Iowa Golf Association

Date Tournament Course Message From the Iowa Golf Association

Chad Pitts | Executive Director | Iowa Golf Association Thanks to the Golf Course Staff!

On September 14th, the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America promoted national “Thank a Superintendent” day. It was very cool to see many people take to social media to thank the guys and gals that, by design, many times go unnoticed. And what a better time than right at the end of the long, hot summer to take a moment to thank those that put in so many hours caring for the playing surface we all enjoy.

Years ago, we had an event scheduled at Lake Panorama in mid to late August. Dan Wollner was still the Superintendent at LPN and he was a bit disappointed in the condition of the turf that week. He called it the typical “August Decline”.

I thought it was a clever term. It encompassed exactly what all superintendents in Iowa experience in late summer, especially when considering how difficult it is to maintain turf in the typical conditions. Now, I also remember Lake Panorama being much better in our eyes than what Dan probably saw (it really was quite good), but I’ve learned it is rare to meet a superintendent who settles for anything less than perfection.

To take the term a bit further, “August Decline” could apply to a lot of things surrounding golf in Iowa. The turf, for sure, as poa annua checks out, cart traffic has led to compaction causing issues, or a multitude of other issues. But, grounds crews and golf shops all over the state are also losing many of their workers to school in August, which means fewer manhours to stay on top of everything. You could also throw in the general decline of morale in the late summer. Once you get to August, most of us have been at this seemingly nonstop work schedule for six solid months, so it’s not a surprise if the energy is waning a bit.

But then, as we move through the month and get into September, typically the temperatures start to pull back a bit and give us some cooler nights - maybe even a timely rain or two. Then all of a sudden, the daylight gets a little bit shorter (which means shorter days for pros and superintendents), the grass starts to perk up again, and we’ve settled into a new routine with less staff. And with college football starting to kick off and school back in session, that means less traffic on your golf course, which does help with the quality of the turf. . At that point, many of us re-energize because now we can see the light at the end of a long tunnel.

So, I hope you have all gotten through any “August Decline” you may have experienced and are somewhat re-energized as we move into the last few months of the golf season.

I know that I am. It might be because things are starting to slow down just a touch here at the IGA, or that I always end up playing golf the most in the fall and I’m excited to get out there. On behalf of all of the golfers who play your wonderful tracks, thank you for getting the job done even when you may have been a bit less anxious to get to the course that day. Thank you for figuring out a way to keep things in line, ready to go, and attending to your golfer’s needs. Thanks to the superintendents for keeping the greens rolling smooth, the fairways mowed and lush, and all of the other things that go with maintaining the grounds on the property. Many people probably have no idea how hard it is in late summer here in Iowa, but as golfers, we should all be extremely appreciative of the staff at our favorite courses.

Best of luck the rest of this season - I hope you all can sprint to the finish line!