A Deep Tine Aerator from GKB Machines has been put straight to work by the team at Spalding Golf Club in Lincolnshire as part of its pre-winter maintenance programme and has proved a huge success.
Delivering impressive aeration down to 12 inches, the DTA 160 has already completed passes on both the greens and the fairways since its arrival in October and will be pivotal in keeping the course clear of compaction in the wetter months.
Head Greenkeeper Kevin Goude took charge just five months ago, and together with the greens team of five, was delighted to learn he’d inherited an order for a new GKB DTA 160 placed by his predecessor and due for delivery from local distributor Russells Groundcare.
“We’ve got a pedestrian aerator in the shed which is ideal for summer work at depths of 4” but we needed something to replace an ageing machine that could penetrate much deeper to really help drainage and root growth” explained Goude.
The GKB DTA is deep by name and deep by nature, offering easily adjustable depth and heave angle of up to 25° for effective compaction relief. At 1.6m wide, the DTA 160 at Spalding GC is well suited for tasks around the golf course – from fairways, tees and aprons to intensive aeration on the clubs 18 greens.
Goude added: “We took delivery of the DTA 160 at the end of October and went out immediately on the greens, before switching to ¾-inch tines working at a depth of 10 inches on the fairways due to the dry summer. One thing we really like about the GKB aerator is the tine blocks which make switching between sets really quick and easy compared to having to replace each tine individually. There’s a whole range of tine options available with this machine as well so we can really make the most of it with operations throughout the maintenance calendar.
“Alongside the tine system, another thing we’ve been particularly impressed with is the build quality of the DTA – well engineered and robust to handle some of the more challenging ground conditions we have on the fairways.”
“Beside the machine itself, the support and back-up service we’ve had from Russell’s Groundcare and Tom Shinkins at GKB has also been excellent. We can now look to aerate deeper as we go into winter and be best placed to cope with whatever the weather can throw at us!”