Topgrass

Topgrass offers consultancy services covering all aspects of golf course design, construction, maintenance and management. Topgrass prides itself on providing independent advice, finding the most cost effective solutions for all golf course budgets whilst also ensuring environmental sustainability.

Topgrass was founded by Colin Mackay after having a successful career in greenkeeping and greenkeeping management. Mr. Mackay’s career includes working at Elmwood College in Fife, Scotland which is one of the largest greenkeeping schools in the world with 400+ greenkeeping students / year. The golf course is run as a fully functioning 18 hole course. Mr. Mackay taught students about design, construction, all maintenance practices as well as machinery maintenance and use. All aspects of greenkeeping were managed, taught and practiced including irrigation installation and control together with drainage.

Mr. Mackay’s experience also includes specifying, negotiating and overseeing large golf course engineering projects, undertaken by both contractors and in-house.  Whilst working in Denmark and having full control over the budget for a 36 hole golf complex including driving ranges and practice holes Mr. Mackay specified a state of the art irrigation system which was the most advanced in Denmark at the time. He also took control of the tendering and oversaw the installation of the fully automatic irrigation system including creating a lake as a reservoir with integrated drainage system to reduce the need for water extraction from the ground.

Mr. Mackay has had to work with stringent environmental issues especially whilst working in Denmark, as the site had some nationally important habitats and woodland.

Having an extremely varied and far ranging knowledge of machinery use and maintenance Mr. Mackay has been able to put this to good use in his past positions by setting up maintenance regimes and schedules together with teaching machinery use and maintenance to staff and students alike.  This extensive knowledge of machinery has seen him specify, tender and negotiate for full machinery fleets and designing maintenance systems to ensure all machinery is maintained to the highest standards ensuring high resale values. 

With a handicap of two and having played golf for over thirty years Mr. Mackay has an eye for golf course presentation which has been increased by his knowledge of the game from the player’s side.

Mr. Mackay has had a busy educational career achieving many professional development certificates, whilst also attending numerous seminars and conferences in the UK, USA and in Scandinavia. Mr. Mackay has presented presentations at conferences and has done many presentations to students who have come from all over the world.