The Ultimate Golf Industry Show Experience

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First, take the time and plan accordingly. I went up on Monday evening and flew back Wednesday afternoon (remember what I said about it being difficult to break away for a couple of days?); not good planning on my part. I wrongfully assumed that the showroom floor would be open the whole time and thought I would have the whole afternoon on Tuesday after my four hour 8:00am seminar. BIG mistake on my part. Not only did I miss out on a whole list of interesting seminars later that afternoon, but I also missed the showroom floor completely because it didn’t open until 10:00am Wednesday and I had to head to the airport at 11. That is my biggest regret. I’ve heard a LOT about the showroom floor over the years and was probably looking forward to that the most. So plan to stay for as long as is right for you. Plan out what you want to see and what you want to do while you are there. Plan to enjoy as much time as possible talking to others in our field that have different experiences or different ways to deal with the same experiences. PLAN.

The second thing I took from the GIS was the overwhelming amount of knowledge and experience within a very small area. I don’t know how big the conference center is, but I can tell you there was more information about the growing and maintaining of turf, equipment and teams there than I could have imagined. I never really put much thought into who was going to be there and what I could learn from them. There were people there from all over the world who go through things on their courses that I never even thought about. The challenges they go through on a regular basis and the ways they come up with to combat them are astounding. We as superintendents are some of the most adaptable people I have ever come across. We are constantly dealing with pressure from Mother Nature, golfers, owners, greens committees and even our peers to do more, do it better and do it faster. And we seem to find ways to make it happen! Adapt. Improvise. Overcome. We have some of the most knowledgeable people in our industry who are a phone call, text message or social media post away (that last one is not my in wheel house, but needs to be something I use more often because it is such an easy way to make a connection).

I thought it would be more difficult to write a couple of paragraphs about my experiences, but as I look up I see I am already there. So, I will again say thank you for the opportunity and look forward to seeing y’all at next year’s GIS.