By Joel Jackson, FGCSA Executive Director
live golf
Joel’s Journeys In my role as the Executive Director of the Florida Golf Course Superintendents Association, I get to travel and attend golf industry meetings, conferences and local chapter events. In doing so I have traveled Florida from Pensacola to Key Largo in pursuit of stories about the golf and turf industry. Along the way, I have been privileged to tell the stories of golf course superintendents and their clubs in our magazine The Florida Green, and since 1999 I’ve been able to share sto-
ries about the how’s and why’s of golf course maintenance practices with you. I’ve also shown you how seriously superintendents take their role as environmental stewards, and how we support scientific research that helps us do our jobs in the most efficient and environmentally friendly way. As you can see by the photo above, it’s not “all work and no play!” The picture was taken in the Golf Channel broadcast booth at The Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass. That was the 20-minute fun part of half-
Off-camera photo-op during the TPC Championship in Ponte Vedra. 40
day meeting of Allied Florida Golf Associations (PGA Professionals, Club Managers and Superintendents) as we work together to make sure our (your) golf courses which are local small businesses around the state get a fair shake, when state and local laws are passed to regulate our operations. I did get a few minutes with Golf Channel announcers Rich Lerner and Brandle Chamblee, and they were kind enough to recognize and appreciate the work of the golf course superintendents and their crews in preparing golf courses for not only tournament play but golfer’s everyday enjoyment of the game. In May I also got to invest in some continuing education and networking sessions with peers in the publication industry by attending conferences for the Turf and Ornamental Communicators Assoc. in Nashville, TN and the International Network of Golf Spring Conference in Greenville, SC. Just like in turf management, a professional in any line of work needs to stay up to date in their craft. So classes in effective writing, social media opportunities and state of the industry sessions help in that regard. Plus the golf outings and 19th hole networking sessions aren’t bad either. Over the next few months I’ll be attending the Florida Fertilizer and Agrichemical Assoc. Annual Meeting and the Florida Turfgrass Association Conference and Show. If the public and media would take a moment to understand how hard these industries and associations work at making their products and practices environmentally friendly, perhaps there would be less negativity when discussing the issues. People with agendas tend to ignore the facts and positive aspects of an industry if they approach issues with a closed uninformed mind. Healthy turfgrass in lawns, campuses, parks, sports fields and golf courses are great oxygen producing, erosion protection, carbon sequestering, water and dust filtering, temperature cooling greens spaces that make our communities productive, job providing, attractive places to live, play and work. Florida Golf Central • Volume 13, Issue 3