Great service is par for the course
The machinery fleet at Rochford Hundred Golf Club in Essex is now almost all John Deere, with new arrivals for 2011 including a 4520 compact tractor with cab and 400CX front loader, and an Aercore 800 pedestrian aerator with scarifier.
These have joined 11 other John Deere machines supplied by local dealer P Tuckwell Ltd of Ardleigh, near Colchester, including greens, tees and surrounds and fairway mowers, several Gator utility vehicles and another compact tractor.
"We particularly like the quality of cut we get with John Deere mowers," says course manager Dave Rand. "I first saw the 7400 TerrainCut rotary mower on a greenkeepers feedback trip to Germany, and just loved the look of it, so I ordered one as soon as it became available and I believe we had the first unit delivered in the UK.
"It's so easy to manoeuvre round the approaches to the greens, and we couldn't believe the amount of grass it took off the first time it was used, we thought we'd got it set at the wrong height. We also run two 2500A triplex mowers and one 2500B with the new QuickAdjust cutting units, again the first ones sold by Tuckwell.
"The oldest triplex is now used with a Greentech cassette system and another is mainly used on the tees, but we can change heads between the two newer mowers as required for use on both the greens and tees.
"Reliable dealer back-up and parts service is crucial, too," adds Dave. "John Deere is an established company that has proved over time that it can deliver on its promises, and the dealer is always prepared to help us out with extra loan machines when necessary.
"We're fortunate in that there has been a big investment by the club over the last six to 12 months to improve our greenkeeping facilities and equipment, including general refurbishment of the shed area and the installation of a new waste water system, as well as improvements to the listed clubhouse, including new changing rooms. We're also looking at a new John Deere irrigation system for commission in 2012."
Website: JohnDeere.com