Someone asked me a very similar question today. And here today, as it was then, is a response that may make sense. Or not.
February 16th, 2012.
I received this today in my email from a source that shall go unnamed because she/he/it is dumb enough to use the word 'Doctor' around my name. Kind of like using the word 'beautiful' around Susan Boyle. She can sing, however. I can't.
"Dear Dr. Wilber,
In a post in the TurfNet Turf Blog Aggregator this week, Sean McCue of Castle Pines sa
Simply put, Third Way Green is my philosophy on landscape management (while GC Superintendents are very specialized for their task, they are certainly landscape managers). I call it 'Third Way' because there are currently two dominant landscape management approaches (an intended simplification), neither of which adequately fulfills the desired landscape potential. So there needs to be a 'Third Way' that fulfills all the benefits we are seeking from our landscapes. 'Green' comes from a focus on e
A reality superintendents cannot avoid: While the collection of golf course players' groups across the country respect the person and the work ethic of their home course superintendents, they do not extrapolate this feeling throughout the profession -- leaving golf course superintendents vulnerable to the whims/ignorance of their employers and any further unsettling economic news.
Unfortunately, more unsettling economic news is already upon us as an adverse economy faces new tax and debt bur
The turf world is a global one. You can go all over the world to work on golf courses, athletic fields, landscape services, and much more. I can say that the past seven months have been some of the best in my life. Getting an international experience has been more than the work of a golf course. The golf course does take precedent, but getting a global experience means going out to experience the culture of the country you are in.
Programs like The Ohio Program (TOP) and TurfNet's make it ea
Being the "new guy" can be difficult. When entering a new position or situation it is only normal to feel some uncertainty and to try to come up with strategies that make transition easier. Having been a kid in a military family and having switched positions several times in my green career, I have learned several tips for making the best of a new situation. Now as a new TurfNet blogger, I am in the new guy ranks again. Don't come on too strong. The team that you are entering into has a histor
Are you unbalanced? Many superintendents I have met are slightly misaligned, due to an almost evangelical devotion to career.
Some are unaware of how many hours they spend at the course and require some kind of trauma to get back on the family track. This can include the children failing to recognize their father and mistakenly calling the UPS guy "Daddy".
For me, it was Claire identifying me as an "intruder" for the police. (She had apparently changed the locks sometime during the
Here's a holiday chuckle for you:
It's no secret that I really, really don't like to travel. I don't mind being elsewhere (although home is always the best place), I just don't like the process of getting there and back. And every trip, it seems, has a story. This one has a Real Slap-Me-Upside-the-Head WTF Moment in it.
I'm not one of those who fixate on frequent flyer miles, affinity programs and all that. The LAST thing I want is a free ticket anywhere, although on second thought
We are pleased to welcome Joe Fearn to TurfNet as a contributing blogger. Joe is the Grounds Supervisor at Drury University in Springfield, Missouri, and is an ISA Certified Arborist/Municipal Specialist and PGMS Certified Grounds Manager.
Several years ago I was talking to a local member of the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). I was asking about a quandary I was faced with and I wanted another perspective. I had recently taken note of a patch of neglected and disturbed ground
While writing this blog I try to keep the past materials I've written as up-to-date as possible for a strong resource archive, which can be difficult when it comes to the technology stuff we sometimes cover here. One of the tutorials I wrote last year -- setting up a "smart board" for your operation -- provided a step-by-step guide to doing it with ease.
At the time, the best way to pull this off was to purchase an AppleTV and a piece of software called AirParrot, especially if you were on
Rockbottum Country Club has enjoyed tremendous success, because Rockbottum Rules.
We follow a flexible approach built on years of experience gained as a family of superintendents, pro golfers and bad golf course architecture fixers.
For instance, Rule #1: We offer weekday walker fees of $10 for 18 holes. At this price range we don't hear any complaints and we rarely have anyone take us up on the price because most golfers are far too lazy to walk.
Rule #2: We offer a form of Neo
The Geneva Convention got it right: only armies wearing uniforms are entitled to the protections of war because a uniformed military ensures that discipline and a command structure exists throughout its ranks. Non-uniformed military never acquires an identity and is disrespected more than it is respected.
Airline crews/pilots wear uniforms to ensure that they will command respect and be able to exercise authority throughout flight.
Marching bands wear well-decorated uniforms to convey th
A full week of work was tiring, but fun. The cold weather has yet to leave. Days start cold, getting warmer during the days, but not very warm for the high. With the intense sun even on a mild day sun burn is a possibility. The only thing I can compare this to is windy days where it feels cool and in reality is not.
This week tees were completely core aerated, blown off, and topdressed. The process was done over 3 days. An update on the greens: they are coming back nicely. The cold weather
In this episode of Frankly Speaking on TurfNet RADIO, i chat with Dr. Bruce Branham of the University of Illinois on his research with nitrogen physiology, fate and -- most recently -- foliar uptake of nitrogen.
Download the podcast here.
Buddy is a former equipment tech, assistant superintendent, hot rod builder and extra on 'Dallas'.
He was also a fairly capable producer/director until . . . the incident you are about to see. Nowadays, Buddy refuses to appear on set unless the wrangler has a tranquilizer gun.
Within virtually any other work environment, 50-plus year old executives are looked upon as being at the pinnacle of their careers.
Not so with golf course superintendents where 'aging' is not equivocated to the concept of acquiring 'wisdom' -- but rather too often to the depreciation of an old car with high mileage and little resale value.
While it is true that a small percentage of 50-plus year old golf course superintendents escape this adverse designation on merit, get well-paid and
I listened for years (albeit with one ear) to the adulation of the MacIntosh devotees, singing the praises of the computing system on which most of the software applications I used wouldn't work.
Every three years or so when my PC died (or was on life support), I would briefly toy with the idea of taking that plunge. But nah, couldn't justify the 3x cost compared to a PC, not to mention the learning curve and aforementioned software incompatibilities.
Not that I was ever a huge fan of M
Working on the crazy work schedule I had a short 3-day week. Short, but I definitely work hard. At The Hills there is a lodge for rent and currently a new green is being grown in to make a new par-3. This will be used for the renters as well as an extra green for course use. The surround to the green had yet to be put in place so we sodded, or turfed as NZ says, the area with fescue. After the sod was laid we filled in the seams with fescue seed, soil and wetting agent. A bunker is soon to be sa
I'm going to do this a little bit backwards. First a comment on a blog post from 2012...and then the actual post for your rereading and rethinking pleasure. Why? Because over the last month, this is what people have been talking to me about. This very subject. Not getting better. Maybe getting worse.
The comment below is from Tom Doak. I met Tom briefly in Denver in the late 80's when no one knew who he was. Then a friend dropped a manuscript copy of something called The Confidential Guide t
In support of Tim Bryant's most interesting thread on the TN Forum, "Things You Have Learned", we offer the following collection of actual, true-story comments, suggestions and advice:
These little bits of wisdom were documented by TN members, our crew and one famous superintendent with really great hair.
As the job stagnation theme of last week's (Oct 30th) blog post indicated, hunkering down to maintain job security in a bad economy can be fraught with danger. Therefore, the counter-point to this refrain must be that new jobs -- once properly vetted -- can offer greater job security.
Recommended Approach To Changing Jobs To Avoid Job Stagnation
After identifying a target job vacancy, superintendents should quality-test the opportunity by working through a comprehensive due diligence test w
This past week was great. I had Monday off for a public holiday and then worked through the weekend. The Hills uses a unique working scheme that is fair to everyone. The work week is 5 days long and once every three weeks you work a weekend, but then get Monday and Tuesday off. Then a 3 day week before getting the weekend off. On average we work only 5 days a week. Pretty nice. This past week the other Americans arrived in from Michigan and winterizing their irrigation system. Both are doing Pen
I had fun last week. That's not an ENTIRELY unusual situation, but it was notable because it happened outside my traditional milieu.
I have worked at home for 20 years now and I like it -- to a fault sometimes -- in that I almost have to be pried loose to get me away from here (particularly if there are airports involved... but that's a whole 'nother conversation).
What's not to like? Get up when I want (usually 5-ish), work the morning in my shorts or flannel PJ bottoms and a T-shir
In the latest episode of Frankly Speaking on TurfNet RADIO, I spoke with Dr. Paul Koch, plant pathologist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, about the impact of climate on winter disease pressure and fungicide persistence, as well as the latest in traditional, alternative and cultural controls for the snow molds.
You can download the podcast here to listen on your mobile device.
