Druids Heath Golf Club near Walsall has switched to an all-Toro fleet in a new five-year agreement.

Jim Lake, course manager of the 18-hole, par 72 course, decided to switch to what he describes as “the Rolls-Royce of turf machinery” after experiencing reliability issues with the mix of makes he previously used.

Jim Lake, left, with Lely’s Jonathan Lewis and the greenkeeping team looking on.

As he explains: “We were a multi-machinery site before, but decided to switch exclusively to Toro. With the other main make we used, it just felt that the machines weren’t properly thought through, which made maintenance difficult. So we bought Toro as part of a course improvement plan, and also because we wanted a more reliable and better quality fleet.”

Joining Jim’s older Toro machines is a Reelmaster 7000-D fairway mower, a Groundsmaster 4300-D rough mower, two Greensmaster 1000 pedestrian mowers and a Workman MDX-D utility vehicle.

And with Jim’s existing kit including a Toro mower that’s now 20 years old, he’s in no doubt that these new arrivals will prove just as reliable. “Our 1993 Toro mower is still going strong – I can’t see other makes being able to compete with that longevity,” he continues.

“When I send a greenkeeper out to do a job I don’t want to see him back in the greens maintenance facility until the job is finished – it’s no good him wandering back here halfway through with a broken part in his hand! So reliability was really important to us.

“With our old fleet, I was forever spending money on replacement parts – it was costing me a fortune. So, although Toro is seen as more expensive, I really don’t think that’s the case because prices are competitive, build quality is outstanding and the whole-life costs work out well in terms of less downtime.”