I was recently

asked, “What is a golf su-

perintendent?” Images

started flashing through my

brain much like the Chevy

Silverado television com-

mercial when a man asks

his neighbor, “What do you

do?” In short I told my en-

quirer that a golf superin-

tendent is the person that

provides people the ability

to play golf.

Over the years this

profession has evolved into

a position of management

that includes financial, per-

sonnel, Human Resources,

natural resources, safety,

and public relations to name

a few. These areas are a far

cry from agronomy and

plant health, in which most

of us are educated. At

times I feel the position of

golf course superintendent

is more of a calling than an

actual profession because

we all share a passion for

what we do and not many

individuals would be will-

ing to do what we do with

so little recognition. But

those of us who have an-

swered “the call” do not

require recognition, al-

though it is appreciated

when it is offered. Many of

us would prefer to stay out

of the spotlight and remain

behind the scenes like “The

Wizard of Oz” (pay no at-

tention to the man behind the

screen).

The sheer fact is that

we are problem solvers, pe-

riod. Seriously, think of

your typical day…irrigation

systems malfunctioning,

crew members not showing

up on time, mechanical fail-

ure on the 4th green during

aerification, or its 107 de-

grees, your greens have not

been watered for 3 days,

your pumps just stopped, and

your Club’s member-guest

tournament is tomorrow

morning (Don’t ask). Our

days are filled with figuring

out how to get things done,

how to do things better, or

(Continued on page 2)

Presidents Message By Josh Heptig

TEE-OFF News March/April 2013

Attention Assistant Superintendents

3

Permits, Inspections & More Meeting Schedules

4 5

Around the Green 6

From the Field 9

Highlights from GIS 10

Association Activities 11

Inside this issue:

Official Publication of the Golf Course Superinten-

dents Association of Central California. The purpose of this publication is informa-tion and education for the membership. Published

bi-monthly by

GCSACC

5322 N. Leonard

Clovis, CA 93619

Phone (559) 298-4853

Fax (559) 298-6957

Email gcsacc@aol.com

Bob Schneiderhan,

Newsletter Chairman

Mike Scott, CGCS, Editor

Attention Assistant Superintendents by Troy Thompson

In this article I am

going to discuss three im-

portant items any Assistant

Golf Course Superinten-

dent needs to know and

understand. Of course I

will preface this by saying

that these are my top three.

In upcoming articles this

list will grow. If anyone

would like to comment

about the subjects that I

discuss below please feel

free to call me, Troy

Thompson, at 559-312-

6270.

1) After talking to my

General Managers, Fore-

men, and Mechanics, the

one skill they wish Assis-

tants would have a better

understanding about is how

to efficiently manage a crew.

Efficiently means making

sure jobs get done correctly

in an allotted amount of

time, that jobs are performed

during a part of the day that

(Continued on page 3)

Page 2

President’s Message-Continued from page 1

TEE-OFF News

asking ourselves if there is a better

way.

Many innovative solutions

have been developed by superinten-

dents out of necessity that help many

related industries today. Take a look

through any golf maintenance cata-

log and you see hundreds, if not

thousands, of examples of the inno-

vative ideas that superintendents

have had coupled with the desire to

create a solution, but no foresight to

patent. Instead he or she shared the

solution with colleagues so they too

would have a solution.

We are a hardy bunch filled

with big hearts, self-determination,

and a willingness to give whatever it

takes to get the job done. I am very

proud to call myself a golf superin-

tendent and to be connected to such

a great group of persons throughout

the world. The golf industry is pull-

ing itself out of a difficult time and

we all need to band together to find

the solutions to the challenges of our

industry. These challenges are to

grow the game of golf, make the

game more fun and enjoyable, and

make the game more affordable so

the first two items are more likely to

happen. Many would say, “Well

that’s not my job,” but not us, we are

superintendents and finding solu-

tions is what we do! Water woes,

government regulations, and finan-

cial security (personally or profes-

sionally) are all problems concerning

us, but solutions become easier if we

can achieve these three items.

It is not that these issues are

brand new as many people have

been seeking the solutions to these

challenges for quite some time. I

implore you to increase your in-

volvement at your facility, within

your community, with our chapter,

and with our national golf organiza-

tions to spread the game of golf in an

effort to help the golf industry thrive

once more. Our profession relies

upon each of us. I would like to

thank each of you for answering “the

call” to become part of this fraternal

group. Keep the creative juices

flowing by joining me and the rest of

our chapter members at a meeting or

two this year. I look forward to

shaking your hand and thanking you

in person. Best wishes!

Josh Heptig

Page 3 TEE-OFF News

can be done with high productivity,

and the most important part is that

the day is planned out before it hap-

pens. In today’s golfing world labor

is money. Of course that comment

should not be anything new. Most

budgets have labor lines that make

up over 55 percent of the mainte-

nance budget. It is truly amazing

how many of us Superintendents

could do better. Just by networking

and talking to other Superintendents

I have found better, easier, and more

efficient ways of doing daily tasks.

We also need to allow our Assistants

to make efficiency mistakes so they

can learn before they get held to the

fire. Most of the time the Superin-

tendent does the daily schedule and

the Assistant implements it. Unfor-

tunately this does not help an aspir-

ing Assistant learn how to schedule.

It is very hard for us to give up this

responsibility because it is the num-

ber one thing we do every day that

makes us look good or makes us

look like we have no idea what is

going on in our department when our

members get onto the golf course.

2) Spend some time with the me-

chanic. At some point in your career

your mechanic will either go on va-

cation, quit, get fired, or need help.

If you do not have a good basic

knowledge of how to work on the

turf equipment you will make a

quick hire that will probably not be

the best candidate. Plus if you have

a good knowledge of the equipment

you can ask educated questions to

see if the candidate truly knows what

they are talking about. Learn the

cutting unit. What is the attitude of

cut? When should you use solid vs.

whillie rollers? How do you grind,

set heights, and adjust cutting units?

How do you perform the weekly

checks on the tees and green mow-

ers? How do you trouble shoot

equipment that does not want to

start? Why is tire pressure so impor-

tant to cutting heights? How do you

use the troubleshooting lights on

most equipment to find out what is

wrong? How do you mount a tire on

a rim? How do you read wiring dia-

grams and part break down books?

Remember if a mower is not cutting

properly you are the one everyone

will blame. If you get an under-

standing of the above questions your

conversation with your mechanic

will also be much more productive.

3) Here is a statistic you need to

know in depth. There is a 99 percent

chance you will NOT retire as a Golf

Course Superintendent. Start talking

to the people that have been in this

industry for over ten years. Ask

them how many people they know

that have retired as a Golf Course

Superintendent. Now ask them how

many people they know that are no

longer in the industry. Understand

you are an employee. Your signa-

ture is not on the lower right hand of

the checks. Pay attention to your

life; your wife and family. There is

a balance. Yes, your job makes it

possible to have the house, car and

life style. What good are these ma-

terial items when you have no one to

share them with? Most people move

onto different careers. Plan for this.

Continue your education in fields

you enjoy. Make contacts in other

business types that interest you.

Most people outside the golf indus-

try have no idea how good of a per-

sonnel manager, money manager,

time manager and sales person we as

Golf Course Superintendents are. If

you stay in this profession long

enough you will be fired. Be pre-

pared.

I have been a Golf Course Superin-

tendent for 16 years, in the business

for 26 years. I would not change a

thing. The successes have been

worth the hard work.

Attention Assistant Superintendents Continued from page 1

WELCOME NEW MEMBER

Jon Paul Brinkman

Turf Star, Inc.

Class Affiliate

Troy Thompson

Senior Agronomist

CourseCo/Valley Oaks Golf

Page 4

TEE-OFF News

Working as a golf course

superintendent over the past several

years I have noticed that the num-

ber of permits we are required to

maintain seems to increase each

year. Many of these permits addi-

tionally require inspections by vari-

ous individuals. Over the past sev-

eral months Airways Golf Course

has received a number of visits by

different regulatory or compliance

officers. Just last week I was lucky

enough to participate in the courses

three year visit from the Depart-

ment of Public Health – Environ-

mental Health Division inspector.

This is a routine inspection

of any property that stores certain

levels of, or generates, any hazard-

ous waste/materials. Effective last

year the county of Fresno initiated

mandatory online submission of all

Hazardous Materials Business

Plans (HMBP), so I was sure that

the paperwork was up to date and

the inspection went well, with only

some minor posting and training

issues that I needed to correct. I

installed new labeling on the waste

oil and oil filter drums and posted

the required emergency contact

form near the telephone at the shop,

including the map of the facility

from the HMBP. I was also lacking

a documented attendance log from

the safety training of the golf

course staff in the event of a haz-

ardous material/waste spill requir-

ing evacuation of the facility.

When I reviewed the plan

with staff I also had the opportunity

to explain what is classed as a haz-

ardous material and safe ways to

store and work around these chemi-

cals.

In early February it was the

San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution

Control District’s (SJVUAPCD)

turn to perform their annual inspec-

tion. At Airways, our fuel tank is a

ConVault duel 500 aboveground

tank with standard pumps similar to

what you would find at your local

gas station. This year no issues

were found with our fuel tank, that

has typically not been the case.

Last year the hose retractor needed

adjustment, it was out of compli-

ance with executive order 6-70-116.

The adjustment was made and the

follow-up inspection went fine.

Two years ago we had a (Continued on page 7)

Permits, Inspections and More By Steven Showers

Page 5

TEE-OFF News

April 3, 2013

Spring Educational Symposium

Ridge Creek

Dinuba Golf Club Host Superintendent

Rob Lomeli

Educational Topics

Experience at Ridge Creek

Continued Education—DPR—PDI

PCA/PCO

July 15, 2013

Al Glaze Memorial Scholarship &

Research Tournament

San Luis Obispo Country Club Host Superintendent

Joe Tompkins

August 5, 2013

Tri Chapter Meeting

Hosted by Central California

Spring Creek Country Club

Host Superintendent

Phil Brown

Meeting Schedule

TURF PRO 2013

Dairy Creek Golf Course

2990 Dairy Creek Rd.

San Luis Obispo, CA

April 10, 2013 June 12, 2013

September 11, 2013 November 13, 2013

Copper River Country Club

11500 N. Friant Rd.

Fresno, CA

April 11, 2013 June 13, 2013

September 12, 2013 November 14, 2013

For Additional Information Contact

Mike Cline (559) 269-7342

Around the Green by Mike Cline

Page 6 TEE-OFF News

It’s been a couple of months

since my last Around the Green but

for the most part, it’s been pretty

quiet. The early rains of December

turned into the cold, dry months of

January and February and now eve-

ryone is worried about water, and

the costs associated with keeping

turf alive. Here’s a little bit of

what’s going on around the chapter;

Chuck Duren has taken

over the reins at Riverside Golf

Course in Fresno as the new Super-

intendent. Chuck was formerly at

Elkhorn Golf Course in Stockton

and before that, at Merced Country

Club. Give Chuck a call and wel-

come him to the area.

Sierra Golf Management

has taken over the management of

Tracy Country Club, reports Jon

Christensen. In addition to Tracy,

Jon also indicated that they would

be managing Mace Meadows Golf

Course in Pioneer California on a

10 month contract year.

Normally we talk about

people and events in our Around the

Green articles, but I thought this

might catch some of your interests.

WILCO Distributors Inc, the mak-

ers of Wilco Gopher and Ground

Squirrel Baits has decided to exit the

Strychnine market effective immedi-

ately. The reasons for the move

were the ever growing difficulties of

buying and transporting the active

ingredient strychnine. Between

supply issues with India, dealing

with Home Land Security with re-

gards to importing product, techni-

cal supplies were just too unpredict-

able and so they decided to exit the

market. To replace the single feed

gopher baits formally done with

strychnine, WILCO will now offer a

Restricted Use Zinc AG bait to take

its place. Stay tune to this ever

changing story line.

I know there was much high

praise for our January Meeting at

Sand Piper Golf Course during our

last GCSACC newsletter, but I

would like to add my thanks and

congratulations to Tennessee

McBroom and his entire staff.

Wonderful meeting and I believe a

first ever GCSACC meeting in

Santa Barbara. If you’d like to see

more meetings in the Santa Barbara

area, let your board of directors

know as they plan for next year.

I would like to plug for our

April 3, 2013 GCSACC Educational

Symposium at Ridge Creek Golf

Course in Dinuba. You’ll get 2

hours of continuing education from

DPR, in addition to PDI points. The

meeting will lay out the vision for

the 2013 “Experience at Ridge

Creek” field day to be held this Oc-

tober 2nd. We should have a great

day of golf, and some great food.

Hope to see you there.

Every issue I try to feature a

superintendent that many of you

may not know. Normally it’s a

younger superintendent, or someone

at a small club who isn’t able to

make a lot of meetings. This time

might be the exception as our fea-

tured Superintendent is Lowell

Stone. Lowell has been a Superin-

tendent since 1963 so he will be

coming up on 50 years in the busi-

ness very soon. It might also be

noted that Lowell was a part of the

original group that started the Cen-

tral Chapter of the GCSAA. Not

quite as active in chapter politics as

he once was,

Lowell still

has an opinion

and isn’t

afraid to let

you know

when it comes

to the chap-

ter’s health and

well being. Here is a listing of

Lowell’s jobs over the last 50 years;

Sunnyside C. C. – Fresno – 1963

Stockdale C. C. – Bakersfield – 1979

Madera G. C. – Madera – 1992

Madera C. C. – Madera – 2000

Lowell has actually had

three tour of duties at Madera Coun-

try Club between 2000 and today.

Each time he leaves, he gets called

back to help out.

Here’s 10 Things You Did-

n’t Know About Superintendent

Lowell Stone

First job in golf?

My first job in golf was as a caddie

at Stockdale Country Club. I think

I was 8 or 9 years old at the time.

My father worked at the club and

we lived in housing furnished by

the club for employees. Not sure

you could do that now!

What was your first manage-

ment job in golf?

My first management job in golf

was right after I got out of the

Navy, I went to work for my

brother Owen at Belmont Country

Club. I’d been there a while when I

asked Owen what my job was and

he told me I was the assistant su-

perintendent. First I’d heard of it,

but I didn’t turn the job down.

What do you like to do when

you’re not at work?

(Continued on page 8)

Lowell Stone

Page 7 TEE-OFF News

Permits, Inspections, & More Continued from page 4

cracked phase II vapor recovery

hose, this is a violation of the

SJVUAPCD rules and regulations.

In addition to replacing the hose, the

course was assessed a fine of

$150.00. Since this was our first

violation I was able to attend a Com-

pliance Training Course and the fine

was waived. There are some new

requirements for above ground tanks

this year, including the installation

of a new pressure/vacuum vent valve

and painting the tank with a reflec-

tive coating. There are exemptions

for some existing tanks and I am in

the process of confirming whether or

not the new requirements apply to

the tank in use at the course.

Last November an inspec-

tion of the facility was performed by

the State of California Department of

Pesticide Regulation inspector, each

individual county conducts these

inspections, so my inspector was

from the Fresno County office. No

issues were found during the inspec-

tion and the course didn’t receive

any violation notices. One of the

ways to limit areas of concern for the

inspector is to maintain training re-

cords for any employee who comes

in contact with chemicals as they are

being applied to the golf course.

Although I only have one employee

who actually handles pesticides and

is required to undergo training for

each chemical that he applies. I am

sure to hold at least one safety meet-

ing a year regarding the use of pesti-

cides with all employees and keep a

copy of the training log with my per-

mit as well as a copy in the safety

folder file.

These are just three exam-

ples of the regulatory districts/

government bureaus that effect the

way we operate our golf courses. In

the City of Fresno we are also re-

quired to annually apply for, and

receive approval of, a watering ex-

emption permit, that allows us to

water seven days per week. I am

sure we have all tailored our training

programs and documentation of the

various permits and inspections in a

way that eases the impact of these

chores on what should be our first

priority of providing the best possi-

ble course conditions to our clien-

tele.

For over 80 years the

specialty seed source for:

-Native Grasses and

Wildflowers

-Kikuyu, Paspalum,

Hybrid Bermuda

-Bentgrasses, Fine

Fescues, Ryegrasses

Golf Course Representatives:

Jim Culley 213-268-3193

Don Lewis 213-247-3266

Home Office: 800-621-0315

www.stoverseed.com

Page 8 TEE-OFF News

Golf Course Materials

Topdressing Sand - Bunker Sand

Decomposed Granite - Drain Rock

1/8” Minus Turf & Tee Bulk Humus

Brush Removal Call for competitive rates

David Knott, Inc. (559) 449-8935 or (559) 760-5387

Around the Green Continued from page 6

When I’m not at work I love to

read. I have a Kindle and I must

have 50 books on it. Sure is easy,

just order up a book and give them

your credit card and away you go.

Who is your favorite sports

team and why?

My favorite sports team is the Gi-

ants. I can’t say the San Francisco

Giants because I fell in love with

them when they where the New

York Giants and they had Willie

Mays playing for them. They won

the World Series then they moved

to San Francisco, how perfect was

that.

If you could pick one meal,

what would it be?

My favorite meal is Carne Asada

Taco’s made by my crew at Madera

CC. Don’t know how they do it but

I just love those things.

What’s your favorite part of

being a golf course superinten-

dent?

My favorite part of the job is being

outside, but even more, being at

Madera Country Club and watching

the back side greens that were built

by my dad in 1962. I got to help

with the construction, but seeing

them brings back great memories.

What’s your least favorite part

of being a golf course superin-

tendent?

My least favorite part of the job is

members. Not all, some are won-

derful, but you always have a bunch

of them who are ruthless.

What’s your favorite band?

My favorite band is Bob Wills; do

you know who that is? How about

Merle Haggard and the Strangers?

On a personal note, I know that

Lowell should have named his favor-

ite band as the one he played with

Buck Owens in the days of the

Cousin Herb Show in Bakersfield on

channel 10. Now that was some his-

tory.

What’s your favorite song?

My favorite song is “Welcome to

My World” by Jim Reeves.

What’s your favorite movie?

My favorite movie is Shawshank

Redemption. Not a really warm and

fuzzy film but I just love to watch

it.

Well that’s all for this issue but if

you know of anything that you think

members might like to hear about,

let me know, and we’ll see you

“Around the Green”.

The GCSA of Central California

is now on Facebook and Twitter.

Check it out!

Page 9 TEE-OFF News

First and fore-

most, I would

like to take a

moment to thank

all of our GCSA

of Central Cali-

fornia members

for their partici-

pation in the

2013 GCSAA

Education Conference and Golf In-

dustry Show and the National

Championship and Golf Classic.

Without the support of our affiliated

chapters, we would not be able to

stage these successful events.

The GCSAA Education

Conference and Golf Industry Show

featured 13,192 attendees spread

over nearly 173,000 square feet of

exhibit space. 517 exhibitors par-

ticipated and 4,560 seminar seats

were filled. Additionally, the annual

California Room event aboard the

U.S.S. Midway was a complete sell-

out with 650 California GCSA

members and guests in attendance.

The National Championship

and Golf Classic featured nearly

450 participants. Charlie Costello,

Class A superintendent at Phoenix

Country Club claimed the GCSAA

National Championship firing a two

-day total of 3-over-par 147. Cen-

tral California was well represented

with defending champion Mike

Stieler tying for second at 148.

If you want to relive both

events, visit the "Hub," at http://

social.gcsaa.org/. The “Hub” is a

dynamic compilation of feeds from

the GCM blog, GCSAA TV, Twit-

ter, Facebook and Flick, plus overall

highlights from both events.

In other news and notes, I wanted to

make you aware of some facts and

figures from the recently released

2011 Golf Economy Report. This

report was researched by SRI Inter-

national and commissioned by the

World Golf Foundation and Golf

20/20. As an industry, it’s impor-

tant that we cite the economic activ-

ity supported by golf to the media,

public and various government

agencies. A few highlights that I

feel are important in relaying our

message:

The U.S. golf

economy gener-

ated $68.8 bil-

lion of goods

and services in

2011

Golf generated a

total economic

impact of $176.8

billion in 2011

Golf supported

1.98 million jobs

with a wage in-

come of $55.6

billion in 2011

Golf attracted

25.7 million par-

ticipants in 2011

Revenues gener-

ated by golf’s

core industries

exceeds that of

spectator sports,

performing arts,

and other amuse-

ment and recrea-

tion industries

While the industry has certainly had

its share of struggles over the past 5

years, these numbers prove that golf

continues to offer lifelong recrea-

tional opportunities and enjoyment

for millions. Keep these figures in

mind when you are promoting your

profession and the game.

Thank you again for all of your sup-

port and if I can be of assistance,

don’t hesitate to contact me at jjen-

sen@gcsaa.org or follow me on

Twitter @GCSAA_SW.

From the Field Jeff Jensen GCSAA Field Staff

Jeff Jensen

Page 10

TEE-OFF News

Event Highlights GIS San Diego & USS Midway

The California GCSA held the

annual “California Room” on the

USS Midway in San Diego. Pic-

tured on the deck of the carrier at

left are Joel Clay and Brian Daum.

At right Bruce Williams and Irene

Cline. Pictured below are Gordon

Vosti, George Raymond, and

Mike Hollarman.

Pictured above are Michael and

Sandra Barber with Chuck Talley.

At right is

Dave Rosen-

straugh,

CGCS.

Below is

Gordon

Vosti Above Josh Heptig, Joel Clay with

his son Jeremy

Pictured at the

right and left are

two of our newest

members. At left

Ryan Bentley and

at right is Jay Ing-

ham. At right is Steve Scar-

brough, CGCS

Below are Ken Mauser and Mike Cline

Page 11

TEE-OFF News

Association Board Activities

Pictured above is Troy Thompson, VP for the Central California

GCSA presenting a $2500 check to Mike Firpo of the First Tee

of Fresno. The Central California GCSA remains committed to

the programs that are dedicated to providing children and teens

an opportunity to develop, through golf and character education,

life enhancing values such as honesty, integrity, and sportsman-

ship. These programs help promote the game of golf in a positive

manner.

March 19—20, Troy Thompson represented the Central Cali-

fornia Chapter while attending the GCSAA Chapter Leadership

Symposium. During this networking opportunity Troy had the

opportunity to meet with 54 chapter leaders and executives rep-

resenting 25 different chapters across the nation.

During this symposium participants learned practical skills and

knowledge to help successfully lead the golf facility and their

chapter. They addressed current issues and future trends im-

pacting the golf course superintendents profession

Picture at left is

Troy Thompson in

front of the

GCSAA Headquar-

ters in Lawrence

Kansas.

At left is Troy

discussing

further infor-

mation with

Dick Stuntz-

National Golf

Course Own-

ers Associa-

tion Board of

Director for-

PRESIDENT

JOSH HEPTIG

SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY

SECRETARY/TREASURER VICE PRESIDENT

BRIAN DAUM TROY THOMPSON

VALLEY CREST/PALO ALTO G.C. VALLEY OAKS GOLF COURSE

2013 GCSACC BOARD OF DIRECTORS

STEVEN SHOWERS

AIRWAYS G. C.

TENNESSEE MCBROOM

SANDPIPER GOLF COURSE

BOB SCHNEIDERHAN

CAL POLY SLO

KEVIN EPPICH

TURF STAR

MICHAEL CLINE

WILBUR ELLIS COMPANY

BOARD MEMBERS

EXECUTIVE STAFF

IRENE CLINE/KIMBERLY MILNE

PHONE (559) 298-4853 FAX (559) 298-6957

EMAIL gcsacc@aol.com

SCOTT WALWYN

THE VILLAGE C.C.