Greens Committee Meeting for Byron Nelson Championship
So on Wednesday night we hosted our greens committee meeting in the Golf Operations Facility as we prepare for the Byron Nelson Championship. We had Tom Brown our PGA Tour agronomist talk to our greens committee about course conditions, moisture management and what he is looking for each day as we get closer to the event. It was a great opportunity to learn not only what the PGA Tour is looking for but also how much they care about the golf course conditioning and health after they leave town. In the past the Tour has been criticized for leaving golf courses in rough shape following the tournaments however my experience so far has been the exact opposite. I think we continue to learn more about what golf courses can and cannot handle and we can now manage the tours expectations without going to extremes to do so.
In addition to Tom Brown talking I was asked to show the committee that were interested, the processes we go through in paralleling cutting units and setting up machines in preparation for the event. I was amazed to find that 3/4 of the committee stayed around for about an hour to listen and ask questions as well. It is great to see a membership that is not only engaged in what we do but want to further their education to get a better understanding of it as well.
In addition to this we have invited the committee to join us during tournament week and come in at 4:30 am to see a day in the life of… We are having some great response to that as well. What better way to really see what we do and how we do it then to ride along with us during the most intensive tournament we do all year. Everything starts next week so if you get a chance tune in and let me know what you think beginning Thursday on The Golf Channel.
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1 Comment
David R Smith
May 11, 19:22Steve,
This was a really well-written article. Furthermore, it’s good to see that the PGA is thinking in agronomic terms beyond the week-to-week tournaments. Yes, they’ve gotten a bad reputation in the past, but it does seem as though they’ve learned from those mistakes and want to be an agent of sound practices going forward. Besides, it’s in their best interests. Also, it was cool to hear that they hung around for the maintenance side of things to further educate themselves.