South Texas GCSA, Inc. Tee To Green January/February 2023

2023 GCSAA CONFERENCE AND TRADE SHOW ATTENDANCE

The week began with the GCSAA Golf Championships presented by Toro. The event was sold-out and featured the launch of the Toro Par-3 shoot-out along with formats offering golfers an opportunity to have fun, meet new people, renew old friendships, and play in various flighted competitions. Dylan Foster, assistant superintendent at Verandah Golf Club in Fort Myers, Fla., was the winner of the 2023 GCSAA National Championship

Among the highlights, the conference began Monday with the launch of the GCSAA Interactive Facility Tours and ended with a Welcome Reception, presented in partnership with Syngenta, at Aquatica Beach with food, fun and comradery. Tuesday featured a continuation of education in the classroom and on the golf course as part of the GCSAA Interactive Facility Learning Tours, with the day capping off with the announcement of an MOU between GCSAA and The Warrior Alliance.

On Wednesday, the Sunrise Celebration, presented in partnership with Syngenta, saw John Newton, CGCS Retired, receive GCSAA’s Col. John Morley Award to begin the day. Then, attendees experienced the launch of the Interactive Grass Learning Stage built through a collaboration of the GCBAA, GCSAA, USGA and ASGCA at the trade show.

Wednesday also featured the 2023 GCSAA Turf Bowl, presented in partnership with John Deere. Team No. 11 from Penn State University won the 2023 Turf Bowl.

Thursday saw the launch of GCSAA Auction $Bucks, enabling attendees to earn points used to bid on items in a live auction at the GCSAA Send-Off Celebration, presented in partnership with John Deere. The highlight of the Send-Off Celebration was the presentation of the GCSAA Old Tom Morris Award to Johnny Morris, the founder of Bass Pro Shops.

The GCSAA Conference and Trade Show is produced by the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA) along with its presenting partners the Golf Course Builders Association of America (GCBAA), United States Golf Association (USGA) and the American Society of Golf Course Architects (ASGCA) .

GCSAA will continue to offer conference learning with a two-day virtual event of new education offerings for everyone at the golf facility March 14 and 16, 2023. Details and registration information can be found at www.GCSAAConference.com.

The 2024 GCSAA Conference and Trade Show will head to Phoenix Jan. 29-Feb. 1, 2024, at the Phoenix Convention Center.

National Golf Day serves as the pinnacle advocacy event of the year for the American Golf Industry Coalition. As a coalition of golf industry leaders, National Golf Day will celebrate its 15th year in 2023.

National Golf Day will take place May 8th-10th in 2023 and will return to Washington D.C. for the first time since 2019. Planning is underway to bring back all aspects of the in-person event.

To kick-off the event, the Community Service Project (CSP) will return on Tuesday, May 9th. In partnership with the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America and National Park Service, the CSP will allow attendees the opportunity to participate in various beautification projects around on the National Mall.

National Golf Day 2023 will also see the return of a Keynote Briefing Session and Congressional Reception on May 9th. And finally, all attendees will have the option to participate in more than 250 legislative meetings on Wednesday, May 10th.

If you'd like to participate in this year's event, please follow the registration prompts located below. Registration will close April 17th.

Please Note: The host hotel for this event is the Doubletree Crystal City. Registrants will be sent the hotel booking link, via email, once they have completed their registration. It is preferred that advocates schedule departing flights on Wednesday, May 10th no later than 6 p.m. ET. A detailed schedule of events can be found below or by clicking HERE.

2023 National Golf Day

Field staff report

by Johnny Walker | Nov 14, 2022

I recently had the opportunity to speak at the 2022 EXCEL Nufarm Leadership Conference in Frisco, Tex. GCSAA's Katie Lomshek and Matt Brown help produce the leadership event, which is now in its fifth year. Every year, there are eight open spots for assistant golf course superintendents to apply. The application process consists of the standard questionnaire along with two written essays. Once selected to the program, the assistants begin a 3-year process where they attend a couple of leadership events during the year as well as the GCSAA Conference and Trade Show. Now that the program is in its fifth year, there are 1st-year members, 2nd-year members and 3rd-year members for a total of 24 people in the program.

The program is aimed at teaching these assistant superintendents how to elevate their professionalism through education and the real-world experiences of those in the turfgrass profession. It is not all classroom education: At this year’s event, the EXCEL class was treated to a tour of the new PGA Frisco golf courses and maintenance facility as well as a tour of the new PGA of America headquarters. The tour included a discussion with some of the directors of the PGA. All of these interactions will help the members of this program become better prepared and more marketable when they move into their first golf course superintendent position. When it came time for me to speak, I gave them insight to my career in the industry with a presentation titled “40 years in 40 minutes.” I stressed the points of being flexible in their short-term and long-term planning and of always having a Plan B.

This program would not be possible without a great company like Nufarm that sponsors this event. They also have employees of their company that attend the events with the assistants so there is always communication and feedback. I encourage all superintendents to make sure their assistants are aware of this program and assistants should talk to their superintendents about the program if they are interested. I enjoyed my brief time with this group and I look forward to watching the members of this group excel in this profession.

The EXCEL Leadership Program offers leadership training for personal, career, and community/industry stewardship for assistant superintendents; the future leaders in the golf course management industry. Thank you, our application has closed. Applications will open May 1, 2023 and close May 31, 2023.