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Almost ten years ago, former Greenkeeper of the Year Kristian Summerfield wrote, in my opinion, an iconic column for this trade journal titled: Why we do not need robots. You can still read it on the website of this trade journal.
Why do I find this column iconic? Mainly because it shows the passion of the greenkeeping profession in a beautiful, emotional (almost religious) way. Unfortunately, what Summerfield stated is no longer entirely true. In this edition of Greenkeeper, you can read that even industry leader Toro has switched to the robot camp, thereby painfully proving Summerfield wrong. Indirectly, Toro had of course already made the switch earlier, and more than ten years ago, Toro mowers were being converted to robotic mowers.
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I think there are few things as special as wandering over a golf course early in the morning as the sun rises
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Of course, Summerfield is right that maintaining a golf course is a fantastic profession. I think there are few things as special as wandering over a golf course early in the morning as the sun rises, but that is, of course, not the whole truth. The fact is that money needs to be made. Golf course operators are always looking for ways to perform maintenance as well, but as inexpensively as possible, and here, the robot is a fantastic tool. Additionally, unfortunately, it is becoming increasingly difficult to find good staff in the greenkeeping profession.
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Robots don't get sick and never have an off-day
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Robots don't get sick and never have an off-day. Summerfield wonders in his column whether he should resign himself to the fact that robots are going to replace greenkeepers. The sad truth is, of course, that this is just going to happen and has actually already happened. At the same time, you also see that with the advent of new technology, new roles are created, and the quality of golf courses has greatly improved through mechanization and robotization.
And don't forget: greenkeepers were also laid off when we switched from hand mowers to triplex mowers. This development towards robotization is nothing new; it is part of a much larger and broader process of mechanization.
This article was previously published on March 14, 2025, on the Greenkeeper website.
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