Bury St Edmunds GC centenary celebrations on course with help from Toro

By Alistair June 21, 2022 08:51

Bury St Edmunds Golf Club in Suffolk is approaching its centenary and has enlisted the help of Toro and Reesink Turfcare to ensure the courses are in an immaculate condition in time for the celebrations.

Both the 18-hole championship course, host to many prestigious events over the decades, and the nine-hole Pay-and-Play course needed to be kept in the highest standard all-year round, but special care was required now for such a notable occasion.

Course manager Tom Smart, who manages the nine-strong greenkeeping team on site, was already familiar with Toro and knew only it could do the job he required.

“It has always been my preferred manufacturer and given the choice, I’d always go for Toro,” he explains. “I’ve used many Toro machines in the past and was never let down. The ones we got from Reesink were all bought for specific purposes, and each has a role to play in producing the highest standards possible on the courses. Everyone can already see the difference these machines have made on the course, and we couldn’t be more pleased.”

Having been let down by previous manufacturers and with such an important date coming up, no risks could be taken. So, the club opted for Reesink’s five-year finance package deal, and invested in four Greensmaster TriFlex Hybrid 3420 riding greensmowers, two Reelmaster 3575-D fairway mowers, a Groundsmaster 3500-D rotary mower, a Groundsmaster 4500-D rotary mower, a Multi Pro 5800-D sprayer and a ProCore 648 pedestrian aerator for the ultimate peace of mind.

L-R Tom Smart Green Manager Bury St Edmunds Golf Club with Julian Copping from Reesink and Mike Verhelst Genral Manager of Bury St Edmunds Golf Club. Bury St Edmunds Golf Club show their new Toro fleet from Reesink

“I find Toro machines are more reliable than others in the market and have better build quality,” Tom continues. “We had a lot of issues with bits of kit from other brands, even with new machines, which weren’t quite right in the first place. This pushed us away from our previous manufacturers and made us turn to Toro and Reesink.

“Reesink has been very good during the whole process,” he says. “They are just down the road from us, so it makes it quite easy. When we had some very minor settling in issues with a couple of the machines, which was nothing out of the ordinary, Reesink East Anglia were quick to come as soon as we called them and it was all covered under the Toro comprehensive warranty.”

Not only was it important to have the best performing machines to withstand the pressure and demands of such a vital job under deadline, but also to make sure the team was happy while operating and maintaining them.

“The comfort Toro provides was a massive factor for us as well,” Tom explains. “When you’re using a machine for up to eight hours a day, operator comfort is vital. And the usability is just unbeatable – they are very user-friendly. Having an almost all-Toro fleet now has greatly helped our mechanic too, as parts can be interchanged and the machines are much easier to service and maintain.”