Greens machines back in action

RETURN TO WORK: Electrinet Park Golf Club greenkeeper Pete Tamatea cutting greens and fairways at the city course yesterday. Poverty Bay and Patutahi greenkeepers were back on the job as well following the Government decision last week to allow maintenance to resume at golf, bowling and croquet clubs. Picture by Paul Rickard

The region's golf, lawn bowls and croquet club greenkeepers were able to return to work yesterday and most were back on the job.

Sport and Recreation Minister Grant Robertson late last week said greenkeepers could resume their work after Easter.

Greenkeepers at the Poverty Bay, Electrinet Park and Patutahi golf clubs grabbed the opportunity with both hands.

Poverty Bay Golf Club manager Dave Keown said the Government decision to allow clubs to do important greens maintenance was great and “the timing was brilliant.”

“We were able to mow the greens yesterday and not a lot of damage has been done.

“Prior to lockdown we took turf advice and put on a growth retardant chemical which held back the growth, and the effect has been phenomenal,” Mr Keown said.

“There has not been a huge amount of growth.

“Our head greenkeeper is confident we will have a very playable and usable golf course as soon as people are allowed to play the game again.

“When that happens it will be a relief to a lot of people in the cabin fever-inducing space we're in at the moment.”

Gisborne Park course convener Ray Grace said it was a relief to have their greenkeeper back at work.

“He has a fair bit of catching up to do, given there's been no work done on the course since lockdown started.”

Mr Grace said the focus would mainly be on getting the greens back up to scratch.

“They've really taken off and grown a bit, and there's a bit of disease sprung up, but we can get rid of that and get them back.

“It will take about a week to 10 days to get the greens back to where they were.”

Grooming work has also resumed at Patutahi Golf Club.

“We are back on the greens and we had a guy cut the grass on our fairways and rough areas yesterday that were starting to look a bit like a hay paddock,” said course convener Chris Parker.

“We've had some automated irrigation going since lockdown started, and we did some preparation work just before then, too, just to keep things flushed and under control.

“The greens are looking good and we made an official start yesterday on keeping them that way.

“They're like your babies and you just don't want to see them go.”

Mr Parker said they were only allowing one person on the course at any one time.

The club had lost revenue from the lockdown but hopefully it would not lose patrons.

Three of the district's lawn bowls clubs got their greens grass cut yesterday and two others will get it done in a day or two.

“Gisborne, Kahutia and Tolaga Bay have mowed theirs and it will be done shortly at Te Karaka and in Wairoa,” said Bowls Gisborne/East Coast president Steve Goldsbury.

“We're all relieved to have been able to get back to work maintaining our greens. They can be quite temperamental.

“All the greens are not too bad because we've had quite a bit of rain. It has been good,” he said.

“We were right up to date with fertilisers and sprays before the lockdown started, and that's been a huge advantage.”

The restriction variation only applies to golf, bowling and croquet clubs.

Gisborne District Council remains unable to get contractors in to groom the district's parks and reserves because it is deemed non-essential work.

A council spokeswoman said the council could only get the work done if long grass posed a fire risk.