Organic matter (OM) is everywhere in the landscape. Given that OM is a key component of nutrient cycling and soil structure, it only makes sense we treat it as a valuable commodity. In any landscape OM is generated when we intervene mechanically (think mowing, pruning), when we clean the landscape (think leaf removal). OM is also utilized/handled (think mulching or soil amendment). Every time we “manage” OM we incur a cost whether financially or in ecological disruption. Added to this cost is th
Although I don't know what they're celebrating, I am grateful to those folks on the 16th hole. They, and others of their ilk, contributed mightily to the making of this film.
Years ago, I faced my team in the morning meeting and told them I was leaving to pursue another opportunity. I’d been preparing for this moment for days, but when it was finally time to tell them, the emotion of the moment took over.
Yes, my voice cracked. Yes, my chin quivered. Yes, a tear fell. I think what hit me the most were their faces. The shock and the sadness were reflected back at me in all directions.
Then came the sense that I was letting them down. It was this nagging, g
In this episode of Rockbottum Radio, learn RW's secret for living a calm and peaceful life on the golf course, regardless of the challenges we face in the years ahead.
*Note: This is not your daddy's podcast. It's more like your grandpappy's radio show from 1937.
(This podcast has been archived. Please contact us if you'd like to listen to it and we'll restore it.)
What makes a team a winning team?
As demonstrated by the 2023–24 Detroit Lions, building a winner begins with the complete buy-in from the team’s high performers. The team’s core shares the same work ethic, attitude and goals of the organization. While this Lions team came up a little short of their goal, they remain poised to be successful for years to come as long as they remember the core strengths that got them there.
The best teams in golf course maintenance are built like a succe
What’s the pulse of your team when they walk into the break room in the morning? Are they bright-eyed and still buzzing about last night’s big game? Or do they shuffle in like zombies and sit mostly in silence, staring down at their phones?
If your morning meetings are preceded by awkward silence, or if your staff stiffens up the moment you appear, then it might be a warning sign that you’re coming up short on building a winning team culture. People who want to be there engage in conv
Planning is the linchpin to success. You may be successful with planning, but the odds are longer. In grounds management having a good plan will help the manager communicate direction to the team, help build excitement toward an outcome, alleviate problems before they arise, and build the organizational support essential to fulfilling the plan. Last blog I looked backwards in order to understand where our operation is and how we got here. This blog I look forward to 2024 and share some of the bi
Our lives, much like a river carving through a canyon, are never on a set path. If you aren’t happy with the direction your life is going, you can always change the flow of your river.
A year ago, I found myself mired in a job that I found to be morally at odds with my personal values and unfulfilling on a professional level. I traveled to Big Bend National Park in Texas, hoping to unplug from turf for a while and reflect on my career and my life path.
In Santa Elena Canyon I watched t
Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished. — Lao Tzu
There is a natural flow to seasons. No matter where one is situated, the shifts and changes in the natural environment follow their own patterns. Sometimes these patterns will alter and slowly evolve into something slightly different, but overall the seasonality of the natural world doesn’t change.
When viewed through our human lenses, a season can appear to exist in singularity. We say things like “the start of another s
Rockbottum CC opens the 2024 film season with "A Fireside Chat", covering golf news, weather, a couple of tips, and maybe even a controversial statement or two. Watch this to protect your brain waves.
In this episode of Rockbottum Radio, RW reveals one of the key methods behind the success of Rockbottum CC: the proper use of the New Year's Resolution.
Also, Buddy gets "tooken" and Ludell, Willy and Momma form a posse to rescue Buddy.
(This podcast has been archived. Please contact us if you'd like to listen to it and we'll restore it.)
Ah, the New Year. The annually recurring time when we reflect on our previous 365 days and take stock. It is a time for looking back and grading out what we accomplished, but also what we struggled with. I get caught up in this time as much as anyone. In this blog I’ll stay in my professional realm and give, at least from my perspective, a clear-eyed assessment of where I took my work, and where my work took me. This assessment may not meet with agreement by all in my organization. It is my view
It has been difficult lately not to become a bit disenchanted with the modern game of golf and, in particular, those tasked with determining its future direction. From behind the ropes we watch as millionaires and billionaires squabble over who actually has dominion over the game, arguing about everything except the things that matter. Those in charge of tending the future of the game have become infected with greed and the notion that they know what is best for everyone else. The descent of the
In this month's Storytime, learn about the Christmas Miracle that led RW and family to leave the nomadic military life and transition to the nomadic golf life. Also, we cover a few current news items in golf and maybe some non-golf stuff.
(This podcast has been archived. Please contact us if you'd like to listen to it and we'll restore it.)
A few days ago, I slipped into a Mom and Pop coffee shop for a latte' and a blueberry scone. (Ordinarily I'm not allowed to eat flour, but my handler was distracted by scented candles and Christmas lights.)
The place was packed, full of people jammed next to each other, mesmerized by smartphones, tablets, and laptops; not a single soul looked up and took notice of me. I could have been Genghis Khan on a zebra and only the barista would have noticed.
Taking my coffee out onto the sid
Within the game of golf there are few things more thrilling than the blind shot. A close approach shot or a tee ball into a short par three can leave us clambering up and over a hillock or dune to see where we ended up. There is usually a good deal of luck or chance involved, along with a good dose of both joy and despair, but the anticipation that shots like these provide make for a lot of fun during a round.
But like anything in this life, too much of a good thing can be problematic. In
It almost feels like we are just sitting quietly while AI takes over our turf careers. AI promises to help us work, but what if it intends to render us obsolete? Shouldn't we at least offer some resistance?
Contrary to popular narratives, Rockbottum Science states "AI does not think for itself, it's merely an improved algorithm." If AI could actually think, we'd already be dead. My Dad dealt with first generation AI, (Adolescent Imbeciles) and AI golf course personnel management was jus
It's that time of year when strange things happen, so it was no surprise when Freddy and Toad--effectively half of the Rockbottum CC crew--went missing while leaf-looking up on Dead Owl Ridge.
Taking a great risk, Bodell saddled up to go find Freddy and Toad in the dark forests of North Georgia . . . and now Bodell and Willie are missing, too.
In this episode, RW hands out the coveted Rockbottum Major Award for the best TurfNet Forum Topic ever. Momma has a lively discussion with a government official who mistakenly believes Social Security is an "Entitlement" while helping him realize the folks north of Richmond need to improve their listening skills. Also, RW explains how to achieve positivity on the golf course by being positive, not just sounding positive.
As of writing today Kansas City is 6.49” below our average YTD rainfall of 27.42”. Additionally, over the last 6 weeks our average temperature has been 3F over average. In the last 28 days we have had 12 days over 80, 7 days over 90, and 9 days over 100. One of those days the high was 112F. Most people don’t dig into climate numbers to this extent, and it is important to know this isn’t just my opinion. But rainfall this summer is not the focus of this writing. Rather I want to share my sense of
Rockbottum CC presents "Stay Away From The Homeowners", Episode #13 in the acclaimed Golf Course Employee Training Film Series.
Learn what could happen if you become entangled in a golf course homeowner encounter and how to politely break contact before Karen captures your behavior in a TikkityTok.
So much of what happens in our daily lives is taken for granted. When you walk into a grocery store and you want a certain item, do you ever pause to think about how it got there? How often do you reflect on all the steps along the way that brought that certain piece of fruit or vegetable or loaf of bread to the shelf in front of you? Our lives are often times so busy and distracted that the idea of pausing and reflecting on how something comes into being seems like a foreign concept.
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