JOB OPPORTUNITIES in greenkeeping are good, with about 400 golf courses, 300 pitch-and-putt clubs and numerous driving ranges in Ireland. Ireland is now in the forefront of golfing countries, ranking with Scotland and Australia; however, the phenomenal growth of the past five years may be beginning to flatten out.
"A lot of people think that greenkeeping is cutting the grass, but in fact these people are managing the golf courses," says Pat Suttle, Teagasc lecturer in greenkeeping. Students on Teagasc greenkeeping courses will study turfgrass science and maintenance, golf-course maintenance and construction, tractors and engines, golf-course machinery and communications. Greenkeepers must possess a variety of skills, from disease diagnosis to budget management, Suttle explains.
The greenkeeping course is offered on a block-release basis, with students attending college for three fortnights a year. The rest of the time students must be employed on a golf course: the theory is covered in college but the practical assessments are done on the courses.
So school-leavers interested in Teagasc courses should first try to secure a position and then apply for the course. Suttle advises prospective job-seekers to try in late February and early March - the time of year when heavy work is done on golf courses and there is greatest demand for personnel. The course costs £675, but courses normally sponsor the students.
There are between 50 and 70 students each year, with courses run in Termonfeckin, Co Louth, Kitdalton, Co Kilkenny, and the Botanic Gardens, Dublin. To apply for a place, write to the Golfing Union of Ireland (see FACTFILE). The GUI holds the application forms, which are then forwarded to Teagasc in June. There is no interview, as applicants are already working in the area.
The course currently run in the Botanic Gardens will soon be transferred to Kinsealy research station in Dublin, where there are ready-made labs and computer rooms. Graduates of the various courses run under the auspices of Teagasc are awarded level-three certificates by the National Council for Vocational Awards.
A follow-on management course will be available in 1997. It will include modules on personnel, financial and leisure-facility management, analytical techniques for turfgrass management, computer studies, ecology and environmental management and course architecture; the course will probably include a large element of distance learning.
In the long term, Pat Suttle expects that a full-time third-level qualification will be introduced. At present, it is also possible to do greenkeeping modules on various full-time horticulture courses and these may include an element of work experience in golf clubs.
The normal career progression for a greenkeeper is from assistant to superintendent or head greenkeeper. There are significant job opportunities abroad as well as in Ireland. The financial rewards are good, and head greenkeepers may be responsible for budgets of more than £400,000 a year.
