The time of year to reflect and review

Thank you to everyone who had responded to the environmental surveys that have come out the past few months. Now, there's another one in your inbox. This survey, the GCSAA Member Needs Assessment, is important to us so we know how we're doing with our efforts to serve you and serve the golf industry. You should have received the e-mail as of December 7. This time of year is especially busy, so we appreciate you taking a few moments to provide us with feedback.

This is also the time of year to reflect on the events of 2015 and start planning for 2016.  I've had the chance to meet and work with some amazing people in the Southeast this year and everyone seems to be headed for bigger and better things in 2016.  I'd like to thank all the chapter executives and their staff for making all of the chapters function so well.  I'd also like to thank the chapter boards for their willingness to give their time and push our industry forward; we have some great thinkers here in the Southeast.  Finally, I'd like to thank the members of the five chapters with which I work.  I have had the opportunity to meet hundreds of members this year and I look forward to meeting hundreds more in the next year.  I plan on visiting at least 50 courses this year in my travels, so don't be surprised if you get an email asking if I can stop in for a visit.

I hope to see everyone in San Diego for the 2016 Golf Industry Show! You can sign up for the GIS and the Golf Championship here. Happy holidays!

Chapter Delegates Meeting camaraderie

Another Chapter Delegates Meeting has come and passed without any big revelations or problems.

There is one thing that will stand out in my mind from this meeting, though, and that is the never-ending sense of brotherhood that exists amongst our members.

The members of the New Jersey chapter sent more than their delegates to the meeting; they also sent a gift from the heart: a donation for the members of the Carolinas chapter, who have been impacted by the flooding in South Carolina.

They didn't want any extra attention or fanfare, they just wanted to make sure that there were turkeys on the table at Thanksgiving and toys under the tree at Christmas for those who were impacted by mother nature.  This is yet another example of the character of our membership and the devotion to their fellow superintendents.  Thank you to the ladies and gentlemen of the GCSANJ, you
are truly outstanding!

Talk to your local politicians

Seems like television is dominated with presidential candidates talking about what is wrong with the world and how their opponents are responsible for the chaos.  Of course, election campaign years are like that and we know that the mud is just starting to get flung.  There's no better time for you to get involved in the process.  You can get together with your local congressional representative and talk about topics that directly affect our business. Yes, I'm talking about the Grassroots Ambassador Program.

With just a little bit of training and some helpful materials to leave behind, you could be stopping in to your local representative's office to discuss the economic impact of golf in your state and throughout the country.  There are other important items to discuss including WOTUS and labor issues that are facing our industry, both of which are written in confusing language making them difficult to understand.

Perhaps you'll even be selected to visit Washington D.C. when the industry sends its delegation to the annual National Golf Day in April.  You can sign up on the GCSAA website or see your regional field staff representative to get started.  It's an interesting way to witness how government works and it doesn't take much of your time.  Get to know your local representative.  Sign up today!

Upcoming golf course management events

The summer heat is here and many of you are battling wilted and stressed turf, but now is the time to start planning for fall events. Yes, it may be 94 degrees outside, but we're only a month away from football season. Before you know it, the kids will be back in class and that morning jog won't be so miserable.  Here are a couple of events you'll want to make plans to attend:

First up is the all new Deep South Turf Expo in Biloxi, Mississippi, on October 13-15.  This event is a regional turfgrass show that brings together the Alabama Turfgrass Association, Alabama Golf Course Superintendents Association, Louisiana-Mississippi Golf Course Superintendents Association, Gulf Coast Golf Course Superintendents Association and the Mississippi Turfgrass Association.  There will be plenty of education classes and opportunities to earn pesticide certification points, as well as a large trade show.  For several years now, many of the host organizations were looking for a way to make their individual annual meetings bigger and better, so they combined their efforts into a large regional event.  Make plans to be in Biloxi this October to be a part of this first-time event.  You can find more info here.

Second, the registration will soon open for the annual Golf Industry Show in San Diego.  Turfgrass professionals from all over the world will get together in this amazing city on February 6-11, 2016. Hotel and travel arrangements will be available in September. The best hotels fill up quickly, so be ready!  There will be plenty of great education and networking opportunities in the Gas Lamp District of San Diego.  This is always a popular spot for members to come with the pleasant climate, abundant activities and area attractions.  While you're at it, make plans to play in this years Golf Championship, held in conjunction with the GIS.

It's that time of year...

Here we are in the heat of the summer.  Golf course crews throughout the Southeast are dragging hoses around the course and hoping for a thunderstorm to cool the world off a bit.  This is also the time of year that chapters cut back on meetings because everyone is especially busy.  That means that my travel schedule slows down, as well, giving me a chance to work on some of the big picture projects going on in our business, namely water BMPs, congressional visits and new member recruitment.

I will be hitting the back roads of the Southeast over the next couple of months looking for members who have become detached from the organization or golf course industry individuals who have never been members.  I will work with the chapters to find those superintendents that haven't been seen or heard from in a long time and try to get them back on board with the chapter.  I hope to come away with some interesting stories and a bunch of new members.

I will also be making trips to several state capitals in the next few weeks to talk about water.  The Louisiana-Mississippi chapter has had two very productive meetings with their state water regulators recently and here in Alabama, the governor is asking the golf industry for help in creating a water policy for the state.  Georgia is being sued by Florida over water and it looks like Alabama may do the same.  You would not expect there to be water wars in an area that typically receives more than 50 inches of rain, but everywhere you look, water is very much a hot topic.

August is just around the corner and it's the month that the U.S. Congress takes a break.  That means that your local member of Congress will probably be in your area and there's no better time to arrange a meeting in the local office.  If you are a Grassroots Ambassador, now is the time to set up your meetings.

Plan on attending the Government Relations Quarterly Briefing on July 8.  I will we the featured field staff representative and my guest will be Kim Caviness-Reardon with the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality. We will be discussing ways that the golf industry can position itself as a leader in water quality throughout the country. You can sign up here.

(Here's a cool site on water quality in the U.S. from the USGS.  The website has live water monitors located around the country that give continuous data on nitrate levels, dissolved oxygen levels in lakes and streams and more.)

It's time to talk up Rounds 4 Research

Bandon Dunes Golf Resort in Oregon. Rounds for Bandon Dunes up for bid.

Don't underestimate the effect of telling golfers at your club about the Rounds 4 Research auction that is now underway.  Most courses have many members who travel frequently and take their golf clubs with them.  With over 750 rounds available for auction throughout the United States, Canada and Switzerland, golfers can enjoy a round at a new course. Some rounds even offer stays at an accompanying resort. Your word of mouth is one of the easiest ways to market and sell rounds through the program.

Of course, if you happen to know the golf editor or sports writer at the local newspaper or television station, it wouldn't hurt to tell them, as well.  Many chapters have worked very hard to gather the rounds for the auction and now it is time to sell them to support turf research throughout the country.

Be sure to tell a golfer about the program every day while the auction is underway, you never know who might bid on a round of golf.  Much of the success of the program lies within our own hands, so be sure to do your part and spread the word about R4R today!

The auction is open through June 21.

Breaking the mold....

I've been involved in golf course maintenance since 1982. During that time I've attended plenty of meetings, both at the national and local chapter level. Years ago, meetings consisted of 1 to 3 hours of an educational presentation followed by lunch and then golf. While this is probably still the basic structure of the average superintendent association meeting, there are now a whole bunch of other activities going on that shatter that dusty old meeting recipe.

Many chapters are going to more social events to get their members out of the office and engaged in things not necessarily related to golf. Sure, there is still plenty of talk amongst the members at these events concerning problems at work, but there is a more relaxed feeling of a group of friends getting together rather than an industry group. Perhaps the greatest part of these new social meetings is the fact that you are encouraged to bring your spouse and children along, as well.  For years we've known each other as turf managers and business people, but now we have a chance to get to know our fellow members as fathers, husbands and neighbors - and that's a great thing.

Here are some of the activities I know of that local chapters are doing to make meetings less formal and encourage attendance: beach parties, oyster roasts, pro baseball games, auto races, deep sea fishing trips, skeet shooting, bass fishing competitions, bowling, college tailgates and plenty of other activities. I'm guessing your chapter already holds similar events, but if they aren't maybe it's time to think outside the box a bit to help bring your members together. We all work hard at our jobs, isn't it time to have a bit of fun?

Next week I'm heading to a meeting that is very unconventional, so much so that I don't even want to say what it is. Look for a story and perhaps a few images in the next blog. Until then, don't forget to use your sunscreen, it's starting to get hot out there!

April 15 isn't tax day, it's National Golf Day!

The world of golf will send it's largest group to date to Washington, D.C., this year to send a message to U.S. lawmakers on everything good the game of golf brings to the world. This is the 8th annual trip to the capital for the We Are Golf coalition, which consists of GCSAA staff, board members, Government Relations Committee members and other prominent leaders in the world of golf. Some of the points being discussed will be the economic impact of the game of golf, environmental stewardship, pending legislation, such as the H2B program, and potential changes to the Clean Water Act  and "Waters of the U.S."

Even though your not going to D.C. for the meetings you can still help the cause. Let your local congressman or senator know the benefits golf provides by becoming a Grass Roots Ambassador in your home district. We already have over 150 throughout the U.S., but we need twice that many. Over the next week, include the hash tag #NGD15 in your tweets in order to connect people to the mission behind National Golf Day and help raise awareness about the event. Be a leader in your community and showcase the economic and environmental benefits that golf can bring to your city.

By the way, your taxes are still due on April 15th as well....

Nutrient Survey

It's that time again, time to take the next Environmental Profile survey. This time, we will be asking about nutrient use. This is a very important survey and I urge everyone to take the time to accurately complete it. Nutrients and water use are two huge areas in which we need solid information. When you talk with your state leaders, it's important that you have accurate information to share, in terms of what we use at our facilities and what impact that has on the environment. It's also important that we have good information on the national level, as much of the work the EIFG and We Are Golf are doing is aided by the information that you provide from your facility.

Please take the time to take the survey!

New Year

January is nearly gone and it's amazing how fast the days slip by. By the end of the month, I will have attended functions at all of my chapters so it's been a busy year already. So far this month I've been to Franklin, Tenn.; Baton Rouge, La,; Griffin, Ga.; and Sylacauga Ala. Next week it's off to Charleston, S.C., and I'll probably have a stop in North Atlanta on the way back. Santa brought me a new camera so I intend to have a whole lot more photos this year, and more Twitter action as well.

It's also great to see so many chapters working on government relations, which seems to take up a large portion of our jobs these days. All of the chapters in the southeast are working on BMPs in one way or another and the ambassador program is gaining traction. This should be a 3,000+ mile month for my travels and a good bit of it is done on the back roads. So if you think your course is in the middle of nowhere I'll probably stop by to say hello and take your picture. I have a feeling 2015 is going to be a great year!  See you soon...