On behalf of the Don Harradine Memorial Trophy I would like to welcome all Sponsors, Green keepers and Guests for the 10th Don Harradine Memorial Trophy.

100 green keepers and guests have registered so far for the Memorial Trophy which will be held on the 23rd of September 2009 in Bled, Slovenia.

The Bled course is the oldest in Slovenia and was one of the first to be built in that part of Europe. It was built in 1937 at the request of king Aleksander Karadjordjević of Yugoslavia. As soon as it opened, connoisseurs considered it to be one of the most beautiful courses in Europe.

As early as 1938, Bled hosted the first Yugoslav golf championships with renowned international participants. Among the most significant tournaments held recently are the Slovenian Ladies' Open tournament, held in 1992, and the PGA European Challenge Tour, hosted in 1998.

The Don Harradine Memorial Tournament is held every year to remember Don Harradine (1911-1996) and was specifically created by the Greenkeeper's Associations of Germany, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia to provide a reminder of Don's support for the greenkeeper's professional values. The trophy rotates yearly on a Don Harradine course in Switzerland, Austria, Germany and Slovenia.

My special thanks goes to Mr. Gorazd Nastran (President, Slovenian Green keepers Association) for organizing the event this year.

We would not be able to hold these tournaments without the generous help of our sponsors and a special thanks goes to Toro, RainBird, Sportechnic and Harradine Golf (Dubai) who sponsored the tournament from the very beginning when the formula changed to a multi-sponsorship event.

I would like to wish all green keepers and guests an enjoyable tournament and i sincerely hope that they can take home some tournament prizes and if not at least some great memories.

Peter Harradine