It is never too late to put a good idea into action.
With more than 50 years of combined experience between them, Paul Roche and Matthew Mikucki have finally struck out on their own, with the launch of their Golf Water LLC irrigation design and consulting firm.
A full-service irrigation consulting firm, Golf Water LLC offers services that include system analysis, master planning, design and specification, pump stations, course GPS mapping, vendor evaluations/recommendations, field staking, final drawings, control system programming and final map creation.
A published author and former greenkeeper, Roche has more than 30 years of experience in the irrigation business. He spent the past eight years with Rain Bird, where he was national specification manager from 2007-2009 and national sales manager for the golf division from 2009 until launching Golf Water. He also has held positions with I&E Supply Co. in Milford, Connecticut, and the S.V. Moffett Co., a Rain Bird distributor in Rochester, New York.
Hanging his own shingle has been a dream for more than 20 years, and it took a family tragedy for him to finally make the leap. Roche said his sister, Liz Teed, served as a motivational force in his life until her untimely death 15 months ago.
"It has been something that I have been thinking about since 1992 when I learned that you could actually make a living designing and consulting on golf course irrigation systems," Roche said. "Things became more of a reality for me when I lost my sister in 2014. Her passing made me think about doing what I really want to be doing every day when I wake up and go to work."
Mikucki has nearly 20 years of experience in all aspects of the irrigation manufacturing business, from service of existing systems to design of new irrigation control systems and central control systems to sales. Like Roche, Mikuckis most recent experience in the industry came in the form of several years with Rain Bird.
His career began in technical support, where he worked in the field with superintendents to troubleshoot irrigation systems. He earned bachelors degrees in mechanical engineering and interdisciplinary engineering and management from Clarkson University and an MBA from the University of Arizona.
Roche, who co-authored "Golf Course Irrigation: Environmental Design and Management Practices" (with James Barrett, Brian Vinchesi, Robert Dobson and David Zolodske) is certified by the Irrigation Association as a Golf Course Irrigation Designer, Irrigation Contractor, Golf Irrigation Auditor and Landscape Irrigation Auditor.
Both are experienced irrigation trainers and have provided training at the University of Massachusetts, Rutgers, SUNY Delhi, SUNY Cobleskill, Michigan State and Cornell.