy ServicesIn this job you often receive some intriguing requests. In this instance it was from the horse 
racing industry regarding the effects of plague locusts (Chortoicetes terminifera) on race tracks and race meetings and how to control them. Earlier in the year in northwest Victoria a race meeting was cancelled due to swarms of locusts 
upsetting horses and jockeys. In late August 
the AGCSA received advice from the Victorian Department of Primary Industries specifically for 
turf and parklands of the impact that plague locusts 
can have and the responsibility of land holders in 
relation to this pest. It seemed to be something that 
we needed to take seriously.The media has recently carried numerous stories regarding the impending plague of this 
largely agricultural pest and the economic impact 
that it would have on the agricultural industries. 
The serious aspects to be considered from a turf 
perspective are that they can cause significant turf 
damage and if they occur on your property they 
must be reported and subsequently treated.  The 
following information has been taken from the 
Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries website (www.daff.gov.au) regarding the national 
perspective on the plague locust. AUSTRALIAN PLAGUE LOCUST THREATWidespread swarm formation occurred in NSW, 
northern South Australia, northern Victoria and 
southwest Queensland during early April after the 
fledging of the major nymph infestation during March. There were three generations of population increase over 2009-2010 as a result of widespread 
heavy rainfall and favourable habitat conditions in 
inland areas. Despite intensive control of nymphs of the third generation in NSW, eggs laid in autumn will produce a further generation of high density nymphs 
in the spring.Inter-agency meetings are continuing to plan and coordinate the response to the anticipated 
spring populations in NSW, Queensland, South Australia and Victoria. State agencies and industry 
groups are conducting landholder information 
meetings in areas likely to be affected. Information to assist landholders prepare for and implement 
locust control continues to be developed and is being provided through the Australian Plague Locust Commission and state agency websites, industry newsletters and discussions at landholder meetings.Migration to the south during April brought many swarms into the Murray Valley and northeast regions 
of South Australia, northwest and north central 
Victoria and the southern Riverina in NSW. High density autumn egg laying followed immigration into 
these regions, and also occurred in other regions of 
NSW and Victoria. The outlook is for a serious widespread nymph infestation in NSW, northern Victoria and eastern 
South Australia during spring, with some localised 
high density hatchings in southwest Queensland 
also possible. The plague situation, where numerous regions across several member states are affected 
by high densities of locusts, could continue during 
spring and summer if there is a high level of 
nymphal survival in spring.In NSW, swarms affected the Western, Darling, Central West, Lachlan, Riverina, Hume and Central 
North Livestock Health and Pest Authority (LHPA) 
areas during April and May. Hatching of eggs 
will start in late August in northern areas, during 
September in the central west, Lachlan and western LHPA areas and from the end of September in the 
Riverina.In South Australia, southward migration from the far north region of that state and from western NSW during the first week of April resulted in increased 
swarm activity in the southern Flinders Ranges 
area and throughout the Murray Valley region. Swarm activity and sporadic egg laying continued 
during May and June in some locations. Spring hatchings will commence in mid-September in the 
Hawker area and from the end of September in the 
Murray Valley.Adult locust population levels continued to increase in northern Victoria during April. Migrations This photo was taken by Dubbo Golf Club superintendent Allan Horrocks in 2004 after a plague of locusts descended on the township. A triplex mower was just one novel way of removing 
part of the problemproportionsPlaguePlagueAUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT     33from NSW and within Victoria resulted in egg laying by swarms in the Mallee and Wimmera districts of 
the northwest and in areas along the Murray River 
from Swan Hill to Echuca. Swarms were reported in the Bendigo and Shepparton districts of north 
central Victoria and as far south as Horsham and 
Maryborough in western Victoria. Spring hatchings will start at the end of September in northwest 
Victoria, through to mid-October in areas south of 
Echuca and late October in the Horsham area.The Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries website provides a map of the key risk 
zones for anticipated locust control activity during 
spring 2010 and a table of forecast development 
dates as a guide to the expected emergence of 
nymphs in spring (http://www.daff.gov.au/animal-
plant-health/locusts/current#risk-map).The following information has been adapted from the Victorian Department of Primary Industries fact sheet for Turf and Parklands (http://new.dpi.vic.gov.au) and provides useful general information on 
the occurrence and control of plague locusts.  LOCUST EGGS HATCHING IN SPRINGWarm, moist weather conditions are the most 
favourable for locust egg hatchings. Locusts are 
hard to spot when they first emerge as young 
immature locusts (called hoppers). They are only 
about 3mm long and pale in colour. Newly hatched locusts can cause considerable damage and can 
consume half their body weight in food per day.Hoppers, which are wingless and unable to fly, move as a ‚band™ or group, with up to 
thousands of hoppers for every square metre of 
the band. Spraying with insecticides at this stage 
is very effective and can greatly reduce numbers. 
Treatment of the hoppers is needed in spring to prevent another egg laying period in December and 
January 2011. Based on spring weather forecasts, 
it is expected the vast majority of hatching locusts 
will survive and grow into adults unless chemical 
treatment is undertaken.WHAT FACILITIES ARE AT RISK?Cultivated turf (e.g.: turf farms), sports grounds, 
golf courses and parklands are potentially at high risk from locust attack. Green pastures are 
very susceptible and recently sown grasses are 
particularly vulnerable to these insects.Locusts are ravenous feeders of fresh, green vegetation. Turf is particularly susceptible to hopper (immature locust) attack because they prefer to 
graze on short, green feed. This can potentially lead 
to widespread damage of turf farms, playing fields, 
parklands and golf courses.WHEN IS THE BEST TIME TO ACT?The best time to treat locusts is when they are 
in the ‚hopper™ stage and before the adults can 
fly. Programmes to treat adult flying locusts are 
generally ineffective. When locusts first hatch and emerge from the ground, they are often scattered. Treating locusts at this stage may be inefficient as some locusts may 
not have yet hatched. Newly hatched locusts are vulnerable and without food and shelter they are 
susceptible to premature death. As these locusts 
develop, they form high density bands and this is 
the best time for treatment activities.Treating locust eggs through cultivation of egg beds is generally ineffective. It is recommended that horticulturalists/land managers concentrate their 
efforts on more regular monitoring and applying 
chemicals while hoppers are in a concentrated 
band. WHAT ARE THE TREATMENT OPTIONS?The use of insecticides is the most effective method 
of treating locusts. There are a number of products 
eligible for rebate under the Victorian Government™s Locust Insecticide Rebate Scheme. Horticultural 
business owners and land managers (including 
mangers of council-owned playing fields, golf 
courses and parklands) should seek expert advice 
from their chemical reseller or agronomist as to 
which chemical best suits their situation.The factsheet Locust Chemicals for Turf, Ornamental Plants, Flowers and Forestry Plantations (available through the http://new.dpi.vic.gov.au) lists With favourable conditions earlier in the year, state authorities are warning all sectors of the agriculture industry, including 
those involved in turf, that the spring and summer could bring massive swarms to regional areas 
of NSW, QLD, SA and VICFigure 1. The most effective time to spray locusts is when they are in the second and third instar 
‚hopper™ stage, before their wings have grown34     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTAGCSATECH UPDATETABLE 1. STATE AUTHORITY CONTACTSState DepartmentNSW Livestock Health and Pest Authorities (LHPA). www.lhpa.org.au 
 LHPA rangers organise landholder control of bands and distribute insecticide.  
 Primary Industries, Industry & Investment NSW www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/agriculture SA Primary Industries and Resources South Australia www.pir.sa.gov.au/home  VIC Department of Primary Industries http://new.dpi.vic.gov.au  QLD Biosecurity Queensland www.dpi.qld.gov.au/4790.htm  Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation www.deedi.qld.gov.au  WA Department of Agriculture and Food WA www.agric.wa.gov.authe chemical products eligible for the Victorian 
Government™s Locust Insecticide Rebate. Chemicals 
should only be used according to the label directions 
and all withholding periods observed.The biological insecticide Metarhizium anisopilae is the safest of the products to use, but can take up 
to 20 days to kill hoppers under cool conditions, 
which may be too long to prevent crop damage. 
All of the other chemicals in the table work much 
quicker than the biological insecticides, causing 
locusts to stop feeding within a few hours, and to 
die within two or three days. Products containing 
the active ingredient fipronil can provide a degree of 
residual treatment in situations where use of these 
products is appropriate.WHEN SHOULD GROWERS SPRAY?The most effective time to spray locusts is when 
they are in the second and third instar hopper stage 
and form concentrated bands, before their wings 
have grown. The locust life cycle diagram (Figure 
1, previous page) shows where this stage occurs 
within the complete locust life cycle. Third instar hoppers form large slow moving bands providing a 
clear target for efficient chemical use. The hopper stage will last for around six weeks, depending on temperature, but the third instar stage 
only lasts for a week or so, making it important to 
carry out regular monitoring. The most effective 
treatment is achieved when hopper densities get up 
to around 80 hoppers per square metre. The best time of the day to spray hoppers is late morning 
through to late afternoon when they are most active 
and most visible.OBLIGATIONS FOR TURF MANAGERSHorticultural businesses such as turf farms, 
parklands and managers of community-owned 
recreational facilities (e.g. golf courses and ovals) 
need to be vigilant in monitoring their farms and 
facilities where known locust egg beds exist for 
evidence of activity and damage.Throughout Australia, primary control of locusts is the responsibility of the landholder. Officers from 
the relevant state authorities are available to provide 
technical assistance, do inspections and advise 
on control techniques. These officers should be your first point of contact when reporting locust 
infestations or making inquiries about locust control. It is important that any locust activity is reported as soon as possible to your local biosecurity 
authority or department of primary industries or 
agriculture. All chemical use must be in accordance 
with state laws and regulations including record 
keeping requirements.While the Australian plague locust is an unusual pest of turf it can never-the-less damage turf areas. 
The photos on the previous pages show dramatic 
images from Dubbo Golf Club (superintendent Allan Horrocks) in 2004 when a locust swarm descended 
and a triplex mower was used as a novel form of 
control. The Dubbo Bowling Club was similarly affected.Once the locusts are on the wing there is not a lot that can be done other than to physically 
discourage them from staying in one place long 
enough to damage the turf. It is at the fledgling 
stage before they take wing that is the critical time 
for spraying and controlling the infestation, both 
present and future. Editor™s note: The above information is only a small amount of that which is available. If you have any queries please contact the relevant authority in your 
state (see table below). PHOTO COURTESY CASEY GROVES, SUNRAYSIA DAILY This photo appeared in the 6 April 2010 edition of the Sunraysia Daily newspaper and shows Peter Gill, track manager at Sandilong Park in Mildura, surrounded by locusts as he prepares the track for a race meet˜˚ˇ˛˝˝†‡‡˜ˇ“˜˜–˚ˇ˛˛˜˜“˜˚˛˜ˇ˛˝˙˚˝˙ˆˇ˝’˜“ˇ˝˙ˆˇ˝˚˛…˝˚⁄−−−˝˝š“‹fi12994 Turbo6_210x287:Turfgrass  23/8/10  11:35 AM  Page 1˜˚ˇ˛˝˝†‡‡˜ˇ“˜˜–˚ˇ˛˛˜˜“˜˚˛˜ˇ˛˝˙˚˝˙ˆˇ˝’˜“ˇ˝˙ˆˇ˝˚˛…˝˚⁄−−−˝˝š“‹fi12994 Turbo6_210x287:Turfgrass  23/8/10  11:35 AM  Page 136     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTTECH TALKWinters can be a stressful time for turfgrass and particularly for stands trying to survive 
in shaded environments with excessive traffic wear. Shade can be caused by buildings, 
grandstands, roof structures and, of course, by the 
presence of trees and shrubs.  Shade not only alters the light intensity that the turfgrass receives, but also changes many other 
environmental factors. These include:  Light quality;  Reduced air movement;  Increased relative humidity;  Increased carbon dioxide levels;  Moderation of temperature extremes;  Competition for nutrients and water from tree 
roots; and  Interception of rainfall by the tree canopy.LIGHT QUANTITYOnly a small portion of solar radiation reaching the 
earth is used in the process of photosynthesis. Cool-
season and warm-season grasses have different 
irradiance requirements for photosynthesis to begin. 
Productivity in terms of synthesised organic matter 
increases with increased photosynthetic irradiance 
up to 116 to 233 Watts/m2 for cool-season grasses and 390 to 465 Watts/m2 for warm season grasses (Dudeck and Peacock, 1997). The difference in light requirements can be attributed to the different photosynthetic pathways of 
the two grasses. Cool-season grasses (C3 grasses) utilise the Calvin cycle and require a lower light 
intensity to function than the C4 pathway used by warm-season grasses. Warm-season grasses not 
only require high levels of photosynthetic irradiance 
but also high temperatures to achieve optimum 
carbon fixation, which is the conversion of carbon 
dioxide into organic compounds.Shade is often referred to as a percentage reduction of sunlight. However, this is not the only factor affecting turfgrass growth as the quality of 
light can also have a direct influence on the quality 
of turf as well as the quantity of light. LIGHT QUALITYThe solar spectrum can be divided into three 
main categories Πultraviolet (100-380 nanometres), 
visible (380-750nm) and infrared (750-3000nm). 
Solar radiance available for plant growth occurs in 
a spectral band from 400-700nm wavelengths and 
is called photosynthetically active radiation (PAR). 
About 45 per cent of direct solar radiation is PAR, but 
when both diffuse and direct components of solar 
radiation are considered, PAR is about 50 per cent 
of total solar radiation (Dudeck & Peacock, 1997). The radiant energy available for plant growth is a combination of direct, diffuse and reflected 
solar radiance. Diffuse irradiance results from the 
scattering of solar spectra by atmospheric aerosols 
and other molecules. Diffusion causes the blue 
colour of the sky and enables blue light to strike the 
earth at any angle. Reflectance occurs when solar 
radiance is deflected by a nearby surface and the 
intensity and spectral quality is controlled by the 
proximity and origin of the reflecting material.PAR from 400-500nm is referred to as blue light and is active for photosynthesis, 
photomorphogenesis and chlorophyll synthesis. 
PAR from 500-600nm is referred to as green light 
and is basically inactive for plant growth and 
development. PAR from 600-700nm is referred to as red light and is similar to blue light. Far red irradiance occurs in a spectral band from 700-800nm and 
is not active for photosynthesis but strongly 
influences photomorphogenesis (Bell et al. 2000). 
Photomorphogenesis is the process by which plant 
development is controlled by light.Shade, regardless of whether it is buildings or trees, reduces PAR and alters the spectral 
quality, affecting plant photosynthesis and 
photomorphogenesis. The light quality under a dense stand of trees can be altered since the 
canopy acts as a spectrally selective filter. As 
sunlight reaches a tree™s canopy it is either: Absorbed by the leaves and used for 
photosynthesis;  Reflected back into the atmosphere; or  Transmitted to the plants (turf) below (Tankersley & Samples).Under tree canopies, preferential absorption of PAR, especially in the blue and red spectra, reduces 
the proportion of PAR transmitted. However, as far 
red light is not active for photosynthesis most of this 
is transmitted through the tree canopy causing the 
increase in the proportion of far red light. Goss et 
al. (2002) states that the higher proportion of far red 
light increases the amount of inactive phytochrome 
(Pr), thereby increasing gibberellic acid biosynthesis 
in grasses, resulting in a taller and more spindly 
growth habit with longer and narrower leaves.Top: Shade not only alters the light intensity that hits the turf but also changes many other environmental factors including air movement and carbon dioxide levelsIn this instalment of Tech Talk, AGCSA senior agronomist Andrew Peart casts a little light on shade management.In thedark?In thedark?AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT     37MICROCLIMATE IMPLICATIONSTree canopies screen out a significant portion of the incident radiation, resulting in reduced temperatures and restricting the nocturnal cooling process by 
inhibiting the loss of heat as outgoing, long wave 
radiation. Overall, this causes a moderation of air 
and soil temperatures (Beard, 1973).The frequency and intensity of dews are less under a tree canopy due to the reduction of cooling. 
However, when dew does occur, the duration is 
longer due to the reduced wind movement and 
reduced light intensity. This can also favour disease 
development in shaded environments.Soil moisture stress can often be reduced in a shaded environment compared with full sunlight 
in periods of drought, due to lower temperatures, 
reduced rates of evapotranspiration and increased 
levels of relative humidity. However, in a treed 
environment, the reduced replenishing of soil 
moisture from canopy interception, as well as 
competition for that soil moisture with existing tree 
roots, can nullify the higher soil moisture levels that 
are sometimes experienced in shade.TURF RESPONSE TO SHADEThe reduced light intensities under shaded conditions limit the carbohydrate reserves and the 
growth of roots, shoots, rhizomes, and stolons 
(Beard, 1973). Plants therefore are normally less 
dense, have reduced tillers, a more upright growth 
habit, a greater succulence and reduced stem 
diameter. This tends to lead to a reduced tolerance 
to heat, cold, drought and water stress as well as 
increased disease and insect susceptibility.Shaded turfgrass in most cases has to be carefully managed as the ability to remove the 
source of the shade is often impracticable. The 
options therefore are to investigate more shade-
tolerant species or varieties (Table 1), the use of growth regulators and cultural practices including 
judicious pruning.GROWTH REGULATORSTrinexapac-ethyl (TE) is a plant growth regulator that reduces leaf elongation by directly inhibiting the 
production of gibberellic acid. It has been utilised in turfgrass management primarily for clipping 
reduction and seedhead suppression. Goss et al. (2002) conducted studies on creeping bentgrass under 60 per cent and 80 
per cent shade cloth. In 60 per cent shade the applications of TE at 0.050kg a.i/ha significantly 
improved the quality ratings when applied at a two-weekly interval for the duration of the trial. 
Applications of TE made at four-weekly intervals 
and at half the rate at two- and four-week intervals 
generally produced turf that was significantly greater 
quality than the untreated control, however, the 
results were not consistent. Although the 80 per cent 
shade had severe implications on turf quality the TE 
applications significantly increased turf cover, tiller 
counts and fructose concentrations when compared 
to the non-TE treated plants. CULTURAL PRACTICESIn shaded areas, if possible, select species or varieties that are better suited to these environments. 
In temperate areas, use fine fescue for dry shaded 
sites. In moist conditions either rough bluegrass (Poa trivialis) or supina bluegrass (Poa supina) are alternatives. Most warm-season grasses have 
poor traffic tolerance when grown in the shade. 
Diamond zoysia or some cultivars of buffalo grass 
(Stenotaphrum sp.) are probably the best options.Increasing mowing heights by 20-25 per cent will increase the total leaf area index, thus providing 
a greater capability to absorb light and synthesize 
carbohydrates.  Turf should be fertilised as regularly as that grown in the sun but only at half the rate. 
Excessive nitrogen can limit the number of carbon-
containing molecules available for protein synthesis 
and reduce root growth and carbohydrate reserves 
(Goss et. al 2002). Irrigation should be less frequent than turf in full sun, unless there is extreme competition from 
tree roots, and should be carried out during the day 
so the leaves do not stay wet for extended periods, 
increasing the likelihood of disease. Pruning trees and shrubs will increase air movement and sunlight. Tree limbs should be pruned ideally to a height of 3 metres above the 
ground and the canopy thinned to allow flecks of 
sunlight to reach the turf. Future planting into lawn areas should involve the use of open canopied 
trees, such as eucalypts.Winters can be a stressful time for turfgrass, particularly for stands trying to survive in shaded environments with excessive trafficTABLE 1. RELATIVE ADAPTATION TO SEVERE SHADE (Source: Beard, 1973) Excellent Good Medium PoorCool-season Red fescue Rough bluegrass Colonial bent Kentucky bluegrass Velvet bent Creeping bent Perennial ryegrass   Tall fescue  Warm-season Buffalo grass Zoysia Centipede grass Couch grass (Stenotaphrum sp.)38     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTRESEARCHCore cultivation or coring is routinely performed on putting greens for a multitude of beneficial 
purposes. Coring, however, is disruptive to the putting surface and causes mechanical injury to 
turf. Mechanical injury to plants would be expected 
to result in an increase in respiration and possibly 
a reduction in photosynthesis. A concomitant de-
crease in photosynthesis and increase in respiration 
could cause a harmful depletion of carbohydrates.The rate of turf recovery from mechanical injury can depend on the availability of carbohydrates 
(Donaghy and Fulkerson, 1998). Carbohydrates in turfgrasses consist of the monosaccharides glucose 
and fructose (reducing sugars), disaccharide 
sucrose and various starches and fructans (Smith, 
1972). Fructan can be hydrolyzed into fructose, which can be converted to glucose or used to 
form sucrose. Both mono- and disaccharides are 
depleted during respiration, when new leaves and 
roots of perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) are 
produced (Amiard et al., 2003). Root growth in some grasses is more sensitive to a decrease in the availability of carbohydrates 
than leaf growth (Donaghy and Fulkerson, 1998).  Therefore, root regrowth following coring may 
require a considerable amount of carbon investment. Understanding how leaf and root carbohydrate levels change following coring may be important 
for maintaining high-quality creeping bentgrass 
greens. This is especially true in summer when high temperature stress reduces photosynthesis, root 
growth and quality in creeping bentgrass (Xu and 
Huang, 2000). The effects of coring on carbohydrate metabolism during summer months in creeping 
bentgrass have not been documented. Therefore, 
the objectives of this field study were to quantify 
photosynthesis (Pn) and respiration (Rw) rates as well as carbohydrate levels Πwater soluble 
carbohydrates (WSC; i.e.: glucose, fructose and 
sucrose), soluble carbohydrates (SC i.e.: fructan 
and starch) and total non-structural carbohydrates 
(TNC = WSC plus SC) in creeping bentgrass leaves 
and roots in response to spring-only coring versus 
spring plus summer coring.MATERIALS AND METHODSThis field study was conducted on a research green 
built using USGA (2004) recommendations at the 
University of Maryland Turfgrass Research Facility in College Park during 2006 and 2007. Soil was a modified sand mix (97 per cent sand, 1 per cent silt 
and 2 per cent clay) with a pH of 6.5 and 10mg of 
organic matter per gram of soil.  In September 2005, the study site was treated with a non-selective herbicide and the sod was 
removed to expose bare ground. The area was 
seeded (50kg/ha) with ‚Providence™ creeping 
bentgrass later that month. A total of 250kg/ha 
N was applied between 20 September and 11 
November 2005. (NB: Northern Hemisphere spring is March-May, summer is June-August and autumn 
September to November). The bentgrass was fertilised bi-weekly with 4.9kg/ha N from urea between 1 May and 7 June and then weekly through 24 August for a total of 
78.4kg/ha N during the experimental period in 2006. In autumn 2006, 71kg/ha N was applied between September and November. In 2007, the bentgrass 
was fertilised weekly with 4.9kg/ha N from urea 
between 30 April and 27 August to provide a total of 
88.2kg/ha N during the experimental period.The green was mown to a height of 4mm five times weekly and clippings were removed. Turf was irrigated to prevent wilt and was syringed frequently 
during dry, windy periods. Each plot measured 1.8m x 2.4m and was separated by a 60cm creeping 
bentgrass perimeter border. Three coring treatments 
were assessed as follows:   Non-cored (NC);  Spring-only coring (SP); and   Spring plus summer coring (SP+SU). Typically, large diameter tines are used to core greens in the spring and small diameter tines are 
used in the summer (O™Brien and Hartwiger, 2003). 
In the spring coring programme, plots were cored A two year field study by US researchers Jinmin Fu and Peter Dernoeden was initiated to examine the effects of coring on rates of photosynthesis and whole plant respiration and to quantify carbohydrates in creeping bentgrass leaves and roots during the summer.Understanding how leaf and root carbohydrate levels change following coring may be important for maintaining high-quality creeping bentgrass greensGetting to theof carbscoreof carbscoreAUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT     39once annually in late April using a Miltona Handi Aerifer. This hand-held, manual device had seven, 
0.5inch hollow tines, which penetrated to a depth 
of 9cm (3.5"). Spring plus summer treatment involved coring in April as previously described combined with 
three summer corings using hollow tines. Summer coring was performed using one leg taken from a 
CoreMaster 12 Aerator equipped with a quadra-tine 
holder on 6 June, 28 June and 25 July 2006 and 6 
June, 3 July and 31 July 2007. The four, 0.25" hollow tines penetrated to a depth of 5.5cm (2.1"). Topdressing, using the previously described mix, followed spring coring to fill holes to the 
surface. Following summer coring, plots were brushed to incorporate sand from cores, but no 
additional topdressing sand was applied. Canopy net photosynthesis (Pn) and whole plant respiration (Rw Πincluding  plant and soil microbe respiration), were measured on a two- to three-week 
interval between 6 June and 7 September 2006 
and on a three- to four-week interval between 31 
May and 6 September 2007 using a portable gas 
exchange system.  Pn and Rw were determined by enclosing the turf canopy in a transparent plexiglass chamber 
attached to a LI-6400 CO2 analyser as described by Fu et al. (2007). Measurements of Pn and Rw were obtained in one location of each plot on each 
date and data were expressed as CO2 uptake and evolution per unit area.  Clippings were the source of mostly leaf plus some sheath (hereafter leaf or leaves) tissue used 
to measure WSC and SC levels. Clippings were 
collected on 25 May, 21 June, 21 July, 4 August and 
7 September 2006 and 1 and 28 June, 17 July, 15 
August and 6 September 2007. Roots were sampled by removing four soil cores from each plot on the aforementioned dates. 
The four soil cores from each plot were mixed and roots were washed free of soil. Leaves and roots 
were placed in separate plastic bags and placed 
immediately in liquid nitrogen and stored in a freezer 
until analysed. RESULTS ΠPHOTOSYNTHESIS AND RESPIRATIONBetween 6 June and 24 July 2006, Pn rate was similar among coring regimes (Table 1).  A higher Pn level was observed on 16 August 2006 in spring plus summer versus non-cored bentgrass, but was similar compared to spring-only cored bentgrass. 
On the final measurement date in 2006, bentgrass 
subjected to spring plus summer coring had a 
higher Pn level compared to spring-only and non-cored bentgrass. In 2007, Pn levels were higher on 31 May and 24 July in spring plus summer versus non-cored 
bentgrass, but were similar to spring-only cored 
bentgrass (Table 1). No differences in Pn were observed on 2 July and 14 August 2007 among TAKE-HOME POINTSCoring with large diameter times in the spring resulted in an increase in respiration 
on the initial rating date in each year. In general, however, photosynthesis and 
respiration were not negatively impacted by coring.Photosynthesis was unchanged when measured about 21 days following coring. 
On the final rating in September of each year photosynthesis was higher in spring and summer cored bentgrass.Leaf and root water soluble carbohydrate (WSC), storage carbohydrate (SC) 
and total non-structural carbohydrate (TNC) levels were similar among coring 
treatments throughout the summer of each year. Root TNC levels were lower in July 
of each year in spring and summer cored bentgrass versus other coring treatments. Coring in spring and summer resulted in enhanced carbohydrate levels in leaves 
and roots by September (start of autumn), which would benefit plants in their recovery from drought and other summer stresses.Seasonal carbohydrate status of creeping bentgrass support the use of large and 
small diameter times in spring versus summer corings respectively.40     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTRESEARCHcoring regimes. On 6 September 2007, the Pn level was higher in spring plus summer cored compared to spring-only cored bentgrass. The Pn level, however, was similar between spring-only 
and non-cored bentgrass at the time of the final 
measurement in 2007.Respiration rates generally were similar among coring regimes in 2006 (Table 2).  Spring plus summer cored bentgrass, however, exhibited a 
higher Rw level on 6 June 2006 compared to non-cored bentgrass. Except on 31 May, no differences 
in Rw were observed in 2007 among coring regimes (Table 2). On 31 May 2007, spring plus summer cored bentgrass had a higher Rw level compared to non-cored bentgrass.LEAF CARBOHYDRATESIn 2006, creeping bentgrass leaf tissue from plots 
subjected to spring plus summer coring had a 
greater level of WSC on 21 June compared to 
spring-only and non-cored bentgrass (Table 3). On 21 July, WSC were greater in spring plus summer 
versus spring-only cored bentgrass. No significant 
differences in shoot WSC levels were observed on 
25 May and 4 August among coring treatments. 
Leaf WSC level was lower on 7 September in spring plus summer and non-cored bentgrass compared to 
spring-only cored bentgrass.SC levels were greater on 25 May and 7 September, but similar on 4 August for spring plus 
summer versus non-cored bentgrass (Table 3). Spring plus summer cored bentgrass leaf tissues 
had lower SC levels on 21 June compared to 
spring-only and non-cored bentgrass. Storage 
carbohydrate levels were higher on 7 September 2006 in spring-only and spring plus summer 
regimes compared to non-cored bentgrass. Except 
on 21 July and 7 September, no differences in leaf TNC were observed among coring treatments. On 
21 July, TNC levels were lower in spring only cored 
bentgrass leaves versus non-cored bentgrass. By 
7 September lowest TNC levels were found in 
bentgrass leaves from non-cored plots.In 2007, spring plus summer cored bentgrass tissue had a lower leaf WSC level on 17 July, 
but similar levels on 1 and 28 June, 15 August, 
and 6 September, when compared to non-cored 
bentgrass (Table 3). Except on 6 September, leaves subjected to spring plus summer coring generally 
had similar WSC levels compared to spring only 
cored bentgrass. On 6 September, leaf WSC levels 
were lower in spring plus summer versus spring only 
cored bentgrass. Leaf SC levels were lower on 1 June, similar on 28 June and 17 July, and higher on 15 August 
and 6 September for spring plus summer versus 
non-cored bentgrass. Spring plus summer cored 
bentgrass had lower leaf SC levels on 1 June and 
17 July, similar SC levels on 28 June, and higher leaf SC levels on 15 August and 6 September, when 
compared to spring only cored bentgrass tissues. 
TNC levels in leaves were similar on 1 June and 
17 July, but greater on 28 June, 15 August, and 
6 September 2007 in spring plus summer cored 
compared to spring-only and non-cored bentgrass. ROOT CARBOHYDRATESIn 2006, spring plus summer cored bentgrass had 
higher root WSC levels on 25 May and 7 September 
compared to non-cored bentgrass (Table 4). No differences in root WSC levels were observed on the TABLE 1. PHOTOSYNTHESIS IN CREEPING BENTGRASS IN RESPONSE TO DIFFERENT CORING REGIMES.Photosynthesis  (mmol/s/m2)Œ 2006 ŒTreatments 6 June 21 June 7 July 24 July 16 Aug. 7 Sept.SP   6.7 a  8.4 a 4.6 a 4.1 a 4.8 ab 7.2 bSP + SU  7.2 a 7.7 a 5.4 a 4.1 a 6.7 a 8.3 aNC  6.9 a 8.2 a 4.9 a 3.7 a 4.6 b 7.3 bŒ 2007 Œ 31 May 2 July 24 July 14 Aug. 6 Sept.SP 5.8 ab 6.0 a 7.0 ab 6.6 a 4.1 bSP + SU 7.0 a 6.4 a 8.5 a 6.9 a 5.4 aNC 4.6 b 5.3 a 6.4 b 7.1 a 4.7 abNB: SP=spring only, SP + SU = spring plus summer, NC= non-cored. Means in a column in a given 
year followed by the same letter are not significantly different.Coring is performed periodically on creeping bentgrass putting greens for numerous reasons, however, its impact on carbohydrate metabolism is unknownIn the spring coring programme, plots were cored once annually using a hand aerifier containing seven 0.5-inch hollow tines which penetrated 3.5 inchesAUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT     41TABLE 2. RESPIRATION IN CREEPING BENTGRASS IN RESPONSE TO DIFFERENT CORING REGIMESRespiration (mmol/s/m2)Œ 2006 ŒTreatments 6 June 21 June 7 July 26 July 16 Aug. 7 Sept.SP  8.7 ab  9.4 a 7.0 a 9.8 a 8.4 a 7.8 aSP + SU  9.3 a 7.9 a 6.0 a 7.8 a 7.8 ab 8.5 aN-C x 8.0 b 9.1 a 6.3 a 9.4 a 7.5 b 8.0 aŒ 2007 Œ 31 May 2 July 24 July 14 Aug. 6 Sept.SP 10.4 ab 10.8 a 10.1 a 8.6 a 10.6 aSP + SU 11.0 a 9.8 a 10.2 a 7.2 a 9.6 aNC 9.8 b 10.0 a 10.2 a 8.8 a 10.3 aNB: SP=spring only, SP + SU = spring plus summer, NC= non-cored. Means in a column for each year followed by the same letter are not significantly different other three measurement dates between spring plus 
summer and non-cored bentgrass. Root WSC levels 
were similar between 25 May and 4 August, but 
greater in spring plus summer versus spring-only 
cored bentgrass on 7 September. Similar root SC levels were observed on 25 May and 21 June among the three coring treatments. 
A lower root SC level was observed on 21 July in 
spring plus summer compared to spring-only and 
non-cored bentgrass. Root SC levels were higher on 4 August and 7 September 2006 in spring 
plus summer versus spring only and non-cored 
bentgrass. Root TNC levels were similar on 25 May 
and 21 June, lower on 21 July, and higher on 4 August and 7 September in spring plus summer 
versus spring only and non-cored bentgrass. In 2007, root WSC levels generally were similar among coring treatments on most measurement 
dates (Table 4).  Root SC levels were lower on 1 and 28 June, similar on 17 July and 15 August, 
and higher on 6 September for spring plus summer cored versus non-cored bentgrass. No differences in root SC were observed on all five measurement 
dates between spring plus summer cored and 
spring only cored bentgrass. Root TNC levels were lower on 1 June and 17 July, similar on 28 June and 15 August, and higher 
on 6 September in spring plus summer compared Photosynthesis and whole plant respiration were determined by enclosing the turf canopy in a transparent plexiglass chamber 
attached to a CO2 analyserDedicate®, the ˜rst turf fungicide launched in Australia introducing two new active ingredients and two different modes of action. It provides preventative activity on the leaf surface and systemic activity internally against a broad range of turf diseases. Now there is a turf fungicide as dedicated to healthy, 
great looking turf as you are. For more information call Bayer Environmental Science on 1800 804 479. Always use according to product label. www.bayeres.com.au  Dedicate® is a Registered Trademark of Bayer.BAYE2895 Dedicate halfpge refresh FA.indd   19/7/10   9:07:24 AM42     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTRESEARCHto non-cored bentgrass. Creeping bentgrass roots subjected to spring plus summer coring had similar 
TNC levels on 1 and 28 June and 15 August, and 
lower TNC levels on 17 July versus spring only 
cored bentgrass. On 6 September, TNC levels were higher in spring plus summer cored than in spring 
only cored or non-cored bentgrass.DISCUSSIONData showed that Pn levels generally were similar among the three treatments throughout the 
experimental periods in both years. On the final 
measurement date in early September 2006 and 
2007 (i.e., 37 to 42 days since last cored), however, 
Pn was higher in spring plus summer cored than spring-only cored bentgrass.  Coring in the spring, 
however, did impact Rw on initial measurements. On 6 June 2006 and 31 May 2007, Rw was higher in spring plus summer cored versus non-
cored plots. Perhaps an increase in Rw occurred at this time because creeping bentgrass growth would 
be more rapid earlier in the year versus in summer. It 
also is possible that the larger diameter tines used in 
spring created more injury, resulting in an increase 
in RW. Thereafter, Rw levels were similar among all coring regimes in both years. Hence, coring in 
general did not negatively impact Pn or Rw. The rate of leaf and root regrowth following coring could depend on the availability of 
carbohydrates. Leaf carbohydrate levels were similar among rating dates and years. Highest levels of leaf 
carbohydrates were observed in spring at the time 
the first measurements were made in either May 
or June. Leaf WSC levels in both years generally 
were lowest in July. Leaf WSC levels were higher in 
September in spring plus summer versus the other 
coring treatments in 2006, but not in 2007. Leaf TNC levels also were higher in September in spring plus summer cored compared non-cored 
bentgrass in both years. Similarly, Narra et al. (2004) found that TNC levels in bentgrass clippings decreased in mid-July and August, but increased 
during autumn. There are no other known coring studies with which to compare our results. Mowing causes mechanical injury and does impact leaf carbohydrate levels. For example, a reduction in fructans and glucose in leaves was 
reported in response to mowing (Howieson and 
Christians, 2008; Volenec, 1986).  Howieson and 
Christians (2008) found that the duration and amount TABLE 4. ROOT TISSUE CARBOHYDRATE LEVELS.Treatments 1 June 28 June 17 July 15 Aug. 6 Sept.Œ WSC [glucose (mg/g)] ŒSP 22.2 a  18.2 a 35.4 ab 36.5 a 34.4 aSP + SU  20.3 a 19.1 a 32.5 b 38.0 a 36.9 aNC 22.5 a 18.8 a 37.4 a 38.2 a 37.0 aŒ SC [glucose (mg/g)] ŒSP  61.9 b 38.1 ab 19.7 a 22.1 a 25.3 abSP + SU   67.2 b 36.9 b 18.2 a 20.0 a 27.0 aNC 73.8 a 40.3 a 19.2 a 21.9 a 22.2 bŒ TNC [glucose (mg/g)] ŒSP  84.1 b 56.3 a 55.1 a 58.6 a 59.7 bSP + SU   87.5 b 56.0 a 50.7 b 58.0 a 63.9 aNC 96.3 a 59.0 a 56.6 a 60.1 a 59.2 bNB: WSC = water soluble carbohydrates, SC = storage carbohydrates, TNC = total non-structural carbohydrates. Means in a column for each carbohydrate parameter followed by the same letter are not significantly different.TABLE 3. LEAF TISSUE CARBOHYDRATE LEVELS.Treatments 1 June 28 June 17 July 15 Aug. 6 Sept.Œ WSC [glucose (mg/g)] ŒSP 40.9 a  40.5 a 27.1 ab 30.4 a 30.1 aSP + SU 38.9 a 40.9 a 25.7 b 29.9 a 27.6 bNC 40.5 a 39.9 a 30.0 a 30.5 a 28.6 abŒ SC [glucose (mg/g)] ŒSP  88.8 a 43.6 a 45.2 a 43.8 b 36.2 bSP + SU   78.9 b 44.5 a 41.6 b 50.2 a 39.4 aNC 87.5 a 43.1 a 40.9 b 45.3 b 36.8 bŒ TNC [glucose (mg/g)] ŒSP  129.7 a 84.1 b 71.3 a 74.2 b 66.3 bSP + SU   117.8 a 85.4 a 67.3 a 80.1 a 67.0 aNC 128.0 a 83.0 b 70.9 a 75.7 b 65.4 bNB: WSC = water soluble carbohydrates, SC = storage carbohydrates, TNC = total non-structural carbohydrates. Means in a column for each carbohydrate parameter followed by the same letter are 
not significantly different.Spring plus summer treatment involved coring in April combined with three summer corings using hollow tinesAUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT     43of fructan and glucose reduced was greatest in double-cut bentgrass. The aforementioned effects, 
however, were transient and leaf sugar levels were 
equivalent to those found in uncut bentgrass by 60 
hours following mowing. Root TNC levels were highest in the spring and lowest in late summer.  The summer decline of TNC 
levels in creeping bentgrass roots was previously 
reported by Xu and Huang (2003). Water-soluble 
carbohydrate levels in roots generally were similar 
on most rating dates. Storage carbohydrate and TNC root levels were highest in non-cored bentgrass 
in June 2007 and root TNC levels were lowest in 
spring plus summer cored bentgrass in July 2006 
and 2007. Otherwise, root carbohydrate levels were 
similar among coring treatments until September. 
Like leaves, TNC levels in roots were highest in May 
and June. Thereafter, TNC levels declined in 2006, but remained static in 2007. Root SC levels were on average 56 per cent (2006) and 22 per cent (2007) higher in September 
of each year in spring plus summer cored compared 
to non-cored bentgrass. Root TNC levels were 26 per 
cent (2006) and 8 per cent (2007) higher in spring 
plus summer cored versus non-cored bentgrass in 
September. Late-summer increases in TNC and SC 
levels associated with coring may have been due to 
improved nutrient (i.e., N) availability accorded by 
re-incorporation of soil and topdressing or improved 
oxygen availability. The higher leaf and root TNC levels found in creeping bentgrass in spring would be useful in 
assisting the turf in recovering from injury caused by 
the more invasive, large diameter tines. Lower TNC levels in summer, however, indicated that using a 
larger tine at this time would have a greater negative 
effect on plant recovery. Higher TNC levels in tissues 
of spring plus summer cored creeping bentgrass 
in September likely would enable plants to recover 
more rapidly from summer stresses in the autumn.  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSATM wishes to thank USGA TERO for allowing publication of this research (USGA TERO 8:6). For a full list of references contact the AGCSA.Following summer coring, plots were brushed to incorporate sand from cores, but no additional topdressing sand was applied44     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTTOURSDuring May 2010 Martin Greenwood (Kingston Heath Golf Club), Glenn Stuart (Metropolitan 
Golf Club), Hayden Mead (Spring Valley Golf Club), Shane Stuart (Long Island Country Club), Rod Tatt (Woodlands Golf Club) and Rob Halsall (GB&S Australia) travelled to New Zealand as part of a GB&S Australia Study Tour.Martin and Glenn were keynote speakers at the three-day South Island Fine Turf Seminar and joined the likes of Mark Perham (Eden Park, Auckland) and 
David Howard (NZSTI) as well as a host of local New 
Zealand superintendents and sports turf experts.As well as attending the seminar, the study tour also provided an opportunity to visit New Zealand™s 
finest golf courses including the world renowned 
Cape Kidnappers and Kauri Cliffs. The aim of the 
tour was to better acquaint ourselves with our Kiwi 
neighbours and to observe, discuss and compare 
some of the philosophies which have created such 
a unique golfing destination.It was the first visit to New Zealand for all of us and we were greeted with breathtaking views of the 
snow-capped Remarkables mountain range as we flew into Queenstown for the South Island Fine Turf Seminar which ran from 2-5 May at Rydges Hotel.The conference week began with golf at the picturesque Queenstown Golf Club, a par 72 course with a combination of challenging, scenic and 
unique holes laid out across the Kelvin Peninsula overlooking Lake Wakatipu. It was our first taste of fescue fairways and Egmont greens which Rod obviously enjoyed as he shot 73 to upset the locals.Following a mayoral welcome, the seminar sessions began and included some excellent 
presentations. Martin and Glenn both discussed the 
various histories of their golf clubs and joined David 
Howard to present on integrated pest management. 
Martin looked back at Kingston Heath™s hosting 
of the 2009 Australian Masters and together with 
Glenn spoke on playing surface management. 
Other informative topics included organic turf 
management (Ian Douglas, The Hills), wetting 
agents (John Illingworth) and managing rootzones (David Howard). The conference also afforded a number of visits to Queenstown™s many spectacular courses. 
One of the first courses visited was Millbrook,  a 
Greg Turner-Scott Macpherson designed course set in a natural, alpine amphitheatre against the 
backdrop of the Remarkables. The course boasts magnificent fescue/browntop fairways and Egmont 
greens and is the central feature of an exclusive 
housing development.Opened in 2007, The Hills has hosted the last three New Zealand Opens and is set on over 100 hectares of a former deer farm on the outskirts of 
Arrowtown in Central Otago. Trees, both native and exotic, are a feature of the course. The wetland 
areas include 10 lakes and various ponds and have 
been planted out with varieties of New Zealand 
flax, toetoe, cabbage tree and wetland grasses and 
reeds. More than 5000 red and silver tussock plants 
create a spectacular visual statement.Arrowtown Golf Club proved to be one of the highlights of our trip. A classic, character-filled golf 
course built amongst historic stone cottage ruins, 
it™s undulating greens, tight fairways and natural 
rocky outcrops make this unique course a must see 
for anyone heading to the South Island.The afternoon of the last day of the seminar was spent at the stunning Jack™s Point. Nestled 
at the base of spectacular mountain ranges and 
overlooking Lake Wakatipu, the course traverses 
wetland areas to the lake edge, encountering steep 
bluffs, indigenous vegetation and wildlife. The 
Egmont greens and tees were both cut at the same 
height and along with the fescue fairways provided 
golfers with fantastic playing surfaces. Extensive 
sheeps/hard fescue rough areas also complimented 
the golf course.New Zealand is quickly establishing itself as one of the world™s hottest golfing destinations and for a group of Melbourne superintendents their first visit across the Ditch back in May left some lasting impressions. Here Rob Halsall recounts the trip which took in the likes of Jacks Point, Cape Kidnappers and Kinloch. Jack Nicklaus™s rugged KinlochTrans-TasmanTrans-TasmantravelsAUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT     45NORTHERN EXPOSUREFollowing the seminar, we embarked on the second leg of the journey which saw a road trip throughout the North Island. A flight from Queenstown took us to Wellington where our first stop was the magnificent 
Alex Russell-designed Paraparaumu Golf Club.Paraparaumu is a world renowned layout on the undulating dune land of the Kapiti Coast and has 
hosted an unprecedented 12 New Zealand Opens. Leo Barber has the inimitable role of superintendent/
general manager and has challenged his club to 
improve and restore the course to its original model. 
With slick Poa annua/bentgrass greens, fescue 
fairways and a magnificent layout, Paraparaumu 
was certainly one of the country™s hidden gems.From there we headed east up the coast to the world famous Cape Kidnappers. Completed in 
2004 by Tom Doak, the course is located among spectacular landscape overlooking Hawke™s Bay. 
Doak probably best describes the golf course: 
fiOur goal in designing golf courses is to create 
interesting holes you wouldn™t find anywhere else. 
That wasn™t hard to do at Cape Kidnappers.flSuperintendent Steve Marsden presented the golf course in great condition and we all enjoyed 
the opportunity to play. We were interested to hear 
how Steve looked at Poa annua management and controlling potentially debilitating thatch collapse 
issues. Travelling inland to Taupo we discovered what must rank as one of Jack Nicklaus™s finest works Œ Kinloch.  After four years of planning and 
construction, the Golden Bear fulfilled a lifelong ambition to create a golf course in New Zealand. 
The layout is wonderfully strategic with undulating 
fairways and greens and fescue encrusted bunkers 
providing a real test of golf.Similar to Cape Kidnappers, cattle were used to control the luxuriant fescue rough areas Πtemporary 
electric fencing was used to keep cattle within the 
rough confines on a rotating schedule. With such a 
magnificent result, we all wondered how we could 
implement the initiative into our respective courses. 
Unfortunately, financial constraints including a 
recent change of ownership has stalled progressive 
development of the clubhouse and golf course.After a long drive north the next stop was Kauri Cliffs which is situated on a spectacular site 
overlooking Matauri Bay in the Bay of Islands. The 
weather conditions were less than ideal with gale 
force winds and at times, driving rain but this didn™t 
deter six Aussies as we really enjoyed the golf 
course, particularly the SR1119/1020 greens. Following an extended drought in the area, superintendent Andy Wood welcomed the timely precipitation as he had oversown much of the golf 
course with ryegrass only a week earlier. We were 
interested in some of the techniques Andy and his 
staff used to control Poa annua in the cool-season environment. Back in Auckland we had the opportunity to visit Titirangi Golf Club before flying home. Alister Mackenzie visited Titirangi in the early 1930s for a brief period and drew up a basic course layout 
and green designs (these sketches are on display 
in the clubhouse). He described the land as being 
fiexceptionally well adapted for golf, undulating 
without being hilly.fl The club is attempting to restore the course back to its former architectural glory with 
an ongoing reconstruction plan. Superintendent Todd Fletcher had the golf course in great condition with fescue fairways, 
Manor browntop tees and Egmont/browntop/Poa annua greens. Todd has used a number of specific wetting agents to successfully prevent/reduce the 
incidence of black layer in new greens.  The New Zealand experience was one which we will all long remember. In just 10 days we had 
attended the very informative South Island Fine Turf Seminar, visited the best golf courses in the country 
and created some key relationships with our Kiwi 
neighbours. We returned much better informed on 
cool-season grass management and are now more 
aware of the potential role of fescues in the golf 
course environment. We all agreed that visiting New Zealand is like the kiwifruit Πonce you get through 
that rough exterior, the taste is irresistible.Cape Kidnappers is a must visit on any trip to New ZealandGetting their first taste of New Zealand™s finest golf courses were from left Martin Greenwood, Rob Halsall, Hayden Mead, Shane 
Stuart, Glenn Stuart and Rod TattFar left: Nestled at the base of spectacular 
mountain ranges and overlooking Lake Wakatipu, Jack™s Point in Queensland traverses wetland areas to the lake edge, encountering steep bluffs, 
indigenous vegetation and wildlife46     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTWATER MANAGEMENTPRINCIPAL PARTNERSIn 2008 Pennant Hills Golf Club in Sydney became the first club in Australia to invest in sewer mining technology to help remedy ongoing issues with water availability. Two years later and as course superintendent Rob Bradley writes, Curlewis Golf Club near Geelong in Victoria is hoping to following in Pennant Hills™ footsteps.Water has always been an issue that has plagued Curlewis Golf Club ever since 
Vern Morcom first tabled his designs for the course back in 1947. It stopped construction of the course in the early stages after the primary 
bore was found to be too brackish before failing 
altogether, and it wasn™t until the development of 
a town reticulation scheme that the course was 
completed and opened in the early 1970s. Since starting here as course superintendent in June 1993, water has continued to dominate 
discussions and the years where some form of water 
restrictions were not in place have been very few 
and far between. The real low point came during the summer of 2006/2007 where no town water was 
available for outside use. As a result of that long, 
hard summer, course quality dropped dramatically 
and even now some areas of the course are still 
recovering. With competition from newer clubs such as 13th Beach and The Sands, Torquay and other clubs that had resolved their water issues, Curlewis 
was in danger of losing members as well as green 
fee players. Financially that 2006/2007 period was very costly and provided the kick in the backside 
that the club needed after the ‚no worries™ attitude 
that had been prevalent before. Since then water 
has become the club™s number one priority with a 
number of options being investigated.TAPPING INCurlewis Golf Club is located in what might be called 
the ‚middle of nowhere™ as far as the Geelong region 
is concerned, which currently makes the harvesting of extraneous storm water not an option as yet. 
While there is a reasonable volume of water that we 
can harvest from rain events as course run-off, in 
the scheme of our total requirement it has proven to 
be inadequate. Inside the next 10-15 years with the urban sprawl that has already started nearby it will 
be another option to be explored, but as we all know 
it still needs to rain.Bore water was also investigated, but with salt levels being very high (tests from a number of local 
bores were undertaken) together with predominantly 
low flows being the likely outcome, it would become 
a very costly and unjustifiable exercise to produce 
serviceable water from a desalination plant.With local water authority Barwon Water™s Drysdale-Leopold raising sewer running along the 
old Geelong-Queenscliff railway line parallel to our 
northern course boundary, it was considered worthy 
researching sewer mining as a potential water 
source option. The Internet, being the valuable tool that it is, readily showed that we potentially had all 
the water we needed running past our doorstep. This mainline, as we discovered, takes 450 million litres (ML) of sewage per year to the Black 
Rock treatment plant near 13th Beach, with 
indications that it will increase to 750ML/y in the 
future. The Black Rock plant supplies Class C 
treated water to 13th Beach, Barwon Heads and 
The Sands, Torquay golf clubs as well to a number of nearby farms. We approached Barwon Water to see if sewer mining was a permissible option and we were 
met with a very positive, albeit cautious response. 
Finally, we had a direction in which to go.EXPERT HELPWith Pennant Hills Golf Club in Sydney having 
recently commissioned their plant, a seminar in 
Melbourne on recycled water seemed a good next 
step with the construction company of that project 
being among those who presented. New club manager Mat Loughnane and I attended and left 
full of enthusiasm and interest in the sewer mining 
process.Curlewis Golf Club is set to embark on a sewer mining project to help end its reliance on potable waterreclamationWaterCurlewisreviveprojecttoreclamationreviveAUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT     47With Mat™s contacts through the Golf Manager™s Association he was able to find more about the ins and outs of such a project as Pennant Hills, which 
was a first for Sydney Water. This was also to be a 
first for our local water authority.The most logical first step for our project was to enlist a consultant to help with the project and guide 
us through the many detailed processes. In my 
experience smaller clubs like us tend to go it alone 
and spend money in areas that they need not to and 
make limited progress. We choose Kurt Dahl from Permeate Partners as his experience with the Pennant Hills project 
and sewer mining/storm water reclamation projects 
made him an ideal candidate.We started the process by endeavouring to establish our potential water requirements. Using figures based on past usage was hard because our 
fairway irrigation system had only been used once 
without limited water access since 2000 because of 
the imposition of Level 3 and 4 water restrictions. 
So, basing my figures on local evaporation rates and 
those of other local veteran superintendents, I made sure that I was close to the mark. My first thought that anything more than 10ML would be great was 
obviously not the answer required.A plant specification was formulated with a budget in mind and our decision was to take the 
minimalist approach with the ability to expand in the 
future. An output of 260,000 litres a day was what 
we were looking at. With adequate storage facilities 
the plant would give us the opportunity, if required, 
to water our greens five times per week, tees twice a 
week and fairways once or twice depending on the 
needs of the soil type. The nutrient output of the plant was specified so that we could obtain as good a balance as we 
could get without there being a huge increase in 
cost of stripping nutrients back further. Our concern 
was more for potential impact on the greens than 
anywhere else on the course as we currently use 
limited nitrogen as part of our programme. With 
the help of Darren Cribbes looking at our nutrition 
programme and plant balance, it showed that 
getting two consultants on the same page earlier 
rather than later is very handy.Once we had the water, nutrients and specifications worked out, Kurt started to earn his 
money. He met with local authorities in Geelong and 
ironically every time he did so it seemed to rain (we 
could have saved money by flying him down weekly 
during watering times).  We are now a year on after the holding of a special meeting at which the proposal for the project 
was approved by 98 per cent of the 189 members 
in attendance without a sod having been turned. 
A company has been selected for the plant, and 
approvals from local authorities have been finally 
received. Earthmovers are ready to cut an access/construction road, so hopefully by the time you are 
reading this edition we will have some action which 
will satisfy our impatient members.As is normal in a project of this size and type you look early for help from members and other contacts 
with the hope of someone having a foot in a door 
somewhere. In the beginning we had very little, but now things are happening a few have come out of 
the woodwork. The club has also been fortunate in 
securing some grant money through the Victorian 
Government™s Smart Water Fund and was one of 17 successful projects announced to receive funding 
in July 2010. Hopefully, come next summer I will have something that has water coming out the end of it 
and onto the golf course. So far it has been a very 
interesting experience and not one I had foreseen 
back in 1988 when I left New Zealand and joined 
The Lakes, that™s for sure.Curlewis Golf Club superintendent Rob BradleyPast summers have proven cruel for Curlewis with the club seeing a drop in revenue and membership 
as a result of the drought48     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTCOUNTRY PROFILEShe rides a Harley, plays rugby league for the Sunshine Coast Sirens and when she isn™t pulling on a helmet or lacing up Kirsty Herring is course superintendent at Cooroy Golf Club. Here she takes ATM inside turf management operations at the south-east Queensland course.Superintendent: Kirsty Herring.Age: 30.
Period as a superintendent: 14 months.
Association involvement: AGCSA, GCSAQ.Previous clubs:  Horton Park Golf Club (greenkeeper,  one year); Berkeley Hall Golf Club, 
South Carolina, USA  (spray technician, one year); Horton Park Golf Club (apprentice greenkeeper, 
three years); Beachmere Bowls Club (apprentice 
greenkeeper, two years).
Turf management qualifications: Cert. III Turf Management (Grovely TAFE). Currently studying Degree in Turf Science through University of Queensland.Tell us a bit about your background in turf management. How did you start out in the 
industry?  At the age of 20 I was unemployed and 
with my past experience being in data entry and 
office work I needed a change. I volunteered at 
Beachmere Bowls Club to help the local greenkeeper 
and keep myself busy and after three months I was 
offered an apprenticeship. From there I spent the next two years pestering local golf courses until Pat Pauli at Horton Park Golf 
Club decided he liked the idea of having a woman on 
staff in the hope I would have attention to detail and take care of machinery (perhaps an unwarranted 
assumption). I finished my apprenticeship under 
Pat™s wing and hooked up with the Ohio State 
Program which took me to Berkeley Hall, a private 
course in South Carolina, where I worked mainly as a spray tech. During my time there I got the opportunity to work The Heritage PGA at Harbour Town and the US Ladies Open at Pinehurst. I came home and 
continued at Horton Park until the 2IC position at 
Cooroy came up. Within eight months of moving 
here I was appointed superintendent.You are one of only a handful of women to rise to the position of superintendent in Australia. How 
do you find working in such a male-dominated 
industry and what qualities do you think you 
bring to the job?  There™s no denying this is a male-
dominated industry and I was aware of that right 
from the get go. Getting a foot in the door was the 
hardest part. Once people understand that you™re 
not afraid of hard work and you™re just as capable as 
anyone else, they are excited to have a woman for 
a change. I still get a lot of reps show up asking to 
see my boss and they seem pretty surprised when 
I say fiYou™re looking at her!fl Having said that, local 
superintendents have been very supportive.   CooroyGolf ClubQLDCooroyGolf ClubAUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT     49I™m not sure being a woman brings anything different to the job, it™s really the individual. I work hard to integrate good turf nutrition, the environment, legislation and practicality into turf management, but 
I think most superintendents in 2010 think that way. Give us an overview of Cooroy Golf Club and some of its unique characteristics? Cooroy Golf Club opened as a nine-hole course in 1936 and 
it wasn™t until 2005 that it became an 18-hole 
operation, so half the course is relatively new. It™s located on the edge of the hinterland 
just 15 minutes away from the 
heart of Noosa boasting a picturesque country setting 
including some amazing 
views of Cooroy Mountain 
and the surrounding 
valleys. The course itself 
has a good rustic feel to it 
and it™s also challenging 
with some great doglegs 
and tricky holes that even 
get the professionals 
scratching their heads.   Take us through your turf management operations there and 
how have you fine-tuned them 
during your time as superintendent?  
My main focus is turf health for the 
future. The greens have suffered a lot with disease over the last few years Π
we nearly lost two greens to pythium 
last year and are battling brown patch 
this year Œ so it™s all about really good 
nutritional and cultural practices to 
see healthier greens and spend less 
money down the track. What are some of the unique features about 
Cooroy Golf Club from a turf management 
perspective? Is it an easy/hard facility to 
manage? The whole course is built on clay. Rainfall 
up here can be extreme at times, and in the first six 
months of 2009 for instance we received 1700mm 
and then not a single drop for the remainder of the 
year which made it very difficult to grow grass. The 
greens only make up 6000m2 so they™re easy to manage. Having said that, since coming here I have seen every disease, weed and insect known to man 
on these 328 greens! What are some of the major challenges facing Cooroy Golf Club both from a turf management 
and general club management perspective?  Drainage is probably our biggest issue. With a solid 
clay base water lays around for long periods of 
time and underground springs pop up everywhere 
meaning buggies struggle to get out during the wet 
season which creates a financial strain, but I think a lot of small courses deal with similar stresses. It™s 
just going to be a gradual process of working from 
hole to hole fixing the problem areas.Outline any major course improvement works you have completed or that are in the pipeline?
We™re in the process of rebuilding our 7th tee and 
have two more to move to create a safer playing 
area for the golfers. We™re also looking at major 
drainage issues in the next 12 months and adding 
some bunkers to increase the difficulty.Water is obviously a critical issue around the country at present. How is Cooroy faring?  It™s 
difficult for sure. We get heavy rainfall in short periods and then can go long periods with nothing. Last year we had six months without a drop Œ our driest time in 20 years Œ and the dams were down to a puddle. I had to stop watering tees in September and push the greens as long as I could in between each watering. We didn™t mow fairways or tees for five months and it was January before we really saw any decent rainfall.  The biggest problem is storage and not being able to catch the massive 
amounts we get early in 
the year. In saying that we are lucky and I guess some places would love to get as much rain as we do.What are some pros and cons of being a regional superintendent?  People are very generous towards regional courses. Labourers and manufacturers are more likely to donate their time and products to help Cooroy Golf Club superintendent Kirsty HerringFar left: Cooroy Golf Club, situated 
about 15-20 minutes inland from Noosa Heads, opened as a nine-hole course in 1936 but it wasn™t 
until 2005 that it became an 18-hole operationLeft: Cooroy Golf Club affords some spectacular views of Cooroy Mountain and the surrounding 
valleys50     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTCOUNTRY PROFILEWhere in the world is Cooroy? Cooroy is about 15-20 minutes inland from Noosa Heads on Queensland™s Sunshine Coast.Course specs: 18 holes, 5326m. Greens: 328 cut at 3.8mm over summer and 5mm over winter.Tees: Greenlees Park/carpet grass cut at 9mm.
Fairways: Carpet grass/blue couch cut at 17mm over summer and 
20mm over winter.
Members: 450 full members and 100 social members.Annual rounds: 12000 (includes competition and social). 
Major tournaments/events: 2010 Queensland Police Games. We host many women™s invitational days and were also very lucky to 
host a Chaplaincy Charity Day with Katherine Hull which will hopefully 
become an annual event.
Annual budget:  Total course management budget including wages, daily running costs, chemicals/ferts, machinery maintenance, repairs 
and replacement is between $350,000-$400,000.
Staff structure: Wayne Patston (general manager), Paul Dawson 
(assistant superintendent), Scott Gordon (groundsman) and Daniel Manning (groundsman).
Water sources: We have a small creek system that runs through the course and into Lake Macdonald which we pull directly from and two 
back-up dams with a pipe system pumping into the creek during dry 
times. We are also in the process of installing a bore as an emergency 
backup. 
Irrigation system: We have automated irrigation to greens and tees. 
We run two Grundfos multi-staging inline pumps with a variable 
speed controller and use a Hunter ICC. Sprinkler heads vary greatly 
from green to green.Renovations: We scarify early September then core with 5/8fl tines in early October removing the cores, heavy topdress with Mary 
River sand after coring then light dustings throughout summer. We 
use solid needle tines every 6-8 weeks over summer to help water 
infiltration and get oxygen to the roots in the wetter months. We lightly 
groom them monthly over the growing period.
Major disease/pest pressures: Brown patch has been our biggest issue for the last two years; we just can™t seem to get it down to an 
acceptable level. With brown patch came pythium last year which 
nearly cost us two greens but once identified and treated correctly 
hasn™t been a problem since. Mole crickets are always an ongoing 
battle. Tired of using ineffective pesticides, I spent a whole day last summer pouring soapy water down their holes Πtime-consuming but 
effective!AT A GLANCE - COOROY GOLF CLUBA small creek system is Cooroy™s primary water sourceyou out of a jam. I don™t think you™d see that so much in big city courses. Funds are always tight and you have to do most things the hard way. For instance, we topdress all our greens by hand which 
is time-consuming so it doesn™t get done often 
enough and is hard to do accurately which can lead 
to localised dry patch issues. We also walk spray all 
our greens which has its ups and downs. The one product I couldn™t manage my course without is– Wetting agent. We use Mary River sand 
to topdress and doing it by hand means we have dry 
patch on a regular basis.Are expectations of course presentation and conditioning any less than that placed on 
your metropolitan counterparts? It™s the total 
opposite. Members and visitors see other courses 
with beautiful irrigated fairways and greens/bunkers 
manicured by 12 staff and expect your course to 
look the same. I think we have to work a lot harder with a lot less to produce something people want 
to come to.Do you have to be more resourceful as a regional superintendent? You definitely have to be a jack 
of all trades. I™m currently an apprentice bush mechanic and I have certainly learnt a lot about 
machinery in the two years I have been here. You can™t just go out and buy anything you need. You 
want a dew broom, you build one. The boys are very innovative and can create just about anything 
with a few planks of wood, an old mower blade and 
some bolts.If you could change one thing about your job as a regional superintendent what would it be and Cooroy™s fairways are a mix of carpet grass and blue couchAUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT     51OFF THE COURSE - KIRSTY HERRINGFamily: Myself, my partner of three years and my Harley Davidson Sportster 883cc (pictured)!Any claims to fame outside of turf management? Played representative rugby union for South East 
Queensland in 2006.
Any unusual hobbies/past-times away from 
turf? I play rugby league for the Sunshine Coast Sirens and hopefully by the time this goes to print 
we will have won the grand final!
Favourite sporting team? Cronulla Sharks. Yes, I haven™t had much to cheer about in the last few 
years!
What book are you reading now? ‚Live to Ride™ magazine.
Golf handicap? Myself!
Favourite golfer? John Daly and Katherine Hull.
The best thing about Cooroy (aside from the golf club and its turf surfaces) is– its location. It™s a 
quiet little township nestled in the hills and close to some of the best beaches in the world.
What do you do to get away from it all? Jump on my sporty and cruise up the hills looking for a nice 
pub. Love camping and a fish as well.why?  Probably the limited funds; it™d be nice to just 
pick and choose any machines you want.How important are the relationships you have with nearby regional course supers/trade reps?  Hugely important, especially for myself just starting 
out as a superintendent. I™ve been very lucky. Guys like Pat Pauli (Horton Park GC) and Peter Smith (Tewantin Noosa GC) have more years™ experience between them than I™ve had hot dinners and I™m very fortunate that they, and all the superintendents 
on the Sunshine Coast, have been so helpful and encouraging. Ian Allison, my local Globe rep, has been great and a bloke that™s a bit of a local legend as far as 
I™m concerned is Peter Knock from Peter™s Turf Equipment Services. He™ll bend over backwards to 
help get a machine up and running and he™s even 
given me step-by-step instructions over the phone 
one time. He takes a lot of stress off me.Given your distance from the major metro areas, how do you make sure you keep abreast of the 
latest turf management techniques and methods?  
Well, the Internet is a wonderful thing; there™s really nothing you can™t find out if you Google it! The 
AGCSA™s website is always handy keeping you up to date with upcoming events, research and general 
turf news. And there are a few other good ones Π
Pest Genie for instance. Of course, having a chat 
with local supers is always insightful. I think it™s very 
important to attend any education days/seminars 
that are nearby also.Do you think regional/country superintendents have a better work-life balance than their metro 
counterparts? To a certain degree they™d have to but really it™s up to the individual. It just depends how much you™re willing to put in.What are some of the more unusual requests/
things you have had to do as a superintendent 
of a regional course (not necessarily turf 
management related)? Chasing dingoes off the 
course or removing their aftermath from greens is a 
fairly regular occurrence.What have you got in your shed?    Jacobsen 3800 fairway unit;   Jacobsen GKIV greens mower;   Jacobsen Turfcat 628 rough mower;   Toro Reelmaster 3100D tees/surrounds mower;   Old Toro Reelmaster 6500D; and   A couple of old Toro greens mowers and a John Deere front deck roughcutter.The John Deere rough mower is definitely the most beat up piece of machinery around here. If I came back in a second life as one of them I™d be very afraid! A topdresser would be my priority then maybe a flash spray rig and another Turfcat.Favourite spot on your course?  The creek in front of the 7th tee where the turtles like to sunbathe.Most pleasing/rewarding moment during your time as Cooroy GC superintendent? Everyday 
Πjust listening to the members/visitors and the 
positive things they have to say. The boys and I 
have been working hard on lots of little projects 
over winter and the place is just looking fantastic at 
the moment.Name three golf courses that you would like most to visit and why? Pebble Beach, Sawgrass (stood at the driveway once!) and of course Augusta (stood 
at the driveway there too...too scared to drive down 
it just in case security carried me away). They all just look amazing and I think they™re America™s best.    Cooroy Golf Club hosts numerous women™s invitational golf days and also hosted the 2010 Queensland Police Games tournament52     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTNEWSA better understanding of pesticides and the risks associated with their routine application 
to vegetation in Western Australian urban, natural and agricultural environments will improve 
the management of potential public health and 
environmental risks.  Able to migrate through air, sediment, groundwater and surface runoff, for example, 
the extent and ways in which pesticides leach 
through soil to non-target zones, such as lakes 
and rivers, was the focus of a recent University of Western Australia (UWA) workshop at its Institute 
of Agriculture on the Crawley campus.  Hosted by 
UWA™s School of Earth and Environment and School 
of Plant Biology, it discussed recent developments 
in pesticide fate, risk assessment and regulations.After recently meeting with concerned representatives of local government and discussing 
pesticide management, UWA Associate Professor 
Louise Barton and co-leader of the UWA Turf Research Program in the School of Plant Biology, 
approached UWA colleagues and specialists in 
the field, Professor Christoph Hinz and Dr Gavan 
McGrath, to present a workshop exploring current 
practices in pesticide management.Dr McGrath said there was a need for a formalised, agreed risk assessment procedure, 
including an evidence-based evaluation system 
and effective data collection, in order to manage 
the risks.fiPotential impacts such as contamination of our drinking water supply, dermal contact by children 
in parks and playgrounds, inhalation of spray drift 
and environmental effects, such as those on frogs 
in our surface water bodies, lakes and rivers, can™t 
be ignored,fl Dr McGrath commented. fiWe need to 
create a culture where by sharing information we 
help create a solution and the full room today proves 
the clear need for better understanding of pesticide 
risk assessment.flAccording to Associate Professor Barton, a very real need for more science and greater evidence based information had been identified for those 
managing turfgrass in urban environments and 
about 50 consultants, state and local government 
representatives and turfgrass managers were 
therefore invited to participate in the UWA workshop.fiAttendees had a common interest in better understanding all aspects of pesticide leaching and 
what that meant for those applying the pesticides 
and for members of the public,fl she said.In discussing pesticide regulation in Australia and overseas, Dr McGrath said there was a 
need for funding to build a responsible pesticide 
management regime.fiUnder Australia™s existing regulatory regime, responsibility for minimising risk to health and the 
environment is the responsibility of the user, who is 
most often the least informed on the possible risks 
to people and the environment,fl he said. fiWe™re not 
equipped in WA with a proper process in place to 
protect end users.flDr McGrath said progress on pesticide risk management in New Zealand and some parts 
of Europe offered a good example of the future 
direction needed for WA.fiThe latest European Union directive for 2011 includes safeguard zones for any surface and 
groundwater used for drinking water, prohibited use 
in specific areas used by the general public, residue 
limits for foods and training for pesticide users and 
salespeople,fl he said.Participants agreed there was a need for an easy-to-use risk management tool, developed in 
consultation with regulators, scientists and end-
users, to assist WA turfgrass managers to better 
choose the type and timing of pesticide applications.To demonstrate the need for tighter regulation, Professor Hinz discussed field experiments, risk 
modelling, atmospheric and rainfall components 
and how soil and water contribute to the off-site flow 
of pesticides.fiA key challenge is managing the multitude of pathways through which pesticides can migrate, 
including through air, sediment, groundwater, 
surface runoff and biological factors,fl he said.Town of Bassendean Director of Operational Services, Simon Stewert-Dawkins, said the UWA 
workshop provided a good opportunity to learn 
about recent developments in pesticide regulation 
in Australia.fiOur staff use chemicals in accordance with manufacturers™ instructions and the Town™s Occupational Health and Safety Chemical Spraying Guidelines,fl he said. fiBased on information 
presented at the workshop, I am keen for the 
pesticide industry to develop an easy-to-use, 
computer-based risk assessment tool that could 
be applied to various WA soil types associated with 
turf and bush rehabilitation areas and for general 
horticultural crops.flAt the UWA Institute of Agriculture pesticide leaching workshop were (from left) Associate Professor Louise Barton, Professor Christoph Hinz and Dr Gavan McGrath all of the UWA School of Earth and EnvironmentUWA HOSTS PESTICIDE LEACHING WORKSHOP AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT     53Invasive roots have always been the bane of superintendents and turf managers when 
it comes to drainage issues. That said, however, the crew at Barossa Valley Golf Club 
(SA) still couldn™t quite believe their eyes while 
rectifying some drainage issues recently. Course 
superintendent and AGCSA member Stephen Chapman, who sent in the accompanying photo, 
takes up the story: fiWe were having some problems with drainage on a section of our 8th green. We 
thought that the subsurface drains were starting to 
silt up so we decided to install new drains on the 
edge of the green. After the turf was removed and 
the trenches dug we located the existing green 
drainage outlet pipe. We were planning to join the 
new drains into this pipe but after cutting a hole 
we discovered that the pipe was full of roots. With further investigation we found that sometime in the past the pipe had been hit by 
a trenching machine. After cutting the pipe we 
began to pull out a mass of tree roots which had 
filled the 90mm wide pipe for a distance of 12 
metres. No wonder the green wouldn™t drain!flBAROSSA CREW GETS TO THE ROOT OF 
DRAINAGE PROBLEMA group of turf management students from New Zealand™s Otago Polytechnic fundraised 
for more than 18 months to fund a recent study tour across to Melbourne. Led by sports 
turf programme manager Gary Smith, the group 
of eight Year 2 students spent a week in late-July/
early-August visiting some of Melbourne™s leading 
sports turf facilities including the MCG and Royal Melbourne Golf Club.To raise enough funds, students undertook a variety of work including course preparations 
at The Hills which hosts the New Zealand Open. No project was too big or small and the students 
assisted golf course contractors building greens 
and tees, installing irrigation and laying lawns for 
local residences. They even sold firewood.fiWe have students who want to work on golf courses and at stadiums so we decided 
that Melbourne was the best place to visit world 
class venues to cover all aspects of sports turf 
management regarding cool- and warm-season 
grasses,fl says Smith.The trip across got off to the right start with the group among the 51,000-strong crowd at Etihad 
Stadium that witnessed the All Blacks chalk up 
a victory over the Wallabies. A few days later the 
students were on the much-talked about surface 
itself with fellow countryman and Etihad Stadium arena manager Gavin Darby who discussed some of 
the many management challenges he faces. The group also visited the MCG, Flemington and Melbourne™s newest sporting facility AAMI Park 
before heading to the famed sandbelt where they 
were shown around Metropolitan, Kingston Heath and Woodlands. The final day saw the group head 
to the Mornington Peninsula where they inspected 
The National Golf Club and Moonah Links.fiIt was great to listen to the different philosophy each turf manager had regarding managing 
their venues,fl says Smith. fiThere was also great 
interaction between the turf managers and students 
who were able to get a real insight into management 
practices. fiWe really appreciated the time that all superintendents and turf managers set aside for 
us. The students were amazed by the hospitality we 
were shown and when Martin Greenwood said we 
were lunch quests at Kingston Heath, you couldn™t 
get better than that. It was a trip of a lifetime for the 
students and Otago Polytechnic sports turf lecturers 
and we hope to bring the next intake of students 
over again in 2011.flNZ STUDENTS GET A TASTE OF MELBOURNE TURF54     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTNEWSRegional superintendents and their crews are often called upon to undertake a raft of non-
turf related projects, but not even Murray Bridge Golf Club™s indomitable duo of Mal Grundy 
and assistant Mal McDonald could quite believe 
what came their way back in March.The course, located about 45 minutes east of Adelaide, became the staging ground for a 
twilight musical spectacular as part of the year-long 
Ripples Regional Centre of Culture festival. On 
the evening of 20 March, more than 6000 people 
descended on the club™s 8th fairway to listen to the 
Adelaide Symphony Orchestra play a full repertoire 
of classical hits, complete with Tchaikovsky™s 1812 Overture as the grand finale and a $20,000 fireworks 
display.fiMinding my own business while slaving away one day in early 2009, I get a call from manager Stephen Cocks who wanted me at the 
clubhouse pronto,fl recounts Grundy, who has been 
superintendent at Murray Bridge for the past 28 
years. fiOn arriving a small crew of well-dressed, 
high-heeled clad women greeted me explaining 
they represented Country Arts South Australia and that a year-long calendar of arts events was being 
planned for Murray Bridge in 2010. You can imagine 
what I was thinking. The only art I™ve seen is some of the handy work caused by vandals on our greens, 
usually before a major event. fiThey wanted to see if we could host a twilight symphony and after showing them around the 
course in the work ute and looking at our golf 
calendar with Stephen, we decided on a date in February 2010 and chose the 8th fairway as the setting. Having then planned my course works 
around this event because there™s only two of us on 
staff, several months later we get a call saying they 
wanted to move the date back to 20 March Πthe 
same week we were due to core and topdress the 
greens!flUndeterred the event went ahead as planned and on the Monday prior three semi-trailers worth of 
rigging material turned up. Within three days a 15m 
high 50mx50m sound stage to seat 86 musicians 
had been erected at the start of the 8th fairway 
together with marquees, drinks tents, a sound 
booth, lighting towers, portaloos and pyrotechnic 
equipment. fiIt was a pretty hectic week, especially seeing we were coring, sanding and adding amendments, 
but Dave Rogers from Turf Ace did a sterling job and got the job done with minimal fuss,fl says 
Grundy. fiThe club and committee really rallied and 
got behind the event and members and volunteers 
helped with parking, serving and the clean up. fiThe day was a perfect 28oC and families arrived by the score and kids enjoyed playing on the 
adjacent fairways with soccer balls, footies, kites–
and ‚Dad, look at those sand pits!™ Yes, the bunkers 
copped a hiding but we expected that.  We left all 
the flags and markers out and only one flag was 
thrown to the side of a green where on any other 
weekend we can lose five or more. The budget for 
the whole programme was just short of $300,000.
The crackers went for 2mins 37sec and they were 
very impressive. The whole course lit up.fl Murray Bridge Golf Club became the staging ground for a twilight symphony spectacular back in March as part of the Ripples Regional Centre of Culture festival. More than 6000 flocked to the golf course for the eventMURRAY BRIDGE MALS HIT THE RIGHT NOTESAUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT     55LETTER TO THE EDITORDear editor,Further to the discussion about golf course rankings from the past two issues of ATM, Australian Golf Digest would like to add some brief 
input based on our long-standing biennial Top 100 Courses ranking. I don™t need to go into great detail, 
as we generally agree with most of Brendan James™ 
points from last issue:  We, too, seek to be fair, accurate and therefore 
credible;  Our advertising staff are completely shut out of 
the entire ranking process. They don™t know the 
make up of the final ranking list until the Top 100 Courses issue is printed;  We, too, are more than happy for judges to 
visit courses anonymously. It™s a practice we encourage, where possible;  Numerical shifts in ranking are not necessarily an indication of a problem with the golf course. 
In our opinion, publishing a Top 100 is far, far more difficult than a Top 50 list. Most clubs know in their hearts whether or not their course is a 
legitimate top-50 golf course. Plenty of clubs, 
however, feel they have a place in that ultra-
volatile second 50. The points average between 
course No.40 and the course that would rank 
120th is far closer than most people realise. 
That™s why a course can move from, say, 52nd 
to 85th for no apparent reason. The average 
scores are just that close.However, Golf Australia magazine™s assertion about our approach to conditioning is flat-out wrong. 
Conditioning makes up just 20 per cent of a course™s 
overall mark in Australian Golf Digest, which is no more than any other single criteria. A ranking 
seeking credibility can™t give conditioning greater 
weight than design. We take conditioning on merit. 
An astute judge can tell the difference between 
genuinely poor conditioning and what is merely the 
result of a harsh winter, for instance. In fact, beginning with the 2010 ranking, we have altered our interpretation of the conditioning 
criteria to better reflect the challenges faced by golf 
course superintendents in Australia. It now reads: 
fiHow fast, firm and rolling were the fairways, and 
how firm yet receptive were the greens on the date 
you last played the course?fl and is indicative of the 
move away from the figreener is betterfl mindset.This role has taken me everywhere from Mossman Golf Club in tropical north Queensland to 
Kingston Beach in southern Hobart; from Augusta 
Golf Club in south-western WA to Byron Bay on our 
eastern tip; from the outback outposts of Broken Hill 
and Alice Springs to the Whitsunday tropics Πand 
everywhere in between. We™re extremely mindful 
of the challenges of maintaining golf courses in a 
country that is so climatically diverse.STEVE KEIPERTEDITOR, AUSTRALIAN GOLF DIGESTAustralian Golf Digest published its Top 100 Australian Courses rankings back in MarchGrand Prix is protected by  Plant Breeders Rights (PBR)Introducing...56     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTAROUND THE TRADENEW METERS GO WITH THE FLOWRain Bird Australia can now supply a series of three fixed-depth insertion electromagnetic 
flow meters for use with conductive liquids 
in pipe sizes between 80 and 200 mm.Models ranging in size from 80mm to 150mm have been independently tested by 
NATA to ensure they meet AS3665.1 Clause 3.9 by displaying a calibration error rating 
of less than 2.5 per cent. Test reports are available on request. Rain Bird offers three models Πthe FM, FMND and FMDT.The FM model is a current-sinking pulse output flow meter designed for modularity 
and versatility. It has an output that can be 
combined with the appropriate transmitter or 
indicator, depending on the application. 
The FM meter can operate on a current 
loop voltage range of between 12 and 24 

pressures up to 10 bar. The FMND model is an analogue output flow meter with a ‚blind™ (non-indicating) 
transmitter that delivers a continuous analogue 
output signal. The digital design makes it possible to calibrate the unit in the field 
without the use of tools.  The required 
20mA frequency is fed into a microcontroller 
using a set of internal rotary switches and the 
microcontroller automatically scales all other values. An additional benefit of the microcontroller is its ability to average inputs in order to smooth out the output signal.  The FMND model will operate on a relatively wide range of current loop voltages between 12 and 36 Vdc. A built-in power regulator supplies the appropriate power to the flow sensor.Third in the range is the FMDT model which is essentially a combination of the FM and the FMND with the addition of indicators displaying flow rate and flow total. The FMDT flow meter has a dual-relay output board with both pulse and 4-20mA analogue outputs.  A password protected keypad allows settings to be changed without removing the cover. All the meters in the range feature empty pipe detection.For further information about the new range of Rain Bird magnetic flow meters, freecall 1800 424 044, email info@rainbird.com.au or go to www.rainbird.com.auFACELIFT FOR OASISMelbourne based turf products and services distributor Oasis Turf has had a bit of an image makeover. Started in 1997, the company now has a new logo as well as a new easy-to-navigate website (see photo left) which can be accessed athrough www.oasisturf.com.auJOHN DEERE ZERO TURN MOWERS CUT A NEW TRAKJohn Deere has recently unveiled its 
latest line of commercial mowers in the 
form of the Z-Trak PRO 900 Series to help improve productivity and efficiency.Aimed at the professional landscape market and designed and developed in 
response to customer input, the seven 
models in the Z900 line-up feature the 
7-Iron Pro deck with stamped, seven-gauge 
steel, full-wrap reinforcement and Mulch-on-
Demand capabilities. The series comes with 
top mowing speeds of 16.8kph or 19.3kph. The Z900s include a new, ground-drive transmission featuring a piston motor, 
internal wet disc brakes and a gear reduction 
final drive, providing more torque to the drive 
tyres. John Deere also offers a ‚Comfort 
and Convenience™ package on some of 
the models with ergonomic control levers 
including built-in PTO shutoff and electronic 
deck raise and lower. Other key features include dual-captured anti-scalp wheels in 6 locations around the 
deck, fully folding ROPS for ease of storage, a 43.5-litre fuel tank and heavy duty cast 
I-beam caster arms and cast forks with 
flat-free tyres. The series also offers dial-in height of cut adjustment on the control panel, 
on-board self-diagnostics, run-flat tyres and 
John Deere™s ‚Brake and Go™ system.The Z-Trak PRO 900 Series line-up includes:   Z910: 16.4kW (22hp), 48- or 54-inch 
deck, gas-powered, air-cooled Kawasaki 
engine;  Z920A: 19.3kW (26hp) engine, 48-inch 
mulch-on-demand deck;  Z925A: 20.1kW (27hp) engine and 
two deck options Π54-inch mulch-on-
demand or 60-inch standard;  Z930A: Air-cooled, 21.6kW (29hp) 
engine, 60-inch mulch-on-demand deck;  Z950A: 23.1kW (31hp), 72-inch deck, 
gas-powered Kawasaki engine. ‚Comfort 
and Convenience™ package is standard 
on the 72-inch deck machine; and  Z970A: 27.5kW (37hp) vertical crankshaft 
and Kawasaki air-cooled engine. A 
72-inch mowing deck and the ‚Comfort 
and Convenience™ package are standard.The new Z-Trak PRO 900s offer a commercial, two year bumper-to-bumper 
warranty with unlimited hours and John 
Deere™s Rene Lubbers says the company is confident users will appreciate the new 
range.fiWe™re excited for customers to get the Z900s out in the field and put them through 
their paces,fl says Lubbers. fiThe 900 series 
covers more hectares faster, offers a higher 
quality of cut and will help landscape pros 
increase their uptime.fl
For more information on the Z-Trak PRO 
900 Series visit www.johndeere.com.au or 
freecall 1800 800 981 (Australia) or 0800 
303 100 (New Zealand) to contact your 
local John Deere dealer.Right: Rain Bird has released a series of three fixed-depth insertion electromagnetic flow meters including the FM (top), FMND (middle) and FMDT (bottom) modelsSeven models are available as part of John Deere™s Z-Trak PRO 900 Series zero turn mowers58     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTAGCSA BOOK SHOPAGCSA BOOKSHOPThe AGCSA has access to a huge variety of turf management books and can offer members substantial discounts off the retail price of many 
titles. A full list of books currently available through 
the AGCSA Bookshop can be viewed through the AGCSA website http://www.agcsa.com.au/products/books. The website also contains reviews which have appeared in Australian 
Turfgrass Management over the years.  Please note that the prices contained within the list are subject to change due to exchange 
rates. If you want to order a book call the Lyndel Conway on (03) 9548 8600 or email info@agcsa.
com.au to confirm exact price and shipping costs.How green is the green industry? Well, 
never green enough for one of America™s 
foremost authorities on organic land care Paul Sachs. Over the past two decades Sachs 
has built a reputation as a major proponent for the 
turf management profession to shift away from its 
reliance on chemical fertilisers and pesticides, and 
through numerous journal articles and conference 
presentations has asked turf managers to constantly 
question their practices and bring about change.During his career Sachs has also produced a number of books and in 2004 the founder and owner 
of an organic manufacturing company in Vermont, 
USA published his fifth book ΠManaging Healthy 
Sports Fields: A Guide to Using Organic Materials 
for Low-Maintenance and Chemical-Free Playing Fields. This book followed up on the release two years earlier of Ecological Golf Course Management 
(see review in ATM Vol 5.5) which he co-authored with Richard Luff.Many of the concepts in that earlier book are re-presented in this 2004 offering and Sachs 
continues to implore turf managers to question their 
current maintenance practices and encourage them 
to improve them. Rather than just saying this is what you should do, Sachs is mindful of the practical implications and 
is quick to offer a variety of alternative methods to 
chemical treatments that effectively control a wide 
range of pests, weeds and diseases. Moreover, 
most of these alternative methods, he claims, can 
be relatively easily adapted to existing maintenance 
programmes.As Sachs advocates in his introduction: fiThis book proposes to partially, or perhaps completely, 
liberate the modern turf manager from this chemical 
dependence by suggesting methods that don™t 
adversely affect the game or the appearance of the 
playing field, but nevertheless dramatically reduce 
the need for pesticides and other chemicalsfl. He 
goes on to say that the fiinformation presented in this 
book does not constitute formula for every sports 
fieldfl but rather the book fipresents alternatives 
and information that will enable the turf manager 
to consider or even invent new ways of solving 
problems.fl Managing Healthy Sports Fields is worth the buy for Sachs™ introduction alone. Over three pages 
he describes what a futuristic turf management 
environment might well be like, one where all 
chemical use on turf is banned and where traditional 
aeration equipment has gone the way of the dinosaur 
and replaced instead by a machine emitting sonic 
pulses (now there™s an idea Œ no surface disruption!)The book is presented in seven broad chapters with each delving into a raft of detailed components. 
After examining the soil ecosystem in his opening 
chapter, Sachs then embarks on addressing topics 
such as fertility, composting, analysis, pests and 
cultural practices before finishing off with a chapter 
titled ‚Simplicity versus stability™. Sachs crams a lot of information into 244 pages and in doing so has done away with aesthetics. 
Unfortunately all photos and graphics are black and 
white, but as with many turf books it™s the content 
which is of most importance for practitioners. The 
book is backed up by an extensive resource and 
bibliography section, while the conclusion of each 
chapter has a handy ‚Points to remember™ segment 
which summarises in bullet point form the main 
concepts and ideas presented in the chapter.
The AGCSA has copies of Managing Healthy 
Sports Fields in stock. AGCSA members can pick 
up a copy for $99 (non-member price $115). Managing Healthy Sports FieldsBy Paul SachsWiley, 2004ALSO CURRENTLY AVAILABLE THROUGH THE AGCSA BOOKSHOP–.26th Australian Turfgrass Conference Webcasts and 
Proceedings
It has only been a few months 
since the 2010 annual conference 
on the Gold Coast but the many and varied presentations that 
formed part of the programme 
continue to create plenty of 
debate and discussion within the 
industry. If you missed the event, you can purchase through the 
AGCSA access to more than 12 hours of webcasts. Prices start 
from $110 (AGCSA members) for a day session through to $330 
(AGCSA member) for access to all presentations. The AGCSA also has copies of 26th Australian Turfgrass Conference Proceedings for sale. 
Over 174 pages, the proceedings 
include summaries of the various 
presentations that were made on 
the Gold Coast, including keynote 
speakers Dr Thom Nikolai (green speed authority from Michigan 
State University), Euan Grant 
(head greenkeeper, Turnberry) and Kyle Waters (Home Depot 
Center complex , Los Angeles). Given the wealth of material provided in the proceedings, it 
is a veritable steal at just $44 
for AGCSA members or $55 for non members. The AGCSA has copies of the proceedings in 
stock and can ship immediately.
Luigi Pagnozzi (account service)BFD4198-2 Syngenta Meridian Brochure A4 Ad07.07.10F2luigi@blue˜ amedesign.com.auBFD4198-2_07/10® Registered trademark of a Syngenta Group Company. ABN 33 002 933 717.Syngenta Crop Protection Pty Limited 2-4 Lyonpark Road, North Ryde, NSW 2113. AD10/105Save up to 60,000 litres of water 
per hectareGreater availability in dry conditionsSeason long control of grubs60     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTSTATE REPORTSGCSAWAMy last 12 months as president has been rewarding especially with the success of 
the first WA golf industry awards and the way our industry rallied to support injured Cottesloe 
Golf Club superintendent Simon Bourne. On behalf 
of Simon I would like to thank all of you for your 
fundraising efforts and support during recent times. 
It makes you feel pretty good that this sort of support 
is readily generated within our industry.I must also take this opportunity to thank my committee for their efforts and support over the past 
year along with the way they have dealt with some 
challenging issues. Some of these include the winter 
sprinkler bans, the fertiliser action group and the 
logistics surrounding the inaugural awards night.The GCSAWA AGM was held in August with 45 members attending at the new Driving Range 
Function Centre at Wembley Golf Complex. Committee elections saw one new face join the 
committee in the form of Paul Needham (Secret 
Harbour). Brad Sofield decided to step off committee after 10 years valuable service including four years 
as president from 2003 until 2006. We thank Brad 
for his dedication and commitment over these years 
and welcome Paul to the fold. The full GCSAWA committee is: 
President: Darren Wilson (Wembley GC)
Vice-president/Secretary: Des Russell (Bunbury 
GC)
Treasurer: Craig New (Lakelands GC)Committee: Brad Anderson (Sun City C C), Simon Bourne (Cottesloe GC), Glenn Cross (Mt Lawley GC), Paul Needham (Secret Harbour) and Geoff 
Kirk (Total Turf).Simon Bourne made an emotional thank you to all WA, state and national members who have 
helped him recently. He also thanked Toro and Cottosloe Golf Club who have enabled him to get back to work and resume some normality back in his 
life. Simon started back there in early August which 
is a remarkable achievement. As president I look forward to serving our members for another year and guiding our 
association into 2011. I would also like to thank Toro Australia and Geoff Stephens for their support and 
sponsorship of the AGM. Michael Dennis (Royal 
Perth Golf Club) won the Toro Cup with a 73 while Niel Graham from Pinjarra Golf Club won the 
stableford event.The golf industry awards will be on again in February so please ensure you book your seats when tickets become available. A club or individual 
can nominate anyone as long as they meet the 
selection criterion which has been set along with 
the judging panel which will consist of both a 
GCSAWA committee member, PGA member and a representative from the managers™ association. 
These criteria will be available upon request and in 
Divots.As I have said before, the association at present is aiming to provide financial benefits back to its 
members and is not focused on building bank 
balances. I encourage members to make the most of our association™s benefits, including events such 
as the Golf Masters Cup and the annual Christmas 
party, as well as Divots. Support from our trade sponsors has again been exceptional and they remain key stakeholders 
in the development and success of this association. 
We are appreciative of their generosity and support, 
so please support your Western Australian trade. The Margaret River Conference is on again next year. The response by superintendents and their assistants in supporting this event last time was 
exceptional and I look forward to the same support. 
I ask the trade to use this to invite interstate supers 
and comrades to come and possibly contribute 
through giving a talk. Many companies have some 
very knowledgeable people, so any suggestions or 
ideas can be forwarded to Glenn Cross.Finally, a history of the GCSAWA is being accumulated as we speak and if anyone has 
anything to contribute please let the committee 
know as we would love to incorporate as much 
information as we can.  I would like to acknowledge 
Nick Bell and ATI for their contributions over the past 20 years to the golf industry in WA, especially 
Nick who has always been passionate about the turf 
industry, sat on many industry panels and is always 
a true gentleman. DARREN WILSONPRESIDENT, GCSAWACottesloe Golf Club superintendent Simon Bourne returned to work in August just six months after his accident in Bali. Toro have modified a Workman with hand controls for Simon to get around the courseAUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT     61NSWGCSAWith temperatures remaining into the high 20s throughout May, we seemed to have a 
very short winter period in NSW. However, records were broken in the Sydney metropolitan areas following some consistently low temperatures 
and great frosts and as the accompanying photo 
from Long Reef superintendent Peter Donkers 
shows a few hail storms as well. We now see 
ourselves getting ready for the spring with greens 
renovations beginning in early August at some clubs 
(I believe I was actually one of the first).The NSWGCSA Annual General Meeting was held on 30 August at North Ryde Golf Club (host superintendent Ron Duffy) with all current directors remaining on the board and holding their current 
positions. The full committee is:President: Craig Wright (Cabramatta GC)
Vice-president: Craig Molloy (Shortland Waters 
GC)
Secretary: Ryan Fury (Killara GC)Membership: Stuart Hall (Asquith GC)Committee: Mark O™Sullivan (Roseville GC), Matthew Goodbun (Newcastle GC), Martin O™Malley 
(Lynwood GC), Malcolm Harris (Northbridge GC) and Steve Jacobsen (Carnarvon GC).We still have one vacancy on the board, so if there is anyone who would like to be part of 
this fantastic team and would like to be involved 
more with the NSGCSA please feel free to contact secretary Ryan Fury.We are in final planning stages for a day at Tuggerah Lakes Golf Club where we are hoping to have a gathering of all our life members to get an 
insight of their involvement and the changes they 
have seen through the industry over the years. Our 
life members include such fine gentlemen as Albert Wallace, Harry Smith, Geoff Hatton, Reg McClaren, 
Peter McMaugh and Bill Hopkinson who I am sure 
will be able to spin some great yarns as they recall 
some of their more memorable moments. The day will also include a tour of the course with host superintendent Andrew Banning. The course has seen a number of projects completed 
over the past couple of years, including the redesign 
and construction of two green surrounds and their 
bunkers on holes four and six. October will see our education day based around water management issues. AGCSA environmental agronomist John Geary will be attending to 
impart some information on the AGCSA™s Water Management Initiative and the day will also include a tour to some other facilities. This will be a good 
change from our usual education days which I am sure will be attractive and gain great support from 
our members. Finally, it was great to catch up with everyone on the Gold Coast during the recent Australian Turfgrass Conference and Trade Exhibition. Congratulations to the AGCSA Board, events manager Simone Staples and the rest of the staff for a very well run event.  CRAIG WRIGHTPRESIDENT, NSWGCSALong Reef Golf Club in northern Sydney was blanketed in hail on 15 August after a ferocious localised hail storm ripped through 
the area. Fortunately for course superintendent Peter Donkers the hail was small enough not to cause 
any major damage, but it certainly made for a picture-perfect sceneQTurf Machinery Pty Ltd Clifford Court, Capalaba Qld 4157  Fax: +61 (0)7 3245 1340  Phone: +61 (0)7 3245 6082 terry@qturf.com.au  www.qturf.com.auTHE SMARTEST AERATION                SOLUTIONTerra CombiTerra Spike GXi62     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTTGAA ACTThe past few months have been busy for members of the Victorian Greenkeepers 
Association. On 14 July, 40 members took to the Yarra River and Port Phillip Bay for the annual 
cruise and AGM. Many thanks to all who travelled 
from the country and interstate to make this annual 
event another great day. The new VGA committee for the coming year is: 
President: Dyson Appleyard Vice-president: Warren Maynard Treasurer: Brian Hoey Secretary: Alan Elliot Committee: Adam Shawcross, Phil Grant, Nick Schofield, Mark Colless and Lee Govan. 
Past President: Doug AgnewThe VGA thanks Dave Gudgeon, James Hood, Richard Lowman and Nick West for their services on 
the 2009 committee. The Greenkeeper of the Year was awarded to Warren Maynard of MCC.The 4th Annual Gudgies Tifdwarf Tour was held in northern NSW this year with 17 greenkeepers 
from around Victoria heading for Coolangatta. Like previous years the aim of the tour was to visit clubs 
with Tifdwarf greens, talk to their greenkeepers and hopefully learn more about this relatively new type of 
grass down this part of the country. After landing we boarded a bus driven by Shane Symes (K&B Adams) and headed straight 
for Tugun Bowling Club. Greenkeeper and former Queensland Greenkeepers Association president 
Graham Cooper was waiting to show us over 
his three greens that were in excellent condition. Graham explained that many greenkeepers in the 
area are using organics, carbon and beneficial 
microbes to combat disease. We then headed south into NSW with Graham as our tour guide. Next stop was Cabarita Beach BC 
where we met Dave Perez who showed us over his 
three excellent greens. Dave uses minimal fungicide 
and relies mostly on foliar feeds which include 
calcium and beneficial microbes. With the rain starting to come down hard we continued south through Broadwater (home of 
Australia™s first Tifdwarf green) and on to Evans Head. The following morning we met Tony Morgan and his young assistant Josh at Evans Head BC 
to inspect their three greens. With Tony and Josh on board we headed inland through sugar cane 
territory where we called into Woodburn, Coraki, 
Lismore Workers Heights, Lismore City and then 
South Lismore bowls clubs. The final day saw us at Tweed Heads BC, which holds a number of major tournaments throughout 
the year. Tweed has four Tif greens and an indoor carpet green. Before heading back home we also 
stopped by Coolangatta BC. The trip was extremely beneficial and I am sure we all learnt something new about Tifdwarf. Many thanks go to David Gudgeon, Shane Symes, Nev Treadwell and Simplot Proline, and Graham Cooper and Tony Morgan for showing us around their regions.In early August, the VGA held an information seminar at Buckley Park BC. Some 70 greenkeepers, 
greens directors and the like attended the day which 
boasted well respected turf lecturer Phil Ford. Phil spoke in depth about the positives and negatives 
of couch varieties, salt tolerance and spring root 
decline.  As always Phil was very informative and 
answered many of the questions asked of him. 
Other speakers included Ted Boltong (Active Safety) who spoke on safety in the workplace and Patrick 
Madden (Syngenta) who discussed his company™s 
various products and how they combat certain 
diseases.To finish the seminar we held a forum with Phil Ford, Darren Martin, Gary Thurgood and Nick Schofield fielding questions in relation to their 
experiences with couchgrasses. This day was very 
well organised by Warren Maynard and Adam 
Shawcross and they deserve our accolades. 
Many thanks to Buckley Park BC for hosting the 
event and sponsors K&B Adams, Golf & Bowling 
Machinery, Active Safety, Simplot Proline, Colin 
Campbell Chemicals, Jim Lawford Engineering and Lee Govan.DYSON APPLEYARDPRESIDENT, VGA    VGASTATE REPORTSThe lead up to spring has been 
wet and windy in the ACT. Above average rainfall has seen dam levels increase slightly which is promising as we 
head into the higher use months. As at 
the beginning of September, the Canberra 
catchment sits about 20 per cent better 
off than the same period in 2009. There has been a slight rumbling around town 
suggesting it may be time to ease the 
current water restrictions, but personally I 
think it would be a better option to sit tight 
and continue to keep a very close eye on 
our water use.The ACT TGAA held its annual seminar in July which was preceded by 
the workshop at the Canberra Institute of 
Technology. Thank you to all who helped out to ensure both events ran smoothly, 
in particular the hardworking committee 
members for giving their precious time 
once again. The delegates enjoyed the hospitality on offer by the TGAA and the Hellenic Club and we have had a lot of 
positive feedback which will help us to 
improve the seminar for next year.When this goes to print our 2011 committee will have been elected at our 
AGM (held at the Queanbeyan Bowling 
Club). In a bid to entice more members to 
come along, the committee have organised 
a trivia night to run alongside the meeting. 
With loads of prizes on offer hopefully we 
can get a good crowd. At last check the 
bookies had installed the turf gurus from 
Parliament House as the red hot favourites 
to take out the trivia challenge with the 
boys from Royal Canberra rounding out 
the betting at around 101-1. Keep an eye 
on the next edition of ATM to see who the winners were.BROCK WESTONCOMMITTEE, TGAA ACTAUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT     63GCSAQThe Globe Discovery Seminar series has wrapped up and there are a lot of people 
rapt with the way the seminars unfolded, particularly in Queensland.  Unfortunately the 
tyranny of distance in Queensland means that most 
of the educational opportunities are limited to the 
south-east corner. Globe is to be congratulated 
on its foresight and investment in the series with 
large attendances at all Queensland venues.  
Congratulations are also due to the speakers who 
sacrificed a great deal of their own time to join in 
on the jaunt.Our annual supers/managers day at Oxley Golf Club was an outstanding success with over 70 in 
attendance and 60 golfers venturing out on to host 
super Shane McDonald™s layout which was in pretty 
tidy nick with the State Series just around the corner.   Remnants of the installation of a sewer line through 
the heart of the course over the previous six weeks, 
that required a three metre wide trench to slice the 
course in half, could barely be seen.  We were fortunate to have a panel of three golf course architects comprising Richard Chamberlain, Graham Papworth and David Burrup present on 
the topic of golf course master planning.  The three 
archies had got together prior to the meeting and 
each covered a different aspect of the process.  
They complimented each other very well and a lot of 
valuable information was disseminated to the group.  Unfortunately the planned discussion time seemed too short as there were a lot of issues the 
attendees would like to have covered.  The take 
home quote for the day was certainly from David 
Burrup who said that there shouldn™t be a tree within 
30 metres of a green or tee–..I wish!!  So successful 
was the day that plans are already in place for a 
repeat session next year.This year™s Turf Research Golf Day is to be held at Peregian Springs Golf Club on the Sunshine Coast.  Host super Warren Green is keen to show off his golf course and the GCSAQ is hoping for a full field.  Monday 15 November is the date and as usual 
the day™s format presents the perfect opportunity to invite some management from your club to join in 
and to get some quality time away from your own 
golf course.  A large sum of money has been raised over the past few years and this year Matt Roach and Jon Penberthy at Redlands were able to purchase 
a ‚muffle furnace™ which has a number of uses 
including warming your pie for lunchtime!  No, it is 
a great aid for the boys and Matt and Jon will be on 
hand at the day to give a full run down on its many 
uses.  PETER LONERGANPRESIDENT, GCSAQThe winter months have brought 
some colder than normal conditions 
for South Australia. A few big storm events and plenty of rain in August also 
had most superintendents and their crews 
in clean-up mode.The recent Australian Turfgrass Conference on the Gold Coast saw 
between 15-20 representatives travelling 
to the Gold Coast from SA. The feeling 
from those who attended was that the 
conference was full of information and 
well worth the trip. The Globe Discovery 
Tour also rolled into Adelaide in early August and around 120 people from a 
range of turf industry sectors turned up. 
With an excellent range of guest speakers, 
the day was well acknowledged by many.  In late August we held the superintendents-general managers 
seminar at Tanunda Pines Golf Club in the picturesque Barossa Valley. The event included an information session on 
viticulture management techniques and gave everyone a chance to inspect the 
work done to the course in recent times.The SAGCSA has been set down a meeting for mid-October at Riverside Golf 
Club with the theme for the day focussing 
on construction. Superintendent Stuart 
Gillespie and the crew at Riverside will be very busy through the spring and I like 
others are looking forward to seeing the 
work being carried out. More details on 
the day will be forthcoming. I also encourage superintendents to put their hand up and host a meeting. It is 
something I did last year and thoroughly 
enjoyed. It is also a great opportunity to 
show off your club and the great work 
you and your staff are doing. Finally with 
upcoming spring renovations for most I wish everyone a successful, problem-free 
couple of months and hopefully some 
bright spring conditions ahead.SAM SHERRIFFPRESIDENT, SAGCSASAGCSA64     AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENTSTATE REPORTSAurora Stadium played host to the TGCSA AGM in early SeptemberVGCSAIn August the VGCSA held an education meeting at Eastwood Golf Club (host superintendent Michael Vozzo) with more than 70 members attending. The day kicked off with an informative presentation from David Greenhill (VGA) talking 
about the ins and outs of the new USGA course rating system. Jyri Kaapro (Bayer Environmental Science) talked about Bayer™s new Tribute herbicide before handing over to Michael Vozzo, Richard 
Forsyth (Royal Melbourne Golf Club) and Kurt Dahl (Permeate Partners) who all presented on 
different water harvesting and treatment projects 
that they have been involved in. The presenters then 
joined forces to form a panel that answered many 
questions from the floor.The combined superintendents and general managers day at Thirteenth Beach Golf Club 
(superintendent Steven Hewitt) is back on the calendar in September and has been very well 
supported by all. The next meeting is the Annual Turf Research Golf Day on 18 October at Riversdale Golf Club (superintendent David Mason). This day is sponsored by Bayer and is the main fundraising 
event of the year for the VGCSA with money raised put back into projects that will benefit our members. 
In recent years the OH&S Induction DVD has been funded by this day and the committee is confident 
that the day will be well supported. The last meeting for the year will be the Christmas function at Sunshine Golf Club (superintendent Mark Findlay) on 30 November. The committee is 
currently seeking nominations for two categories Π
superintendent and trade Πfor the annual VGCSA Recognition Awards that will be presented at this 
meeting. If you know of anyone that deserves recognition for their support of the VGCSA and the industry please fill out a nomination form or let a member of the committee know. The VGCSA would like to take this opportunity to thank the SAGCSA for their kind donation to the golf clubs affected by the Black Saturday bushfires. 
I am sure that the funds will be much appreciated by 
the clubs and put to good use. The VGCSA has also passed on a donation to Simon Bourne (Cottesloe 
Golf Club) to help with his recovery and assist him 
with whatever he may require.Most of Victoria has seen good winter rains, with some areas receiving their best rainfall totals since 
1996. Let™s hope that the trend continues over spring and summer.JEREMY CUTAJARSECRETARY, VGCSASince the national conference on the Gold 
Coast there hasn™t been a great deal of news 
to report from the Apple Isle. With winter behind us, most parts of southern Tasmania have had one of the driest and warmest winters on 
record, with the Hobart area receiving only 66mm for 
the three months of winter and average maximum 
temperatures 1.6 degrees above average.The first day of September saw Aurora Stadium host the 2010 TGCSA Annual General Meeting which was sponsored by Tas Turf Solutions and Globe Australia. Presenters included Adam Power from Golf Australia who gave members some 
information on the new course rating and handicap 
system, Deni Carter from David Golf and Paul 
Jackson from Barmac.  To finish the day off Aurora Stadium grounds manager Bryan Dunn provided an 
insight into what is involved in setting the ground up 
for an AFL game. We then had a close inspection of 
the great surface he produces.The TGCSA has been invited to the golf industry dinner at Launceston Country Club on 30 October. We have several presentations to make at this 
evening and it will be a chance to show the golfing 
fraternity a little bit about our association. We would 
like as many members as possible to support this 
evening and partners are welcome. Anyone wishing 
to attend this evening, please contact Dan Gilligan 
on 0428 337 356 or email tgcsa@bigpond.com.au. 
The final TGCSA meeting for 2010 is in the planning stage and will be held in the south of the state in 
early December.As this is my last report for ATM I would like to thank Brett Robinson for his help in compiling these reports. Brett, you are welcome down this neck of 
the woods anytime mate. We will always have a 
warm coat and a Saint™s beanie for you. Cheers.STEVE LEWIS,IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT, TGCSATGCSAFor more information call 1800 356 372 www.toro.com.auA good greenskeeper knows that what happens on the green could make or break your round. The greens must be cut 
consistently and run smooth and even. That™s why those who 
know, recommend the Greensmaster GR3250, the worlds most popular riding mower.Buying, leasing or renting. You can count on Toro to deliver the right solutions for your budget.Count on the Greensmaster 3250Ž for one great result.HERO/TOR3992JToro® DPA Cutting UnitsWith fione clickfl bedknife-to-reel adjustment, Toro DPA cutting units are designed to adjust and cut as one consistent reel. Each 
component is precision manufactured, and only Toro™s patented 
DPA cutting unit ensures the aggressiveness of cut remains constant 
over the life of the reel, giving you a consistent 
cut across all three cutting units, day after day. 
Toro DPA cutting units, helping 
you achieve the consistency you need across all three reels. How The Hydrovar reduces maintenance costThe Hydrovar software is designed specifically for centrifugal pump operation, control and protection. The Hydrovar can 
thus be setup to protect the pump from operating under various 
unfavourable conditions eg. cavitation, operating against closed 
head, low NPSHa or operation past a pumps maximum flow rate. 
The Hydrovar will automatically shut down and alarm if adverse 
conditions occur.The Hydrovar provides the Golf Course Superintendent with the flexibility of watering as required with substantial savings on 
installation, power usage and maintenance. For details about 
the experience of some of Australia and New Zealands most 
prestigious Golf Clubs who have installed Hydrovar pumping 
systems, contact the Lowara distributors nearest you.LOWARADelivering Pumping SolutionsRChristchurchPhone (03) 365 0279 Fax (03) 366 6616Auckland
Phone (09) 525 8282 Fax (09) 525 8284Melbourne
Phone (03) 9793 9999 Fax (03) 9793 0022Sydney
Phone (02) 9671 3666 Fax (02) 9671 3644Brisbane
Phone (07) 3200 6488 Fax (07) 3200 3822Email info@brownbros.com.auWeb Site www.brownbros.com.auOne of two LOWARA Dual SV92 Hydrovar controlled irrigation pump sets installed at the 
Virginia Golf Club in Brisbane by Australian 
Irrigation Services.  Barry Lemke (pictured right) 
the Club Superintendent said fi he is very pleased 
with the trouble free operation and considers the efficiency and simplicity of the Hydrovar system far superior to the manual pump system 
it replaced fi.  Australian Irrigation Services Dean 
Smith ( pictured left ) said fi he had now installed 
several LOWARA Hydrovar systems at Golf 
Courses in Brisbane with very pleasing resultsfi.  
The second LOWARA Dual SV92 Hydrovar 
controlled irrigation pump set will be put into 
service later this year.What is The Hydrovar?The Hydrovar has gained a reputation as THE pump mounted microprocessor pumping system controller. But it does much more 
than just change motor speed.It actually manages the performance of the pump to match a wide range of system conditions and requirements.The Hydrovar is fully programmable on site as it incorporates the microprocessor and the variable drive in one compact and 
unique packageHow The Hydrovar reduces energy consumptionMost applications involve the pump operating either along its full speed performance curve or the pumps performance is throttled 
or regulated by a valve. The Hydrovar eliminates these operating 
methods by regulating pump speed and hence output to match the 
system demand. This saves wasted energy traditionally lost in these 
conventional pump systems. Energy savings of up to 70% can be 
realized. (figure 1)