EXTRA TREAD ON GOLF WALKWAYS

Photo: Adrian Rietveld and Kerry Knowles, assistant professionals at Wentworth Club on Playtop Walkway. The composition of Playtop® makes it ideal for walkways in and around a golf club.

A surface made from recycled commercial vehicle tyres is finding favour with golf clubs as an ideal product for walkways. 

Playtop Walkways is an impact-absorbing surfacing supplied by Playtop Limited, a Newark and Edinburgh-based supplier and installer. Historically the product has been used on children’s playgrounds to prevent injury to children who fall. However, the fact that water drains freely through it and that it dampens sound makes it ideal for walkways in and around golf clubs.

The three latest golf clubs to use Playtop are Royal Troon, Bonnyton Golf Club in Glasgow and Wentworth.

“We installed Playtop Walkways on the pathway to the 1st tee three years ago and have installed it again this year on the pathway from the 18th green.” says Ross Monaghan, the course manager at Bonnyton. “We’re on top of the moors here so it gets very wet. Playtop has proved to be ideal as the water just drains off it. The fact that it’s a soft surface as well makes it very user friendly and Playtop as a company was great at working around the demands of the club.”  

Another club to use Playtop Walkways for a second time is the Wentworth Club, who originally installed Playtop many years ago. Despite trying an alternative walkway surface, Wentworth has returned to Playtop, installing it on the walkways up to the club house.  

Julian Small, managing director of Wentworth Club, said; “Despite trialling other products nothing has proved as good as Playtop. The new surface was put in a couple of months ago and has already proved its worth.

“The colour range available with Playtop was also a deciding factor as we wanted something that looked natural and blended in with the buildings. The final surface looks great and the fact that the company uses recycled products is even better.”

The venue for the 2008 Senior Open Championship, Royal Troon, has also just installed Playtop on its walkways leading to the practice area, up to the 1st tee and at the back of its recently refurbished club house.

Playtop safer surfacing is manufactured from recycled commercial vehicle tyres produced by a sister company, Charles Lawrence International. In addition, Playtop has a global partnership with Nike, the sportswear company, which sees recycled sports shoes also used in its surfacing.  Every square metre of Playtop which incorporates Nike Grind contains rubber from approximately 20 pairs of trainers and one commercial vehicle tyre. Using rubber granulate from tyres and trainers in this way prevents it ending up in already overflowing landfill sites.