Nothing like a Father's Day hanging with my son in front of the Open. I spend my time with him waxing on about how Merion will be this unique test of shot making. I talk to my boy about how length shouldn't matter and this will be a test of raw skill, to wit my son says. "Dad, how come these guys can't reach the par 3 with driver?" The USGA pulled a "bait and switch".
"Dad, how come these guys can't reach the par 3 with driver?"
By the numbers it was the shortest course the USGA has had in
We at TurfNet intentionally stayed away from Merion Golf Club during Open week, anticipating adequate coverage from the regular turfies as well as near-manic '#Twysteria' from the cub reporters new on the scene.
Somebody had to stay home and tend to the rest of the turf industry.
We saw little need to further clog up the maintenance area, tweet more images of "the fairway mowers going out!!!" or burden Matt Shaffer with yet another interview request.
But wait... Matt! What a class
If changing careers or early retirement has crossed your mind lately, perhaps you should take a look at the Top 3 Post-Golf Course Superintendent Careers as listed by Rockbottum Country Club TV.
NOTE: Here At The Rock, our definition of "early retirement" means quitting work any time prior to being frog-marched off the golf course at gunpoint.
This week I watched with a combination of fascination and horror as our own Michael Stachowicz continued to navigate the minefield of the post private club blues. If you have not read any of Michael's writing, you should. It's thoughtful, well written and (unfortunately for some) brutally honest. It is basically a post apocalyptic account of working within the political confines of a very stereotypical private golf club in America.
His latest post on a blog he created to promote solidarity w
My relationship with golf goes back to 1958, when as a toddler, I walked into Auntie Grizz's vicious backswing and broke a jaw tooth in half.
There was no permanent damage, yet Auntie was devastated by the amount of blood. Things looked bad at first, but after I managed to scrub the blood off and remove those little fragments of tooth, her beloved Louise Suggs 2-wood wasn't even scratched.
Golf in '58 was exciting for me, what with all the blood and running and screaming and Arnie and H
I took some random notes this past week. Not that I don't know what I do, but the thought occurred to me that some people don't know that much about what I do and might find it interesting. Or, perhaps they may just think that what they thought was true may not be at all. Or... well, perhaps it means nothing...!
How about some stats:
Miles Driven: 1,278
Gallons Fuel Burned: 74
Texts Sent/Received: 227
Emails Received: 374
Phone Min Used: 737
Crappy Road Meals: 11
Starbucks Stops: 9
Do you have your Golf Course Priorities in order?
Which comes first, the golf course, your career, your family or fishing while drinking high quality beer? Or do all those factors intersect in your life like a complex trig equation?
Do you put agronomics in front of economics?
Are you as confused as we are?
If so, watch carefully as Buddy explains . . . something, we're just not sure what.
There are times in your life when for one reason or another you are able to step outside the normal craziness and see things from a different angle. You know the times I'm speaking of you're out on the course first thing in the morning, everything is piercingly quiet, and the universe just feels right. Life becomes clearer and your priorities suddenly come into sharper focus. Last weekend was one of those times for me.
It started last Thursday, when we received the tragic news that my brothe
In Point 6 of The Rockbottum CC Plan To Fix Golf, (yes, I know we skipped Point 5, but it's taking a long time to complete) Buddy explains the Two Types of Green Speeds.
Type One is the measured speed of ball roll.
Type Two is the speed of the green's playability.
Some of the fastest greens have the slowest Type Two readings, due to the dreaded Ping-Pong Effect, Downhill Yip Syndrome and *Reduced Cup-ability.
*NOTE: During periods of increased green speeds for member tourna
I had the rare experience of being able to watch golf over Mothers Day weekend. The Players is not my favorite event for two reasons. One the golf course is quirky and two for me it is to golf what Arena Football is to real football-a total "air game"
I guess I am old-fashioned and like to see more football and golf played closer to the ground. The spectacle of flying the ball high in the air and the drama of seeing plunk off a retaining wall and land in the water. I bet when Pete Dye drew u
There was a Ted Talk recently by Amanda Palmer, a musician who has made her way by not being afraid to ask for help. By depending on her fans for a place to crash and eat while on tour, she developed a very loyal following. She gives her tunes away for free, asking only for a little help along the way to offset the costs of production. Her talk tells of the intimate connection that is developed between people when one is not afraid to ask, and the other is not afraid to answer.
Her mes
Golf has changed. The ball is different. It stays in the air much longer than ever before. Grooming standards have changed. Golfer expectations have changed.
The golfer's equipment is highly advanced, as is the equipment used to prepare the course for play.
The game is infuriatingly slow now. In the time we once played 36 holes, it's a struggle to get in 18.
Perhaps the one area that hasn't changed is in the way we interact with golfers on the course--maybe that's the weak link.
"Have you lost your f**king mind?" The voice said as it roared out of the office. I was 5 minutes early for my meeting with Superintendent Z. It was clear that something was wrong.
"Well, answer me, a**hole", the rant continued. And I recognized the voice of the superintendent as I wisely stayed away from the view of the doorway. "F**king dumbass. I mean really, you must be the worst damn employee on any golf course, anywhere". Not mincing any words here, clearly (and these are actual quotes
Okay, now that you have a few more holes in your vocabulary because of last weeks post (Speak No Evil), it's time we start to talk about filling the voids. It doesn't take a whole lot of effort... just choose one word to focus on and use it a little more often.
As with many things, the more you focus on something, the more things like it start to show up in your life.
Speech is the mirror of the soul; as a man speaks, so he is." Publilius Syrus
Words, phrases and actions can work
Inspired by John Reitman's article in TurfNetSports News about the miniZapr -- a lightwave frequency device -- Buddy isolated himself in his secret laboratory for over an hour to perfect the Charged Particle Beam Spray Rig.
While the miniZapr is designed to kill mold, viruses and bacteria on athletic fields and locker room surfaces, the CPBSR, according to Buddy, kills moles, viruses and both forms of bacteria, the bad stuff and the mythical "good" bacteria.
Buddy is quick to point out
For the last week, I've been talking a ton about water. It's kind of how it goes this time of year and crossing all the climate, locations and turf types that I work with, there is a universal truth. Spring brings on irrigation.
A good thing would be to take a look at one of the more popular posts that I've made since being made into a blogger by Maestro McCormick. You can find it here. May be a good refresher and very refreshing! (I'm starting to channel Randy Wilson, is there a spray for t
The words we use every day have a direct impact on how we think about things, and consequently our general outlook on life. Consider the following quote:
Your beliefs become your thoughts, Your thoughts become your words, Your words become your actions, Your actions become your habits, Your habits become your values, Your values become your destiny.
- Mahatma Gandhi
Our language also directly affects others, in both good and bad ways. Words can be helpful and encouraging, but sometime
Low and slow is an excellent strategy for cooking meats that need time to tenderize. I'm sure the Maestro has a good recipe to insert here. Low and slow also describes the season we have had to date with low temperatures that are keeping the bentgrass from pushing along and slow describes the speed we see on the putting surfaces.
It may not be exactly what the the golfers want this Spring, especially if we did some coring and greens are bumpy AND slow (see figure). But just like preparing
The following instructional video, "How To Use A Soil Thermometer", covers a wide range of essential golf course topics, including a couple of tips on alternative measurement devices.
Mystic Order of GreenKeeper CEU points: 13
Our lives are governed by stories. We have our personal ones, our family lore, the stories of our nations, and the stories of the world as a whole. These tales can tell us much about who we are as individuals, and if we can listen carefully we can use the narrative to create change for the better.
Unfortunately the people of the United States and the world are confronted with yet another tragic story, one which is all too familiar and laced with unimaginable pain and suffering. These events
In my quest to fix golf, I have found it necessary to spend time in the realm of negative energy, analyzing what is wrong with the modern game... in order to find a solution or two. I am not happy in the vacuum of negative space, but I will go there to help turn golf around.
A good example of 'negative energy' damaging golf is found in the way a few of the state golf associations set up their amateur tournaments.
A few days ago, an amateur qualifier was held on a revered old golf clu
As I write this post I am but a few scant hours away from getting three wisdom teeth yanked. I have had a virtually nonexistent relationship with my dentist over the past number of years, so it was not a great shock to learn that three of my chompers were to be banished from my mouth forever.
While I might lament my lost teeth, that is not the reason for telling you about them. I have found the behind the scenes story this week to be much more interesting. Its the story that the mind plays in
I'm a big fan of having the numbers before making the diagnosis. It just makes sense, really to try and eliminate guess work from a business that often fosters licking one's finger and sticking it in the air or throwing some grass blades in the wind to determine what shot to hit or application to make. We do bad things to ourselves with these actions.
But sometimes things are just too clear cut. Case in point, at a recent early morning meeting, I was asked to grab some soil samples to submit
