Emirates Golf Club and the Air2G2

As Dubai’s number one golf course, it is imperative that machinery manager and second assistant, Dónal Mulvey, and the 72 strong golf course maintenance department consisting of greenkeepers, mechanics, irrigation, landscape and spray technicians maintain the high standards expected by members and customers.

Dónal has worked for Emirates Golf Club since January 2017 having completed a Bachelor of Science in Horticulture, which included a 30-week placement at Royal Dublin Golf Club as a greenkeeper, where he stayed for a further five years training as a greenkeeper and mechanic. With almost four years of experience working on the Middle East’s first grass golf course, he is familiar with the issues faced in one of the driest and arid regions of the world, where reusing salt-rich treated sewage effluent (TSE) water is common practice.

After seeing the Air2G2 on various social media platforms and first-hand at GIS, the club thought the machine could be a huge asset to the Majlis’ 30-year-old push-up greens that host 45,000 rounds of golf a year as well as the Faldo Course, which takes 55,000.

“We purchased the Air2G2 for many different reasons,” Dónal explains. The main one being the Majlis greens are 30-year-old push-up greens with no drainage. Given the high volume of water we put out which is all TSE water, we have a constant issue with salt build-up and air exchange. We also have a high volume of golf throughout the year, and any aeration we can do with no disturbance to the greens is extremely beneficial.

“The machine does exactly what it claims to do providing deep aeration with no surface disturbance. We can run it at any time, and the golfers are none the wiser. We mainly tackle weak areas on the greens, and the machine is used three times a month on the entire green and four to six times on collars and affected areas.

“The more and more we use it, the less noticeable it is. When we first started the ground would move slightly due to compaction. Now that we run it regularly, there is no movement in the soil, and there is less compaction and more oxygen, and we can also see moisture and EC levels drop after using the machine.”

Nick Brown Product Specialist for Campey Turf Care is delighted to be working closely with The Emirates Golf Club to provide turf maintenance solutions. “Campey Turf Care always encourages best practice, and we like to work closely with our end users to ensure they have access to the right advice and equipment to suit their specific needs. Working closely with Dónal, we have examined all the options and helped provide the right solution. In this instance the Air2G2 has delivered the results and we are extremely pleased.”

The Air2G2 uses three probes to latterly inject pressurised air up to 12-inches beneath the surface of the soil to fracture the compacted layers that form because of footfall, mechanical traffic and daily wear and tear. Because the air is injected directly into the root zone, the surface of the turf is left undisturbed, allowing play to continue instantly.

For more information on the Air2G2 or any of Foley product visit www.foleyco.com