With the much-awaited course now less than a year away from its official opening, staff at the Trump International Golf Links have been using a large fleet of John Deere maintenance since the final shaping and grow in started in earnest last spring.

Links superintendent John Bambury knows that high standards are expected of him, given the investment behind the project and the huge amount of hype it has prompted. “The fairways have to be better than the best tee boxes, the tee boxes have to be better than the best greens, and the greens have to be better than anywhere else in the world,” he said. “We are hand cutting all the greens and tees, and box cutting all the fairways, so it’s a hell of an operation. The John Deere 2500B triplex mowers are excellent for following contours on the approaches and surrounds, and we have a mixed fleet of nine Gator utility vehicles – these have been used all over the course during the construction work, and have proved invaluable.”

“Martin Hawtree’s design, using the natural topography, is really a remarkable achievement,” said Bambury. “It marries the contrasting elements of a rugged, beautiful landscape and pristine grass surfaces and makes them totally complementary, while maintaining the essential links experience. Ultimately this will be a four and a half to five hour golf experience like no other, which will be focused as much on the natural beauty of the dunes and coastline as on the golf. This is not just a project, it’s a very special golf course, and there’s no other place in the world I’d rather be.”