Record Number of Nominations and New Venue Announced for Toro Student Greenkeeper of the Year Awards

If nominations for the Toro Student Greenkeeper of the Year Awards represent the level of talent in the greenkeeping industry, then 2021 has a record amount.

Forty-nine nominees participated in regional interviews for both the main and young awards, and 12 from 11 golf clubs across the United Kingdom have been chosen to contest the finals this September.

The 2021 event will be held at Celtic Manor Resort in Wales for the first time. A Ryder Cup venue with three Championship courses and a Toro customer since 1993, Celtic Manor provides the perfect backdrop to the event, giving finalists the opportunity to be inspired by the quality and maintenance of the Montgomerie, Roman Road and Twenty Ten courses. As Sami Strutt, head of learning and development at BIGGA, says: “Taking place in the grand setting of Celtic Manor Resort, this year’s finals will be unlike any other.”

For 32 years, the awards have enabled BIGGA, the UK’s only membership association for golf greenkeepers, to work alongside turf maintenance equipment manufacturer Toro and distributor Reesink Turfcare to celebrate the next generation of talented and dedicated greenkeepers.

With educational, international, all-expenses-paid prizes for the winners, runners-up and nominators, there’s everything to play for in this year’s event. David Cole, Reesink Turfcare managing director and award sponsor, says: “We can take from the interviewing process that identified our finalists, that the greenkeeping profession continues to be in bright and focused hands. 

“Ours and Toro’s long support of this educational award is constantly rewarded by the enthusiasm, career passion and commitment to personal development that we come across every year. And that is the significant element that sustains this long-standing, career-enhancing award.”

The Toro Student Greenkeeper of the Year Awards finals will be held on 6-7 September 2021.