Dan Prest

Telephone: 07834 176541 Email: dprest@thegma.org.uk

A key part of engaging members is the delivery of the GMA training products for which Dan has an oversight on marketing and service quality and delivery.

Dan has spent the last 20 years working in the sports turf industry having gained his HND in Horticulture - Golf course management and then his BSc (Hons) in Land Management and Technology.

With this education he wanted to make sure that his CV gave him the best chances possible and so Dan applied for the Turf Management Internship with Ohio State University and was lucky enough to spend 12 months training in America with a Golf construction company.

He then ventured into Sports field and golf course construction working initially in the UK as a member of a turfing team and then progressing into drainage installation, plant operation and finally site management in various locations around the world.

With this sound theory base and excellent practical activity, he has met some of the best current Golf Architects, worked in some extremely diverse places and left the practical aspect with a desire to transfer his experiences to that of education.

For the last 10 years Dan has re-trained, gaining his PGCE, and taught Horticulture and Sports turf management to groundspeople, greenkeepers and school leavers at levels 1 to 6. The main thing he has taken from this aspect of his career is how much he enjoys helping people progress in knowledge, and the industry; how the changing perception from within the industry is that the level of professionalism is increasing and qualifications are becoming more and more important.

Working both in the field and subsequently education has given Dan some great stories to tell, great experiences, and it means he can impart knowledge confidently to young people who wish to progress in sports turf management.