Newslines Spring 2020

Collective improvement Toro stands out at Stowmarket

200 sprayer and ProPass 200 topdresser.

Matt says: “We’d been thinking about how to tackle the pitchmarks on a regular basis and the solution is the Toro ProPass topdresser. Since the multi-tasking Workman and topdresser arrived we’ve made great savings in the time spent applying sand and incurring much less disruption as we do it. “We’ve heavily invested in the fairways in the last two years due to the drought and it’s important we safeguard that investment. The ability to easily transform the Workman into either a utility vehicle, a precision sprayer or an effective topdresser in only 20 minutes is going to be particularly useful for that and ensuring optimum grass growth.”

Stowmarket Golf Club, set in the beautiful Finborough Park in Suffolk, has long been a Toro customer, but this is the first time it has bought multiplemachines together. Matt Gill, who has been at the club since 1989 and course manager for 13 years, says: “We’re investing in the future of the club and Toro is very much a part of that.” There’s a new RM6700 to replace one which has, according to Matt who is pictured below, “performed consistently and constantly for 11 years, ensuring we’re always ready for play by 9.30am” and a Workman HDX-D utility vehicle with a Multi Pro

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01 Ian Poulter opening Royal Norwich golf course

Q&A In our Spring 2019 issue of Newslines, we visited Royal Norwich Golf Club as the new course and its facilities began to take shape. Since then, the course has had its official opening and we catch up with estates manager Peter Todd, pictured, to hear how it’s going.

Tractors TYM tractors for Southampton Saints

joins three other T503 mid-duty tractors which have recently been replaced like-for-like and three new T293 compact utility tractors. And it seems the use of TYM at the club has created somewhat of a buzz locally. “Word of mouth has already spread about the quality of the pitch at AFC Totton,” says Andy. “We’ve had other clubs in the same league asking us how we maintain it to such a high standard! The answer is always: hard work combined with high quality machinery.”

After taking on the maintenance of an additional stadium, Southampton Football Club is continuing its 16-year relationship with TYM and has invested in a new T503 tractor to help with the extra workload. A new partnership between Southampton Football Club and AFC Totton has seen Southampton FC’s grounds team take on the site’s maintenance, as Andy Gray, Southampton FC’s grounds manager, explains: “Taking over maintenance of the new stadium, alongside our own St Mary’s Stadium and Staplewood training ground is a challenge and why we’ve invested in a new TYM tractor to help take on the task.” The new T503 for AFC Totton’s Testwood Stadium brings the fleet of TYM tractors up to seven and

3400 on order and a ProCore 648 pedestrian

Congratulations on the course opening! Thank you! It was a great

aerator, ProForce debris blower, four Greensmaster Flex 2120 mowers and a TransPro 100 purchased. Plus, we’re currently demoing some Toro fairway mowers which are performing really well. So, what’s next? We’re incredibly busy with the course now open and lots of smaller projects still ongoing such as the creation of walking trails and a herb garden for the kitchen. As a new course, it needs constant careful maintenance still and Toro machines allow us to do that as well as keeping on top of things in winter too.

atmosphere, golfing star Ian Poulter played the course and we had 80 new members join in the opening month of September, so it was a real success. How has the role Toro plays at the club changed over this time? Our permanent comprehensive fleet is taking shape. Several machines were purchased in 2016 at the club’s previous location which have moved over to the new course. This is in addition to new machines coming on board.

What in particular are you welcoming to the fleet? We’ve got a Groundsmaster

Left to right: Reesink’s Mark Winder and Scott Turner, with Southampton FC’s grounds manager Andy Gray

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