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Raising the par! Course manager at Nairn Dunbar is latest inductee into an international elite team of master greenkeepers by joining the British and International Golf Greenkeepers Association





Course manager Richard Johnstone, with (from left) deputy course manager Craig Mackay, apprentice greenkeepers Nathan Grant and Ryan Knox, and assistant greenkeeper Michael McInnes. Picture: James Mackenzie
Course manager Richard Johnstone, with (from left) deputy course manager Craig Mackay, apprentice greenkeepers Nathan Grant and Ryan Knox, and assistant greenkeeper Michael McInnes. Picture: James Mackenzie

Richard Johnstone is one of two new inductees into an international elite team of master greenkeepers.

He has become the 86th member of BIGGA – the British and International Golf Greenkeepers Association. It is the highest accolade available to greenkeepers worldwide.

The other inductee – Paul Brett, of The Springs Golf Club in Oxfordshire – was 87th to achieve the prestigious Master Greenkeeper Certification.

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Their recognition is for having reached the highest standards of greenkeeping and golf course management.

Richard (39) joined Nairn Dunbar in 2000 straight from school and became course manager in 2016. He has been recognised nationally for his environmental work in the development of the course.

“I’m delighted from a personal point of view but it’s also recognition for the club who have supported me throughout this journey,” he said.

Richard was appointed course manager in 2016 after the retiral of long-serving head greenkeeper Derek Roy. “I was part of a very experienced greenkeeping team and we now have some new young apprentice greenkeepers on the staff who we are always encouraging to better themselves,” Richard said. “Although the award is a huge personal achievement it is also recognition for the hard work and commitment of the entire greenkeeping team.”

Richard has been making his mark on the course by reducing the use of chemicals, fertilisers and water which all help provide a firm and fast-running links golf experience.

The course won an environmental golf course of the year award in 2021, after being runner-up in 2019 and 2020. He explained: “It is a worldwide competition organised by the Sports Turf Research Institute, so this was a major award.”

As part of the ongoing programme of work, the club has applied for permission to fell 600 non-native trees over the next five years to restore the original characteristics of the course and allow the natural flora and fauna throughout the course to flourish.

“Huge areas of undulating natural topography within the site have been lost to invasive species and we have put management plans in place similar to those adopted by the RSPB, who manage the adjoining Site of Special Scientific Interest at Culbin sands.”

Richard added: “Learning never stops and I am always setting myself new challenges, one of which was to complete the Master Greenkeeper Certificate.

“It had always been an ambition of mine to become a master greenkeeper and I feel so proud to have achieved it.

“The whole process, from the review of golf course operations to the final examinations, was extremely rewarding for myself and the team. I’m now looking forward to doing what I can to give back to the industry and help others reach their full potential.”

Nairn Dunbar club captain, Shaun Smith, said: “We are delighted to support Richard’s continuing success and proud to have him as our course manager.

“The environmental and sustainability work that Richard leads his team on, together with his commitment to personal development and hard work, has been appropriately recognised in various awards and his team prepare and deliver an outstanding championship links golf course for our members and guests to enjoy.

"We are working with various professional agencies on our long-term plan to return the links to its natural condition as we balance environmental and sustainability requirements.”


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