Wentworth turf used to fix greens at Loch Lomond

ANY lingering doubts about Loch Lomond's suitability to stage the Barclays Scottish Open next month were removed yesterday when officials laid the course bare to close scrutiny by the media.

It became clear during a detailed briefing on the current state of play that, as revealed by The Scotsman in May, the severe winter conditions had played havoc with the greens and there had been very real concerns on the part of the European Tour that they might be forced to seek an alternate venue for the event, to be held on 8-11 July.

Course superintendent David Cole described the situation that he and his team were confronted with as recently as six months ago as, "the worst I have faced" and Peter Adams, the championship director, confessed: "It was nerve-wracking for a while."

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Four of the greens were so badly affected by ice that they had to be ripped up and replaced with turf from Wentworth in a desperate race against the clock.

"We experienced two to three inches of ice for up to 30 days over the Christmas period and when it melted we were left with very white, very distressed turf because no oxygen could get under the ice," recalled Cole.

"I contacted the club and a few experts from around the world, including seeking advice from Scandinavian clubs because they are used to that sort of thing.

"The problem was getting greens standard turf because you can't just go and buy it from a shop. But we got lucky as Wentworth had some soil left following the redevelopment of their greens."

Adams added: "I think the course measures up close to the excellent standard we had last year."

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