Redundancy by Robot?

I've been greenkeeping for 12 years.

For 10 of those years, I wanted to be a head greenkeeper.

For the last two, I have actually been one.

And until about three weeks ago, I would have told you it was everything I'd hoped it would be.

I love my job.

I know that probably sounds slightly nauseating to some of the people who write into this podcast because most of the letters you read seem to come from people who are one broken irrigation head away from driving a fairway mower into the sea.

But genuinely, I love it.

This is my first head greenkeeper position, and I think I have been incredibly lucky.

I joined a decent golf club.

with decent people running it.

They backed me.

They didn't appoint me and then immediately start telling me how to do the job.

They listened.

When I said we needed something, I wasn't automatically met with, can you make do? Or the previous head greenkeeper never needed one of those.

Or my personal favourite, how much is that going to cost us? Obviously, there have been discussions about money.

It's a golf club after all, not Manchester City Football Club.

But I've never felt like I've been fighting against them.

Over my first two years, we've invested properly.

Nothing ridiculous.

I certainly haven't ordered six brand new fairway mowers and a helicopter.

We've replaced machinery sensibly.

We've improved the irrigation in a few areas.

We've invested in the workshop.

We've also got a small fleet of robotic mowers.

And we will come back to them later.