Jacobsen, with the assistance of local dealer, Fairways GM, provided tournament support to Castle Stuart Golf Links as it hosted the Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open (7-10 July) for the fourth time in six years. The event is part of the PGA European Tour and attracted more than 40,000 spectators during the competition and reached a mass global television audience.
Jacobsen provided three SLF super-lightweight fairway mowers, four Eclipse 2 walking greens mowers and three utility vehicles, in addition to the course’s current range of Jacobsen products. The tournament support equipment was delivered a week ahead of the competition to help with final preparations and representatives from Fairways GM and Ransomes Jacobsen’s European manufacturing plant in Ipswich were on hand to provide technical assistance and additional maintenance support.
Forty volunteers from all corners of the globe, including, Australia, Croatia, Ireland, Germany, Denmark, New Zealand and the United States, joined the Castle Stuart greenkeeping team and helped prepare and maintain the course for the duration of the competition.
Chris Haspell helped to construct the links course, which opened in 2009, and has been the Course Manager ever since. Commenting after this prestigious competition, he said, “The entire team was ready for another Scottish Open at Castle Stuart, and I was particularly delighted that we had so many volunteers from different countries coming over to help us during the competition. This was a fantastic experience for them, as well as my team at Castle Stuart, that was managing the various groups of volunteers as they went about their respective tasks.
Commenting on the tournament support from Jacobsen and Fairways GM, he added, “Jacobsen is part of the fabric of Castle Stuart; it has become part of the business. Whilst there was pressure on us to make sure the course was well prepared for the event, we knew that the machinery would do its job, so it was just up to us to do ours.
“Jacobsen understand our needs, and every piece of equipment that we operate has been finely tuned to suit the design of the course. For example, the course features many swales and undulations, and the SLF fairway mowers maintain these areas with ease, hugging the contours to produce an exceptional finish.
“The Eclipse 2 walking greens mower is also an excellent machine. We are able to programme the frequency of cut, which means that it always remains constant, no matter who is operating the machine. Things like this provide me with peace of mind and give me confidence that every hole is being maintained in a uniform and precise way. The quality of cut that the Eclipse 2 walking greens mower provides is incomparable to anything I have seen during my 30-year career in the turf industry. I am yet to discover a machine that even comes close.”
Nick Brown, Corporate Accounts International for Jacobsen said, “We were delighted to be able to offer Castle Stuart our support during the Scottish Open this year. Chris and his team worked extremely hard in preparation for the competition, and it was great to see so many volunteers on the course that will have benefitted tremendously from the experience. We are extremely proud to supply and partner with Castle Stuart; the quality of the course speaks for itself.”
Castle Stuart Golf Links is a championship links golf course located close to Inverness and overlooking the Moray Firth. Designed by Gil Hanse and Mark Parsinen, the course features 18 holes which take in views across the water to the Black Isle. When it opened in 2009, Golf Magazine named it top new international course and placed it at number 56 on the world list. Castle Stuart Golf Links has already developed luxury on-site Lodges, in the newly renovated Golf Lodge, Farmhouse Cottage and Castle Cottage. Plans have just been approved for a second links course, together with a 60-bed Dormy House Hotel.
Castle Stuart Golf Links www.castlestuartgolf.com
Ransomes Jacobsen www.ransomesjacobsen.com