Courtesy of the Australian Sports Turf Managers Association (ASTMA), four women from across the country spent the last week in Melbourne working at Kingston Heath and The Victoria golf clubs, helping to make sure those competing in the ISPS HANDA Australian Open were doing so on some of the best playing surfaces in the world.

Victorian locals Ella Arter and Jayde Robson were joined by Kelly Fagents and Kasey Williams from Western Australia for a gruelling, but equally rewarding, week of learning, professional development, networking and bonding on the Melbourne Sandbelt.

As part of its 'Women in Turf Strategy', which ASTMA launched in 2022, this opportunity allows women to further their careers in the turf management industry, bond with other women from the industry and experience working on a major sporting event.

"In understanding that only 1.4 per cent of the industry is made up of women, there's a huge imbalance there, but also a huge opportunity to try and engage more women into the turf management element of working on golf courses as well as other facilities," said ASTMA CEO Mark Unwin.

"As part of the strategy, we've engaged a mentoring program where some of those apprentices going through are being mentored by other women in the industry, and that's proven to be very, very popular.

"We've also done a number of other initiatives, one of them being the work placement program where we work with facilities that are hosting events such as a tournament."

ASTMA cover the flights and accommodation for successful applicants to the work placement program. The four women this past week gaining valuable insight from Hayden Mead (Superintendent at Kingston Heath) and his team, to not only see one of the best courses in Australia being prepared while also being part of preparations for the national Open.

Currently working for the Maroondah City Council as a 2nd year apprentice, Arter rotates her time between two public golf courses, and several sporting fields. She says her week at the Open was an eye-opening experience.

"It was really good," she said. "I learned a lot in a week. It's very similar, but it's also so different, so much more extreme.

"All the people were bloody awesome and meeting all the other girls was so cool because I guess I don't get to meet many other girls with the same sort of mindset.

"I've definitely made some life-long friends, which is awesome. We all live everywhere, but I am sure we'll get to work together again."

The Melbourne weather was unkind to the golf last week, with persistent rain causing challenges for the turf management staff.

"It was crazy. The place was quite drama filled. Everyone was getting stressed, you could just tell everyone was on edge," Arter said.

"If the ground staff hadn't prepped, the way they had been for months, it probably would've been a lot harder as well. So it was good that that was done."

Having been unsure in the past about whether this career and industry is for her, Arter says that her week on the Sandbelt has already made her more sure of herself.

"This definitely has helped me think about more goals I want to achieve in the industry, it's definitely going to keep me around," she said.

"There was people from all over the world at the Open, so I got to learn about a lot of other golf courses.

"After my apprenticeship, I think I want to travel and work at golf courses and do tournaments. It just sounds so fun."

To learn more about ASTMA's Women in Turf Strategy, CLICK HERE.