Artisans on course

[incatrekker]

After Lockdown1 a friend and I decided to help out on the course, 1 day a week trimming low hanging branches alongside fairways. We have 14,000 trees (I've been behind them all!). The objectives were 1) lift canopies to allow ball to be found more easily 2) allow recovery shot to be played 3) provide better line of sight 4) speed up play. To date we have trimmed back 390 trees. The response from other members has been really encouraging & complimentary. Much thought is being currently being given to regularise & expand this volunteering and wondered what experience/ideas you guys may have about how to run this kind of Artisanship?

 

[Mandofred]

We constantly have badger damage, often tearing up large areas. People have gone in to help in the past, I've done it once.....just because it takes the workers a lot of time to fix the mess...but it's pretty easy for almost anybody to put the turf back in the holes and stomp it flat.

 

[patricks148]

not sure about that the artisan thing is in this context, but Tain as a club struggling for money and not a massive membership rely on members for all sorts,
Grass cutting, devot seeding, whnn and gorse clearance. they even had one of the bridges replaced when it was washed away by a sping tide a few years ago. one of the members who taught welding at a local tech collage, got the students to help build a new one on the 2nd hole. a few of the clubs in scotland rely on members to do all the work as they can't afford green staff.the likes of Wick, Reay, Bonar Bridge and Portmahomach would not survive without this type volunteering

 

[Doh]

We have a working party who do lots of work on and around our course.We meet twice weekly Tuesday and Thursday 8am till 12pm. This has been going on for the last 20years that I know of.

 

[Duckster]

We have an artisan section, but even though they’ve been offered money off their fees as compensation they unanimously declined.
They mainly do divoting work and general bunker maintenance round the course.
We also have times where a load of us will join in to hit a particular issue, like clearing tree branches, removing Himalayan balsam etc...

 

[incatrekker]

We have a working party who do lots of work on and around our course.We meet twice weekly Tuesday and Thursday 8am till 12pm. This has been going on for the last 20years that I know of.

Seems like this is well established so may I ask how many of you do this, and who decides what needs to be done?

 

[jim8flog]

We often put put requests for volunteers when there is major project beyond the scope of the greenstaff to do in a reasonable period of time. E.g. Divot filling all fairways and when we came back out of the first lockdown every single bunker needed weeding and raking.

What help is needed and where is decided by the course manager.

 

[Rlburnside]

Ours is a very small club and couldn’t survive without volunteers, I’ve done bar work,painting fences,cuting some of the junior the course, sanding greens, strimming some rough, along with helping coaching the juniors, we must have around 50 men and women volunteers.

 

[jim8flog]

Many years ago I used to play at West Hill, Woking with the artisan section. It was a true artisan section with their own 'clubhouse'. Being one gave restricted rights to play on the course , after 11 am weekdays and after 3pm weekends but at greatly reduced membership fees.

 

[clubchamp98]

We have an artisan section .
They do lots of work on the course.
Their leader meets the head greenkeeper once a week to do jobs the lads don’t get around to doing.
Anything around the course really.
They get free golf after 4pm summer and 1pm winter.
There a great bunch of lads and if members spot something that needs sorting we tell them and they sort it out.
So win win for them and the club.