Formby
United Kingdom
Site Profile
The Formby Ladies Golf Club is located in the heart of “England’s Golf Coast,” a stunning expanse along the Lancashire shoreline. Nestled within coastal sand dunes and towering pine trees, the exclusive course features first-class facilities, tight fairways, and well-protected greens. For over 100 years, it’s continued to offer an alluring links experience to its many members.
The club’s staff recently upgraded their course with Hunter GT-885 Rotors and Pilot Command Center Software. Spearheaded by Course Manager Rob Sandilands, the project’s goal was to modernize the club's irrigation management, reduce its water consumption, and ensure the health of the course with more sustainable practices.
The Formby Ladies Golf Club staff faced several challenges prior to the upgrade. Their former system didn’t provide adequate coverage of the course’s fairways and walkways, which resulted in uneven turf conditions and frequent dry patches. They also lacked flexibility in their irrigation scheduling and control. At the time, the staff was relying on natural rainfall patterns, which didn’t provide sufficient moisture for optimal course maintenance. This also made it difficult to apply essential products like wetting agents at suitable times.
The answer to the club’s challenges came in the form of a best-in-class Hunter Golf irrigation system. Aided by built-in PressurePort™ Technology that optimizes incoming pressure at each nozzle, Hunter’s GT-885 Rotors now provide consistent and uniform water coverage across the entire course. This has significantly improved the turf quality.
The staff paired these robust rotors with Pilot Command Center Software, an intuitive and flexible irrigation control solution that regularly monitors and updates the system to ensure efficient watering cycles based on the turf’s daily needs. The software’s web-based features also provide a clear display and enhanced functionality, enabling easy watering adjustments in minutes with just a few clicks. This has offered the staff precise control over their irrigation and eliminated the need to rely on unpredictable rainfall forecasts.
As a result of this powerful product pairing, the Formby Ladies Golf Club staff has already seen remarkable improvements to the course. With precise control over their irrigation scheduling, they can now keep the course properly irrigated all year round, even during periods of drought. They can also apply products like wetting agents at times that best suit their maintenance schedule.
“Members and staff have already noticed a significant improvement of the fairways due to the Hunter GT-885 Rotors’ consistency and distribution uniformity, and the fairways will only keep improving as the new system gives us total control of the playing surfaces,” said Sandilands.
Thanks to the new Hunter Golf system, the Formby Ladies Golf Club staff has not only resolved the course’s previous maintenance challenges but also laid the groundwork for years of sustainable and efficient irrigation management.
