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First Tee’s bright light
As the First Tee program celebrates its 10th anniversary this year, its mission to have an impact on the lives of young people by introducing them to the values inherent in the game of golf has provided inspiration and encouragement for both the youths involved and organizers nationwide.
Communities around the nation have found ways to provide the necessary opportunities for First Tee participants, but few programs have taken an approach as bold as that of The First Tee of Greater Sacramento (Calif.).
In an effort to provide facilities for the various clinics, camps and events needed to serve the area’s more than 2,000 First Tee participants, program officials took out a long-term lease on the oldest golf course in the Sacramento Metropolitan area, William Land Golf Course, a nine-hole woodlands layout that had been managed under budget restraints that had adversely impacted the maintenance of the course.
“We saw the William Land course as the perfect place for our First Tee programs. The site had room for adding practice areas and we could create various tee areas to make the course playable for all levels of junior players,” says Terry Privot, CEO for The First Tee of Greater Sacramento.
The William Land facility still hosts around 60,000 rounds of golf annually, but since The First Tee is a non-profit group, the true challenge is finding ways to make course improvements without the tools of funding, manpower or equipment. The result over the last seven years is a coordinated effort involving regional vendors, superintendents, governmental organizations and community members, who have all been inspired by the ideals of the program as well as the desire to preserve an important link to the city’s golfing heritage.
Bob Cline is the Class A superintendent for The First Tee of Greater Sacramento and has been in charge at the William Land Course since 2000. In 1999, a 2.5-acre learning center was constructed on the site, and during his tenure he has improved and expanded the facilities and, with the help of his colleagues in the area, rebuilt several tees and greens complexes.
“We have always had a strong junior program in Sacramento, and when we began The First Tee program we wanted to expand its influence to our surrounding region,” says Cline, an eight-year member of GCSAA. “Having our own facility at William Land allowed us to not only preserve the past, but also grow the future of golf in our area. This inspired many vendors in the golf industry to become involved in creating the best facility it can be for the benefit of the region’s junior players.”
Each spring for the last seven years, the Sierra Nevada GCSA has held a Greens Task Force Field Day at William Land where area superintendents, vendors and volunteers bring their expertise, equipment, materials and energy to tackle as many projects as they can. This year’s event is scheduled for April 17.
“Since we have had the field day it has taken on a life of its own,” Cline says. “A local trucking company helps in bringing in tractors, mowers, aerifiers and other equipment from the surrounding courses. Chapter members have taken on different projects such as greens aerification, irrigation repairs, drainage installation and topdressing ... Thanks to the tremendous support of the Sierra Nevada chapter we have been able to raise our standards and provide a better experience here at The First Tee of Greater Sacramento for both our customers and kids.”
— Doug Saunders, Sierra Sports Reports
H-2B worker petitions reached the federally mandated limit of 33,000 workers for the final six months of FY 2008. Meanwhile, the returning worker exemption continued to be in limbo, with Congress failing to pass the 2007 Save Small Business Bill and the issue not yet having been addressed on the 2008 congressional agenda.
Coachella Valley aquifer cries ‘uncle’
Parts of Southern California’s Coachella Valley, home to more than 100 world-class golf resorts, have sunk more than a foot in nine years because too much water is being pumped from the aquifer below, according to a report by federal scientists and the valley’s largest water district.
The findings raise concerns that streets could buckle, sewer lines could break and trenches could appear in the earth if golf courses, residents and businesses don’t start conserving more water. The sinking is not irreversible, but water district officials say it will take projects worth $110 million to help stabilize the ground.
According to the United States Geological Survey study, the amount that the ground has dropped ranges from about 3 to 13 inches during a period between 1996 and 2005 in an area stretching from Rancho Mirage to Coachella. The solutions are costly. Steve Robbins, general manager of the Coachella Valley Water District, notes that a $70 million pipeline is already under construction that will send recycled water to 50 golf courses in Indian Wells, Palm Desert and Rancho Mirage so they won’t have to pump groundwater. The first stretch of the pipeline will be completed in mid-2008.
Only a third of the valley’s golf courses currently use recycled water or imported river water for irrigation. Richard Sall, a 12-year GCSAA member who is superintendent at Toscana Country Club in Palm Desert and secretary of the Hi-Lo Desert GCSA, says many private clubs in the area resist using effluent because of its discoloration effect on irrigation ponds.
The sinking land will reduce the aquifer’s water capacity, but it will be minor. The concern is more for what will happen above ground, Robbins says, adding that although the valley is laced with earthquake faults, the reason for the drop in land elevation is over-pumping — about 32.6 billion gallons taken from the aquifer each year, three times more than what is naturally replenished by rain and snowmelt from nearby mountains.
Water from the Colorado River, however, will be used to refill the lower part of the basin in another planned $40 million project.
Tim Putnam, Class A superintendent at La Quinta Country Club, says his course won’t be able to tap into the new recycled water pipeline because the course is too far south. He irrigates 110 acres, utilizing about 228 million gallons of groundwater per year.
Putnam says the valley’s 125 golf courses sometimes get a bad rap for the amount of water they use, pointing out that most courses use water efficiently because their weather station-based sensors determine the amount of water needed. He also says that large landscaped areas around homes, businesses and medians are part of the problem.
“I can drive anywhere and in 15 minutes I guarantee you’ll see a sprinkler spraying into the street or shooting up in the air,” the 22-year GCSAA member says. “They might not catch it for months. We walk our course every day checking for that kind of thing.”
Robbins says the district is urging residents and homeowner associations to use weather-based sensors similar to those used on golf courses to adjust for the watering needs of large landscaped areas and to use plants that require less water.
“We have to go through a process that changes that mind-set,” he says.
— Information provided by the Riverside Press-Enterprise and The Associated Press
Dick Stuntz, CGCS, president of Alvamar Inc. in Lawrence, Kan., and a 30-year member of GCSAA, was recently elected to the board of directors of the National Golf Course Owners Association. Besides his role with Alvamar, a golf course and real estate company, Stuntz is president of Oak Golf Inc. and a co-owner of H&S Enterprises, both Lawrence-based golf course management firms. From 1983 to 2006, he was vice president of golf facilities at Alvamar. Stuntz has been involved in golf course ownership for the past decade and is a seven-year member of NGCOA.
Syngenta, others boost program
Several more companies have joined GCSAA’s Partner Recognition Program, which provides year-round exposure based on a prescribed level of investment to achieve marketing objectives.
The list is joined by Syngenta Professional Products, a longtime supporter of the association and a key contributor to its philanthropic arm, The Environmental Institute for Golf. Syngenta will invest resources at the Gold Level.
Others, all pledging their support at the Silver Level, include Standard Golf Co., FMC Corp., Sandtrapper, Tycrop and Monsanto Co.
“Without the support of industry, GCSAA would not have the ability to provide resources to the benefit of its members and their employers,” GCSAA CEO Steve Mona, CAE, said in a release announcing the latest round of companies joining the PRP. “That’s why we call our friends in the industry ‘partners.’ We are appreciative of their support and I know our members are as well.”
New Year’s resolutions — from a maintenance perspective
By now you’ve probably had your fill of resolutions for 2008. But there are certain resolutions that golfers should make in showing the proper respect and care of their golf course, which they may forget to do now and then. The following list encourages all players to understand the positive and negative impacts their presence has on golf courses and the superintendents who manage them:
• I resolve to understand that a bunker should be left the way it was when I entered it by properly raking my footprints and blast mark, regardless of how good or inept my attempt has been.
• I resolve to bend over when filling my divot with sand/seed to make sure the area is filled properly and to not damage the mowers.
• I resolve to learn how to properly fix all of my ball marks by pushing and not lifting them up, thereby exposing soil and causing weeks of recovery.
• I resolve to realize that any sign that has a directional arrow with the word “carts” on it means I should go in that direction when driving a golf car.
• I resolve to avoid walking over ropes held up by stakes that are meant to move traffic away from a weakened area. When I trip over said rope I will take personal responsibility for my mistake.
• I resolve to understand that people who are operating maintenance equipment can be injured by my attempts at striking a very hard white ball. A few seconds of patience is always the best policy.
• I resolve to remember that cart paths are not like a road where parking is needed on the edges. I will park/drive my golf car on the hard surface only to avoid wearing out the edges.
• I resolve to understand that trees never grow smaller as they age and shade/roots sometimes mean tree removal is
necessary.
• I resolve to understand that all greens are different, thus green speed should not be the same from course-to-course. Detecting and adapting to different course conditions is an inherent part of the challenge of the game.
• And finally, I resolve to remember that the game is just that — a game. I will accept responsibility for my success or failure at this difficult game, even while sitting in the 19th hole.
— Courtesy of Larry Gilhuly,
Northwest Region Director, USGA Green Section
Links Magazine’s 2007 Travel Poll included the question, “What is the biggest golf-related issue that will keep you from returning to a resort?” Forty-one percent of the respondents said poor course conditioning. High prices was the next highest response, at 29 percent.
Pesticide survey runs through March 15
GCSAA began the next phase of its innovative multi-year project to evaluate the environmental performance of golf courses last month when it kicked off its national survey focusing on pesticide use.
The survey is being conducted via both regular mail and online. The survey will continue through March 15. Input is being sought on product use and integrated plant management programs. Participating superintendents are encouraged to organize their 2007 records for more ease in completing this phase of the project.
GCSAA members completing the survey will receive 0.50 service points and all participants will be registered in drawings for prizes, such as a $250 gift card to one individual in each of the seven agronomic regions and a grand prize of a flat screen, LCD, HD television set.
The results of the project’s first survey, the Golf Course Property Profile, were featured in the December 2007 issue of GCM.
Horton recipient of Green Section Award
The USGA presented Edward “Ted” Horton, CGCS, with its prestigious Green Section Award on Feb. 1 at the Golf Industry Show in recognition of his contributions to the turfgrass industry and the game of golf during a career spanning more than four decades.
Horton, 64, spent nearly 34 years at three notable golf facilities — Winged Foot Golf Club in Mamaroneck, N.Y.; Westchester Country Club in Harrison, N.Y.; and the Pebble Beach Co. in Pebble Beach, Calif. — prepping those venues for a total of five USGA championships (including three U.S. Opens) and 28 PGA Tour events.
Along the way, Horton, a member of GCSAA for 40 years, built a reputation for making golf courses environmentally friendly, winning numerous national and regional awards. During his long tenure as vice president for resource management at Pebble Beach, he won GCSAA’s National Resort Environmental Steward Award in 1995 and also its President’s Award for Environmental Stewardship in 1999.
“I’m thrilled by this recognition by the USGA Green Section,” Horton says in a USGA news release. “I have always had the highest regard for the Turf Advisory Service staff and I credit a lot of my early success to assistance from USGA Green Section agronomists who never hesitated to respond to my needs.”
For the past several years, Horton, who lives in Canyon Lake, Calif., has run his own consulting business. In 1998 he helped found the California Golf Course Owners Association and has been its executive director the past seven years while leading an effort to have all golf course agronomists share information and build customer service. He is also currently president of the California Alliance for Golf.
A GCSAA check-up
Editor’s note: In December 2007, GCSAA president Ricky D. Heine, CGCS, wrote the following e-mail letter to GCSAA members. GCM has updated portions of the letter with new information obtained between the time the letter was originally written and publication of our February issue.
As you are aware, GCSAA provides a yearly analysis of its performance through its Annual Report, which is published online and in the June issue of GCM.
However, as we begin a new year, I believe it is appropriate to share with you results in two areas of focus for the association: member compensation and professional awareness. While individuals may use a variety of measures to evaluate their success, most professions rely on the broad measures of salary and image as key gauges to evaluate their standing. Through member programs and services, associations strive to positively impact their members’ professional standing.
GCSAA has targeted employers and influential golfers because of the relationships they have with our members. As we have communicated extensively, GCSAA has invested more resources than ever before to connect with these key audiences. Quite simply, our goal is to positively affect member salaries and the awareness of their role in the game.
So, how are we doing? While this will be a long-term, ongoing project, the results indicate significant gains are being made.
Using the services of the National Golf Foundation, we have sought to determine the attitudes and perceptions of avid golfers and employers. We have surveyed influential golfers in 1996, 2002 and 2006. The first survey of employers occurred in 2006. We learned:
• Avid golfers consider the golf course superintendent to be the top professional at golf facilities in terms of enhancing their enjoyment of the game (64 percent).
• In 1996, only 9 percent of avid golfers knew that GCSAA was the professional association representing golf course superintendents. That climbed to 18 percent in 2002 and to 48 percent in 2006 — a 500 percent gain in 10 years.
• In 2002, 52 percent of avid golfers considered GCSAA to be a good or excellent organization. In 2006, that number climbed to 89 percent.
• In terms of the economic impact of GCSAA members at golf facilities, 99 percent of employers and 94 percent of avid golfers consider the golf course superintendent to be key to a facility’s economic vitality.
• In 2006, 97 percent of employers considered GCSAA to be a good or excellent organization.
• When asked about whom they consider to be leading golf organizations, employers put GCSAA at 84.8 percent, essentially tied with the USGA at 85 percent.
I believe the numbers validate the investment in advertising directed toward employers, a robust package on The Golf Channel, a concerted media outreach program and involvement in numerous allied golf association endeavors to grow and enhance the game of golf. I can assure you that the current board of directors is committed to continuing to tell your story in the future.
The results are just as encouraging regarding compensation. From the 2007 GCSAA Compensation and Benefits Report, we found:
• 85 percent of members are either satisfied or very satisfied with their jobs.
• The average salary among golf course superintendents is $73,766. This a 7 percent increase from the average base salary reported in the 2005 salary survey, or 3.5 percent each year.
• For Class A members with five to nine years of experience who are responsible for 18 holes, the average salary at a private facility is $81,628. For Class SM members with five to nine years of experience who are responsible for 18 holes, the average salary at a private facility is $75,120.
• For Class A members with five to nine years of experience who are responsible for 18 holes, the average salary at a public facility is $61,366. For Class SM members with five to nine years of experience who are responsible for 18 holes, the average salary at a public facility is $54,329.
• The average base salary reported for an assistant superintendent is $37,032; 7 percent higher than the average salary reported in the 2005 salary survey, also 3.5 percent per year.
While GCSAA provides a multitude of services for its members, I believe the association has no greater responsibility than to advocate on their behalf. The more the marketplace is aware of and understands our members’ value, the stronger our position. While pleased with the survey results, I am not satisfied to the point where GCSAA can let up on these activities. But this must be a team effort. Telling our story requires each member’s input and commitment.
— Ricky D. Heine, CGCS, 2007 GCSAA President
The inaugural Patriot Golf Day held Sept. 1 at more than 3,200 golf courses across the country raised $1.1 million for the families of veterans who have been injured or died in the line of duty in Iraq or Afghanistan. The nationwide campaign was inspired by Capt. Dan Rooney of Broken Arrow, Okla., who is a PGA professional and a member of the USGA.
Cactus and Pine puts varoom! in First Tee
The Cactus and Pine Golf Course Superintendents Association will raffle off a new custom-built chopper motorcycle with an estimated value of $50,000 this spring to benefit The First Tee of Phoenix.
The chopper was built by Evolution Custom Cycles in Tempe, Ariz., and features many golf course superintendent “tools of the trade” incorporated into its design. For example, the handle bar assembly and headlight resemble a lever inject cup cutter and the rims are Stimpmeter look-alikes, while the foot pegs and foot controls are 1¼-inch side-eject aerification tines and ¾-inch solid aerification tines, respectively. The air cleaner resembles a regulation cup setting tool and the exhaust is modeled after a leaf blower discharge tube.
The raffle tickets are $20 apiece and can be purchased through the Cactus and Pine GCSA at 480-609-6778 or www.cactusandpine.org. Once the chapter is reimbursed for the cost of the chopper, the remaining proceeds from the ticket sales will go to The First Tee of Phoenix. The drawing for the chopper will be April 19 at The First Tee of Phoenix South Mountain facility.
“We wanted to create a program that would help educate the public on the economic and environmental benefits of the golf industry, while at the same time give something back to the community,” says Carmella Ruggiero, executive director of the GCSAA chapter based out of Scottsdale, Ariz. “The First Tee of Phoenix does a fantastic job teaching Valley children valuable life skills through the game of golf, so this was a natural fit.”
Oregon GCSA initiative saves faculty position
A proactive effort by the Oregon GCSA has assured the continuance of a turf management curriculum at Oregon State University.
The GCSAA chapter recently initiated an endowment program through the OSU Foundation in an effort to preserve a full-time turf management faculty position currently held by longtime educator and researcher Thomas W. Cook, who is retiring this July. Oregon GCSA leaders had learned that the position could be passed over or downgraded from full-time by the university’s school of agriculture as it moved through its prioritization process.
Cook, who has been on the OSU department of horticulture faculty since 1977, has been virtually a one-man show in the school’s turf management program. His efforts over the years earned him, among other honors, the Distinguished Service Award of both GCSAA and the Oregon GCSA in the same year, 2006.
The chapter offered seed money to help establish the endowment and had reached about a third of its goal when the initiative was stunningly propelled by a $1 million contribution by an anonymous donor.
“The Oregon superintendents agreed to put up $50,000 in front money if the university would put the position on priority staffing. It’s worked out pretty well,” says David Phipps, the immediate past president of the Oregon GCSA who spearheaded the effort, in something of an understatement.
Phipps, the Class A superintendent at Stone Creek Golf Course in Oregon City and an eight-year member of GCSAA, notes that not only has OSU agreed to continue the position, but there are also hopes that down the road one or two more positions in the school’s turf management program will be added.
Environmental winner
Jeff Carlson, CGCS at Vineyard Golf Club on Martha’s Vineyard near Edgartown, Mass., picked up the 2008 President’s Award for Environmental Stewardship during the Opening Session at the recent GCSAA Education Conference and Golf Industry Show in Orlando. Carlson, who has spent much of his career working in environmentally sensitive coastal areas, is now a two-time winner of the award, having first won in 1998 for his work at Widow’s Walk in Scituate, Mass.
Youngsters ages 8-16 will be admitted free to the Masters Tournament at Augusta National on tournament days, April 10-13, when accompanied by an accredited badge holder. Also, the popular Par 3 Contest on Wednesday, April 9, will be televised for the first time, on ESPN.
2007 a bit on the warm side
The year 2007 is expected to be recorded as one of the 10 warmest years for the United States since national records began in 1895, says the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration of its preliminary findings for the year through November. Moreover, on a global basis, the average surface temperature in 2007 was on pace to be the fifth warmest since records began in 1880.
The year was marked by exceptional drought in the U.S. Southeast and the West, which fueled an active wildfire season. The year also brought outbreaks of cold air and killer heat waves and floods, according to the NOAA. The National Climatic Data Center reports that the preliminary annual average temperature for 2007 in the U.S. will likely be 54.3 degrees F, as opposed to the 20th century average of 52.8 F. That would make 2007 the eighth warmest year on record.
Worldwide, the annual temperature — combined land and ocean surfaces — for 2007 is expected to be near 58 degrees F, with some of the most widespread warm anomalies occurring in eastern Europe and central Asia. Also, with the 2007 results, seven of the eight warmest years on record have occurred since 2001 and the 10 warmest years have all occurred since 1997.
Deere, Lesco merger set in stone
John Deere kicked off its new fiscal year recently by finalizing its merger with Lesco Inc., a business move that adds about 150 agronomic experts to Deere’s sales and support organization.
With the merger, agronomic products, including Lesco brands, are available through golf sales representatives, Stores-on-Wheels and John Deere Landscapes Golf branches, while equipment and irrigation products are available through John Deere Golf distributors.
“We are excited our plans have come to fruition and we now have a more robust, in-house offering for golf industry professionals,” Gregg Breningmeyer, director of sales and marketing for John Deere Golf, said in a company release. “We’ve looked at where additional support is needed and we’ve put in place a two-year plan to reach out to many customers who’ve previously not had access to our agronomic products.”
New Internet tool matches interns, courses
Few superintendents would deny the importance of the student internship to the education and development of the golf course management professional. The summer (or longer) internship is often the student’s first insider’s look at their chosen profession, contributing to hands-on education, exposing students to dozens of topics not covered in the classroom, and opening doors that often result in job offers.
However, arranging a golf course internship can be challenging for both students and superintendents. Fortunately, there is a new solution that targets students right where they live: the Internet. TurfIntern.com is a free Web site designed to connect students seeking an internship with superintendent mentors. It is the brainchild of Web site developer Michael Vysocka, who created it while completing his degree in turfgrass management at North Carolina State University.
Students provide details on their background and career goals and have the option of uploading their résumé. They can search for internships based on location, salary and additional benefits. Additional features include links to industry news and educational content, such as the recent “Avoid These 10 Résumé Mistakes,” by Katharine Hansen.
Superintendents can post detailed descriptions of their course and internship opportunities, including salary and any benefits such as room and board, and can search for potential interns based on experience, professional goals and willingness to relocate.
TurfIntern.com has been online for less than a year, but the site already details more than 120 available internships (36 at top-100 courses) located in 33 states. More than 200 students from 44 universities also are registered with the site.
NC State student Chris Schultz recently used TurfIntern.com to obtain an internship at Pinehurst No. 2 for summer 2008. Another student, Joe Gilson of Mississippi State University, was successful in landing an internship for the coming summer.
“I like the search filter and results the most,” Gilson says. “It really helped me find a course in the area where I wanted to work. I was able to contact an employer and I had a job lined up within two weeks.”
Dan Tolson, superintendent at 3 Creek Ranch Golf Club in Jackson, Wyo., and an eight-year member of GCSAA, has used TurfIntern.com to find his interns.
“Not only can employers quickly post a free ad that gets broad student exposure, but students can efficiently get a feel for what is offered and what to expect,” he says.
Laurie Bland, a senior at Lake City (Fla.) Community College and a two-year student member of GCSAA, has been awarded the Marriott Golf Minority Scholarship, which is given to an outstanding student in LCCC’s Golf Course Operations Program. Bland will graduate in May with a degree in golf course operations and a certificate in turf equipment management.
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