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For 2019, Greenkeepers Three!


Jon Kiger

1,871 views

Our Greenkeeping, The Next Generation student-authored blog debuted in 2012 as a way for our first intern to share his new experiences on and off the course while spending a summer in Ireland. It has been written by a variety of students from many different schools and regions of the country. The blog has also sparked increased interest in spending the summer overseas working in turf as the access to courses willing to host turf students has increased.

It is in this environment that we are pleased to announce that the 2019 edition of this popular blog will feature three students blogging about their experiences overseas. Each is from a different background and has a different experience lined up for the summer. 

Parker Stancil  Scott Powers  David Payne

We are delighted that Clemson-bound Parker Stancil is back for another summer with TurfNet. His solo blog last year from Great Northern in Denmark won both “Best Blog” and “Best in Show” at the Turf & Ornamental Communicators 2019 awards contest in Charlotte. Parker wasted no time after graduating from Horry Georgetown Technical College in getting over to his assignment at historic Portmarnock Golf Club outside of Dublin, Ireland. In a few weeks the club will host The Amateur Championship so he will be key to helping keep the course “tournament ready” for this R&A event. Longtime friend of TurfNet Gary Johnstone is the Links Manager at Portmarnock and we thank him for hosting Parker this summer. 

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Portmarnock Golf Club is a frequent and enjoyable stop on our Member Trips to Ireland, as well as being Parker Stancil's home-away-from-home this summer.

Across a smaller pond – the Irish Sea – is Scott Powers, a recent graduate of the University of Guelph turf program. Scott is spending the season at the Royal Automobile Club outside of London. Host course manager Lee Strutt describes Scott as a super intern with a great work ethic and very respectful of the club. We would expect nothing less from a member of the Team TurfNet hockey team (though Lee confessed to not knowing of this existing link to TurfNet).

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No stranger to TurfNet even while at the Univ of Guelph, Scott Powers (above left) has played two years for Team TurfNet in the Golf Course Hockey Challenge. Scott is interning at the Royal Automobile Club Woodcote Park golf courses (below) in Epsom, Surrey, England.

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Back in Ireland, David Payne represents perhaps the most non-traditional intern to represent TurfNet. At age 59 he is enrolled in the turf program at The Ohio State University ATI in Wooster. He decided on the career change after many years teaching and coaching and a family move to Ohio. He will be operating (and repairing) equipment, assisting with research trials, and reporting on primarily sportsturf-related research going on at Poaceae Farm in Old Court, County Wicklow. 

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David Payne operating a Jacobsen AR 250 on one of the production fields at Poaceae Farm in Ireland.

We look forward to the contributions of these fine individuals and acknowledge the sponsors of the blog Tru-Turf and STEC Equipment.  Stay tuned to TurfNet for updates from our overseas team! 

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