100-year-old greens ‘as good as new’
The 25th oldest golf club in the world, Lanark Golf Club located in the Upper Clyde Valley in Scotland, has recently taken delivery of an Eclipse 322 greens mower as part of a larger machinery package from Jacobsen.
Head Greenkeeper, Jim Lyons with the Jacobsen Eclipse 322 and loyal companion, Sheba.
The mower maintains the course’s 18 greens and short nine-hole course, with the 18th green being more than 100 years old. Delivery was made by local Jacobsen dealer, Fairways GM.
Lanark Golf Club currently operates a fleet of Jacobsen machinery, consisting of a Tri-King for tees and surrounds, an LF3800 light-fairway mower, an LF570, an Iseki 5470 and a Turfco 1530 widespin top dresser. An Eclipse 322 greens mower and an AR522 for rough are new additions this season.
Jim Lyons became the head greenkeeper at Lanark Golf Club in 1984. Jim remains in the role today and oversees a team of five full-time greens staff and two to three seasonal workers. Commenting on the purchase of the Eclipse 322, Jim said: “We used to run a competitor machine on the greens, but over the past few years, I haven’t been keen on the new products introduced to the market, so this opened up the opportunity to look into something new.
“I had heard good things about the Jacobsen Eclipse, so I decided to have it on demo at the club. Immediately, I noticed a difference. We were using the same height-of-cut, but the Jacobsen machine was taking off noticeably more grass than our previous machine.
“Since using the Eclipse 322, we estimate that we have made a 45% savings in diesel, which is a substantial amount. A huge benefit of the Eclipse 322 is that there are no hydraulic oil leaks, which really puts my mind at ease when the team is out on the course.
“The golf course is surrounded by housing on the 15th green, 18th tee and part of the nine-hole course, which was often a problem in the past, as we received some noise complaints from residents when we were out cutting the greens early in the morning. They seem very pleased that the noise has now been reduced, as we’re using the electric Eclipse 322, which is a very quiet machine.”
Commenting on the acquisition of the AR522 rough mower, Jim said: “The AR522 leaves a very good finish in the rough. It’s exactly the right power and cut ratio for the course; it’s like putting the right puzzle piece into a jigsaw – it fits in well here.”
Lanark Golf Club opened in 1851, making it the 25th oldest golf club in the world. The course is renowned for its smooth, fast greens, natural moorland fairways and unspoilt views across Scotland’s rolling South Upland hills. The newer parts of the course were designed by James Braid and through the years, the club has hosted The Open qualifier, Home international, Scottish boys’ stroke play and British Girls’ competitions.
