Golf isn't the only place turf is king. There are massive sod farms, residential turf, municipal grounds, airfields and sports turf. There's all that National Park Service turf in our nation's capital that Mike Stachowicz maintains. Joe Fearn--who writes a very good column for TurfNet--is the turf and grounds czar at Drury University.
In the complex modern turf industry, knowledge, multiple skills and specialized training are pretty much mandatory. While none of these turf disciplines c
In this episode of Living Legends, presented by the Nufarm Insider, host John Reitman chats with Bob Farren, director of golf course maintenance at the Pinehurst Resort. With nine courses, seven superintendents and up to 250 full and part-time staff, management of the Pinehurst courses seems a daunting task, but one which Farren takes in stride.
Spend a half hour learning about how one of the most visible people in golf turf management became so, starting with his family involvement in golf
One of the fundamental truths of life as a human being is that, no matter what, we all suffer. Whether physical fatigue, mental exhaustion, anxiety or another factor... episodic or chronic... some measure of it is unavoidable. The level or degree ebbs and flows, but at some point we all encounter it. How we engage and relate to this inevitable suffering can be one of the keys to living a balanced life.
As golf course superintendents, our jobs require total immersion if we are to be successf
In this episode of Rockbottum Radio, Randy explores Skeletal Golf Theory (SGT) and why it's important (think "Contingency Plan").
Also, Rockbottum gets a corporate makeover, the truth about collecting and weighing clippings, and that "new" spray out there.
Finally, a consultant story, the winner of the Turpentine Corncob Award, and in Storytime, a tale from the days when golf courses were closed on Mondays.
Be sure to check out this jam-packed podcast and catch up with all the lat
In this episode of the TurfNet Renovation Report, host Anthony Pioppi chats with Michael Vessely about the 2016 renovation of the long-fallow William Langford/Theodore Moreau 9-hole golf course at Culver Academies in Culver, Indiana.
Vessely, now golf course superintendent at Culver Academies, explains how the "Picasso was discovered in their attic" and Bobby Weed and Chris Monti brought in to spearhead a complete recovery/restoration project. And there's a Dye connection as well!
In yet another fascinating discussion, Jim Koppenhaver of Pellucid Corp, brings us up to speed on the current state of the golf industry.
In an era of flat is the new up, 2017 was a "solid sideways" for golf. Some metrics, however, are indicating that the slide of recent years is abating somewhat. How long will it take for supply, demand, playable hours and other factors to reach an equilibrium of health and vitality for the industry?
What can we learn from tennis and ski
Several years ago, when I started as the Head Groundskeeper at Drury University, I came into a campus that was one dimensional and lacked meaningful diversity in any terms. The campus was comprised mostly of shade trees and turfgrass. Having recently worked at a municipal Springfield park that was abundantly planted and had been growing in for seven years (post installation), I was taken aback by the stark appearance of the campus. This is not to say it didn't look well-tended or thoughtfully la
What follows is a classic tale of Cosmic Payback, visited upon the truly deserving. Because my readers are highly educated, I am using the term, Cosmic Payback. If I was writing for golfers, I would use the easier to understand, "Fudgie will get you."
Our story begins with a golfer who was mysteriously inflicted with a demonic obsession to bedevil Winston, a Golf Course Superintendent.
Winston is one of the great ones, a hard working, drive-on kind of fellow achieving legendary statu
Guest Post by Greg Wojick
In the first two parts of this series, we have reviewed the obstacles to contracts and how you can sell the idea to your club. This final part will provide you with a detailed roadmap on what should be included in the actual contract.
When you get the go-ahead on the contract, your next step is to be sure that it covers all the bases. Here's a basic checklist based on industry standards along with lessons learned and a few cautionary tales from superintendents
In this episode, my old pal Dr. Bill Kreuser of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln returns for another visit to the Frankly Speaking virtual studio. We have a fascinating discussion about the current knowledge base about measuring clipping yield, GDD modeling, PGR use and managing for consistent turfgrass growth and optimal turfgrass health.
Is the "one-third rule" valid, or completely bogus? What happens at 50%? Where is the optimal interface of mowing height and frequency? How to u
In this episode of the TurfNet Renovation Report, host Anthony Pioppi talks with golf course architect Ron Forse of Forse Design, Inc., about his restoration of classic (and renovation of some modern) golf courses, and the role of the superintendent in a renovation project.
What defines a good superintendent during a restoration or renovation project? Hint: He or she is the "hub of the wheel".
Tony and Ron wind up chatting about golf course archaeology, including the Seth
It's growing season and everyone has the throttle rammed to the wall. This is usually when we produce short goofy films with subliminal messages . . . because there is little time for jocularity.
But, as of now, time is critical. This film, "Decomplexification" is too important to hold until the first hard freeze.
*WARNING! This film contains CLASSIFIED golf operations material. Do NOT allow members, clubhouse personnel or architecture forum posters access to this film.
Every now and again a book comes along that really connects with people close to you. Originally from an uncle, given to my mother in law, then passed to my son and then my wife, the book by James Rebanks has made the family rounds. As my wife Jill finished reading it, she turned to me in bed and stated, "You have to read this. You will get it. There are so many parallels between his life and yours."
The work tells the story of a forgotten way of life in the Lake District of the nort
It's Storytime.
My personal record for running off golf pros is 13, if you count my getting Dad fired twice. The first time was an accident, but the second time was more Dad's fault. He should have run a background check on me. I hit a real winning streak in my forties, with seven pros abdicating their crown during a ten year period.
The one pro I wanted to stay, however, was Larry Nelson and I think he left because of me. (Actually, Larry was a Pro Golfer, not a golf pro.) I ha
In this episode of Frankly Speaking, I chat with Brian Winka, CSFM, about the benefits of "Bluemuda" vs the "insanity" of the traditional process of overseeding Bermudagrass on sports fields and golf courses in the south and transition zone.
Presented by DryJect/Maximus and Civitas/Intelligro.
Guest post by Greg Wojick
In the first part of this series posted last month, we covered the obstacles that contracts can encounter. So just how do you go about selling the idea of an employment contract to your green committee and board? As the other industry experts and superintendents I spoke to will agree: Its all in how you market yourself and the mutually beneficial rewards of having a contract.
To start:
Approach the idea of a contract when the course is at its bes
There is an episode of Seinfeld where Jerry takes his car to his mechanic for a knocking noise. After the mechanic determines the problem with the car, he tells Jerry the adjustments the car needs in order to operate at its maximum level. Jerry thinks these repairs are overkill and tells the mechanic that he will take the car elsewhere. At this point the mechanic steals the car rather than let it continue to be operated by an owner who does not value it adequately. He rebukes Jerry, "You don't e
A few years back my wife and I attended the annual dinner meeting of the Passamaquoddy Yacht Club, of which we were new members. Sounds kind of snooty, doesn't it? Ahhh, names often belie the true nature of things.
The Passamaquoddy Yacht Club is half sailing organization and half social club. Its locale is a triangle of ports (Eastport and Lubec, Maine, and Campobello Island, New Brunswick, Canada, where our summer place is located) near the entrance to Passamaquoddy Bay, off the Bay of Fu
In this episode of Rockbottum Radio, live from somewhere in the TurfNet Zone, the Gang makes a field trip to one of those newfangled bowling alley honky-tonk disco pinball golf places, while attempting to answer the question of how much PGR is required to shrink a green chairman's ego.
After a lesson in General George S. Patton tactics, and an interruption from the seniors group playing 2-Man Worst Ball, and before announcing the winner of the Turpentine Corncob Award, the topic of how wres
In this episode of Living Legends, presented by the Nufarm Insider, host John Reitman has a wide-ranging chat with Matt Shaffer, recently retired from Merion Golf Club, host of the 2013 U.S. Open.
Matt's retrospective includes his Penn State education and mentors there... the Latshaw Connection interwoven through his career... pushing the agronomic envelope and living on the edge... the cost of obscurity and value of a pedigree... doors that exceeding expectations will open... having money
I don't know what "Gird Thy Loins" actually means, but I think I read it in an ancient text, the context being "Don your metal jockstrap, lest ye be kicked in the sensitives".
It takes a hard individual to work Municipal Golf, (MG) but with sufficient preparation, it can be fun. I suggest:
Gird Thy Loins. (Steel cup, fire retardant kevlar underwear, etc.)
Seek counsel from someone currently in Muni Golf.
I spent 15 years working MG and it was great, except for the lo
In this episode of Frankly Speaking, I chat with Steve Mona, CEO of the World Golf Foundation and previously CEO of the GCSAA. Topics include the rebound of the Tiger Effect and it's influence on the "green grass channel"; getting new golfers to the point of playing well enough that they enjoy the game; making golf more accessible (and user friendly) at every level of facility; altering perceptions of the game among potential new golfers; effects of course design and conditioning on the experien
