A recent VIP visit to a Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex golf course is proof positive of the power of the pen.Octavio Tripp, the Dallas-based Consul General of Mexico, and Jorge Croda, superintendent at Southern Oaks Golf Club in Burleson, Texas, have known each other for three years.
When a mutual acquaintance told Tripp that Croda, a finalist for the 2014 TurfNet Superintendent of the Year Award, presented by Syngenta, also was a published author on the exploits of Hispanics working in the golf industry in the United States, Tripp wanted visit the course south of Fort Worth to help the crew celebrate its successes.
"He sent me an email, asking to come and congratulate the group for doing such a good job," said Croda, a Mexican national living in the U.S. "It's good to show to all Latin people in the United States that we can do good things in this country."
A golfer and an outspoken advocate for immigration reform, Tripp tweeted about the visit to Southern Oaks.
In his third year as superintendent at Southern Oaks, Croda developed a reputation in his native Mexico for reviving golf courses that were otherwise flatlining where playing conditions are concerned. Croda credited a new crew that he hired - and trained - himself as being the difference in the turnaround of Southern Oaks.
"If you take care of your crew, your crew will take care of you," Croda said. "That's the message for the superintendent."
I need to understand more about this culture in the United States. If I learn more about it, I can do a better job. If I just say, 'no, no, no, this is my culture and you need to understand me,' that's not true."
Relating to a mostly Hispanic crew is easy for a superintendent from Mexico. That said, Croda believes what has been accomplished at Southern Oaks still can be a template for success at other courses. Key to that is Americans understanding cultural differences among those from other countries, and vice versa.
"We need to understand (other) cultures. We need to respect that," Croda said. "I teach that to my crew. For Mexican workers in the United States, the motivation is to do better. You can come here, and you can better yourself.
"I need to understand more about this culture in the United States. If I learn more about it, I can do a better job. If I just say, 'no, no, no, this is my culture and you need to understand me,' that's not true."
One thing Croda has learned about the golf culture in the United States is the need for more players, and he's been active player in trying to attract more participants to the game.
A certified First Tee coach, Croda visits local schools where he teaches the organization's core values of honesty, integrity, sportsmanship, respect, confidence, responsibility, perseverance, courtesy and judgment. The First Tee of Fort Worth operates out of several facilities, and although Southern Oaks is not yet one of them, Croda said he hopes to have youngsters on the course learning more about the game and its values and virtues by next year.