Tiger Woods was not the only victor in April when he won his fifth Masters championship at Augusta National Golf Club.
Brad Owen, superintendent at Augusta, recently was named recipient of the Georgia GCSA Superintendent of the Year Award.
"Starting with the Augusta National Women's Amateur, the Drive, Chip and Putt competition, culminating in Tiger Woods' historic fifth Masters title," Marsh Benson, former senior director of golf course and grounds at Augusta, said in a news release. "This year's Masters preparations and conditioning were the best I have ever seen." Not surprisingly then, the Georgia Golf Course Superintendents Association recently named Owen their Superintendent of the Year.
Owen, who has been at August for 39 years, received his award in early November during the Georgia GCSA annual awards banquet at Jekyll Island Resort. The award is presented in partnership with Corbin Turf and Ornamental Supply.
Owen started in golf course maintenance in the mountains of western North Carolina and moved to Augusta National 39 years ago, working under Paul Latshaw, CGCS and then Billy Fuller. When Benson arrived in 1989, he said he "inherited" Owen "pretrained" as a third assistant.
"I had the pleasure of working and sharing experiences with Brad through those many years," Benson said. "Maybe one of my biggest challenges was just making sure I didn't screw him up! Brad's agronomic knowledge and experience, as well as his professionalism and leadership, have always been of the highest standards."
Other awards presented during the meeting included the Distinguished Service Award, which was presented to Greg Burleson, CGCS, Wade Hampton Golf Club in Cashiers, North Carolina; and the Assistant Superintendent of the Year, given to Clint Connard from Piedmont Driving Club in Atlanta.