www.stma.org July 2014 | SportsTurf 39
Timeline
1919: Toro revolutionized the turf maintenance industry by
mounting five mowers to the front of a farm tractor.
1922: Toro changed the way the industry serves customers
with the first national golf distributor network.
1928: Toro developed the first electric-powered walk greens-
mower.
1940: The 76" Professional revolutionized mowing with cut-
ting units on each side, often referred to as "wings," that adjusted
to undulations in the turf and could be raised and lowered when
transporting.
1948: Toro designed safer rotary mowers for homeowners
after market studies discovered that many homeowners were
afraid to use them.
1952: Toro invested in turf maintenance and agronomic
research with the addition of James "Doc" Watson, and opening
the world's first research and development center specializing in
turfgrass science.
1959: Toro made bagging possible for the first time with
wind tunnel technology that harnessed the airflow beneath the
rotary mower.
1964: Toro pioneered the use of plastics in golf irrigation
with the first valve-in-head sprinkler.
1968: First electric key start residential mower.
1972: Toro incorporated the use of hydraulics with reel and
rotary mowers.
1990: Recycler mowers made bagging a thing of the past
with mulching capabilities.
1999: Personal Pace system was developed – a self-propelled
system that adjusts to the operator's desired speed.
2010: Toro eFlex was the first greensmower to run on
Lithium-Ion battery technology.
2013: Reelmaster 3550-D was developed; the lightest fairway
mower on the market
2014 and beyond: Toro promises more innovations to
come in the next century with a continued passion for helping
customers enrich the beauty, productivity and sustainability of
the land.
