RGGCSA Super News December 2016

The SuperNews OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE RIO GRANDE GCSA

President’s Message

December 2016 Hello to all,

President Matt Urban Vice President Jimmy Rodriguez Secretary / Treasurer Matt Hughes Board of Directors: Matt Alcala Roy Johnson Max Johnson Paul Kerr Caleb Buckley (Past Pres.)

Vendor Representative Bryan Klock Chapter Executive Carol Cloud GCSAA Field Rep Brian Cloud

Winter for the turf professional in the Rio Grande is the ideal time to take inventory, relax, assess the previous year, and prepare for another season. In this very diverse State of New Mexico, while some are blowing out irrigation systems, others are still cutting grass and prepping the course for daily play. Whether you are in the mountains, desert, plains, or valley regions of our state, winter is a beneficial time to slow down and recharge yourself in preparation for the coming year.

This is an important time for the RGGCSA to continue our growth as an association as well.

We are so very thankful to all of our members who supported the association this past year.

Without the help of our generous sponsors, we would not have been able to host such great meetings in 2016. Your continued support and involvement in the association is greatly appreciated. Our annual meeting hosted by Paul Kerr at UNM saw one of the largest turnouts in some time. Paul and the staff at UNM South treated us to a beautifully maintained course, great food, and the October weather provided a great afternoon of golf. After our business meeting, GCSAA CEO Rhett Evans gave a motivating presentation on how the Rio Grande and GCSAA work together to benefit each of us. We thank Rhett for taking the time to speak 2017 Board of Directors - Left to right to our association. As always, annual elections Roy Johnson, Jimmy Rodriguez, Matt Urban, were held and the results are as follows: President- Matt Urban

Max Johnson, Matt Hughes, Paul Kerr, Bryan Klock, and Matt Alcala

Vice President- Jimmy Rodriguez Secretary Treasurer- Matt Hughes Directors – Paul Kerr, Matt Alcala, Roy Johnson, Max Johnson Affiliate Liaison – Bryan Klock Congratulations to those elected to the RGGCSA board. I look forward to serving with everyone in 2017.

Our first meeting will be hosted by Brandon McIntosh on Monday, January 23rd and held in El Paso at Coronado Country Club. I believe this will be the first ever meeting at Coronado so mark your calendar and make the trip to Coronado if you can.

Wishing you all a merry Christmas and a safe and Happy New Year!

Matt Urban RGGSAA President

Superintendent Article I just got back from the 63rd Annual Rocky Mountain Regional Turf grass Conference held in Denver Co. December 6th-8th 2016. I took a beginner one day welding class and did CEC’s for my pesticide license in Colorado and here in New Mexico.

The information is for those of you out there that are using PGR on your course or are thinking about doing so. I myself just starting using Primo and Cutless MEC on my greens last year. I have heard about the Growing Degree Day Models so, I took a class with one of the leaders in this area. The class was with Dr. Bill Kreuser from University of Nebraska. The models have been created to help you predict when based off temperature you should apply and reapply you’re PGR’s. I was on an every two week spraying regiment last year with no correlation to temperature. During the presentation you could see that temperature really played a major role in the application interval. So when temperature is colder the interval is longer and as temperature increased to get the same control the interval became shorter. The point he was making is we may be over applying when temperatures are down and not applying enough as temperatures rise. The model some of you may be using could be the one developed by Michigan Sate which if I remember starts sometime in February and calculates from there growing degree days.

The model Dr. Kreuser was talking about starts tracking degree days from the day you apply.

That best part of all this is the web site he created for calculating growing degree days does all the math for you and it is FREE!!!! The site already has built into it the approximate growing degree days for different PGR’s. Through research over the numerous years this model has been created. Greenkeeperapp.com is the free web site. This tool was designed exclusively for turfgrass. This tool is just not for your greens but any turf you are currently using PGR’S on or may want to in the future.

He showed us through slides some of the web site information. You can set up your course. You can track all kinds of applications not just your PGR’s. I have not had a chance to go on the site as of yet but I hope to soon. He did mention that they are going to be able to tie the weather information directly to Weather Underground very soon so you will have very local information to your course. I am looking forward to trying this out and seeing how this tool can help me here.

Dr. Kreuser information for further questions is as follows: billkreuser@unlturf * wkreuser2@unl.edu * http://turf.unl.edu

Jimmy Rodriguez Director of GCM Towa Golf Club Santa Fe RGGCSA Vice President 2016

Greenkeeperapp.com Desktop & Mobile Friendly Designed to efficiently function on both desktop computers and mobile devices, the Greenkeeper App allows users to quickly reference prior applications and monitor pest control while on the course. Have confidence that your mixing calculations are correct and know your turf is covered at any time by simply looking at your phone!

Product Applications Log You can select an area of your course to treat and choose products and application rates from an extensive turf product database. Then, watch the Greenkeeper App calculate how much product goes into a sprayer tank, the number of tanks needed, and the number of gallons in the mix. When you are done, you can print off an easy to read report with mixing instructions!

Pest Reports You can tag a target pest ( curative or preventative ) to the products you add to your turf or report pest outbreaks directly to help other turf managers prepare for potential problems. Then, the Greenkeeper App ( with the help of it's users ) compiles maps showing the relative locations of recently reported pests.

Multiple Users Turf management professionals need to work together and the Greenkeeper App makes it very easy! Just give the App an email and it will add that professional to your course!

Product Tracking & Alerts The Greenkeeper App automatically keeps track of product efficacy, including PGR breakdown with GDD models, and notifies you when control has expired for one of your products.

Weather Reporting The Greenkeeper App monitors the weather so that you don't have to. It's unique tools takes into account local weather conditions and gives you a hyper-local view of how your product application is doing and when it is time to reapply.

GREENKEEPER is FREE GreenKeeper is based on research from Nebraska Extension turf experts and made possible through funding by the University of Nebraska and our proud sponsors:

SAVE THE DATE!! Details and RSVP soon at rggcsa.org Located on the Franklin Mountains in West El Paso, Texas, Coronado Golf & Country Club offers a truly unique country club experience.

Coronado Country Club’s golf course will provide the golfer with a very unique experience. The location of the course at the foothills of the Franklin Mountains gives the course the natural uniqueness and beauty of something very special.

You will play a golf course where you can see two countries, United States and Mexico, and three states, Texas – New Mexico – Chihuahua, Mexico from 4000 feet on the side of Franklin Mountain. The views are spectacular and the beauty of the sunsets is unforgettable.

The course is short by modern standards, 6455 yards, but the uneven lies you find in the fairways and green surrounds, and the unpredictable roll of the small fast greens will test any golfer’s ability.

Coronado has hosted many national events, two PGA Tour Ben Hogan Tournaments, several Men’s Southwestern Tournaments and Ladies Southwestern Tournaments, U.S.G.A. qualifiers as well as numerous state and local events. The golf course has withstood the onslaught of the remarkable modern day golfer very well.

The original golf course was designed by L.M. Hughes who designed numerous golf courses in Mexico and the southwest United States. The course was remodeled in 1971 by Marvin Ferguson, the father of U.S.G.A. green design.

Annual Meeting Wrap Up

October is Annual Meeting time in New Mexico and the RGGCSA was hosted by Paul Kerr at the University of New Mexico Championship Course. Attendance was very good for the event and attendees enjoyed a great lunch and an even better golf course. GCSAA Chief Executive Rhett Evans was the special guest speaker and gave a very good presentation regarding members, chapters, the GCSAA and Allied Associations working together for the benefit of the game of golf and the industry. Thanks to Rhett for taking time out of his very busy schedule to spend time with our members and chapter. Rhett is pictured in the left side photo above and giving his presentation on the right side. The slide in the photo is of Rhett hitting a golf ball from the top of Mount Ranier an achievement he accomplished in July. The center photo is of RGGCSA President Matt Urban presenting host Paul Kerr with a plaque of appreciation for hosting the Annual Meeting.

Our Platinum Sponsor for the event was Aquatic Consultants and they generously sponsored the lunch, golf and great prizes. Paul Cassidy and his team brought out their very impressive fleet of equipment for all to see. Aquatic Consultants has been a great sponsor of the Rio Grande chapter and we appreciate their continued participation. Also recognized at the meeting were our other great 2016 sponsors pictured below. The RGGCSA is very blessed to have affiliate members who support all of the chapter’s activities. We couldn’t do it without you!

Lucky 50 / 50 Pot winner Jaremie Smith is all smiles after his big win! This was Jeremie’s first RGGCSA meeting. Great start!

Also in attendance was Sun Country Golf Executive Director Dana Lehner. Dana talked about finding common ground and working together.

Paul Cassidy of Aquatic Consultants thanked attendees for their support and business in 2016. Thank you Paul for your support.

Left to Right - Matt Hughes, Matt Urban, Karl Troeger and Glenn Denney enjoying a beautiful October day in New Mexico.

A beautiful day for golf in Albuquerque!

Championship Team Golf Champions - l to r: Todd Huslig, Robb Jones, David Salas, Henry Martinez and Roy Johnson

Proximity winners: Matt Dusenbery, Matt Acala, John King and Caleb Buckley (not pictured) 2nd Place Team - l to r: Matt Hughes, Glenn Denney, Karl Troeger and Matt Urban (not pictured) 3rd Place Team - l to r: Caleb Buckley, Paul Cassidy, Matt Dusenbery and Paul Shipley

Proximity Prize Winners

3rd Place Winners

2nd Place Winners

Thank you to all our wonderful 2016 Sponsors.

Without your support we would not be able to have a successful association.

Will Trump Administration be good for golf?

The Golf Course Superintendents Association of America is involved in broad-based advocacy efforts that would continue no matter who is the incoming President or the majority party in Congress. But with Donald Trump winning the presidential election and the Republican party controlling Congress, GCSAA sees an opportunity to better communicate its priority agenda to Trump, a president who understands the value of the game of golf, both as a golfer and golf course owner. On the campaign trail, Trump targeted several laws and regulations coming from the Obama Administration that could impact golf course management operations and the environment. Some of those regulations, of course, impact the use of inputs used to create healthy turfgrass and excellent playing conditions for golfers.

The pending Clean Water Rule (WOTUS) dramatically increases the federal scope of the Clean Water Act over rivers, streams, wetlands and ditches. GCSAA opposes WOTUS as it is written and wants agencies to go back to the drawing board to write a more balanced rule. Trump’s win provides more options for that to happen. Congress could pass legislation that stops WOTUS either by killing it outright or by cutting off its funding. President Obama had threatened to veto such measures. In contrast, President Trump would likely sign them into law. Alternatively, he could choose to simply not appeal, should WOTUS be struck down in a court of law.

Myron Ebell, the man leading Trump's Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) transition team, has called WOTUS "an unprecedented power grab." "We have a lot more options available to us in the area of WOTUS going forward and that's good news," said Bob Helland, director of congressional and federal affairs at GCSAA. "Trump and his transition team have expressed many of the same concerns about WOTUS that we have."

Trump is also familiar with the H-2B Visa program that a number of golf facilities utilize, including one of his own in Florida. This could lead to a breakthrough in the red tape that makes using the program so frustrating.

In the interim, however, GCSAA continues to support measures to help cut through the red tape, including adding language to the pending Fiscal Year 17 Omnibus spending bill that renews the exemption for H-2B workers who are returning to the U.S. for temporary and specific work within a three-year period.

Three Pieces Of Equipment For The Holiday Wish List

By Brian Whitlark, agronomist, West Region Superintendents are always on the lookout for new equipment to improve the quality and efficiency of the maintenance operation. The following three pieces of equipment have the potential to improve course conditions, reduce water and chemical inputs, and improve maintenance efficiency: 1. Disc seeder—Overseeding bermudagrass with perennial ryegrass requires significant labor, water and chemical inputs. However, a new disc seeder can strategically place seeds approximately 0.25 inch deep and immediately cover them by rolling the soil surface. This substantially improves germination and minimizes labor and water inputs. Superintendents who have tried disc seeders have been impressed with how fast seeds germinated and matured when compared to traditional broadcast seeding.

2. Brushes for closely mown turf areas—Front-mounted or geardriven brushes attached to greenmowers are common, but brushes can also be very effective for improving the quality of cut on approaches, fairways and tees.

Whether your course has cool- or warmseason turf, regularly mowing with geardriven or front-mounted brushes can improve the surface smoothness and density of closely mown areas and can help enhance mowing stripes.

3. Fraze-mowing machine—Fraze mowing is an extremely efficient way to remove thatch, weed seeds and even the fine-textured soil that sometimes accompanies sod. On bermudagrass tees, fairways and approaches, fraze mowing will likely require several weeks of course closure to allow for full recovery. However, the short-term disruption will pay long-term dividends in the terms of firmer, smoother playing surfaces. Fraze mowing may also temporarily eliminate the need for chemicals to control Poa annua and may even reduce the incidence of diseases like spring dead spot.

2017 GCSAA Compensation and Benefits Report Every other year, GCSAA conducts a comprehensive study of the compensation, benefits and operations of its superintendent members.

A Compensation and Benefits Survey and Report helps fulfill key expectations of an association, one of which is to maintain data about the profession being served. The report helps GCSAA learn demographic details about the profession. These details can be shared with various constituencies, used to advocate on behalf of the profession and reveal trends in salaries across the country. They also identify the types of additional benefits superintendents are receiving or lacking.

The 2017 survey will be open for all GCSAA Class A and B members from Dec. 14, 2016, to Jan. 20, 2017. Survey results will be published in the spring of 2017. For questions regarding the survey or report contact Stephanie Confer, manager, certification.

GCSAA 2017 Member Engagement Opportunities The GCSAA Board of Directors invites you to submit your name for consideration for a 2017 committee/task group service.

Please select the Areas of Interest/Expertise for which you would be most interested in serving. Experience/expertise, along with previous chapter leadership and committee/task group service, will all be considered when making the appointments for 2017.

Apply at gcsaa.org

Annual Meeting Host

New Mexico’s Own, Jimmy Rodriguez Snags Colorado Superintendent Cup Way to go Jimmy! Jimmy is a dual member of the RGGCSA and the Rocky Mountain GCSA and regularly attends events north of the border to visit old friends and colleagues. This Fall he captured the RMGCSA Superintendent Cup which has been played at the end of each season since 1966. Only Superintendents are eligible to win the cup and past winners have gone on to win the GCSAA National Championship. (No pressure, Jimmy) The tournament was played at Penny Park, a private course near Larkspur, Colorado. The “Cup” now rests in the golf shop at Jimmy’s home course Towa Golf Club and will be proudly displayed until he returns next September to defend his title.

Begay shares vision for improving native health Hometown golf hero Notah Begay shared his vision for improving the financial and physical well-being of New Mexicans, especially its native communities, during a talk Wednesday at the Albuquerque Economic Forum.

Begay — famous for excelling on championship golf teams at Albuquerque Academy and Stanford University, where he roomed with Tiger Woods — shared anecdotes and humorous asides with an overflow crowd at the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center.

“This isn’t a place I thought I’d be standing when I picked up a pair of used golf clubs at the age of 6,” said Begay.

He attributed much of his success as an athlete and businessman to his friendship with State Investment Officer Steve Moise (who was in the audience), extra tutoring to help him grow academically and kind people who bought bus tickets so he could get to tournaments.

Now the first full-blooded Native American on the PGA Tour is teeing off an other efforts.

When Begay isn’t busy consulting on building golf courses all over the world and providing commentary on the NBC Golf Channel, he’s also leading the charge against Native American childhood obesity and Type 2 diabetes through his NB3 Foundation. The national organization has partnered with the Johns Hopkins Center for Indian Health to get Native American youths active in sports, fitness and improving nutrition.

The issue “drastically impacts everyone in this room, because of the huge health care costs coming down the road” if the epidemic of childhood obesity isn’t dealt with more seriously, said Begay. A national NB3Fit Day recently helped create awareness and activity for native communities across the country. More than 10,000 young people took part in kickball, swimming and dancing for the inaugural event.

Begay also has teamed with accounting firm REDW to help build the firm’s business in Indian country. Begay is the brand ambassador for REDW, connecting the firm to accounting and financial reporting services for tribes and their enterprises.

The initiative also funds financial literacy courses. REDW, NB3 and a Junior Achievement flagship program has been launched at the Santa Fe Indian School with the goal of replicating the program at other Native American educational institutions.

Chapter Delegates Meeting Wrap Up Chapter delegates discuss member growth, BMP guide at annual event Eighty-two delegates from 84 chapters convene at GCSAA headquarters

Membership engagement and growth, advocacy efforts and an upcoming best management practices guide were among the key topics of the 2016 Chapter Delegates Meeting. The 82 delegates from 84 chapters also heard from nominees for the 2017 GCSAA Board of Directors. The two-day meeting, held Oct. 11-12 in Kansas City, Mo., and at GCSAA headquarters in Lawrence, Kan., also offered delegates the chance to discuss issues and provide input in small group sessions and during a "town hall" session.

While one third of attendees were first-time delegates, many of the veteran delegates return for the opportunity to make a difference for the association and profession.

"It's good to come and meet new people," said Sean Wilson, CGCS at The Club at Falcon Point and delegate for the South Texas GCSA. "You feel like you are truly a part of changing things for the better."

The event opened with updates from GCSAA President Peter J. Grass, CGCS, and GCSAA CEO Rhett Evans, as well as check presentations to chapters that participated in Rounds 4 Research in 2016. The second day offered staff presentations on key initiatives, including:

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Membership engagement and growth: Plans to increase member engagement include strategies across all classifications. Contact with new members will increase, with personalize messages sent at one, three and six months after joining. There will also be focused efforts on moving Class B members up to Class A, creating new member packets specifically for the equipment manager (EM) class, and strengthening the connection between student members and local chapters. Potential bylaw changes to the definitions of the EM class and International Superintendent Members could broaden growth opportunities.

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Government affairs: The Grassroots Ambassadors program continues to grow, and government affairs efforts are currently focused on the issues of H-2B, Mega 16 initiative, WOTUS and the overtime pay rule.

Discussions were also held on engagement through the use of the #golfvotes hashtag on social media during the upcoming election season, participation in the 10th anniversary of National Golf Day in 2017 and options for expanding GCSAA advocacy efforts.

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Best Management Practices Planning Guide and Template: Delegates got a sneak peek at GCSAA's BMP Planning Guide and Template, which will be launched at the 2017 Golf Industry Show in Orlando.

The tool will provide a road map for golf-centric organizations at the state level to develop and implement BMP programs. The goal is to have BMPs for all 50 states by 2020. Delegates were provided with talking points to help promote the program.

The business portion of the delegates meeting concluded with presentations from and breakout sessions with the candidates for the 2017 board. The election will take place on Feb. 9 at the GCSAA Annual Meeting in Orlando.

Thank you Jimmy Rodriguez for representing the Rio Grande GCSA at this important meeting. We appreciate you taking the time from your busy schedule to attend. Jimmy gave a very thorough delegates report at our Annual Meeting in October.

“Jimmy did an outstanding job at this meeting. He has become a veteran delegate and getting to know and learning to work with delegates from around the country. He represented the chapter very well.” Brian Cloud GCSAA Field Staff Representative.

IN NEW MEXICO New Mexico State University Turfgrass Research: Water Conservation vs Turfgrass Science New Mexico State University's turf grass research center focuses more on water conservation than turf grass science because of their desert region and the direction the golf course industry is heading.

The Decision to interseed at Alto Lakes Golf and Country Club by Barenbrug USA Golf course superintendent Glenn Denney, CGCS talks about his decision to interseed his fairways and why he trusts in Barenbrug's yellow jacket seed to get the job done.

Fact or Fescue: Coated seed vs. non-coated seed at New Mexico State University presented by Barenbrug USA Dr. Leinauer talks about a case study he did between coated seeds and noncoated seeds, and the results he found.

Red Hawk Golf Club was recently recognized as the “2016 Club of the Year” by the Sun Country Amateur Golf Association. The award was based on many factors including course playing conditions, customer service, tournament participation, and initiatives for growth of the game.

With more than100 golf courses in New Mexico and West Texas eligible to receive the award, Red Hawk Golf Club is proud to receive this honor which was presented to Ryan Flamm, Red Hawk’s Director of Golf.

In addition to this latest honor, Red Hawk has been listed among Golf Digest’s Best in State courses for 2013-2016, has been voted by readers of the Las Cruces SunNews as the best course in Las Cruces for the past four years, and has been the site of U.S. Open Local Qualifying play in 2013, 2014, and 2016.

Designed by well-known architect Ken Dye, Red Hawk is open to the public for daily play with full and weekday golf memberships also available. Red Hawk is a popular venue for group outings, tournaments, private parties, and weddings. More information can be found at GolfLasCruces.com or by calling 575-373-8100.