By Nick Creely

Royal Perth Golf Club is undergoing a raft of changes across its famous course and have also welcomed in a new staff member fresh off a three-year stint overseas to help in the process.

Jaxon Thorne (pictured on the right in photo at Pine Valley) joined the Royal Perth crew as assistant superintendent under Pat Casey in April after learning his craft in the US under the watchful eye of some of the world’s most esteemed sports turf management professionals. 

The 25-year-old, a former apprentice at Secret Harbour in Perth, is hopeful his time overseas will be of great benefit to Royal Perth – the oldest club in Metropolitan Western Australia and one of the most prestigious courses in the country.

Royal Perth Golf Club is currently undergoing a staged greens replacement project with Thorne looking to add some innovation and fresh ideas to the private, 18-hole course’s long-term future.

“It’s good to be home and it’s a great position to come home to. It’s been awesome so far with a lot of exciting works and upgrades to come into the future,” he said.

“Hopefully I can take things I learnt over there and infiltrate it back here to the younger apprentices at Perth.”

Thorne said water management and staff management were some of the key learnings he took away from his time overseas.

Note: Keep an eye out for an in-depth feature on Thorne’s time in the US in the upcoming edition of the Australian Turfgrass Management Journal as well as a close look at Royal Perth’s Course Masterplan Project.