Greenkeeper Sean Byrne (41) received the highest honour as Golf Course Superintendent of the year while 2014 Lady Golf Captain Shelley Daymond (42) was awarded Committee Member/Club Member of the year.
Sean, who joined Reading Country Club in 2011, is a multi-award-winning greenkeeper, winning Greenkeeper of The Month in Compleat Golfers Golf Club Management magazine in September 2013.
He is also a past winner of the Greenkeeper of the year award in 2007. Sean also serves on the Executive Committee of the Turf Grass Management Association of Gauteng.
Says Dave Smith, manager at Reading CC: “Sean has an amazing affinity with nature, a true passion for greenkeeping, and that rare quality of knowing instinctively what is ailing his beloved golf course and the correct course of action to take. His knowledge and experience make him a man sought out by his fellow greenkeepers when it comes to advice. “
Himself a keen golfer and at one stage playing off a scratch, Sean attributes his success to the entire team at Reading, from his grounds staff to the management and committees at the club. “I have always received their support, just an amazing team to be associated with.”
Shelley, described by Dave as “one of those rare individuals who knows no end when it comes to enthusiasm”, has been a member at Reading for eight years of which five of those years were spent serving on various committees.
She served as Captain of Reading’s Ladies Section for three years and received two unique honours in the past year at the club. She was nominated to serve as a permanent member of the Mens’ Golf Committee and even more impressively, she was voted onto the Clubs Governing Body as a full member, the first time a ladies captain has achieved this honour.
On course she is also a force to be reckoned with, playing off a 14 handicap and having won various competitions throughout the year.
“I love this course and I love this club, there really is nowhere else I want to go,” Shelley says.
