NGIV 2021 GOLF DAY CLASSIC

from Groundswell | March 2021

WHY IS CASH KING FOR SMALL BUSINESS?

NGIV members out in force for Golf Day Classic

By Matt Ross

On Friday 5 February 2021 over 80 NGIV members teed off at our Golf Day Classic. Conditions at the stunning Settler’s Run Golf Course in Botanic Ridge looked precarious, but the rain never came, and we were blessed with a perfect day.

A lot of the talk on the day was whether Tall Trees made up of Joel, Jared and David Vanderuit, and Shane Male, would be crowned champions for three successive years; the ‘threepeat’.

The turnout was fantastic and it was quite a sight to see a complete takeover of the Settler’s Run golf carts from Victoria’s horticultural industry.

The course itself, designed by Greg Norman, takes the best elements of Melbourne’s renowned sandbelt courses and incorporates them into a dramatic, natural golf setting. The design takes advantage of the undulating landscape and natural wetlands to create a layout that fits seamlessly with the surrounding environment.

For the first time ever there was a nine-hole competition, with each team needing to be made up of at least two women. Everyone had a lot of fun, and it was Karen, Linda and Sarah from Ausflora, with a little help from Matt at NGIV, that took out the top prize (just don’t ask them where their team name, The Brazilians, came from).

It fell to Gary Edwards, from the day’s major sponsor Garden City Plastics, to reveal the winners of the 2021 Golf Day Classic. In third place was William McIntosh, Matt Jansen, Matt Mansfield and Trevor Steinthal. In second place, narrowly missing out on the ‘threepeat’ were the boys from Tall Trees.

And the new champions, playing some stellar golf, are Chris England from Merrywood Plants, Grant Rankin from Carawah Nursery, Adam Delarue from Delarue Landscapes and Damian Whitten from Top Ten Trees.

There were a host of fun spot prizes given away on the day for things like, straightest drive, nearest to the pin, drive the green, beat the bunker, Hickory longest drive, and more. Thank you to all the hole sponsors; Transplant Systems, Ball Australia, Native Plant Wholesalers, Tall Trees, SureGro, Powerplants Australia, JFT Nurseries, Monbulk Rural, Piper Alderman, Australian Growing Solutions, Norwood, Gallagher, Bio Gro, Greenhills Propagation Nursery, Helix Australia, Diacos Garden Nursery, Garden City Plastics, Grow Better, ICL Specialty Fertilisers, Sidekicker, Chandler AgriBusiness, EvergreenConnect, JMK Nursery and Moshie.

A big thanks to our organising committee consisting of Lizzie Earl, Heath McKenzie and Will McIntosh, the day was a huge success and testament to all their hard work. Planning is already underway to make the 2022 Golf Day Classic even bigger.

Golf Day is the perfect opportunity to network with industry peers, enjoy some golf and let your hair down. Start practicing your swing and we’ll see you in 2022.