Telling your work story is an important part of a successful operation. Bringing attention to the ways your team performs its work or the benefit you bring to your organization is just smart business. Far too often we are so busy working that we forget to share our accomplishments. And the people that depend on us are too busy to notice. Putting your head down is sometimes necessary but opening your mouth is sometimes important too. Being vocal on behalf of your team can be powerful, but when so
In this episode of Rockbottum Radio, we pay tribute to Matt Jones, longtime member of Rockbottum, former Golf Course Superintendent, GM, US Army vet and more.
In the second half of the show, we experience a rather severe outbreak of gossip, back-biting, name-calling and false witness bearing, which leads to Momma finding a solution to this current social media plague.
(This podcast has been archived. Please contact us if you'd like to listen to it and we'll restore it.)
The latest TurfNet All Star of Turf is Jim Pavonetti, CGCS, of Fairview Country Club in Greenwich, Connecticut.
A graduate of the Rutgers University turfgrass program, Pavonetti has developed a reputation for providing exceptional playing conditions while also being recognized for his efforts at producing an environmentally friendly landscape.
In his 17th season at Fairview, Pavonetti previously was superintendent at the Edison Club and the West Point Golf Course at the U.S. Military A
Every once in a while, a person comes along that shines a little brighter than everyone else. They might not even see it in themselves, but if you train yourself to spot talent and drive, then they become easier to spot. They’re that diamond in the rough, so to speak.
The best turf managers are able to identify those diamonds on their teams. These leaders take the time to develop them, start trusting them with more challenging assignments, and they give them the experience and tools to succ
I had just watched and read Adam Garr's latest blog post/video (Rise Above) a week or so ago, in which he lamented the demise of Turf Twitter into a "cesspool of contrarians and armchair quarterbacks". Frankly, I had not seen much of that in turf-related social media content, maybe because I typically don't read the comments. I have found across the board that's where the trolls reside, the vitriol festers, the arguments start, where the grenade-launchers hide in the weeds... and I have no inter
We live in a world that thrives on judgment and opinion. These often harmful habits were amplified during the pandemic and have only grown stronger since then. Many people have retreated to their corners and are refusing to come out, stuck fast in the belief that their take is the right one. World leaders serve us daily rhetoric that only serves to fuel a deepening a sense of division and further their own agendas. Then there is social media. Via our devices, the algorithms drip feed a constant
Do you secretly watch Rockbottum CC, the longest running webisode on the entire internet? You're not alone. If you're new here, try to follow these rules and your job will be safe: Never admit you watch, even to your most trusted associates. Don't admit actually knowing anyone from Rockbottum . . . and never, ever say anything in the comment section.
Now watch this film or I'll tell Momma.
The internet has become an ugly place over the years. Take Turf Twitter, for example. What once was a bastion of idea sharing and supporting one another has turned into a cesspool of contrarians and armchair quarterbacks.
In this episode of Trailing Thoughts, I reflect on the current state of social media as I summit Emory Peak, the highest point in Big Bend National Park, Texas, USA. Along the way I offer advice based on my own experiences on social media, encouraging positive interaction
Andy Mallick's trajectory as a Rising Star of Turf has been a long one, entailing stops at four golf courses over 14 years before landing his first head superintendent position. Now in his fifth season as superintendent (and 11th overall) at Metedeconk National Golf Club (Jackson, NJ), Mallick had interim stops at Pine Valley Golf Club, Country Club of Darien and Southward Ho Golf Club on Long Island, picking up valuable experience at each one.
Mallick credits his girlfriend, Rachel, with g
My first encounter with invasive species on the golf course was with the Russian Thistle, a thorny, rolling, seed-spreading bush commonly called The Tumbleweed. It happened on a raggedy 9-holer out in the barren Kettleman Hills of California, miles from nowhere. I had been left alone to manage the course while Dad tried to make the cut in some tournament.
At age 13, I could run the pro shop fairly well, clean the pool and pick the range, but I was an awful bartender. I was nervous stayin
In my previous life as a sales rep, I was visiting a private club right around this time of year. I was shocked to see the superintendent still had his greens covered, when everyone else in town had removed them in mid-March.
I had to ask. “What’s with the covers?”
“I’m not ready for the season to start,” the superintendent replied.
Normally I’m not one to be lost for words, but a long silence followed. I could see the superintendent was dead serious.
“What do you mean you’re
In this sensitive and revealing episode of Rockbottum Radio, the entire crew tells it all, aided by literary inspiration from Matt Jones and Peter McCormick... and Momma's Mushroom Truth Serum.
Learn what really happened on Ludell's honeymoon and how Rockbottum plans to handle the ball rollback and Golf A.I.
Buddy returns from working on Science Interfusional National, an A.I. course, and then RW screws everything up by telling why he's been deliberately provoking the Imperials for 50
The bloodiest single day in American soil didn’t happen on 9/11 and it wasn’t at the bombing at Pearl Harbor. It occurred across a rolling piece of farmland in northern Maryland, known today as Antietam National Battlefield.
Perhaps the most iconic location at Antietam is Burnside’s Bridge. For more than three hours, General Ambrose Burnside repeatedly sent his men to attack a fortified position across a narrow bridge against a much smaller force. His stubbornness to reconsider his tactics
Lately in my quiet moments, I find myself circling back to the idea of momentum. It would appear to be both elusive and very common, with most of us not even pausing to appreciate it until it vanishes. Our culture doesn’t often reflect on the necessary elements that go into creating momentum, instead spending much of our time chasing quick fixes and expecting instant results.
My personal life has recently been an interesting paradox in momentum. On one hand something that I have worked inc
Organic matter (OM) is everywhere in the landscape. Given that OM is a key component of nutrient cycling and soil structure, it only makes sense we treat it as a valuable commodity. In any landscape OM is generated when we intervene mechanically (think mowing, pruning), when we clean the landscape (think leaf removal). OM is also utilized/handled (think mulching or soil amendment). Every time we “manage” OM we incur a cost whether financially or in ecological disruption. Added to this cost is th
Adam Garr joins Stu Butler, our across-the-pond friend, head greenkeeper and host of Henry Westons Old Mate the Podcast, for an honest and insightful conversation about Adam's struggles with obsessive/compulsive disorder (OCD). Adam talks Stu through his life and career on the golf course and in sales and reflects upon how OCD played a huge part in it all.
The chat ends with Adam and Stu discussing Adam's decisions to step away from the sales side of turf and pursue a business venture suppl
Although I don't know what they're celebrating, I am grateful to those folks on the 16th hole. They, and others of their ilk, contributed mightily to the making of this film.
The latest TurfNet All Star of Turf is Steve Ehrbar, CGCS at Panther National Golf Club, a private, single-owner facility in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.
A graduate of the two-year program at Ohio State, Ehrbar has been a legendary fixture in South Florida for years.
His career includes stops at Jupiter Hills Golf Club in Tequesta, Old Marsh Golf Club in Palm Beach Gardens and Lost Tree in North Palm Beach, the home course of Jack Nicklaus.
Ehrbar has been involved in multiple con
As I waited to board my flight following the GCSAA Conference and Show in Phoenix, I was thinking about mental health in the golf maintenance industry and how many people in our business are starting to raise their hands. I attended several classes while at the Conference and Show where the topic of the class wasn’t mental health, but that subject seemed to come up anyway.
I have been working on my own mental health over the past year, and have spoken to several colleagues and friends who
Our first Rising Star of Turf for 2024 is Jeremiah Mincey, first assistant superintendent at Savannah Quarters Country Club in Pooler, Georgia. Many might recognize Jeremiah from his activity on TurfTwitter/X and as a recent recipient of a GCI/Aquatrols Super Social Media Award.
Jeremiah, 26, graduated from Georgia Southern University with a BS in business management and then took the certificate program in turfgrass management from the University of Georgia. His first exposure to turf mana
Years ago, I faced my team in the morning meeting and told them I was leaving to pursue another opportunity. I’d been preparing for this moment for days, but when it was finally time to tell them, the emotion of the moment took over.
Yes, my voice cracked. Yes, my chin quivered. Yes, a tear fell. I think what hit me the most were their faces. The shock and the sadness were reflected back at me in all directions.
Then came the sense that I was letting them down. It was this nagging, g
Our latest All Star of Turf is Patrick H. Sisk, CGCS, career superintendent, athlete, marathoner, inventor, entrepreneur and family man. Pat guides us through his path from a college transition to early adventures in Colorado and Arizona, then a career that took him from his native coastal Connecticut to 18 years in Milwaukee and recently back to western Massachusetts. It hasn't always been a cakewalk. Early on he fell into substance abuse but clawed his way to sobriety... and has been sober for