F o r e Y o u r I n f o r m a ti o n
P age 7
MEMBER HIGHLIGHT
LONNIE DUNN, SUPERINTENDENT WILD HORSE G.C. BY JOHN FARLEY
I first met Lonnie Dunn in March of 2016 when I hired him as assistant superintendent here at Teal Bend Golf Club. He of course has since moved on and is thriving as the superintendent at Wild Horse, an 18 hole track in Davis built in 1999. His true calling was to be a superintendent and run his own 18-hole course and after three years with me he did just that. In 2019 he was hired by the new owner of Wild Horse Golf Course, Chuck Klein, and has been happily working there ever since. Lonnie started his turf career in Fairfax County Virginia at the Oakmar Country Club. From there he moved onto the Jefferson District Golf Course where he did just about everything. He mowed, sprayed, aerified, re-built bunkers, and anything else that the superintendent needed. He then moved over to the county turf and sports field division where he became the “turf guy”. He was the “go to” employee when it came to turf related issues. Then in 2016 he felt the pull of the golden state and came back home to California. Since becoming superintendent at Wild Horse Golf Course in Davis, Lonnie has taken the course by storm. He immediately started a massive shop cleanup. He got rid of the old broken machines and piles of junk that had accumulated over the years. He cleaned and organized the mechanics bay while assessing the equipment and determining which machines could be saved and repaired. Once the maintenance shop was in order, he turned his attention to the course and more specifically the greens. They had not been aerified regularly and the effects were evident. Lonnie hit the greens with 5/8”s coring tines and some quality sand. He then started a foliar feeding program that really improved the turf health. Then during his first summer he dialed in the greens irrigation system and started a comprehensive hand watering program. The greens quickly turned around and responded to Lonnie’s work in a very positive way. The conditions have greatly improved at Wild Horse since Lonnie has been there. I asked him what his greatest challenge was and without hesitation he said “equipment”. He’s had to make due with some pretty beat-up machines which makes a tough job even tougher. The owners are sympathetic to his plight and are slowing getting him some better equipment. He then told me the on -course challenges are simple; 1. Ground squirrels 2. Bunkers. The ground squirrel population was left unchecked for many years and they were happy to
move onto the course where they dug huge holes and tunnel networks. Lonnie’s plan is to push them back to the native areas where they won’t damage the course. The bunkers are a mess. The drainage has become compromised over the years and they just don’t drain properly. He’s going to rebuild some and fill in some others with the blessing of the owners and many golfers for that matter. Lonnie is pretty typical when it comes to what he dislikes about the job; paperwork! As a group we don’t like to be stuck in the office staring at a computer screen. We’d much rather be out there solving problems and making the course a better place. When it comes to what he loves about his job, “that’s easy” Lonnie told me. “It’s the daily challenge. It’s getting to be the guy who fixes things “. Lonnie was drawn to the golf industry because he loves turf maintenance and golf. Becoming a golf course superintendent perfectly combined both elements. He’s an 18 handicapper who plays regularly. He said he would love to host a superintendent’s meeting in the future as well. And judging by his drive and devotion to his course, we will all definitely be meeting and playing his course someday in the future. Great job Lonnie Dunn. You’re a fine addition to the course and will make it a better place to play for sure.