By UMN Extension

Golf courses provide benefits well beyond a good round of the game when they are cared for in an environmentally friendly manner. A collaboration between University of Minnesota Extension and Minnesota Golf Course Superintendents Association (MGCSA), has helped golf courses reduce water use by 22 percent in recent years.

Extension and the MGCSA are planning an environmental certification program for golf courses in the state. The goal is to assess the current operation of golf courses and to make suggestions to improve the environmental sustainability. The Department of Natural Resources and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency have been engaged in this conversation and are providing support of the initiative.

“Golf courses share the same responsibility as the rest of us in our communities—to consume less water,” says Brian Horgan, Extension turfgrass specialist. “At the same time, they are responsible for a playable and appealing landscape that offers a healthy habitat for pollinators and other wildlife.” Horgan is leading The Science of the Green research initiative, including a 5-year research partnership with the United States Golf Association. 

“Golf is a $2.3 billion industry in Minnesota,” says Jack MacKenzie, executive director of the MGCSA. “With the majority of the state’s golf courses in need of updates and repairs, the collaboration is taking the opportunity to connect superintendents to knowledge on how to make golf courses friendlier for pollinators and nearby waters. This is the emphasis of the planned certification program. Enhanced stewardship is important to the public perception of golf and golf courses. We think of a local golf course as a community’s largest rain garden.” 

Basics of the program will include: 

• Assessing the site
• Auditing the irrigation system
• Scouting by staff
• Taking advantage of technology
• Using good cultural practices
• Using drought-tolerant turf

Read 8 questions with Chris Tritabaugh, golf course superintendent at Hazeltine National Golf Club, home of the 2016 Ryder Cup

Superintendents have significantly decreased their use of nutrients and fertilizers, according to results from GCSAA’s recently released Nutrient Use and Management Practices Survey. The survey is part of the second phase of the Golf Course Environmental Profile and is compared to recent data from the 2006 survey. Highlights of the survey show a 53-percent reduction in phosphate use, a 42-percent reduction in potash use and a 34-percent reduction in nitrogen use. According to the survey, conservation practices accounted for 90 percent of the reduction use. The full report is now on gcsaa.org and will be featured in the July issue of GCM.

The Wee One Foundation sent its 1 millionth dollar to help a family in need in Ohio earlier this week.

The Foundation has only been in existence since 2004, when the Foundation’s namesake, Wayne Otto, CGCS, was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Friends of Otto in the golf maintenance industry raised funds to help offset his medical expenses. Otto succumbed to this terrible disease, however his vigor for life live on as the Foundation formed to share his spirit and help others that have become ill and suffer because of medical hardship.

The Foundation assists golf course management professionals (and their dependents) who incur overwhelming expenses due to medical hardship without comprehensive insurance or adequate financial resources. The Foundation raises funds through golf events, auctions, direct gifts, annual contributions and purchasing programs.

Each September the Foundation hosts its anchor event at Pine Hills Country Club in Sheboygan, Wisc. Rod Johnson, CGCS, is the golf course superintendent at Pine Hills Country Club and the current president of the Foundation. “The mission of the Wee One is like no other in our industry and our growth shows there is a continued need for help,” says Johnson. To date, the Foundation has helped over 80 families in 23 different states.

When families are struck with illness, work schedules are often impacted and expenses compound quickly. The Foundation helps to alleviate the stress associated from this so individuals can focus on healing and their health.

“I don’t know where I’d be without the Wee One Foundation. My initial disability application has been denied and I can no longer work full-time. It is hard to put into words what the gift from the Wee One Foundation has meant for my family and me. Thank you, thank you. When I’m back on my feet, I want to help the Foundation help others. It has been such a comfort,” said a recent recipient of funds.

Presently there are more than 12 events held each year that generate funds for the Foundation. Through its network of valued volunteers, the Foundation continues to add new events each year as the golf course industry comes together to aid those in need. The Foundation has started an endowment fund to preserve and ensure its mission will continue and increase its scope in the future. In the meantime, the Foundation will continue to raise and distribute funds for those

To learn more about the Wee One Foundation or to make a request for a person or family in need, please visit: weeone.org

Awards total $24,500 for local outreach, including media promotions and economic impact study 

Lawrence, Kan. (May 31, 2016) — 

Minnesota GCSA has partnered with the University of Minnesota Turf Extension and GCSAA to buy high-traffic billboard space during the week of the Ryder Cup event at Hazeltine National Golf Club in September.  Three digital billboards will operate 24/7 running the ads for eight seconds every minute.  The promotion touts environmental stewardship and professional management.

Five Ohio golf course superintendents associations have combined resources to create a local television program to air on the Fox One Ohio network this summer, and the Golf Course Superintendents Association (GCSA) of Cape Cod will conduct a golf economic impact study through the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth.

These efforts are among 17 to be funded through the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA) Chapter Outreach Grant Program, which will award $24,500 in 2016 for outreach programs that promote the superintendent profession in the community. 

“The Chapter Outreach Grant Program strengthens GCSAA’s ties to the local community through our chapter affiliates,” said Rhett Evans, chief executive officer for GCSAA. “We are especially thrilled that so many chapters understand our need to reach beyond our walls to make a difference.”

Other chapters receiving funds are the Florida West Coast GCSA, Georgia GCSA, Kentuckiana GCSA, Michigan GCSA, Midwest Association of GCS, Northeastern GCSA, Rhode Island GCSA, San Diego GCSA and Virginia GCSA.

GCSAA has 98 affiliated chapters across North America.

About GCSAA and the EIFG

The Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA) is a leading golf organization in the United States. Its focus is on golf course management, and since 1926 GCSAA has been the top professional association for the men and women who manage golf courses in the U.S. and worldwide. From its headquarters in Lawrence, Kan., the association provides education, information and representation to nearly 18,000 members in more than 78 countries. The association’s mission is to serve its members, advance their profession and enhance the enjoyment, growth and vitality of the game of golf. Visit GCSAA at www.gcsaa.org or find us on Facebook or Twitter.

The Environmental Institute for Golf is the philanthropic organization of the GCSAA. Its mission is to foster sustainability through research, awareness, education, programs and scholarships for the benefit of golf course management professionals, golf facilities and the game. Visit EIFG at www.eifg.org or find us on Facebook or Twitter.

The Department of Labor (DOL) announced its final rule raising the bar for exemption from the overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act. Most notably, the rule raises the salary threshold for the white-collar exemptions from $23,660 annually ($455/week) to $47,476 annually ($913/week). Thus, any employee paid a salary of less than $47,476 will not qualify for exempt status and must be paid overtime for all hours beyond 40 in a workweek, regardless of the type of work that the employee performs. The new rule is effective December 1, 2016. Beyond the new salary threshold, the final rule also makes the following changes: Automatic adjusting: The rule provides a mechanism to raise the salary threshold every three years (the proposed rule had provided for annual adjusting.) The first update will take effect January 1, 2020. Bonuses: For the first time, bonuses, incentive payments, and commissions may be counted toward the salary threshold, but only if they (a) are non-discretionary, (b) are paid at least quarterly, and (c) fulfill no more than 10% of the salary threshold ($4,747.60). Duties test: While there was some concern that the DOL would restrict the type of work that would qualify for exempt status, the DOL elected to leave the duties test alone. Therefore, an employee who performs executive, administrative, or professional work that has traditionally met the test for exemption will continue to be exempt as long as he/she meets the new salary threshold and is paid on a salary basis. Highly compensated employees: The salary threshold for highly compensated employees will raise from $100,000 to $134,004. This little-used rule provides a shortcut to the duties test, but as a practical matter, nearly any employee paid at this level already meets the standard test for exempt status. For more information regarding the changes in the overtime regulations, visit: https://www.dol.gov/whd/overtime/final2016/

Bill Nikovics, age 65, passed away on May 19th, 2016 due to complications stemming from pancreatic cancer.  Preceded in death by parents and brother. Survived by wife, JoAnn; sons, Joe and John; daughters, Michelle, Jen and Chrissy; daughter-in-law Missy; grandchildren, Emily, Zack, Brad, Lyndsey, soon to be born granddaughter; Ted Strouth, Greg Skripsky; brothers, Bob and Frank; and many other relatives and friends.  Bill was a wonderful husband, father, grandfather and friend who put family first, a hard worker, a great mentor to all and who had an incredible love for nature.  Bill will be greatly missed.

Bill was employed by Frontier Ag and Turf for many years and was a member of the Minnesota Golf Course Superintendents Association since 1996.

Memorial Service to be held Friday, June 10th at TPC Golf Course, 11444 Tournament Players Parkway, Blaine from 3 PM until 6 PM.

Lawrence, Kan. (May 3, 2016) — These days are filled with mixed emotions for Kevin Black, the 62-year-old longtime golf course superintendent at Prairie View Golf Links in Worthington, Minn., a small town of 13,000 people and just one McDonald’s.

Black has been at the course since 1995, and he has worked there for the last 21 years, including Saturdays. That is until earlier this year, when the city council voted to cut funding for the golf course and decided not to open it for play this season.

“I guess I could see the writing on the wall for a number of years,” said Black, a 23-year member of the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America and recent recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award from the South Dakota Golf Course Superintendents Association (SDGCSA), where he is a member. “We were losing about $160,000 a year, and I think we only did 5,000 rounds last year. But it’s a shame. It was a good run. We did a lot of good out here, and golfers were always satisfied with the course.”

Black started his journey in golf course management in Iowa, where he attended Iowa State University and worked at the municipal golf course in Spencer for 13 years. Along the way, he earned distinction as a certified golf course superintendent (1996) and certification in several areas of the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program for Golf, which teaches students environmentally sound principals while protecting wildlife on the course

At the height of business for Prairie View, Black had 12 employees and enough funding to barely make ends meet. Now, he spends his days on the course with his yellow Labrador, Auggie.

“It’s just me and my dog now,” said Black, who is still grooming the bentgrass greens to perfection so they can be sold for sod later this year. I still think that if this golf course were located in a metro area, we’d would have been making money hand over fist. I won’t lie. It’s hard when something you worked on for so long is not going to exist anymore.”

But at age 62, Black is caught between considering retirement and looking for a new position. “I don’t know if I have another golf course in me,” he said. “They told me that I will have a job until the end of the year, but after that I don’t know. I am open to trying something completely different. After spending nearly 40 years in the sun, maybe it’s time to work inside.”

In the next few months, however, Black plans to enjoy his time with his family, including taking his 14-year-old son, Jack, fishing, and getting away for a weekend with his wife, Jennifer.

“My wife and I are still trying to figure out what the next chapter is going to be,” he said. “She has been very supportive.”

Black’s many friends and colleagues are supporting him too, including Dave Wempen, the golf course superintendent at nearby Adrian Country Club.

“Kevin is a jokester, and he is pretty upbeat through all of this," said his close friend and former intern Wempen. “I have learned a lot from him. I have been here 23 years, and I still call him for advice.”

Minnesota’s aquifers, streams, lakes, and wetlands are sustained by a balancing act between precipitation and these parts of the hydrologic system. In the absence of human intervention, ground water and surface waters exist in a state of approximate equilibrium. A change in one part of the system, whether due to natural climatic variation or withdrawal of surface water or ground water, results in a balancing response in another part of the system. The rate of system response to change is variable, specific to local conditions, and much slower for ground water than for surface water (except in karst). In some cases, the system may rebalance itself in response to change (such as additional ground-water withdrawal) in months to years. In other cases, the system may adjust very slowly in generations. 

Read more here

More than one third of the world’s crop species depend on bee pollination and these hard working bees need our help.  On Saturday, April 16, 2016, the University of Minnesota Bee Squad, Gluek’s Restaurant and Bar and thousands of bee supporters worldwide are launching a social media challenge using Facebook to encourage the planting of bee friendly flowers across the world. This international movement will take place in pots, plots, prairies and pastures across the world and on the Plant Seeds to Save the Bees Facebook page.  The project encourages the local sourcing of bee friendly flowers. We ask that the participants think globally, but source seeds locally.

A kickoff celebration will be held on Friday, April 15^th, 2016, to launch of Plant Seeds to Save the Bees. This event is sponsored by: Gluek’s Restaurant and Bar and the University of Minnesota’s College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences Alumni Society, Les Bolstad Golf Course, Stakman-Borlaug Center for Sustainable Plant Health and Department of Entomology Bee Lab's Bee Squad.

Here are the details-

What:  Join us in planting sunflower seeds in the NEW Bee Squad Teaching Apiary at the University of Minnesota Les Bolstad Golf Course.  We will be seeding a plot prepped by their maintenance team, so work clothes aren’t required!

When:  Friday, April 15^th from 4:00pm – 6:00pm

Where: 2096 Roselawn Avenue W, Roseville, MN 55113

Free tickets are available here:  http://plantseedstosavethebees.eventbrite.com

Questions:  Just email beesquad@umn.edu of contact Rebecca Masterman, Bee Squad Program Director at 612-624-8989.

 

In compliance with the following Minnesota State Statute 18C.60: