New USGA prez talks golf and the environment

Lost a little amid the hubbub of last week’s GCSAA Education Conference and Golf Industry Show in San Diego was the fact that one of GIS’ supporting partners, the USGA, had their own annual meeting just a week earlier in Pinehurst, N.C.

At those meetings, Jim Hyler officially took the reins as the USGA’s 61st president. And in his first official remarks as president, Hyler went down a road few other USGA presidents have traveled in such depth before. He talked about golf and the environment.

The timing of these comments was certainly appropriate, considering that at virtually the same time, GCSAA and it’s philanthropic arm, The Environmental Institute for Golf, were announcing their plans to launch an initiative that would develop a sustainable approach to golf course management, plans that have wide industry backing. You can read more about Golf’s Drive Toward Sustainability here.

It was also somewhat reassuring to hear that USGA officials and the USGA Green Section are interested in achieving goals so similar to the aspirations of The Institute and the golf course management industry when it comes to matters of golf and the environment. It will be interesting to see how the USGA’s efforts compliment the efforts of Golf’s Drive Toward Sustainability as both initiatives move forward.

Hyler’s remarks about golf and the environment are posted in their entirety below. You can also read a complete transcript of his address here or watch a video of his presentation here.

Let me talk now about the environment … We can all be proud that the USGA has been an industry leader for more than three decades in promoting a healthy relationship between the game and the environment. Through the activities of our Green Section, our advocacy of responsible turfgrass management practices, and our funding of research into the development of new cultivars, we have supported a vision of the game that is environmentally responsible. Unfortunately a lot of this work is our best kept secret. That will be changing.



With the recent economic downturn, our focus on these critical issues has sharpened. If we are not careful, high construction costs, soaring maintenance budgets, and declining membership rosters will threaten the survival of many courses and clubs. In my opinion, many of the standards by which we construct and maintain our courses have become, quite simply, unsustainable. While there may be short-term solutions, what we need to seek is a long-term strategy that confronts some of the deeper issues plaguing the game.



When it comes to the issue that is perhaps of greatest concern to golf’s future — namely, water — we must re-set the way that we look at golf courses. As we have for the U.S. Open, I believe that our definition of playability should include concepts of firm, fast, and yes, even brown, and allow the running game to flourish. We need to understand how brown can become the new green. Our maintenance expectations must be realistic, promoting a more relaxed approach that allows us to reduce our consumption of clean water. A more natural game that is sustainable can be promoted as a more responsible philosophy for maintaining golf courses anywhere. It is certainly not our aspiration to become the game’s environmental police, but we can and will develop and encourage best practices relating to sustainable turfgrass management for all clubs and courses to consider.

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