NEWS RELEASE April 14, 2025
John Deere shaping the future of Glenelg Golf Club
Crestmead, Queensland (14 April, 2025) — Glenelg Golf Club has nearly 100 years of esteemed history, but Superintendent Tim Warren has his eyes firmly set on the future.
Consistently ranked as one of the country's best courses, the 49-hectare site 20 minutes west of Adelaide CBD has undergone several redevelopments since the Governor of South Australia launched a drive from the first tee to officially open the club in May 1927.
Since joining the club in 2018, Tim has overseen continuous improvements including the current Course Enhancement Plan, a multi-year project spanning almost every square inch of the property from resurfacing greens and replacing irrigation infrastructure, to rebuilding bunkers, redesigning holes and various landscaping and construction projects.
"It's a massive undertaking, but we can see the finish line in sight now," Tim said.
"After this project is complete, we'll start looking at maintenance sheds, the driving range, practice areas and other club facilities – so there'll still be plenty of work in front of us.
"We're a pretty small site here at just under 50 hectares, but our topography and landscape pose some unique challenges when it comes to maintenance. The course includes one of the highest points on the Adelaide plains and some areas that are below sea level, resulting in a large variety of vegetation, including a lot of native plants that we have worked hard to nurture.
"Also having a sand base means some areas deteriorate quite quickly under high foot traffic. Since Christmas, we've been averaging 200 to 250 rounds of golf every day, which really tests the greenkeeping team, but it's a good challenge to have.
"People expect a certain standard from us as one of the 'Group 1' courses here in Adelaide, and we have a responsibility to our members to be delivering the kind of quality they expect."
The future is green
As part of Glenelg's commitment to quality, the club is currently converting its full machinery fleet from its previous supplier to John Deere, including greens mowers, fairway mowers, a GPS sprayer, utility vehicles and a compact utility tractor.
"I'm all about trialling different products and looking for areas to get a competitive edge," Tim said.
"We were with our previous supplier for a long time, but when we tried out some of the John Deere equipment it became clear we needed to go in that direction.
"I can't rave enough about the (225 E-Cut™) electric walk-behind greens mowers. The cutting quality is fantastic – very aggressive which is what we need. We're also a tight site here with a lot of houses very close to the course, so the reduction in noise we get from the electric mowers is crucial as well.
"The team's really enjoying working on the (2750 E-Cut Hybrid) Triplex mowers as well. It's clear John Deere has prioritised operator comfort in the ergonomic design, which is important when that person is sitting on the machine for several hours at a time.
"At the end of the day the quality of cut around the course is my biggest priority. That's what the golfers see and that's what I'm judged on, particularly at a course of our stature. It's been noticeably better with the John Deere machines."
Another noticeable difference for Tim has been the support of his local John Deere dealer.
"Having a face-to-face relationship with someone at the dealership, rather than just generic corporate contact details, is exactly what I was looking for," he said.
"Chad Norsworthy from the dealership lives just around the corner, and he'll pop out with spare parts whenever we need them – even in between dropping his kids off or running family errands. It's that personal service you don't get from other suppliers.
"It also means you can have open, honest conversations about what's working and what's not. If there's issues, they're solved quickly, rather than going around in circles trying to find the right person to talk to."
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Glenelg Golf Club Superintendent, Tim Warren, with daughter Sophie Warren.
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Sophie Warren using one of the club's John Deere 2750 E-Cut Hybrid Triplex mowers.
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Tim and Sophie Warren with the John Deere 225 E-Cut™ Electric Walk Greens Mower.
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Tim Warren says the John Deere 2030A GPS PrecisionSprayer has delivered great efficiency and output.
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Tim Warren using the John Deere Operations Center PRO Golf course management software.
Precision Turf changing the game
Glenelg's green focus doesn't end with the machinery. The club has earned multiple accolades for its environmental initiatives, including the prestigious 'Claude Crockford' Sustainability and Environmental Award, and the Clubs SA Environmental Awareness Award for the past three years in a row.
Sustainability is firmly entrenched in the Course Enhancement Plan, including reducing water use, conserving indigenous flora, expanding tree canopies and minimising chemical reliance.
John Deere's Precision Turf technology tools are helping Tim and his team enact their sustainability plans, as well as increase operational efficiency around the course.
"We're approaching our centenary, and a big goal for us is preserving the land we're on so it's looking like it was 100 years ago when they first started carving it out of the sand hills and flats," he said.
"We're heavily using John Deere Operations Center™ to analyse our spraying outputs on our greens, and we're on target for a 30% saving there thanks to the data from the GPS system.
"Eventually we'll start using the GPS sprayers on our fairways as well, which will result in some huge savings – both financial and with chemicals. And down the track we'll look at electrifying a percentage of our fleet given the results we've had with the John Deere electric equipment so far.
"We've also just scratched the surface of the Operations Center PRO Golf software, but we're keen to start fully using that for our job boards and reporting. It will be great to have on the one platform all our labour allocation and KPI tracking.
"I believe once we have the full John Deere fleet, including another GPS sprayer, we'll see some huge advancements in efficiency and output.
"Since the COVID golf boom a lot of courses have had more resources to put towards redevelopment to keep up with playing demand, but we're pretty unique in that we're doing it all in-house here. We've got more staff onboard for our redevelopment project, including a project construction manager who handles course design and shaping."
Supporting the turf industry
Another key figure in Glenelg's transformation has been Tim's daughter, Sophie.
Since joining the club in 2021 after finishing high school, Sophie has attained a Certificate III in Horticulture while completing her apprenticeship, and was named the Turf Management South Australia (TMSA) Golf Graduate of the Year for 2024.
"I knew when she was at school she was pretty keen on getting a trade, but never thought she'd end up pursuing this career," Tim said.
"She had tried a few different work experiences during school but nothing was grabbing her, so she started doing some casual holiday work at Glenelg just for some extra money. Eventually that led to cutting fairways and greens which she enjoyed, so she decided to pursue one of the apprentice positions we had available."
Sophie recalls when she fell in love with the profession.
"I still remember my first day at Glenelg, it was bucketing down rain and I was wondering what I'd gotten myself into," she told The Golfing Greenkeeper Podcast.
"But the first time I got on a fairway mower I absolutely loved it. I didn't even have my licence at that point and had never driven a car before, but I loved being on these massive machines.
"Spraying is something I find really interesting too – getting to know what you're spraying, why you're spraying it and how it affects the plant health. I've also really enjoyed getting to learn on the John Deere GPS sprayers since the club made the switch to those.
"I reckon I was destined to be in the industry. For the TMSA award I had to do a presentation and found this old photo of Dad and I with a John Deere fairway mower when I was only a baby, so I've come full circle!"
Sophie was one of six greenkeepers who volunteered at the 2024 Webex Players Series at Cobram Barooga Golf Club as part of the John Deere Women in Turf Program.
"It was very cool to see how a country course prepares for a tournament compared to Glenelg," she said.
"I was doing a lot of things I wouldn't normally do day-to-day, like changing holes and measuring the moisture of the greens.
"I still keep in touch the other volunteers the Cobram Barooga staff – they were all so welcoming and made it a very enjoyable experience."
The goal of the Women in Turf Program – promoting career pathways in greenkeeping – is a mission close to Tim's heart as well.
"I think the industry really needs to mature when it comes to attracting new talent, and promoting the career to women is a big part of that," he said.
"There's so much you can do within turf and golf beyond just cutting grass – human resources, fleet management, biodiversity, social media etc.
"It's great to see John Deere getting behind the industry, and we're excited to see where our partnership will take us in future.
"John Deere's golf offering has had a real revitalisation in recent years right from the ground up. Both the product and people behind it are producing the results we're looking for.
"I'm looking forward to seeing where they go with developing their technology, particularly autonomous mowers and electrification, and I'm excited to see where that will takes us as a club."
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Kate Scott
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