The Royal County Down Golf Club, recently ranked the No. 1 golf course in Ireland by Golf Digest Ireland magazine, has taken delivery of a Jacobsen Eclipse diesel-electric hybrid greens mower from local dealer, Brodericks (Northern Ireland) Ltd.

Located in the Murlough Nature Reserve, the 36 holes of classic links stretches along the shores of Dundrum Bay, with the magnificent Mountains of Mourne offering a stunning backdrop to a round of golf.  

Eamonn Crawford with his greenkeeping team.

Links Manager Eamonn Crawford is the man with the huge responsibility for maintaining the courses and upholding the standards that have ensured it remains one of the most prestigious venues in world golf. He has a permanent staff of 13, supplemented by six temporary greenkeepers in summer and three dedicated divoters. 

When asked why he chose the Eclipse 322 he said: “One of the main reasons was its adjustable clip rate; I want to have the facility to change the clip rate throughout the seasons, to suit the growing conditions at any given time. We’ll have to experiment to find the optimum cuts per metre, but this is the only ride-on greens mower that allows me to do this.

“I’m hoping that with Jacobsen’s quality of cut and variable clips rate that we will be able to increase the height of cut while maintaining green speed. This will be much healthier for the grass plant; I’ve heard that other greenkeepers have achieved this, so we’ll see if we can achieve the same goal.

“I’m also looking to improved fuel economy; the smaller diesel engine uses much less fuel and I like the idea of being able to vary the clean up pass using a combination of the three cutting units, which all lift and lower independently. This will be particularly useful on the Annesley links as the greens are smaller than those on the Championship course.

“Finally, the support from Ransomes Jacobsen in Ipswich has been first class and that has been carried through by the local dealer in Belfast, Brodericks.”