TurfNet Superintendent of the Year 2009
Finalist Profile:
Anthony Williams, CGCS, Stone Mountain Golf Club, Stone Mountain, Ga.
 For the past several years, many of the challenges faced by Anthony Williams, CGCS, at Stone Mountain Golf Club near Atlanta, have revolved primarily around the state's well-chronicled drought of recent years.
However, September 2009 will be remembered not as a year of continued drought, but as a year that record-setting rain and flooding in the Atlanta area caused catastrophic damage at Stone Mountain. Nearly 2 feet of rain in seven days, including 12 inches in a single overnight period, left much of the 36-hole facility's Lakemont Course under water. At least three greens were submerged and much of the turf on the No. 9 fairway was washed away.
As Williams, 45, said days after the flood: "The last time I saw the No. 9 fairway, it was headed toward Alabama."
But to those who know him, Williams' skills as a manager and organizer outweigh his capacity for bringing a golf course back from the brink of disaster.
Although he and his crew were able to revive the 36-hole facility from flood and ensuing erosion, mention of the event is scarcely noticed among the dozen-plus nominations submitted on his behalf for TurfNet's 2009 Superintendent of the Year Award Presented by Syngenta.
Instead, his supporters prefer to focus on his work in environmental stewardship.
"Maintaining outstanding turfgrass quality is a given for today's superintendent, and there are many men who excel at this," said Chris Hartwiger, agronomist for the USGA Green Section's Southeast Region. "However, the future of turgrass management in the golf industry is not in producing grass to a higher standard, but it is in the area of stewardship."
Here are a few of his accomplishments:
- Helped develop a statewide water management plan for golf courses and assisted educating state agencies and lawmakers on the efforts of superintendent;
- guided Stone Mountain to Audubon certification in less than five months and led an effort to gain certification for Marriott's Evergreen Resort grounds, making it the first hotel to earn the distinction; established native areas and wildlife habitat on the periphery of playing areas; a nesting box program produces more than 300 hatchlings yearly;
- 2010 recipient of the GCSAA President's Award for Environmental Stewardship;
- three-time winner of the GCSAA Environmental Leaders in Golf Award; two-time winner of the Marriott Golf Grounds Professional of the Year;
- won 2008 J. Willard Marriott Award of Excellence, his employer's highest honor;
- received a 2009 Green Award from Golf Inc.;
- hosted GCSAA's Green Links program for 2009;
- received 2008 J. Lamar Branch Award by Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College Alumni Association for outstanding agricultural leadership;
- established professional development program for his staff, and his Safety First campaign resulted in more than five years of without a loss of manhours because of an accident.
"To Anthony, everything is about inspiration," said assistant superintendent Andy Hutchinson. "Not just to do great things, but to give back and contribute to the big picture."
Still, when talking about Stone Mountain in 2009, it is impossible to ignore the flood.
What wasn't under water when the rains stopped were covered and scarred by debris. Other parts of the property were affected by erosion, including the main entrance. Enough earth was washed away in the flooding that the mainline to the irrigation system was exposed.
The day after the rain stopped, 20 golfers arrived to play a course ravaged by flooding and erosion. They were sent away, but not for long.
The Stonemont Course was open by noon. The back nine on the Lakemont Course was open the following day, and a modified version of the front nine was playable by the third day. More than 500 truckloads of dirt had been hauled into the park to restore the eroded roadway and lost fairway.
"We have had a trying two years in Atlanta, drought then rain," wrote member Jarid Neff. "The job of keeping our course in top shape with all the play it gets is daunting. Anthony succeeded and Stone Mountain remains one of the top courses in the Southeast."
The Superintendent of the Year award, sponsored by Syngenta, is presented annually by TurfNet to one outstanding superintendent selected from among those nominated by club officials, course owners, members, casual golfers, or staff members.
The winner will be announced at GIS in San Diego, and will travel with a guest to Ireland for a week-long golf course tour, courtesy of Syngenta.
|
 |
