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From the TurfNet NewsDesk

  • John Reitman

    It's complicated

    By John Reitman, in News,

    When vandals destroyed a temporary dam holding back 50 million gallons of water earmarked for recharging groundwater, police in Fremont, California were quick to respond, but not because they were worried about ensuring local ne'er do wells paid restitution to replace the rubber structure. They responded because enough water to supply 500 homes for a year, according to the Alameda County Water District, went to waste as it was whisked off into San Francisco Bay.
      The story from May 21 serves as a snapshot of just how serious officials in California are about conserving water, and how many questions remain moving ahead. And just like no two fingerprints are alike, it seems no two solutions for saving water are the same amid one of the worst droughts in the state's history.   Restrictions placed on the state's 411 urban water providers by the California Water Resources Control Board through an April 1 directive from Gov. Jerry Brown, range from 8 percent to 36 percent. The board has largely left it up to each district to achieve its quota any way it sees fit, with the end goal being a statewide 25 percent reduction in urban water use over the next year.
    Restrictions placed on the state's 411 urban water providers by the California Water Resources Control Board through an April 1 directive from Gov. Jerry Brown, range from 8 percent to 36 percent...
      The complexity of this issue illustrates the need for a solid foundation of relationships between the golf industry and government agencies and water providers. Such relationships are necessary so superintendents have the flexibility to responsibly manage water in a manner that works for them and their golf course rather than be held to a cookie-cutter solution handed down in seeming random fashion by a government agency or public utility.   "We're doing things that the golf industry has done in other states, and that is to get organized and learn how to work with governments," said Craig Kessler, director of governmental affairs for the Southern California Golf Association.    "It's up to individual water districts to interpret (drought restrictions), so we have to get in front of them."   Those types of relationships already exist in many other states as well as in some parts of California, but not everywhere. Standing as Exhibit A is the East Bay Municipal Utility District that serves customers to the east of San Francisco Bay.   Solutions for saving water on golf courses range from reducing irrigation in practice ranges, roughs and even fairways to replacing cool-season turf with drought-tolerant Bermudagrasses to constructing new catch ponds and wells, or expanding existing ones.   Converting turf to unmanaged, unirrigated space has been popular, especially in areas of Southern California where water districts have offered rebates of up to $1 per square foot.   It's clear this ride is only beginning for golf course superintendents, and it likely will be a long time before they will be able to disembark. Welcome to the new norm.    "Guys in this region are going to have to keep turf on the borderline," said Bob Zoller of Monterey Peninsula Country Club. "The course will still play well, and it won't really affect enjoyment of the game, but the course might not be as pretty as what people have become used to seeing."   To those outside California's borders, saving 25 percent might seem, on its face, a challenging-but-reasonable solution if it helps the greater good. If only things were that easy. The demands placed upon golf courses by individual water districts are just as fluid as the water they are ordered to conserve.   
    To those outside California's borders, saving 25 percent might seem, on its face, a challenging-but-reasonable solution if it helps the greater good. If only things were that easy...
      To call the situation complex is an understatement of dramatic proportion.   The Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta is formed by the confluence of two of the state's largest rivers to create the largest estuary on the Pacific Coast. The Delta eventually co-mingles with the Pacific to create San Francisco Bay. It also supplies much of the surface water used to irrigate golf courses in Northern California. Although many water suppliers are pulling from the same well, so to speak, their methods of conservation vary.   To wit: In the San Jose area, where cutbacks of 20 percent have been ordered by the CWRCB, some courses have been ordered to reduce water use by as much as 25 percent, while others are having their surface water supply turned off completely, only to have it replaced by more expensive potable water - with no restrictions.   In Marin County, where cutbacks of 20 percent and 24 percent are in place, some courses on untreated surface water say they haven't been asked to curb their use by a single drop. Instead, water districts there are focused on reducing consumption of potable water supplies.   In central Alameda County east of Oakland, where mandated cutbacks range mostly from 8 to 28 percent, the story is much the same. Some golf courses have been affected modestly. Then there is the East Bay Municipal Utility District, which has been directed by the CWRCB to cut water use by 16 percent.   One of the largest water providers in California with more than 1.25 million customers, East Bay MUD has taken things a couple of steps further, requiring an overall savings of 20 percent from its customers, and imposing restrictions of 40 percent on some of its larger users, such as municipalities and golf courses. EBMUD also limits its customers to watering just two days per week.     These recent restrictions are only the beginning. Current restrictions are mandated at the state level only until June 1, 2016. No one knows what will come next. Do the restrictions in place now become the new baseline?   Many of the state's water providers say they have enough water to get through this year and next under current drought status. What happens five years down the road, or 10? At least one study has linked the drought to changes in ocean temperatures, and some scientists have indicated that the drought could last for another 30-50 years. Will superintendents next be required to save 10, 25 or 40 percent from what they are using now?   This isn't a problem reserved only for California. Cash-for-turf programs have popped up through the years in Nevada and Arizona, and further restrictions there and in places like Colorado and Texas are only a matter of time.   This much is clear, it's a problem that likely isn't going away soon. California is filled with superintendents who have been voluntarily conserving 10-20 percent and even more, and those who stay in front of their water purveyors and educate public stakeholders on their conservation efforts will always have the best chance for succeeding during such challenging times.   This is part of a multi-part series on golf and water in California.
  • OnGolf, a cloud-based information platform for the golf turf industry has developed partnerships with hardware and software provides that will help superintendents make more informed management decisions. OnGolf product and data partners include Davis Instruments, Spectrum Technologies, Motor Controls, Campbell Scientific, ezLocator, GreenSight Agronomics and Growing Solutions.
      "(T)heir technologies will now be key data and informational sources of the OnGolf platform for our mutual customer base," OnGolf chief executive officer Walt Norley.   OnGolf is a cloud-based, data-analytics software program that aggregates key line-item data and provides superintendents with information they need to manage soil conditions, water use, fertilizer and pesticide use, labor and more as efficiently as possibly.   Founded by Norley, who brought golf UgMO (Advanced Sensor Technologies) and Matt Shaffer, director of grounds at Merion Golf Club, OnGolf was derived from an existing ag-based platform known as OnFarm.     Based in California's farming region, OnFarm is a cloud-based data-aggregation platform that has been helping growers increase yield and reduce the cost of production for three years. OnFarm has more than 1,000 clients large and small. More than 1.3 million acres of agricultural land are under management with OnFarm since 2012.   OnGolf's cloud-based system collects data from soil-monitoring technology and computerized irrigation systems, utilizes its own weather system and also can capture information such as fertilizer use, fungicide and pesticide inputs, and mowing schedules so superintendents can make informed decisions on inputs and other agronomic practices and manage human resources. By partnering with leading companies in each product sector, OnGolf is integrating products that already have a proven track record in golf course management, and now will be able to collaborate within the OnGolf platform. The plug-and-play model gives customers the ability to seamlessly navigate all of their systems in one place in real time. Superintendents can manage the information in an automated, cloud format on a browser or any mobile device.   Davis Instruments, a privately held manufacturing company and developer of instruments for weather, marine, and automotive use, offers professional wireless or cabled weather stations designed to provide a high level of accuracy, reliability and ruggedness. Spectrum Technologies was founded in 1987 and is a leader in providing advanced soil-monitoring technology for agriculture, horticulture and turf markets. Motor Controls Inc., founded in 1980, manufactures control systems as well as complete packaged pumping systems.   Campbell Scientific offers 41 years of experience in weather stations and systems and is a leader in dataloggers, data-acquisition systems, and measurement and control products, and ezLocator is a manufacturer of pin-placement software.   GreenSight Agronomics has a drone-based imaging service that delivers 1-inch resolution image maps, NDVI maps and 3D terrain models. By next year, the company's services will include automatic daily over-flight to monitor soil moisture, detect pests/pathogens, and deliver daily alerts related to these causes. Finally, Growing Solutions Inc. is a leader in pH control, providing cutting-edge technology for golf and maintenance facilities.
    "The customer is the driving force for our partnerships," Norley said. "Our business model is to include all hardware and software products on our platform based on what the customer currently has in on their course, or wants to have on their course. This offers customers a seamless experience with automation of data coming from these products which eliminates any manual inputting except Stimp meter readings and mowing practices."  
  • It is safe to say that James Sanders made a favorable impression on Steve Gross when they worked together at Brookstone Golf and Country Club near Atlanta. When Gross moved on to become superintendent at nearby Mirror Lake Golf Club and eventually needed a new equipment manager, he called on his former tech to ask if he was interested in a new job.
      "I went looking for him," Gross said. "We have a pretty tight budget, so I had to find some innovative ways to afford him. It all worked out eventually.   "I really can't say enough good things about my equipment technician, but as I think of what to say he really just performs his job like those people that are truly passionate about what they do."   That was two years and one management company ago. Since then, Sanders has been busy keeping Mirror Lake's aging equipment fleet in top condition every day. For that reason, Sanders has been named a finalist for the 2015 TurfNet Technician of the Year Award, presented by Toro.   Criteria on which nominees are judged include: crisis management; effective budgeting; environmental awareness; helping to further and promote the careers of colleagues and employees; interpersonal communications; inventory management and cost control; overall condition and dependability of rolling stock; shop safety; and work ethic.   The winner will receive the Golden Wrench Award (a real gold-plated wrench) from TurfNet and a slot in Toro's Service Training University at the company's headquarters in Bloomington, Minnesota.   Most of the rolling stock at Mirror Lake, Gross says, ranges from 12 to 15 years in age. Keeping that equipment ready for use on the golf course with a tight budget takes a skilled mechanic who also happens to be a frugal shopper.   "Jimmy, knowing that our budget is tight will take the time to find the best price on equipment parts," Gross said. "Just the other day, he called the distributor for a clutch assembly that was going to cost $ 1,300. Jimmy took the time and ended up getting the same new part on EBay for $300. He could have just bought the higher-priced part, but Jimmy sees the bigger picture. He operates the shop finances like (the money) was coming from his own personal checkbook."   The triplex greensmowers Gross and his crew use every day are at least 10 years old and each has more than 5,000 hours on it.   
    The triplex greensmowers Gross and his crew use every day are at least 10 years old and each has more than 5,000 hours on it.
     
    His military work ethic also carried over to Mirror Lake.
      "It was time to replace those probably 1,500 hours ago," Gross said. "Thanks to him, they're still going strong, and we cut at 0.120 consistently."   Even when Gross bought a refurbished fairway unit, Sanders, who received formal training as an aircraft mechanic in the U.S. Air Force, essentially rebuilt the unit so it met his standards. 
     
    "He is just passionate about what he does," Gross said.   "A lot of time in the summer, this job requires more than just an 8-hour day. And there are many nights when he's so busy during the day that he's here until 10, 10:30 or even 11:30 at night grinding and making sure reels are ready for the next day.    "That's a work ethic that only comes from a passionate employee."  
  • A few years ago, when Matt Shaffer took delivery of a new fleet of walk mowers at Merion Golf Club, one thing immediately stood out.
      "The 22-inch floating head wasn't cutting low enough for us," Shaffer said.   Then Shaffer had an idea. He looked at a riding unit with 18-inch heads and then turned toward equipment manager Robert Smith and said: "This isn't good enough. I want you to take these 18-inch cutting units and put them on these 22-inch mowers."   "He told me he thought he could do," Shaffer said. "I said to him 'good, because I want you to do it anyway.' It worked way beyond our imagination. We built a whole fleet of mowers like that, because, at the time, they weren't available like that from the manufacturer."   Shaffer tried to keep the invention under wraps, but colleagues eventually noticed them, and soon, Shaffer says, so did the manufacturer, who eventually began sending off the assembly line pretty much the same thing Smith had been building at Merion.   It's just one reason why Smith, who Shaffer calls 'maestro of the mowers,' has been named a finalist for the 2015 TurfNet Technician of the Year Award, presented by Toro.   Criteria on which nominees are judged include: crisis management; effective budgeting; environmental awareness; helping to further and promote the careers of colleagues and employees; interpersonal communications; inventory management and cost control; overall condition and dependability of rolling stock; shop safety; and work ethic.   The winner will receive the Golden Wrench Award (a real gold-plated wrench) from TurfNet and a slot in Toro's Service Training University at the company's headquarters in Bloomington, Minnesota.   A graduate of Penn State's now defunct turfgrass equipment maintenance program, Smith started as an equipment operator at Merion for four years before taking over as equipment manager.    He has gained a reputation for teaching and training upcoming mechanics and as an expert fabricator.   When an equipment operator drove ruts into a fairway last winter during a tree-management project, Shaffer told his mechanic to weld 1-inch tines onto a backhoe bucket, which then was dropped into each rut, turned and lifted, removing each truck tire rut just like it was a giant divot-repair tool.  "If Shaffer can dream it, Robert can build," Shaffer said.  

    If Shaffer can dream it, Robert can build it..."
     
    Smith has started his own training program to help fill a void of qualified mechanics in the golf business. At any given time, Smith has one entry level mechanic just entering his program, and one nearing completion of training. Trainees begin by mowing greens and raking bunkers for part of the day and stay in the program for two to three years before graduating. One of his trainees will "graduate" this fall and already has three job offers.
     
    Current or past trainees include former golf course superintendents and even college students majoring in engineering. Graduates have gone on to work as equipment managers at such places as Saucon Valley Country Club.
      "Merion is all about teaching," Shaffer said. "We have a saying here: ?If you're not teaching, you're not learning.' "   The training program is a rare way of giving back for a club that definitely is unique in how it conducts its turf management business.   Shaffer has become known for his minimalist philosophy in maintaining turf, and says he has not made a fungicide app since last September.   "We're mowers, not chemical dumpers," Shaffer said. "Robert is a big part of us being able to do that."  
  • When the Foley grinder is humming at the Jimmie Austin Golf Club at the University of Oklahoma, the sound echoes through the maintenance facility like an aria playing across campus in the Cimarron Opera House.
      "That's music to my ears," said superintendent Eddie Roach, Jr. "When I hear (the grinder) running, I know the blades are going to be perfect."   Perfect reels are important at Jimmie Austin, where just about everything except fairways and roughs are kept trimmed with an expansive fleet of walk mowers. Roach keeps about 20 walkmowers on hand, as well as a stockpile of about 50 reel and bedknife units.   Keeping those reels as sharp as possible is the job of equipment manager Rex Schad. And although golfers at Jimmie Austin might not know Schad, who eventually came to the golf business after learning diesel mechanics in the U.S. Navy, the side effects of his grinding skills are felt from the first tee to the 18th green.   Schad, who eventually came to the golf business after learning diesel mechanics in the U.S. Navy,    "We have a Foley bedknife grinder, and he keeps it rocking and rolling at least two times a week," Roach said. "He always a grind first mentality. He wants reels perfect all the time. He always has a bunch ready to go so he can pull others out and work on them. This way, everything is always ready when you need it."   Because of his ability to allow Roach and his staff to provide excellent quality of cut every day, Schad has been named one of three finalists for the 2015 TurfNet Technician of the Year Award, presented by Toro.   Criteria on which nominees are judged include: crisis management; effective budgeting; environmental awareness; helping to further and promote the careers of colleagues and employees; interpersonal communications; inventory management and cost control; overall condition and dependability of rolling stock; shop safety; and work ethic.   The winner will receive the Golden Wrench Award (a real gold-plated wrench) from TurfNet and a slot in Toro's Service Training University at the company's headquarters in Bloomington, Minnesota.   In his eight years as superintendent at Jimmie Austin, Roach has been so impressed by Schad's grinding skills that he has dedicated space to him on his turf maintenance blog in hopes of sharing with patrons just how valuable he is to the golf course maintenance operation.   "His position specifically is not one that is highly visible to members, but he has a tremendous impact on our product that we put out there every day," Roach said. "He gives us exceptional quality of cut. Our members and patrons don't see that, or know his face. He's not the guy who gets a lot of 'attaboys' like other people who golfers see out on the course."   Providing this kind of quality of cut means more than just keeping reels and bedknives in top condition. It means keeping all mowing equipment in as-new condition. And often, that means fabricating a tool for a specific task.    For example, when the hydraulics that hold gang units on the rough mowers in a closed position relaxed over time, causing the wings to drop when not in use, Schad fabricated a brace system to hold the decks in place.   "They created too large of a footprint," Roach said. "We needed that space."   Other inventions include a trailer system for spreaders that connects directly to utility vehicles.   It's not enough for equipment to run like it's new, it has to look that way, too.   "It's aesthetic, I know. But there is an image we are putting out there," Roach said. "You can have an old clunker piece of equipment that still achieves a superior quality of cut. But what is the golfer's perception of that? I don't want them to think we don't know how to take care of anything. It has to be an asset to the golf course."  
  • Spring into savings with BASF
      BASF has launched a summer holiday spray promotion that will help superintendents save up to 8 percent in earned credit on qualifying fungicide purchases.   The promotion, which includes Lexicon Intrinsic, Honor Intrinsic, Insignia SC Intrinsic and Xzemplar fungicides, will run through Aug. 31. BASF also is offering a Bose SoundLink Color Bluetooth speaker with the purchase of one case of Lexicon Intrinsic fungicide.   To qualify, all purchases must be made by August 31 and registered by Sept. 18 at betterturf.basf.us/holidayspray.     Par Aide says spruce up those tees
      Par Aide has a few new products available to help superintendents easily spruce up the appearance of any golf course.   Such products include club washers, spike brushes and ball washers that are designed to keep golf clubs, balls and shoes free of debris.   Other standby items include customizable tree branch tee markers and benches for taking a load off for those times when everyone is not necessarily playing ready golf.   The Andersons buys Kay-Flo
      The Andersons recently acquired Kay Flo Industries, a South Dakota-based provider of field and crop nutrient products.

    The acquisition is part of The Andersons? plan to grow its wholesale and specialty fertilizer business within the Maumee, Ohio company?s Plant Nutrient Group.

    Based in North Sioux City, Kay-Flo is a consortium of family owned companies that manufacture high-performance crop and animal nutrients that has been in business since 1928 when it started as Kay Dee Feed Co. The company also has operational facilities in Iowa and Nebraska.

    Kay Flo, through its Nutra-Flo Division, is the leading U.S. manufacturer of premium liquid starter fertilizers and is also a leading manufacturer and formulator of micronutrient enriched plant nutrients. Nutra-Flo serves hundreds of growers, ranchers, and agribusinesses throughout the Western Corn Belt with these products along with its conventional fertilizers.

    The purchase includes a state-of-the-art research-and-development laboratory and three plant nutrient manufacturing and distribution assets with more than 100,000 tons of tank storage that produce more than 200,000 tons of liquid fertilizers. The animal nutrient portions of Kay Flo are not a part of the acquisition.   Irrigation Association offers training courses
      The Irrigation Association is offering a schedule of on-site classes to help irrigation professionals improve industry proficiency, advocate sound water management, and grow demand for water-efficient products and services.   Classes include irrigation technician training, landscape irrigation design, certified irrigation designer, and golf irrigation auditor training.   Irrigation technician training is scheduled for May 19-20 (Apopka, Florida), June 16-17 (Sacramento, California), July 21-22 (Pensacola, Florida), Sept. 15-16 (Walnut, California).   Certified irrigation designer training is set for July 13-14 (Tucson, Arizona). Landscape irrigation design is scheduled for May 21 (Apopka, Florida), July 23 (Pensacola) and Sept. 17 (Walnut).   Toro recognizes Reinders
      The Toro Co. presented Reinders Inc. of Sussex, Wisconsin with its 2014 Partner in Excellence award for Best in Parts Operations. Reinders has won the award three times in the past four years.

    The award is based on a variety of criteria including overall fill rate, inventory turns, distributor quarterly evaluations, and an on-site visit by Toro personnel. Reinders was recognized for its best business practices relating to order accuracy, delivery time, back-order fulfillment and increasing Toro parts market share. Toro's Partners in Excellence program provides guidelines which focus on key business processes for building a successful distributorship. Reinders' achievement was the result of dedicated efforts from a multitude of its teams ? customer service, operations, outside sales, inside sales support and administration.

    Established in 1866, Reinders, Inc. is the Midwest's largest full service distributor of products to the commercial green industry. The company provides turf equipment, parts, fertilizer, grass seed, pond supplies, landscape/seasonal lighting, fungicides, herbicides, insecticides, irrigation products, landscape supplies, ice melt products and more throughout the Midwest with outlets Wisconsin, Illinois, Minnesota and Kansas.  
  • Not all winter damage on golf course turf is created equally.
      Damage caused by harsh winter conditions typically is a concern throughout the Northeast and much of the Midwest, but what causes it and its severity can vary from location to location and year to year. And this year is no different, with superintendents in some areas reporting minor damage and others calling this year's damage the worst they've seen.   Now that spring finally has arrived, the USGA Green Section recommends adequate moisture on areas where turf is damaged but still alive, slit seeding those areas with weakened turf and reducing or eliminating traffic until such areas are repaired. A leading university researcher suggests reseeding severely affected areas with creeping bentgrass followed by a strict fertility program.   At James Baird State Park Golf Course in Pleasant Valley, New York, 16 of 18 greens were lost to winter kill, a problem that kept the course closed into May. The same can be said for The Golf Course at Yale in New Haven, Connecticut, where superintendent Scott Ramsay, CGCS, called the damage the worst he has seen in his 31 years as a superintendent.   According to the USGA Green Section, there were several different causes for winter damage, including rain followed by freezing conditions in December and January that left exposed and dormant turf covered in ice for an extended period. At James Baird, an ice storm that rolled through Pleasant Valley in mid-January was to blame.   Copious amounts of snow in other areas left turf blanketed in snow so long that suffocation was a concern. Then later in March, turf in areas where standing water is a concern went through the thaw-freeze cycle. For other courses along the coast, wind was the problem, first removing snow cover and then blowing over exposed dry and dormant turf, resulting in desiccation.   While Green Section agronomists recommend reviewing programs and procedures, they acknowledge there is really little any golf course superintendent can do to prevent winter damage, other than to repair areas where standing water is a recurring problem.   That's the route Ramsay took at The Golf Course at Yale in New Haven, Connecticut, where he said winter damage could have been much worse if not for a fall aerification treatment that prevented standing water from accumulating in low areas on greens.   The story is the same on Long Island, where long and persisting winter conditions have resulted in delayed course openings, tournament postponements and temporary greens, according to published reports. Normal playing conditions at many courses, especially those with annual bluegrass putting surfaces, are not expected until summer.   As usual, courses with predominantly bentgrass greens fared better than those touting mostly annual bluegrass, which is the area's primary putting surface.   In December, Kevin Frank, Ph.D., of Michigan State University delivered a seminar on winterkill during the annual Ohio Turfgrass Foundation conference and trade show.   The ability to recover depends entirely on the level of damage incurred, but such programs often begin with seeding bentgrass. Frank discussed    One such recovery program Frank discussed at OTF included seeding with bentgrass, followed by a starter fertilizer application at 0.75 pounds of phosphorus per 1,000 square feet, followed by a foliar program of 0.10 pounds of nitrogen per 1,000 applied every four to five days through mid- to late May. That program also included delaying PGR use until mid-June.    Properly preparing the area for seeding to improve seed-soil contact also played a critical role in how quickly an area recovered.    Frank has had a lot of experience lately helping superintendents from throughout the Midwest deal with the aftermath of winter damage. Damage from harsh winter conditions throughout Michigan was worst in 2014, but was more widespread this year, he said.   A year ago, winter damage was concentrated mostly in the Detroit area, while this year courses northward into the state's thumb all the way to Gaylord are reporting dead or damaged turf. At least three courses in the Detroit area have filed documents in court against The Travelers Indemnity Co. for denying insurance claims associated with winter damage.
  • For those with severely sloped areas that are subject to high standards of maintenance, Jacobsen has launched its HoverKing lightweight hover mower.
      The HoverKing comes in two models, 16-inch and 20-inch mowing widths that weigh just 26 and 36.5 pounds, respectively.   "Hover mowers typically maintain the most sloped areas on a golf course where mowing is very difficult," said Chris Fox, product manager for Jacobsen. "We saw a real need for a lighter, more rugged hover mower that could be easily operated, maneuvered and transported. The HoverKing's lighter weight and ergonomic handle design make it easier to operate in all conditions."   With an ergonomic design for ease of use, the HoverKing features a padded handle and integrated handle mounts that stand up to the rigors of daily use.    "During our field research, superintendents told us that one of the most common problem areas on current hover mowers is where the handle mounts to the deck," Fox said. "Our engineers integrated the HoverKing's handle mounts into the engine mount, providing a much more durable attachment point that will hold up over time."   Both versions of the HoverKing offer a 3-inch height of cut, which is the highest in the industry. In addition, the HoverKing offers three cutting system options: metal blade, metal edge with nylon blade or nylon string.
  • TurfNet claimed 17 awards at the recent Turf and Ornamental Communicators Association annual Communications Awards contest.
      TurfNet's haul included seven first-place awards and 10 merit entries. One first-place award, a video by Jon Kiger, also earned a Gardner Award as a best-in-show winner.   Kiger claimed two first-place awards and four merit winners. He took first place in the Best CD/Audiovisual Presentation category with "TurfNet on the Global Stage - Preparing for the World Cup" and Best Short Video/DVD with "East Lake Golf Club: Individual Tool Lockers." "TurfNet on the Global Stage" also was named a best in show winner.   TurfNet's John Reitman won two first-place awards and two merits. He won first place for Writing for Website for "California's Water Story Needs a Hollywood Ending" and "Like Pulling Teeth."   Randy Wilson took first place in the Best Use of Editorial or Opinion in Video/DVD for "Straight Talk and Common Sense: Mike Young," Kevin Ross, CGCS, claimed first place in Best Long Video/DVD for "2014 On Course Awards Presentation," and Hector Velazquez won with "When is it Time to Replace That Reel?" in Best Instructional Video/DVD category.    Results of the contest were announced May 7 at the TOCA annual meeting in Milwaukee. Award entries reflect work completed during the 2014 calendar year.   Merit winners include:   > Best CD/Audiovisual Presentation: "Preparing for the Ryder Cup," Jon Kiger; > Best Instructional Video/DVD: "Rockaway Hunt Club - Quick Modification to Tandem Trailers," Jon Kiger; > Innovative Use of Social Media: "TurfNet Ryder Cup Video Tweet and Share Promotion," Jon Kiger; > Writing for Video/CD/Audiovisual Presentation: "TurfNet on the Global Stage Ryder Cup at Gleneagles preview script," Jon Kiger > Blog: "Greenkeeping - The Next Generation," Peter Braun; > Blog: "Home is Where . . ." Paul MacCormack; > Best Writing for Publication: "Show Me the Light," Paul MacCormack for the Golf Course Superintendents Association of Ireland (international category); > Overall Media Kit Design: "TurfNet 2014 Media Kit," Peter McCormick; > Headline Writing: "California's Water Story Needs a Hollywood Ending," John Reitman; > Miscellaneous Special Publishing Project: "2014 Superintendent's Best Friend Calendar," John Reitman.   In its 26th year, the Turf and Ornamental Communicators Association is a 200-plus-member organization of editorial, advertising and marketing professionals who work in the green industry.
  • The face of golf in California is about to change - forever.
      In response to a directive last month from Gov. Jerry Brown, the California State Water Resources Control Board approved on May 5, measures designed to reduce urban water use statewide by 25 percent through June 2016.   To meet that goal, the CSWRCB has placed each of the state's 411 urban water suppliers into an 8-tier system, each with different conservation standards. Reductions will range from 8 to 36 percent of 2013 water use figures, depending on per-capita use within each district. For individual users within districts, cutbacks ultimately will be determined by local suppliers.    The rule gives water suppliers a wide berth on how to interpret and implement the rule - as long as their prescribed numbers are achieved. Suppliers can set different reduction standards for different users within the same district and can develop and implement their own contingency plans to help individual users meet localized needs.   For example, the San Jose Water Co., one of the state's largest water suppliers, is in Tier 5, which means that during the next year it must reduce the amount of water it delivers to its customers by 20 percent compared with its 2013 use data. How it reaches that number is up to the water company. Some customers might be asked to save less than 20 percent, while some might be asked to save more. It is largely expected that customers who already have exhibited low-use practices will be asked to reduce their use by a lesser percentage and those with higher per-capita use rates will get hit hardest.   That same latitude applies to all 411 urban water suppliers throughout the state.     Mike Huck, a former golf course superintendent in Southern California and one of the state's leading irrigation consultants and water experts, expects some golf courses might be told to reduce water use by as much as 40 percent.   "The reasoning is the only available water savings are primarily going to come from outdoor landscape irrigation," Huck said. "There isn't much water left to be saved indoors due to water-saving appliances like low gallons-per-flush toilets, low gallons-per-wash clothes washers, dishwashers and low flow shower heads and faucet aerators."   Superintendents still unsure of what the new rule means to them are urged to contact their water supplier.   Californians get their potable water from several sources, including the Colorado River, local groundwater and recycled water from water-treatment plants. And then there is the State Water Project, which channels surface water from sources such as Sierra Nevada snowpack to provide water for nearly 70 percent of all Californians. The project is a system of 700 miles of canals, aqueducts and pipelines that channel water from 34 reservoirs to more the 25 million users throughout the state, including large metropolitan areas like Los Angeles and San Francisco.   With California entrenched in a four-year drought, Brown has pleaded with residents to voluntarily conserve water use.    Some took those pleas seriously. Golf course superintendent Steve Agin has cut water use at Ruby Hill Golf Club in Pleasanton, east of the San Francisco Bay area, by more than 20 percent since then.   "It wasn't mandatory," Agin said. "As a superintendent, I use the bucket analogy, and there is only so much water in the bucket before it runs out."   Not everyone was as proactive. According to the CSWRCB, voluntary cutbacks resulted in a savings of only 3 percent statewide in March, far below what state officials had hoped for. With no end to the drought in site - some reports had Sierra Nevada snowpack this past winter at 5 percent of normal - Brown decided it was time to get serious.   On April 1 he announced a mandate that would result in the state's cumulative reduction of water use by 25 percent through next June and threw the ball into the water control board's court to develop and implement a plan that would make that directive achievable.   Since the 25 percent-reduction rule went into effect May 5, many superintendents around the state have been thrust into panic mode as they wait to see how the rule will affect them.  
    Since the 25 percent-reduction rule went into effect May 5, many superintendents around the state have been thrust into panic mode as they wait to see how the rule will affect them...
      A day after the plan was approved, Craig Kessler, director of governmental affairs for the Southern California Golf Association and another of the state's experts on golf course water issues, was meeting with operators of four golf courses in Orange County who are nervous about how they will be affected.   The rule applies to well water use also, regulation of which was noticeably absent in previous water-conservation efforts, with the rule stating: "Commercial, Industrial and Institutional properties that are not served by a water supplier (or are self-supplied, such as by a groundwater well) also must either reduce water use by 25 percent or restrict outdoor irrigation to no more than two days per week. No reporting is required but these properties must maintain documentation of their water use and practices."   While the CSWRCB is responsible for implementing the governor's directive, penalizing those who fail to comply with the order is up to the individual water districts. And they have a wide range of discretion in levvying fines.   Cutbacks Those utilizing recycled water are exempt from the reduction rule, but that doesn't mean they are not feeling the effects of the drought.   Bob Zoller of Monterey Peninsula Country Club and superintendents from six other courses in Pebble Beach, are approved to draw as much as a combined 2.5 million gallons of treated water per day from the Forest Lake Reservoir in Pebble Beach. But conservation efforts on the Monterey Peninsula, the water utility there is able to produce only 1.3 million gallons per day.   "Golf is at a crossroads in so many areas," Zoller said. "Out here, water is more important than it is in some other areas. It's difficult at this point to look down the road and see what is going to happen."   This is part of a multi-part series of golf and water in California.  
  • This past winter might have been cold and wet throughout the country's northeastern corridor, but it was warm and dry in many other areas.
      In fact, while Boston set a record this winter for the most snowfall ever (110.6 inches), the winter of 2014-15 actually was the warmest on record, according to the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration. And the effects of those unseasonably warm conditions were felt, in part, on golf courses around the country.   According to industry analyst Jim Koppenhaver of Pellucid Corp., the number of golf playable hours, his measure of the total number of daylight hours compared with factors that influence play, such as precipitation, humidity, temperature, etc., were up by 24 percent nationwide in March.   Year-over-year rounds played were up by 1.3 percent in March, compared with the same month last year, according to Golf Datatech. Year-to-date rounds played are up by 1.1 percent through the first quarter of the year when compared with the first three months of 2014.   Participation outpaced golf playable hours in many locations, especially in the Midwest. Play was up by 50-60 percent in places like Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota. Other states experiencing a double-digit hike in rounds played included Illinois (20 percent), Oklahoma (18 percent), Wisconsin (13 percent).   The biggest losers in March were found primarily in the Southeast, Northeast and the eastern edge of the Midwest, including: all of New England and Maine, where there was virtually no play at all in March; New York (down 62 percent); New Jersey (down 39 percent); Arkansas (down 34 percent); Mississippi (down 27 percent); Delaware, D.C., Maryland (down 26 percent); Pennsylvania and Tennessee (down 23 percent); Alabama down (16 percent); Louisiana (down 15 percent); Indiana, Kentucky and Texas (down 14 percent); Ohio (down 12 percent); and Virginia (down 11 percent).
  • Turfgrass education has never been a one-size-fits-all field. Superintendents have long demonstrated success when armed with certificates, associate's degrees, bachelor's degrees and master's degrees in turf management; business degrees; or even a diploma from the school of hard knocks.
      Since the advent in 1998 of Penn State's World Campus, which brings online education to students around the world, the face of turfgrass education has been in a state of constant change. Today, the World Campus offers bachelor's and post-graduate degrees in turfgrass management, and a host of other schools offer online certificate programs, including the University of Georgia and Ohio State University.   The online horticulture certificate program at Florida Gateway College, formerly Lake City CC, is a flexible educational program that meets the changing needs of non-traditional students, many of whom already are working somewhere in the green industry and recognize the benefits of expanding their education.   Launched three years ago, the online program at FGC offers 18 credit hours through a curriculum of six 3-credit hour courses: Principles of Plant Growth, Soils and Fertilizers, Agricultural Chemistry, Landscape Plants, Golf and Landscape Irrigation, and Turfgrass for Golf and Landscape.   Initially, only about 10 students were enrolled in the program, and that number grew to a dozen last year. Today, there are 30 students in the program, says John Piersol, executive director of FGC's business, industrial and agricultural programs.   The curriculum is intended to supplement the knowledge base of those already working in golf or sports turf or the landscape industries, but lack a plant science background, Piersol says.      Many superintendents lament a lack of business education. Piersol said he recommends to those who wish to be a golf course superintendent or sports turf manager, the FGC online horticulture program coupled with a four-year degree in business administration.   "We are taking advantage of modern technology to deliver our golf, landscape, and sports turf related education to the working student," Piersol said. "This is what students want, and Florida Gateway College had to change to meet their needs."   The program has been promoted in regional turf publications and also by word of mouth as turf managers throughout the Southeast recognize the growing need for a non-traditional educational program that allows working students to earn while they learn.   Piersol says future plans could expand FGC's online offerings even more if there is a demand.   "The combination of hands-on site learning, our basic plant science certificate, and a business degree will work," he said. "I have a concept for a 30 credit online advanced certificate and a possible new all online (associate's) degree, but these will only be developed if there is strong demand for them."

  • Strutt your stuff

    By John Reitman, in News,

    When Lee Strutt was a lad growing up in the United Kingdom, his parents, like most, told their son always to strive to be at his best in anything he did. It's safe to say that young Lee listened.
      Today, at age 45, Strutt is not a kid anymore, but he's still following his parents' sage advice. As golf course manager at gWest International Resort in Perthshire, Scotland, Strutt holds a post-graduate degree in turf studies and certifications in three professional associations. Strutt, who in 2008 earned a master's degree in Sports Surface Technology from Cranfield University in England, has attained status as a master greenkeeper through the British and International Golf Greenkeepers Association, certified golf course superintendent through the GCSAA and master superintendent through the Canadian Golf Superintendents Association. He is believed to be the only superintendent anywhere in the world who is certified in all three associations.   "I don't think it is necessary to have so much training to undertake the role of superintendent. However I remember growing up that my parents always encouraged me to do my best," Strutt said. "I encourage others to their best too and maximize their full potential. I guess I was fortunate and able to take it to level no had achieve before."   Strutt also is very particular about the way superintendents are perceived by others.   "I am also passionate that superintendents are shown as the true professionals and guardians of the most important asset of the business and treated as professionals," he said. "So hopefully this helps raise our profile within the golf industry."   Even with all of that training and certification in hand, Strutt says the issues he and other superintendents managing cool-season turf in the U.K. are pretty much the same as those faced by his U.S. counterparts. The most common diseases he faces, Fusarium patch, dollar spot, take-all patch and red thread, are common foes of U.S. superintendents as well. And, although the UK has fine turfgrass teaching institutions, those schools generate little turf research, so when Strutt and other European greenkeepers are looking for answers to common turf problems, they typically consult the same U.S. university research cited by superintendents in this country.   What does change is how superintendents manage those challenges.   "We are exposed to all the same cool season diseases, but again our approaches can be very different," he said.   "There are differences between warm- and cool-season management, but the greatest difference I have noticed are generated from different cultural backgrounds. Very similar to the way English is spoken in the U.K. compared with U.S. and Canada. Even though we speak the same language, expressions and tones are very different. Turf management has distinct roots on how it has been developed and expressed in our own culture. But overall I feel the U.S. market is more results driven with the use of trial data from universities, and the U.K. market is more driven by proven historic practices."   Superintendents in the U.K. also are subject to golfer scrutiny, but not to the same degree as American greenkeepers. But that trend, unfortunately for turf managers in Europe and the UK, is changing, and it's not necessarily for the better.   "There is a lot of pressure to undertake more and deliver a better standard on the golf course," he said. "Superintendents need to get away and see other courses, continue with their education, network with their peers to help improve their golf courses and businesses. Their families at times get completely excluded from their time and suffer a lot because of this time away. There have been some moves to encourage superintendents with their families to get together during events such as barbeques, etc. to help bridge the gap of time away from their families and bring the greater community together. I'm still not sure where the happy work/life balance is, but inclusion and not exclusion is the key, not only to support your family but to engage the family to support the industry and hopefully lead to this better lifestyle balance."   For example, Strutt says he believes his colleagues in Europe and the UK are more focused on prevention because chemical costs are higher in Europe and regulations governing their use typically are more restrictive.   Whatever the method, one thing superintendents on both sides of the ocean have in common, says Strutt, is a desire to "implement a good, solid management plan and maximize resources, which will help develop a better golf course for tomorrow."   If he ever decides to change careers, Strutt might have an equally successful career as a motivational speaker as he offered a tidbit of advice to fellow greenkeepers.   "Believe in yourself and your abilities," he said. "Never give up on your ambitions and dreams but be prepared to adjust your goals as you go through life. Be prepared to help others as other have helped you and to remember to go home and enjoy your family life as much as your work life."
  • As golf course operators continue to struggle to fill open tee sheets, many are turning to alternate sources of revenue. Opening a golf course for cross country skiing or as a walking trail accomplish little in connecting non-golfers to the course and do even less to generate cash flow.
      Other games such as footgolf, disc golf and an even newer game called fling golf, which is a mix of golf and lacrosse are attracting non-golfers - and their wallets - to golf courses around the country.   Officials representing each of these three games will be on hand Oct. 12-13 when Richard Mandell Golf Architecture presents its Symposium on Affordable Golf at Tam O'Shanter Golf Course in Canton, Ohio.   The purpose of the sixth annual event, which was launched by golf course architect Richard Mandell, is to explore ways to make golf more affordable and grow the game without compromising playability.   Scheduled topics and speakers include "The Media's Responsibility in Promoting Affordable Golf" by Kevin Kane of the Virginia Golf Report; "A.W. Tillinghast, Champion of Affordable Golf" by Rick and Stuart Wolffe of the Tillinghast Society; "Women in Golf: Are They In Or Out?" by Debbie Waitkus of Golf for Cause; "Environmental Responsibility Makes Economic Sense" by Frank S. Rossi, Ph.D., of Cornell University; "The Conflict Between Playability and Challenge" by Richard Mandell; "Disc Golf, Fling Golf and Foot Golf" by Brian Graham of the Professional Disc Golf Association, Roberto Balestrini of the American FootGolf League and Alex Van Alan, founder of Fling Golf.   Day 2 topics include "A Little Friendly Competition Ain't Bad" by Chuck Bennell of Tam O'Shanter and Rick Snide of Tannehauf Golf Course; "Let's Create a Business Model" by Stuart Lindsay of Edgehill Golf Advisors.   Open topics include a discussion on the definition of affordability, maximizing customer service and case studies of the efforts of two golf courses in Virginia and Tennessee.   The event is free, but space is limited.  Click here for more information, or to register.  
  • A 20-year search for a turfgrass resistant to one of the most common diseases on golf courses throughout the Midwest and Northeast has finished on an upswing. 
        A team of researchers at Michigan State University recently released Flagstick creeping bentgrass, a new cultivar that has exhibited resistance to dollar spot in long-term field trials conducted at the university's Hancock Turfgrass Research Center and at other locations across the country.   MSU plant, soil and microbial sciences professor Joe Vargas, Ph.D., the lead researcher in developing Flagstick, said the new cultivar provides a tool to control dollar spot, lower disease management costs and reduce the environmental impact of fungicides.   "Most of the fungicide applications throughout the season in the Northeast and Midwest are for control of dollar spot. Last year in Michigan, if it was not for dollar spot, very few fungicide applications would have been applied to golf courses," Vargas said. "Golf courses usually spend about 40 to 50 percent of their fungicide budgets on controlling dollar spot. It's a disease that can't be tolerated because, if you let it go, it will spread and eventually destroy your turf."   Dollar spot is a foliar disease named for the silver-dollar-shaped patches of dead grass and silvery film left in its path. Caused by a fungal pathogen, the disease is a top concern for golf course managers in northern areas who rely on creeping bentgrass and annual bluegrass for putting greens and fairways.   According to the American Phytopathological Society, more money is spent worldwide on the chemical control of dollar spot than on any other turfgrass disease.     Cultivar development began about 20 years ago when Ron Detweiler, a technician in Vargas's lab, noticed patches of grass devoid of dollar spot at the MSU Hancock Turfgrass Research Center. Using grants from the Michigan Turfgrass Foundation and Project GREEEN (a community of like-minded people who promote environmental stewardship), Vargas and his colleagues sampled the grasses and established small plots at the research center.   In 2003, Vargas and his team partnered with Seed Research of Oregon, a division of Pickseed USA, to continue testing the cultivar through the National Turfgrass Evaluation Program at various universities around the country, where Flagstick underwent 12 years of testing.   "Most of the best discoveries are made through observation," Vargas said. "The best place to look for disease resistance is in the middle of a big outbreak. Developing a dollar-spot-resistant cultivar has been a major research focus at a number of universities for the past 20 years. The fact that we at MSU were able to come up with it is very fulfilling."   Flagstick thrives in a wide variety of soils and can be mowed at putting green height.   Pickseed USA has produced 4,000 pounds of Flagstick for the 2015 season, with larger quantities expected to be available for distribution in 2016.   The work of Vargas and his team is funded in part by MSU AgBioResearch.
  • Frank Dobie first began rebuilding bunkers in 1967 at The Sharon Golf Club in northeastern Ohio. Chief agronomist and general manager at the club near Akron, Dobie has worked at Sharon for 50 years, and he's still constructing bunkers today the same way he was in 1967, bringing a whole new meaning to the phrase "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."
      Dobie began reconstructing Sharon Club bunkers for the same reasons superintendents do so today: to avoid contamination of bunker sand, to retain color and consistency, to promote drainage, reduce erosion and minimize time spent maintaining bunkers.   The procedure developed by Dobie in 1967 reportedly is the first to utilize liners to protect the integrity of the sand. While this process (adapted here from a PowerPoint presentation) might be a little more expensive than other procedures, but it can be more reliable and cost-effective in the long run. The bunkers at The Sharon Club contain the same sand today that Dobie placed there during a 1967 reconstruction.  
    Other benefits of this procedure: Since the sand doesn't erode easily from the slopes, there is very little hand shoveling after a heavy rain; the absence of accumulated clay and silt in the sand eliminates the need for cultivation; the sand stays clean, so adding sand occasionally for appearance is unnecessary; the absence of small stone contamination in the bunker sand eliminates them being hit onto the green and causing mower damage; because the sand remains clean over time, it will maintain its original density and water percolation rate, draining quickly (within one hour) after a heavy rain without serious erosion, and sand on bunker slopes will remain firmer because it is not constantly being shoveled; the original sand that was put into the bunkers since 1967 has never been replaced, so replacement cost is eliminated.     Excavation
    Dobie recommends using a backhoe fitted with a 3-foot smooth bucket, and the soil was used to create mounds around bunkers. The bunker cavity was pitched to the center of the bunker and an exit point for the tile line was established. A transit was used to check all grades.   After the surrounding grade was established, a vertical cut was made at least 14 inches deep with a backhoe. Three to 4 inches of topsoil was added to the surrounding area after the bunker sand was in place, making the edge depth at least 16 inches. The slope angle of the bunker cavity floor did not exceed 15 degrees which assures minimal sand movement.   All vertical edges are smoothed with a spade bar, and the bunker bottom is smoothed out with a box grader to eliminate the potential for water pockets.   A trench 2 feet wide and 8 inches deep was dug at the lowest area in the bunker cavity with 1 inch per 10 inches of fall to the exit point. The 2-foot trench filled with gravel serves as a reservoir until the 4-inch tile can drain it.   Construction
    When it was time to form bunker edges, Dobie used plywood sheets measuring 2 feet by 8 feet by 3/8 inches held in place by rebar. Topsoil was packed along the outside of the plywood, creating a smooth vertical bunker edge and promoting deep-rooted turf next to the vertical edge of the plastic liner.     Perforated pipe, 4 inches in diameter, was placed over the 10 mil plastic (optional) covering the bottom and sides of the drainage trench. Y-shaped pipe and 45s were used for easy future access with a camera snake. The pipe was then covered with No. 57 gravel until the trench was almost full. The top of the gravel must be 2 inches lower than the rest of the bunker cavity.      In the event of future blockages, Dobie installed an inspection box, with two 4-inch risers, in the bunker's exit drain line. Ninety-degree sweep fittings were used on each riser so that a camera snake can be inserted into the line in both directions.     Filling the bunker
    The No. 57 gravel was covered with a 1-inch layer of pea gravel, blending it into the slopes of the cavity. If the bunker is on a hillside, it is extremely important to cover the entire bunker cavity floor with at least 1 inch of pea gravel. Dobie says it also is critical that the top of the pea gravel over the tile lines remains the lowest point of the cavity. Red marking paint was used to mark the tile trench so it could be visible through the plastic liner.   The cavity was then covered with 10 mil clear polyethylene. More than one sheet was needed to cover the area, so it was overlapped by 3 to 4 feet. Overlap like roof shingles so water does not go under the plastic.   Once in place, the plastic was stapled to the top and bottom of the plywood side boards with a few inches of excess plastic left above the plywood side walls. The red paint lines on the gravel were visible through plastic denoting where to cut four rows of 6-inch holes 6 inches apart directly over the entire trench. It is important to work out as many wrinkles as possible in the plastic before installing the sand.   Small piles of sand were placed on the plastic around the edges to make sure the plastic didn't shift. Dobie warns against dumping a load of sand directly onto the site as it will cause the plastic to pull away from the edges. A total of 3 inches to 4 inches of topsoil was applied to the surrounding banks butting up to the plywood. The plywood showing above grade kept the topsoil from washing into the bunker sand while turf was being established.   Staples were removed from the plywood once the turf was established on the banks, rebar and plywood were removed and the plastic liner was trimmed around the edges 2 inches below the grass line so as not to be visible.   The slope angle of the finished sand was less than 20 degrees to minimize erosion. Still, intrusion of organic matter is inevitable, but that can easily be skimmed off with a flat shovel, says Dobie. As a result, all bunkers at Sharon can drain water within 30 minutes after a heavy rain event of at least 1 inch, even those filled in 1967.   For more information, or to get a copy of the PowerPoint presentation, please email Frank Dobie.

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