The PGA Championship moved up in the golf schedule to accommodate the Olympics but Toro equipment was on hand at Baltusrol Golf Club in Springfield N.J. to get the course championship ready for this weekend's tournament and their irrigation is critical for the new Olympic Golf Course in Rio.
Preparation for a major championship takes extra work, workers and equipment. Mark Kuhns, director of grounds for Baltusrol Golf Club, is a 40 –year veteran of golf course management. He credits Toro equipment and irrigation for getting the course prepared.
"I have maintained several of the finest courses in the world during my career, and I owe much of my success to my relationship with the people at Toro," Kuhns said in a statement.
It's been a summer of major championship preparation for Toro equipment. Toro equipment was instrumental in prepping Oakmont Country Club for the U.S. Open in June, and has a long history with Augusta National which hosts The Masters in April.
Toro irrigation and/or equipment also played a big role in preparing courses for these other major championships:·U.S. Women's Open at CordeValle Golf Club in California (irrigation); ·British Women's Open at Woburn Country Club in England (equipment); ·BMW Championship at The Wentworth Club in England (equipment and irrigation); ·U.S. Senior Open at Scioto Country Club in Ohio (Toro equipment and irrigation).
Oakmont, Baltusrol and Augusta National are among the most historic golf courses in the United States. However, Toro irrigation was also instrumental in preparing the new Olympic Golf Course for the Rio de Janeiro Olympics this August. Golf is returning as a medal sport to the Olympics for the first times since 1904.
The Olympic Course in Rio is located in a nature preserve and was purpose built for this year's Olympics. Toro provided a fully integrated irrigation system for the new course that features Toro's Lynx central control system, 2,200 Toro sprinklers, more than 1,000 Precision Series spray nozzles and Toro's Turf Guard wireless soil monitoring sensors.
Toro's fully integrated irrigation system is expected to help the course's head superintendent, Neil Cleverly, reduce water and energy use. "As superintendent of an environmentally sensitive golf course, it is very important that we are able to put the right amount of water on the course when and where we need it," Cleverly said in a statement.
Toro's season of championship golf will continue through the end of September when Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, hosts one of the biggest tournaments of the year - the 2016 Ryder Cup. Toro has had a long history with the championship venue that is practically in its backyard. Hazeltine will host the every-other-year international competition between 12-member teams from the U.S and Europe from Sept. 27 – Oct. 2.
