One hundred and thirty greenkeepers representing Belgium, Denmark, England, France, Germany, Holland, Ireland, Italy, Norway, Scotland, Sweden and Wales, augmented by a small party from the Middle East and South Africa, attended the GCSAA Show in Orlando courtesy of Textron Golf & Turf and their dealership network.
During the four day visit the group visited the Orange County Convention Centre, the impressive venue of this year’s international event, where they were guests on the Jacobsen stand and were able to enjoy the opportunity to tour the USA’s premier golf show.
The following day the guests were taken to Arnold Palmer’s Bay Hill Club and Lodge, venue of the Bay Hill Invitational. An early lunch was followed by a series of focus groups with members of Textron’s UK and USA product management and engineering teams. The group was were able to discuss the future development of equipment across Textron’s entire product range.
Glynn Patrick, Textron’s international sales director, said, “We have been delighted with the response to the focus groups from our greenkeeping colleagues. There has been free and frank exchange of views with a whole range of issues debated, from product enhancement to the future of greenkeeping on both sides of the Atlantic. It has provided an excellent opportunity to spend really valuable time with end-users and I think everyone was able to appreciate the all-round benefits of the visit.”
Andrew Hall, Head Greenkeeper at St George’s Hill Golf Club in Surrey, added, “The whole four-day trip was terrific, especially the focus group sessions at Bay Hill. We came away feeling that the Americans were listening to the Europeans, which was very encouraging. I’m sure I speak on behalf of all the other guys in the group: the atmosphere was terrific, the company and hospitality equally so.”
Textron www.textronturf.com