Golf course superintendents lead the development of statewide best management practices with a grant from the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America

Lawrence, Kan. (Jan. 26, 2021) – A collaborative effort by golf course superintendents in Missouri from three affiliated chapters of the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA) and the University of Missouri, has resulted in the publication of “Missouri Best Management Practices.”

The effort was part of an initiative by the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA) to establish BMPs in all 50 states by the end of 2020, which has been accomplished.

The Missouri BMPs were developed in part by using the BMP Planning Guide and Template created by the GCSAA and funded and supported by the USGA. The three GCSAA-affiliated chapters involved in the effort include the Heart of America Golf Course Superintendents Association, the Mississippi Valley Golf Course Superintendents Association and the Ozark Turf Association.

The group received a $10,000 BMP grant that GCSAA funded through the association’s Environmental Institute for Golf (EIFG) in part by the PGA Tour. The BMP grant program provides funding through the EIFG to chapters for developing new guides, updating existing guides or for verification programs.

The BMPs provide guidance in 13 key areas including surface water management, groundwater protection, pesticide management and pollinator protection.

“These research-based, voluntary guidelines have been developed specifically for Missouri’s 390 golf courses,” the introduction of the manual says. “When used alongside the state’s pesticide and water quality and quantity regulations, the guidelines not only protect natural resources, they also afford the opportunity for superintendents to be recognized as environmental stewards by club members, the community at large, and state officials.”

Members of the BMP steering committee included Lee Miller, Ph.D., associate professor at the University of Missouri; Matt Czarnecki, superintendent at St. Peters (Mo.) Golf Club; Eddie Roach, CGCS, superintendent at Cedar Ridge Country Club in Broken Arrow, Okla;, Brent Stephenson, director of agronomy at Great Life Golf Kansas City in Liberty, Mo.; Spencer Roberts, CGCS, superintendent at Canyon Farms Golf Club in Lenexa, Kan.; Carter Demay, superintendent at Country Club of St. Albans (Mo.);a Chad Fetter, superintendent at Bogey Hills Country Club in St. Charles, Mo.; and Rachel Owen, Ph.D., owner/consultant at Horizon Soil Solutions in Columbia, Mo.

To read “Missouri Best Management Practices and to learn more about GCSAA’s BMP program, visit www.gcsaa.org/bmp.