Royal Aberdeen Golf Club – Golf Course Blog

Month: September 2025

  • Staff Training – Future Turf Managers Initiative(FTMI)- Class of 2025

     First Assistant Greenkeeper Euan Polson was recently selected to be part of the Future Turf Managers Initiative 2025, a training programme to help talented greenkeepers progress towards head greenkeeper and course manager roles.

    FTMI was held at Ransomes Jacobsen’s headquarters in Ipswich from 24-25th September and will be followed by a series of online education sessions before culminating in two days of education at BTME in January 2026.

    The Future Turf Managers Initiative (FTMI) has been designed to provide practical tools and guidance, to help candidates to pursue their career aspirations. It is aimed at up and coming greenkeepers who want to make the leap to Course Manager. Focusing on personal and professional development, rather than agronomy based subjects.

    Jacobsen and BIGGA recognise the importance of preparing greenkeepers to take on the role of Head Greenkeeper or Course Manager. It designed to provide practical tools and guidance to help the candidates to pursue their career aspirations through this professional development conference and utilises the expertise of leading Course Managers, dynamic trainers and industry experts to mentor and educate the next generation of industry leaders giving them a clear understanding of what the future holds and a realistic overview of the expectations that come with the role of a Course Manager.

    This intensive training programme covers:

    • Presentation Skills
    • Communications
    • Presenting a Professional Image
    • Interview Techniques
    • Successful CV’s
    • Stress Awareness
    • Building a Budget
    • Becoming a Leader

  • Staff Training – Turf Equipment Technicians Conference

    On Tuesday, 23 September 2025 Golf Course Mechanic Gary Tonge attended the first-ever Turf Equipment Technicians Conference. The dedicated one-day event was designed to support and celebrate the vital role of turf equipment technicians, equipment managers and mechanics within the greenkeeping and grounds maintenance industry. The conference was held at the Bernhard Academy located within Bernhard and Company’s manufacturing headquarters in Haverhill, this industry-focused conference was officially endorsed by the Turf Equipment Technicians Organisation (TETO) and delivered specialist education and training tailored to the unique needs of turf equipment professionals.

    Conference Overview

    The importance of being sharp.

    Discover how precision in turf maintenance impacts playability, sustainability, and performance.

    Presented by Steven Nixon, Managing Director, Bernhard and Company.

    Cutting unit adjustments.

    Tips and techniques for successfully adjusting cutting units.

    Presented by Stuart Hall, Customer Service Manager, Bernhard and Company.

    Effective communication techniques.

    Successful techniques for communicating with other members of your team through understanding the power of DISC and VARK. Walk away with practical tools to boost collaboration, cut through confusion, and drive performance.

    Presented by Phil Helmn MG, Programme Leader: Agronomy / Leadership and Management, Bernhard Academy.

    Electrics fault finding masterclass.

    Perform minor electrical repairs, test components with multimeters and specialist tools, undertake fault finding exercises, and learn to read basic wiring schematics.

    Presented by Barry Drennan, Programme Leader: Technical and Equipment Management, Bernhard Academy.

    Bernhard and Company Factory Tour.

    Tour the Bernhard Company international manufacturing facility to get a behind the scenes look at how the world leading Bernhard grinders are built, including a visit with the research and development team.

    Hosted by Angelique Crosnier, Commercial Director, Bernhard and Company.

    My US Open Experience.

    James Breeze discussed his personal journey as the recipient of the Volunteer Technician initiative, at the 2025 US Open at Oakmont Country Club. Insights, challenges, and unforgettable moments!

    Hosted by Phil Helmn MG, Programme Leader: Agronomy / Leadership and Management, Bernhard Academy.

    The Bernhard Academy are committed to investing in professional development and working collaboratively to advance the turf industry. This conference not only provided Gary with vital training but also presented him with invaluable networking and shared learning opportunities.

  • Balgownie – Disease prevention

    Disease prevention and control is a major factor in the successful management of our fine turf surfaces here at Royal Aberdeen Golf Club. We utilise numerous cultural and chemical methods as part of integrated pest management (IPM) programme to reduce disease incidence and severity. Pathogens are disease causing agents that significantly affect the visual and playing qualities of our surfaces. While there are numerous fungal and bacterial pathogens in the UK the most common and damaging is Fusarium – Microdochium patch (Microdochium nivale).

    Fusarium is spread by wind, water, and by foot traffic and outbreaks are often seen during periods of mild cool wet weather and heavy dews.

    To help the plant naturally fight off this disease we applied an combination of Elevate Fe – a complexed liquid iron and sea nymph super concentrate – a liquid seaweed, at an application rate of 10l/ha .  These products are ideal for strengthening turf, minimising the effect of turf pathogens – rebuilding the natural suppression status of depleted soils and encouraging strong root systems through plant metabolic and microbial activity.

    Although the surfaces are a little greener than we would like after the application of these two products the surfaces are healthy and showing very little signs of disease activity.

  • Rainfall Data Update 2025

    Rainfall is a key element of Scottish weather and it dictates how and when the golf course maintenance can be carried out here at Royal Aberdeen Golf Club.


    This year has been an incredibly difficult year with a prolonged winter and cooler temperatures lasting until April, meaning growth was slow at the start of the season. The  freezing temperatures were followed by a prolonged dry spell which meant our irrigation system was being used on a daily basis throughout early Spring. 

     Aberdeen has an average annual rainfall of around 866 mm whereas some areas in Scotland receive about 3,000 mm of precipitation per year.

    As you can see from the stats below it has been a considerably dry year on the links,  we are currently around 167mm below the average precipitation rates for Aberdeen and in comparison to last years data we have had around 373mm less to date.

    The monthly data is slightly misleading whereas the daily chart shows a much different story with long spells where we ran into weeks without any precipitation at all.

    The monthly rainfall totals for 2025 are as follows;

    January 55.6mm

    February 26.2mm

    March 35.2mm

    April 9.4mm

    May 30.4mm

    June 62.4mm

    July 62.2mm

    August 16mm

    Total precipitation to date = 297.4mm