From the desk of GCM

Merion crew walking with a purpose

Major golf champion Phil Mickelson was on site yesterday. USGA Executive Director Mike Davis is there today. No doubt they were walking. Since there are no cart paths at Merion Golf Club in Ardmore, Pa., walking is a must. Essential. The norm.

These days, however, there is a serious purpose behind it. Each step counts. And not just because the biggest golfing event on the radar goes down next week.

As his staff prepares for the 113th U.S. Open that begins one week from Thursday, Merion director of golf course management Matt Shaffer's crew, spearheaded by superintendent Arron McCurdy,is raising money for people hundreds of miles away. Called "Walk to the U.S. Open," Shaffer's department is doing its part to help the American Red Cross aid those who were affected by the recent wave of deadly tornadoes in Oklahoma. They request a flat donation for miles walked or an initial donation, with an incentive pledge for every 500 miles they walk (an example of that is if somebody donates $50, there is an additional $50 promise if they walk 500 miles or an additional $100 if they walk 1,000 miles).

Turf technology goes live at new industry event

Turfco's George Kinkead (right) discusses new seeding technology.

You often hear it said that ours is a relationship business.

Not unlike pretty much every other business out there, I suppose, but rightly or wrongly, in the world of golf course management, its often who you know that’s just as important than what you know. It’s how many superintendents land that dream job. It’s how turf students out-muscle the competition for that prime internship. And it’s how companies gain the upper hand in their efforts to land that big sale.

It shouldn’t be surprising, then, that four familiar industry names — Syngenta, Jacobsen, Turfco and Smithco — came together in mid-May in Greenville, S.C., to put on an event whose primary goal was building relationships. The first domestic Turf Science Live event was a chance for the presenting companies to not only solidify connections with their customers but also to allow those same customers to network amongst themselves and to create relationships that would last far beyond the two days in South Carolina.

“I think an event like this is a good combination of networking amongst peers and a sharing of knowledge, both between the attendees themselves and the companies that are here sharing some of the things that we’ve all done to help improve turf conditions,” says Chris Vernon, Jacobsen’s vice president of marketing and product management. “It’s an interaction that creates a really good dynamic, a good mix of learning and networking.”

Rounds 4 Research goes live June 6

Are you ready to tee it up?

If so, then the first of two Rounds 4 Research auctions is ready to help. Beginning Thursday and continuing through June 16, bidders will have the opportunity to land coveted rounds at more than 600 golf courses in 25 states, as well as an assortment of golf travel packages, through the auction that raises money for turfgrass research activities through the Environmental Insititute for Golf.

The complete news release on the year's first Rounds 4 Research auction is posted below. To access the auction, visit the Rounds 4 Research website.

Online auction offers access to golf courses, funds turf research
Rounds 4 Research goes live June 6

Rounds of golf at more than 600 golf courses in 25 states and assorted travel packages will be available to the public for online bidding, June 6-16, offering access for golfers that otherwise might not have been possible.

Pinehurst expands greens changes

Pinehurst No. 2 will be in the center of the golfing universe one year from now. But two of the resort's other golf courses are on the radar this year.

Pinehurst Resort & Country Club announced today that it is converting greens on Pinehurst No. 8 and then Pinehurst No. 3 to Champion ultradwarf bermudagrass from bentgrass in 2013, and that process has begun. Famed Pinehurst No. 2 also will be converted, in July 2014. That will occur one month after Pinehurst No. 2 plays host to the men and women U.S. Opens in back-to-back weeks. A year ago, Pinehurst began the project by converting greens on Pinehurst No. 1.

"They (ultradwarf bermudagass greens) have become a great option for the North Carolina climate," says Bob Farren, CGCS, Pinehurst's director of golf courses and grounds management. The turf is being planted using the no-till process, meaning it won't require excavation of the greens or any changes to the contours.

Champion ultradwarf bermudagrass has become trendy in the Southeast. Atlanta Athletic Club, site of the 2011 PGA Championship, converted to it before that big event. 

Pinehurst No. 8 currently is closed for the renovations, and is set to re-open July 24. Pinehurst No. 3 is closing Aug. 4, and the plan is to re-open Oct. 4.

Tiger sighting signals U.S. Open near

Director of golf course management Matt Shaffer already knew the U.S. Open was nearing his door step. That point was driven home this week by the presence of the man who walked through the doors to his golf course.

The world's No. 1 player, Tiger Woods, paid his first visit ever to Merion Golf Club in Ardmore, Pa. He came to play a practice round on Memorial Day, get a feel for the place where two weeks from today he will be back for when it really counts. That will be the first round of the 113th U.S. Open, and the first U.S. Open at Merion since 1981.

"Our boss said he (Woods) was surprised how short the course is (6,996 yards for the championship), and he was surprised how long some of the par-3s are (No. 3 is 256 yards, No. 17 is 246), and that the long holes actually are long and difficult (such as the 521-yard par-4 18th)," Shaffer (pictured) tells GCM. "He is among many modern-day players who haven't played Merion."

Players from past eras, though, have knowledge of Merion. They include Johnny Miller, who on Wednesday during a conference call with his NBC peers spoke about their experiences at Merion, which will be hosting its fifth U.S. Open.

"Dan Hicks (Miller's broadcast partner) has been on-site at Merion. He usually doesn't call me to say how exciting a U.S. Open course is going to be, but he thinks it's going to be a fabulous U.S. Open," says Miller, whose major championship record 63 occurred in the final round 40 years ago this year when he recorded a U.S. Open triumph at another Pennsylvania course, Oakmont.

Lessons in life (and turf) for future turf managers

Editor's note: The following is an update on last week's Future Turf Managers event, hosted annually by Jacobsen in Charlotte, N.C., from Jacobsen's Adam Slick, public relations and communications manager.

Quail Hollow Club super Chris Deariso talks to Future Turf Managers attendees

Last week Jacobsen hosted over twenty college seniors from top turfgrass programs around the world as part of its annual Future Turf Managers event.

The annual event gives students a unique opportunity to experience professional turfgrass management at the highest level. During the three-day event, students visit with top superintendents and sports field managers, hear leading-edge presentations from top universities and get an insider’s look at Jacobsen’s turf maintenance equipment.

Attendees must be recommended by directors or professors at turfgrass programs. Students were selected from over twenty colleges and universities, including Penn State University, Texas A&M University, Mississippi State University, Iowa State University and North Dakota State University. The group also included an international student from Myerscough College in Lancashire, England.

Assistants: Green Start Academy wants you

The application process is open for the eighth annual Green Start Academy.

The program, co-sponsored by John Deere Golf and Environmental Science, a division of Bayer Crop Science LP, is strictly for assistant superintendents. Fifty of them will be selected to receive an expense-paid trip to this year's event, which is scheduled Oct. 2-4 at the Bayer Development and Training Center in Clayton, N.C., and John Deere's Turf Care factory in Fuquay-Varina, N.C.

Green Start Academy provides assistant superintendents the opportunity to network with their peers, receive best practices from industry leaders and gain insights into trending topics and key issues that they can use upon their return to their home courses.

To be considered, assistant superintendents from the U.S. or Canada must complete an application. As part of the process, applicants must submit a resume and complete two short-answer questions. The application deadline is June 28.

A panel of industry experts will score the applicants based on their experience and essays before selecting the 50 assistant superintendents. Panel members are GCSAA Class A superintendent Chris Condon, Tetherow Resort and Golf Club, Bend, Ore.; Bob Farren, CGCS, Pinehurst Resort, Pinehurst, N.C.; GCSAA President Patrick R. Finlen, CGCS, director of golf, The Olympic Club, San Francisco, Calif.; Ken Mangum, CGCS, director of golf course and grounds, Atlanta Athletic Club, Johns Creek, Ga.; and Bryan Stromme, regional director of agronomy-Midwest, Billy Casper Golf.

Those applicants who are chosen will be notified by mid-August. For more information and to apply, visit www.backedbybayer.com/green-start-academy.

Naming rights: Coming to a golf course near you?

What's next ... Chick-fil-A Shinnecock Hills?

It seems selling the naming rights for professional sports venues is more in vogue than ever. Take, for example, the new football stadium the San Francisco 49ers are building. This month, jeans icon Levi Strauss came to terms on a $220 million naming rights agreement with the 49ers to put its name on the new stadium that is scheduled to open in 2014.

Oh, there are numerous other examples. Lucas Oil Field is home to the Indianapolis Colts. Energy Solutions Arena houses basketball's Utah Jazz. Hockey's Pittsburgh Penguins drop the puck at Consol Energy Center. Baseball's New York Mets do their thing at Citi Field.

In golf, well, naming rights for golf courses is pretty much uncharted territory. Oh, it has happened; AT&T Oaks Course and AT&T Canyons Course, TPC courses in San Antonio, are examples. Golf, though, hasn't pursued corporate name tags for courses in the manner that many NFL, NBA, NHL and MLB teams have chosen to do. 

Could golf courses move in that direction in the future? At least one city is giving it a closer look. 

GCSAA to fund two new research projects

GCSAA has announced it is funding two new research projects for 2013, one on drought and traffic stress, and the other on anthracnose disease control.

The projects, along with four that are in progress, give GCSAA six ongoing studies, each funded through a grant from the Environmental Institute for Golf (EIFG). The new studies were funded based on recommendations by the GCSAA Research Committee and approved by the association's board of directors.

"The feedback from members and chapters is that research is a valuable benefit of their membership," GCSAA CEO Rhett Evans said. "Research is the foundation of our programming, from our education, to communications, to advocacy. We are thankful for those who support the EIFG so we can deliver the research to our members and the industry."

Pressure just part of the gig at Sawgrass

Here’s another update from our man inside the golf course management operations at TPC Sawgrass for this week’s Players Championship — Peter White, a UMass student from the school’s winning team during the 2013 GCSAA Collegiate Turf Bowl competition, which is presented in partnership with John Deere Golf:

Turf Bowl winners do their bunker routine early morning at TPC Sawgrass.

On Monday and Tuesday this week, the pressure was on to really make up for lost time due to weather. On those days we worked 15 hours. Monday started with our usual bunker routine, where we all perfected our bunker raking form, then in the afternoon we mowed all the rough around the greens, bunkers, mounds and ponds. This was an extremely monumental operation because up until that point, we were unable to cut anything due to the weather.

We learned from Tim Barger, a long time crewmember here at TPC Sawgrass, that they will be tearing up the fairways to replace the current bermudagrass cultivar because it is mutating and no longer looks uniform. Being from the North, we had never heard of this and it was really cool to see something so rare. We were also surprised to learn that they own all their cutting equipment, and that the only thing they bring in extra for the tournament are the carts.