August 11, 2011 -- Volume 49, Number 32

What began as a selection from a country in the Far East has now become a fairway in the Southeast.

The Atlanta Athletic Club is poised to do something no other golf course has ever done. For professional golfers or the casual golf fan, this first may be nothing more than a trivial footnote in golf history. But for card-carrying "turf geeks," the 93rd PGA Championship contested on the Highlands Course at the Atlanta Athletic Club on August 11-14 will be a chance to see a grassing scheme that has never been used for a major championship. In fact, this grassing scheme is unique to the Highlands Course, and we know of no other courses that have this combination of grasses.

This viewing guide is intended for educational purposes to provide an insight into what these grasses are and where they came from. One important note: The course setup and conditioning has been tailored to hosting a major championship for the best golfers in the world. This viewing guide is in no way intended to endorse, recommend, or encourage a golf course to duplicate these conditions. Those decisions and discussions are best left for USGA Turf Advisory Service visits.

A special thank-you is in order for Ken Mangum and Kasey Kauff. Ken is the director of golf course operations at the Atlanta Athletic Club and serves as a volunteer on the USGA Green Section Committee. Kasey is the superintendent of the Highlands Course. Both Ken and Kasey provided Pat O'Brien and me with a behind-the scenes tour of the Highlands Course six days before the start of the PGA Championship.

Read the rest of this article.

The drought affects more than the turf on the course. Join us today  (Friday, August 12) at 10:00 AM CDT for a free webcast on the Drought of 2011.

It's official...Texas is now suffering through the most severe drought on record, according to John Nielsen-Gammon, the Texas State Climatologist and professor of atmospheric sciences at Texas A&M University. In fact, the lower Mid-Continent Region is setting records in extreme temperature highs and drought. This includes Arkansas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, New Mexico, and Kansas, as well as other areas.

The combination of severe drought and extreme temperatures causes immediate and long-term damage to golf courses. And, it is more than just turfgrass that is affected. Irrigation systems, cart paths, and trees also suffer. All this results in less play and less income - the last thing most courses can stand in this economy.

This webcast addresses all these issues so invite your green committee, board members, and staff to join us Friday morning at 10:00 AM CDT.  

Here is the information you need to join the webcast:

The USGA uses the Microsoft Live Meeting webcasting application. You need to follow the simple directions below to ensure that you can participate fully in this webcast. Please be sure your computer is ready well before the meeting start time. We anticipate a very good turnout for this webcast and will not be able to provide tech support after 9:00 AM CDT.   

1. You must use a Windows PC (Macs will not work) and Internet Explorer as your browser.
2. You must have the Live Meeting CLIENT installed on your computer.
3. To do this follow this link: check your system . Be sure to install the CLIENT (not the web console).
4. Follow this link to Join the meeting.

If you are unable to get to a computer and would like to listen to the meeting on your phone you can dial in beginning at 9:50 AM CDT. Dial  954.797.0718 and enter the participant code 861298.  

 This is a free webcast - please feel free to invite others!

The in-vessel composting equipment is in place and in full operation at Broken Sound Club. At far right, organic debris from the two golf courses is stockpiled and then shredded before being combined with the clubhouse food waste that is then fed into the composter.

In some respects, Broken Sound Club in Boca Raton, Florida is a typical residential club community. It is one of several properties developed by the Arvida Company on the lower southeast coast of Florida in the mid 1970s. Along with two golf courses and various other amenities for the approximately 3,200 members, there are more than 1,600 homes at Broken Sound. However, in the past four years, many changes in the club's overall operations approach have been made. John Crean, CCM, General Manager and COO, is leading a team project of improving environmental efforts and reducing the club's carbon footprint, while at the same time continuing to meet the mission statement of providing excellence.

The focus is to achieve energy and cost savings, while at the same time doing the right thing for the environment. It all started with elimination of Styrofoam cups throughout the club. They were replaced with recyclable plastic cups that are routinely collected and included in a strict recycling program of cardboard, cans, and plastic. The club is paid for the materials they recycle, which helps offset their pickup costs. Prior to the start of the recycling program, the club was spending close to $120,000 annually for waste removal.

This small first step was followed by replacing the majority of incandescent lightbulbs with compact fluorescents in the clubhouses. Also, after some research, it was determined that a $15,000-per-year saving could be achieved with changing over nine natural gas water heaters to solar. The resulting savings, combined with an IRS tax credit and Florida Power and Light rebate, will cover the initial investment for converting to solar water heaters in slightly more than one year's time.

Read the rest of this article.

Northwest Region

These Guy Are Good 

by Larry Gilhuly , director

(L) The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs, CO. (R) Gold Mountain GC in Bremerton, WA.

National championship golf is truly different compared to regular playing conditions.  Building on the outstanding conditions presented to the competitors at the APL and WAPL by Ken Nice, Eric Johnson and Scott Hundley, the last three weeks have been spent at two other national championships in the Northwest Region.  Although both are completely different in location, weather patterns and championship size, both put on full displays of resourcefulness and professional ability of the golf course superintendents.

Thanks for your help!

Important Links