Presidential Perspective by Jake Schmitz, Superintendent at Olympic Hills Golf Club “So when is it going to be my turn?” Having four kids aged 10 and younger, I have to admit that this is not one of my favorite phrases. Typically, that phrase involves loud voices, minor wrestling, attempted negotiations, and usually ends up with some tears running down long faces. This is about the time when I lock myself in the garage and let my wife deal with it! The garage time also includes some self-reflection, as I try to ascertain how it is possible that we don’t have the whole sharing concept down to an art after four kids. Fact of the matter is, my wife and I continually work at improving our methods for raising the kids, and she is exceptional at it (I, on the other hand, am still a work in progress.) Emotional meltdowns and wrestling matches are handled with distractions and laughs versus raised voices and anger. We’ve been able to successfully adapt our methods over time to manage the chaos, and our household is a lot of fun, believe it or not.
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I have included a brief narrative about my family, not because you are at all interested in my personal challenges, but rather because there is an important correlation that can be made to our livelihoods in golf course management. Over the course of the last three years, a significant amount of press has been devoted to droughts in California and Texas, as well as the aquifers that flow down from the Rockies to Arizona. Recently, golf courses in California have been mandated to reduce irrigation by 25% due to extreme drought. Back in 2005, Georgia golf courses made national news for their efforts in the development of BMP’s for water conservation. Even in the upper Midwest, portions of the Great Lakes Region are dealing with drought-related issues where water use is being questioned. So when is it going to be Minnesota’s turn? Realistically, our turn has already arrived. The formation of a legislative commission to oversee water use and permits has been formed. The Minnesota DNR has plans for drilling 70 monitoring wells, and staff has been