The beginning of 2024 marks a new beginning in a joint venture for the GCGA and GCGCSA. The GCGA will be administering the GCGCSA which includes membership, sponsorship, education, and scholarship outings. We are honored that the GCGCSA provided us with this opportunity and look forward to working closely with the board and membership to grow the organization, provide educational opportunities, social gatherings, and use our expertise to administer the Legacy Cup and Scholarship outing.
A few noticeable changes this year include two new social media accounts on Facebook and Instagram. Communication will be more streamlined and timelier. Sponsors will see more visibility, added affiliate memberships, and a variety of sponsorship packages that best fit their business needs. Finally, the website is in the process of being redesigned and updated.
The GCGA staff will be visiting courses in the coming weeks and look forward to catching up with you and your staff. With your support we are excited about this joint venture and look forward to the 2024 season!
While the calendar still says winter many of us are actively seeing large amounts of play like it’s springtime! We are mowing, doing course set up and already prepping for the season, the winter didn’t yield many cold days and fortunately or unfortunately the snow never did arrive with any substance.
As we look ahead to our schedule for 2024, we must first start by looking back on last week’s education event hosted by Blue Ash Golf Course. Many thanks to Scott Kincaid and the staff at Cooper Creek, they have a wonderful facility, and it was a treat for us to be there. We appreciate the talented speakers who joined us from OSU campuses and a great insight into the new maintenance facility being constructed at Blue Ash. Looking ahead we have a fun filled event in March, followed up with our first golf event of the season at Wyoming Country Club. We then will have our annual scholarship tournament at Heatherwoode Golf Club, wrapping up the golf season with our Superintendents Championship at Kenton County Golf Courses.
The one season long event that is returning for 2024 is the Legacy Cup, formerly known as the Fanning Cup, we have taken it and named it in honor of our past GCGCSA members. There are more details to follow and the sign ups coming soon, the blind draw will be held at our social event on 3/21.
Lastly, without the sponsorship of our vendors many of the education events and privileges we have wouldn’t be possible, we thank them for all the past years of contributions, and we look forward to them continuing. We want to recognize the below sponsors for the education event at Blue Ash (Better Billy Bunker, Husqvarna, Site One, BASF, and Aspen).
Looking forward to an exceptional year for the GCGCSA and good luck to all those in your spring endeavors!
Many years after my first run as President back in the 90’s, I am honored to once again be writing a GCGCSA President’s message. The message hasn’t changed much, but the industry has changed a lot.
We’ve been through the technology era, and we now face the A.I. era. Electric mowers, autonomous mowers and many other great inventions are headed our way making life easier … or perhaps more complicated? Time will tell. The one entity that has not changed is our wonderful volunteers who have kept this organization going over the years. They are the backbone of this great industry!
I would be remiss if I didn’t begin by acknowledging Tony Dierkers, first and foremost. Over the past several years Tony has filled the role of Chapter Administrator and filled it well, leading us through the pandemic and steering our ship when we needed him most. We are thankful for his guidance, dedication, time, and talent throughout the years.
I also want to thank our entire board for the past year. They’ve been instrumental in putting on our educational events, scholarship tournaments, etc. Special thanks to our last two past presidents, Scott LesChandler and Tim Kelley.
As we look forward to 2024, we have some new faces on the board. Most importantly we have hired a new Chapter Administrator. Effective January 1, we will be managed by the Greater Cincinnati Golf Association, in particular Todd Johnson (Director of GCGA) and Dave Miller who will be working with us hand in hand. More details about this venture are to come in the upcoming months. Each of these gentlemen brings a vast amount of experience and knowledge. More importantly, we are bringing the region’s golf stakeholders under one umbrella. This will be a new beginning for us. Exciting changes are to come, and we look forward to growing as a chapter similar to the way the GCGA grows the game of golf.
Finally, we rely on you, our members, to support the organization. It’s what keeps us solvent and allows us to promote our profession to the masses. We will also be communicating our sponsorship opportunities and promoting our upcoming events to our industry partners. We will rely on our fellow Superintendents to host meetings and I personally challenge you to consider hosting a meeting or event which may consist of education, golf, or social. We have had many great folks host us in the past and we are looking forward to the next great group to host us in the future. We are currently looking for a scholarship outing venue, fall superintendents’ championship venue, and fall education venue. Please contact me or a board member for more details about hosting.
Thanks,
Dan Walter
Steve Randall – 10/26/24
85 delegates representing 87 chapters meet in person at GCSAA Headquarters and the Hilton Kansas City Airport
Delegates from the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA) met in-person during a two-day event at GCSAA Headquarters in Lawrence, Kan., as well as the KCI Airport Hilton Hotel October 24-25, 2024.
The meeting brings leaders together from GCSAA’s 95 chapters to discuss initiatives, provide insight on moving the association forward, and to begin discussions on electing board members and officers at the February 2024 annual meeting.
First-day highlights included updates and information from CEO Rhett Evans on “Relentless Focus.” Delegates were asked to encourage participation and engagement in the industry from their staff and colleagues, while GCSAA continues to recognize the accomplishments of members.
A government affairs update was provided, informing attendees of potential legislative and regulatory advances that will impact the golf industry. Delegates also received information on the Rounds4Research program, and the 2024 GCSAA Golf Championships and Conference and Trade Show to be held in Phoenix.
On day two, delegates met at Headquarters in Lawrence. Discussion included various department leader updates, including information on the need for facility Best Management Practices. Facility BMP’s are essential to showcase how golf course superintendents are environmental stewards.
Recently, GCSAA implemented a new program and service, focusing on the First Green Program and Workforce Development. Updates highlighted how these programs are introducing students and individuals to the game of golf. Labor continues to be a challenge and this area addresses those concerns.
GCSAA has also formed a Centennial Committee. The association will turn 100-years old in 2026. Plans and activities to engage all members for the event were presented.
Delegates also participated in breakout sessions. The breakouts allowed attendees to provide feedback and information on GCSAA’s current dues adjustment process using the Consumer Price Index, assisting with facility BMP implementation, ways to increase rounds/bidders for Rounds4Research, career development certificates, and Centennial plans.
Candidate breakout sessions concluded activities. The delegates were awarded ample time to interact and ask questions of the candidates. Those running for the GCSAA Board in 2024 are:
· For President – Jeff L. White, CGCS
· For Vice President – T.A. Barker, CGCS
· For Secretary/Treasurer – Paul L. Carter, CGCS; Doug Dykstra, CGCS
· For Director (electing two) – Greg Jones, CGCS, MG; Ryan Kraushofer, CGCS, Christopher Reverie, Marc Weston, CGCS
There are two open director positions for two-year terms. The terms of Dykstra and Weston are expiring. If Dykstra is not elected to the Secretary/Treasurer position, he will need to run from the floor for an open director position to remain on the board. If Carter becomes Secretary/Treasurer a third person will need to be elected for the one remaining year on his term.
Kevin P. Breen, CGCS, will serve on the board for one year as immediate past president. Mark F. Jordan, CGCS, retires from the board after being immediate past president in 2023. GCSAA’s Annual Meeting will take place Thursday, February 1, 2024 from 8-10 a.m. at the Phoenix Convention Center.
Ohio PLANT Green Advocacy Day
Ohio Green Advocacy Day sponsored by Ohio PLANT is slated this year for Wednesday, February 22 in downtown Columbus. The day consists of a morning of speakers from the legislature and the Department of Agriculture and the afternoon will consist of appointments with your elected state representative and state senator’s office. These relationships, coupled with the work of Ohio PLANT and OTF’s lobbying team, helped push HB 507 into law. The bill created preemption of the ban of pesticide use on private property. This measure will prevent local municipalities from creating their own rules regarding pesticide use on private property.
The Ohio Turfgrass Foundation (OTF) is once again a sponsor of this event which includes 7 complimentary registrations. We want to have a strong presence at the event from the turfgrass industry. If you are able to attend, please contact Lori at lori@bennett-management-llc.com as soon as possible so appointments can be made with your elected officials.
February 13, 2023 | GCMStaff
Filed to: GCSAA Conference and Trade Show, News Release 2023
Attendance for the GCSAA Conference and Trade Show, the largest annual event in the turfgrass management industry, was up 69% over the 2022 event in San Diego. Total attendance was 11,000 vs. 6,500 in-person attendance in 2022 and comparable with the 11,700 who attended the last pre-pandemic event held in Orlando in 2020. A total of 6,300 seminar seats were filled, which was up 70% over 2022, and was the highest number since 2008. In addition to education for superintendents, the event also included specialized education for assistant superintendents, equipment managers, students and more.
The trade show covered nearly 250,000 square feet of exhibit space at the Orange County Convention Center and hosted nearly 450 exhibitors.
The week began with the GCSAA Golf Championships presented by Toro. The event was sold-out and featured the launch of the Toro Par-3 shoot-out along with formats offering golfers an opportunity to have fun, meet new people, renew old friendships, and play in various flighted competitions. Dylan Foster, assistant superintendent at Verandah Golf Club in Fort Myers, Fla., was the winner of the 2023 GCSAA National Championship
Among the highlights, the conference began Monday with the launch of the GCSAA Interactive Facility Tours and ended with a Welcome Reception, presented in partnership with Syngenta, at Aquatica Beach with food, fun and comradery. Tuesday featured a continuation of education in the classroom and on the golf course as part of the GCSAA Interactive Facility Learning Tours, with the day capping off with the announcement of an MOU between GCSAA and The Warrior Alliance.
On Wednesday, the Sunrise Celebration, presented in partnership with Syngenta, saw John Newton, CGCS Retired, receive GCSAA’s Col. John Morley Award to begin the day. Then, attendees experienced the launch of the Interactive Grass Learning Stage built through a collaboration of the GCBAA, GCSAA, USGA and ASGCA at the trade show.
Wednesday also featured the 2023 GCSAA Turf Bowl, presented in partnership with John Deere. Team No. 11 from Penn State University won the 2023 Turf Bowl.
Thursday saw the launch of GCSAA Auction $Bucks, enabling attendees to earn points used to bid on items in a live auction at the GCSAA Send-Off Celebration, presented in partnership with John Deere. The highlight of the Send-Off Celebration was the presentation of the GCSAA Old Tom Morris Award to Johnny Morris, the founder of Bass Pro Shops.
The GCSAA Conference and Trade Show is produced by the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA) along with its presenting partners the Golf Course Builders Association of America (GCBAA), United States Golf Association (USGA) and the American Society of Golf Course Architects (ASGCA) .
GCSAA will continue to offer conference learning with a two-day virtual event of new education offerings for everyone at the golf facility March 14 and 16, 2023. Details and registration information can be found at www.GCSAAConference.com.
The 2024 GCSAA Conference and Trade Show will head to Phoenix Jan. 29-Feb. 1, 2024, at the Phoenix Convention Center.
Filed to: GCSAA Conference
February 28, 2023
Nationwide and Ohio Farm Bureau 4H Center 2201 Fred Taylor Drive, Columbus Ohio 43210
GOLF - SPORTS TURF - LAWN CARE - BEST CERTIFICATION
Bill Includes OTF Provision Preempting Local Governments from Regulating and Banning Pesticides
Last month concluded the two-year legislative term of the Ohio Legislature. Final work was completed mid-December, known as “lame-duck.” Priority pieces of legislation from both the House, Senate and Governor’s office were passed in these final days. The legislature tackled a wide-range of items, from distributing ARPA funding and voting law reform, to drilling gas on public lands. Any legislation that did not get passed and signed by the Governor is now dead and must be re-introduced this year to start the committee process back up again. We are pleased to report we found success in lame-duck with one of your top priorities, preemption of the ban of pesticide use on private property. As you are well aware, an out of state group called Beyond Pesticide has been advocating to local governments to ban the use of pesticides. They have a model municipal resolution on their website that advocates local governments adopt a ban for the use of pesticide on local government property, such as metro park ball fields for example. A plan was put together to stop this movement. Working with your organization, we established a legislative advocacy plan to ask for an amendment to be accepted that would preempt local governments from regulating or banning the sale, purchase, storage, distribution, use, or application of a registered pesticide on private property and private property open to the public (golf courses). This would give all authority to future proposals beyond pesticide proposed to be done at the state level through the legislature, and not individual local governments. We proposed the amendment and met with several key legislators in both the Ohio House and Senate to identify if such an amendment was possible. Throughout talks in the Spring, Summer and into Fall we had many positive conversations and garnered widespread support within the Republican Statehouse. During the final days of lame-duck, our efforts paid off! Representative Kyle Koehler (Springfield) was the sponsor of House Bill 507, which had several clean up items to Ohio’s agricultural law. Rep. Koehler supported putting our amendment into his bill. Chairman Tim Schaffer (Licking) of the Senate Agricultural committee spearheaded getting the amendment included in HB 507 before passing the bill out of committee. Eventually the full Senate and House both voted on and passed the bill with the amendment included. The last step was Governor DeWine signing the legislation into law. Because of other changes included in HB 507, most notably provisions to allow drilling on public lands, environmental groups were putting a lot of pressure on the Governor to veto the bill entirely. We want to work providing the Governor’s team on why this bill and our language were vital to the lawncare industry and your business. We were pleased the Governor finally signed HB 507 into law in early January. This new law will go into effect in early Spring. It was a great overall team effort from members within your organization to the outside lobbying groups working on your behalf and we look forward to working on many other important issues with you this coming year.
Special Thanks to our Lobby Team!
Ohio Room information at the Conference in Orlando
Wednesday, February 8th 7:00 pm - 10:00 pm
Miller's Ale House 8963 International Drive Orlando, Florida
Gather with your peers from Ohio during the GCSAA Conference in Orlando. Drink tickets and appetizers will be provided to attendees.
February 6-9, 2023 Orange County Convention Center
