I recently attended the Syngenta Turf & Landscape’s Operation Pollinator Award finalists open day at this remarkable Berkshire club, hosted by 2025 award winners Matt Aplin and Mellissa Winkworth. The event showcased not just their achievements, but the growing movement transforming UK golf courses into biodiversity sanctuaries.
Operation Pollinator: A Downland Transformation
What Mel and Matt have accomplished here is nothing short of extraordinary. Together, they’ve restored 19 acres of downland meadows on their course overlooking the Thames valley.
This wasn’t a simple matter of letting areas grow wild – their approach has been methodical, scientific, and deeply passionate.
“We wanted to create ideal conditions for native pollinators,” Mel explained as we toured the course. “It’s about understanding what species need to thrive, then providing those conditions consistently.”
Their efforts paid off spectacularly with the return of the rare chalk hill blue butterfly, a species that had disappeared from the area years ago. Walking through these meadows, you can’t help but feel you’re witnessing ecological restoration in action.
The team’s comprehensive approach includes:
- Native hedgerow planting that provides shelter and food sources
- Strategic log pile creation offering habitat for insects and small mammals
- Carefully managed year-round nectar sources and habitats for each growth stage ensuring pollinators have food and habitat throughout the seasons
What impressed me most was how they’ve engaged their membership through informative ecology boards and regular guided walks. Members have become enthusiastic supporters and observers of the biodiversity flourishing around them.
Operation Pollinator: Learning from Experts
The day featured presentations from environmental specialists that highlighted different aspects of golf course conservation:
- Stella Rixon from STRI Group shared practical advice on integrating ecological management with playability – a balance every course manager understands is crucial.
- Ben Habgood of Surrey Wildlife Trust told us how golf courses can connect with conservation networks, creating wildlife corridors beyond course boundaries.
- Rob Nickless from Meadow Honey Farm gave a talk on bee populations and how even small changes can increase pollinator numbers.
Operation Pollinator: Celebrating Excellence
While Goring and Streatley took top honours this year, the other finalists demonstrated equally impressive commitment. North Hants GC and Bamburgh Castle GC were recognised for their outstanding ecological initiatives, each adapting Operation Pollinator principles to their unique environments.
What struck me throughout the day was the genuine enthusiasm and expertise of everyone involved. These aren’t token environmental gestures – they represent deep, knowledge-based commitments to ecological stewardship that work alongside excellent golf course management.
Golf: A Force for Environmental Good
As development pressures increase across the UK, golf courses can provide something increasingly precious: extensive areas of relatively undisturbed habitat. The community of 600+ UK clubs participating in Operation Pollinator represent thousands of hectares where wildlife and pollinators can flourish.
Join them. Sign up to become part of the Operation Pollinator community here.
The day reinforced what many of us in the industry have long believed: sustainable course management and biodiversity enhancement create better environments for both players and wildlife. The rough areas at Goring and Streatley aren’t just ecologically valuable – they frame holes beautifully and create strategic challenges that enhance the golfing experience.
As I watched greenkeepers and ecologists exchanging ideas and experiences, one thing became abundantly clear – nature, pollinators and wildlife thrive not despite golf, but because of golf. And that’s something our entire industry can be proud of.
