Rosapenna Hotel and Golf Resort, situated among the sand dunes of Sheephaven Bay on the beautiful coastline of northwest Donegal in Ireland, has invested in the latest mower technology with the recent purchase of a Jacobsen Eclipse 322 diesel-electric hybrid greens mower from local distributor Kevin Broderick Ltd.

Paul Travers, links superintendent, joined the resort back in 2008 and manages a team of 12 staff which consists of seven full-time employees supplemented by five part-timers in the summer months. Prior to this he was assistant course manager at Lough Erne during the construction and grow-in phases from 2005 until moving to Rosapenna in 2008.

Commenting on the Eclipse 322 he said,

"This is by far the best greens mower on the market today; fuel economy is excellent and there's absolutely no danger of the greenkeepers worst nightmare, an hydraulic oil leak on the green! To be able to control the frequency of cut is a huge advance and we've been experimenting with it to find the optimum for the greens here.

"We have some steep dunes here; it copes admirably with any slopes and the automatic braking system is unique to this mower. It's comfortable, well thought out, the controls are easily accessible from the control arm and the swing-out centre unit makes routine adjustments quick and easy. Add the excellent level of service we receive from Broderick's and we have a package that complements the golfing experience here at Rosapenna."

The Rosapenna resort consists of 45 holes of golf, a golf pavilion and a four star, 66 bedroom hotel complete with leisure centre, all situated in 800 acres of pristine dunes. It can trace its history back to 1891, when Lord Leitrum invited Old Tom Morris to design the first links, which opened for play in 1893.