Happy New Year To You!

Since I wrote my last blog, ‘Snake Oils, a Load of Balls?’ a lot of things have happened. For starters, the blog got a few of my friends excited, questioning why I was raising the subject. To clarify; my point in that article was not to dismiss anything but just to question whether things
work and to look for solid independent evidence. My advice to anyone who is considering new theories or products is to do your own research. It may take a little more effort, but will make you a better turf manager and you will be able to understand what you are applying better!

On the evening of that blog my wife went into labour. 1 hour and 40 minutes later Thomas Christopher Evans arrived. There might be something in this Bio thing after all! Anyway, mother and baby are doing just fine and young Thomas has not stopped eating since that day. He may take after his Dad after all!

Then we went into the Christmas and New Year period. Very hectic around here with two young girls very excited to see what Santa would bring them down the chimney. Well, we have a Playmobil airplane that should take them to visit their cousins in Canada and my middle child got her best present ever. Not one but two avocados. Brilliant!

As we enter the New Year there will be plenty of challenges for turf managers. The economic situation is dire and membership renewals will be due soon. This is going to be a very hard year I feel. Members will be looking at their finances to see if they can afford another year of golf. They
will have to justify it to their partners. Many like me will have young families, so things will be extremely tight. So what can we do as turf mangers to help the situation?

I think that despite economic uncertainty, this is a very good time for course manager/head greenkeepers/superintendents. We can take control of the situation. Some clubs are still run poorly, but many greenkeepers that I meet are professional, skilled and full of enthusiasm. Being proactive and giving your customers/members a product that they will enjoy and come back for, will put the turf manager in a very strong position. But we must be professional and justify everything we do. Budgets will become tighter so we must adapt to ultimately produce 'more for
less'.

So as we begin a new year, I look ahead with a great belief that it will be a good one. I urge you all to take control of your departments and produce products that your members will enjoy, hopefully putting pound notes (or dollars) in to your clubs bottom line.

For now let’s cheers young Thomas!