FORE YOUR INFORMATION March/April 2019
2019 Grass Roots Tournament Hosted by Sam Samuelson, CGCS May 6, 2019
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P R E S I D E N T ’ S M E S S AG E As we finally get a much needed break from the rain it seems spring is upon us again. As much as I like winter, I look forward to the spring as the Scott McCullough busy golf season begins. I often tell my staff this is ―Go Time‖, We’re pedal to the metal doing spring maintenance to be prepared for summer. As busy as we are working on our courses the board has also been busy working on future events. We have a date and location for every event through January, 2020. We are also working on an irrigation auditing class for this fall. As we get more information, as well as a date and location in place we will notify everyone. Our next meeting is coming up at Whitney Oaks on April 29th . This meeting has been approved for .2 hrs of PDI through GCSAA and 1 hr. of Laws & Regs for DPR. The following week,
BY
SCOTT MCCULLOUGH
on May 6, the Grass Roots event will be held at WildHawk Golf Course. An email was sent out to everyone requesting nominations for our annual awards that are given out at the Grass Roots event. You will have the opportunity to honor those that have given so much to the association. The awards that will be given out are Distinguished Member of the Year, Turfgrass Manager of the Year, and Affiliate Merit Award. Those nominations should be submitted by May 1st. We will make nomination forms available at the Whitney Oaks meeting as well. During the last month, the board has been making lots of phone calls to our members for outstanding accounts receivables. It seems like not everyone is receiving the emails with the newsletters or invoices. When we started making phone calls, we had over $10,000 in outstanding dues. The invoices for our annual membership started going out as early as Octo-
ber. During our last board meeting we had to make some tough decisions to drop members for outstanding dues. If you are a Class A or B member and you get dropped from the local association, you will also be dropped on the national level as well. The board has been trying to reach all of its members to see if phone numbers, email addresses, and mailing addresses are correct. If you’re not receiving certain emails or haven’t been contacted, please let one of the board members know so we can fix it. We look forward to seeing you next week.
2018 SNGCSA BOARD OF DIRECTORS PRESIDENT Scott McCullough The Ridge Golf Course VICE PRESIDENT Sam Samuelson, CGCS Wildhawk Golf Course
Dave Bermudez Del Rio Golf & Country Club
SECRETARY/TREASURER John Farley Teal Bend Golf Course
Jason Wolf Lincoln Hills G.C.
DIRECTORS Tracy Shanahan Peach Tree C.C.
PAST PRESIDENT William Hamilton CGCS Lake Wildwood Association
Keith Hill, CGCS Hidden Valley C.C.
Affiliate Representatives Rodney Muller Akoni Ganir Sierra Pacific Turf Simplot Partners
Mark Callahan Plumas Pines G.C.
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April 29, 2019
August 5, 2019
Whitney Oaks Golf Course
Tri Chapter Event Brookside Country Club
Hosted by Brad Bonino
M E E T I N G DA T E S
Hosted by Central California
May 6, 2019 Grass Roots Tournament Wildhawk Golf Course Hosted by Sam Samuelson, CGCS
June 3, 2019 Delta Blue Grass Field Day
Superintendent Steve Showers
September 30, 2019 President’s Cup Tournament Montreux Golf Club Hosted by Doug Heinrichs, CGCS
November 4, 2019
July 15, 2019
Annual Election Meeting Cameron Park C.C.
Scholarship & Research Tournament
Hosted by Jeremy Payne
The Ridge Golf Course Hosted by Scott McCullough
December 5, 2019
Visit our On Line Industry Calendar for all event
Annual Holiday Event Teal Bend Golf Course
https://californiagcsa.org/?page_id=3712
Hosted by John Farley
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MEMBER PROFILE : S AM SAMUELSON , CGCS S U P E R I N T E N D E N T W I L D H AW K G O L F C L U B BY
On May 6th the 15th Annual Grassroots Tournament will be held at Wildhawk Golf Club and the host Superintendent is Sam Sam Samuelson, CGCS Samuelson, CGCS, the event’s founder. Sam first started working on golf courses in 1968. He fell in love with the golf business. He proceeded to get his education from the University of Arizona and earned a B.S. in Agronomy and Plant Genetics. Sam has grown in two golf courses, the Vineyard at Escondido and Bartley Cavanaugh Golf Club.
SCOTT MCCULLOUGH
He has taught several seminars for the GCSAA at the National Convention. He’s an expert on ADA and on how its related to golf. I asked Sam what he loves most about his job and he said, seeing the sun come in the morning while he checks the greens with his yellow lab by his side. Sam has been in the golf business for 51 years and this is his 40th year as a Superintendent. Sam has the support of his wife Kathy, and two sons Jack and Willie. When Sam has free time, he enjoys golf, tennis, running to stay fit, and The Cincinnati Reds and Cincinnati Bengals. Sam’s favorite drink is sipping on good tequila. Wildhawk opened in 1997 and was designed by Michael Poellot. The course measures as long as 6,623 yards. It offers 6 sets of tees
and the signature hole is #18. The finishing hole is on the lake ―Waters Edge‖. Ongoing and future projects are to convert hard to maintain bunkers into grass bunkers that are mowable. Sam would like to thank his close friend Sue Baumann who was a High School Guidance counselor who convinced him to pursue a career in Golf Course Maintenance. Her line back in the 60’s was ―you’re not that good of a player. They have college programs in agronomy for you to pursue your real talent…growing the grass!‖ Wow, now that’s a person that saw great potential in a young person even though her delivery was a little rough. We look forward to seeing everyone on May 6, 2019.
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THE FUTURE IS HERE: A TECHNOLOGICAL B R E A K - T H R O U G H I N S U S TA I N A B L E L A K E & P O N D M A N A G E M E N T WRITTEN BY INDUSTRY EXPERT BO BURNS, BIOLOGIST & MARKET DEVELOPMENT MANAGER AT SOLITUDE LAKE MANAGEMENT
Algae: it comes in many forms and colors. It’s slimy, stinky and can ruin the beauty and function of your golf course lakes and irrigation systems. It’s also one of the oldest known organisms on this planet, which might explain its knack for survival, even under the toughest conditions. Over time, golf courses and property management companies have learned to pick sides when it comes to the safe eradication of stubborn and harmful algal blooms—some in favor of natural management techniques; others in support of applying EPA-registered algaecides to ensure the job gets done. But this year, a new game changing technology will make the management
of stubborn algae blooms a nobrainer with more long-lasting results that are beneficial for the environment. Nanobubble aeration is a premium innovative technology designed to exceed the capabilities of traditional lake and pond aeration systems by providing up to 79,000x more oxygen! Put simply, nanobubbles are like traditional aeration systems on steroids. Produced by compact on-shore generators, these ultra-fine bubbles are completely invisible to the eye and about 1 million times smaller than ordinary bubbles. As a result of their tiny size, nanobubbles have no natural buoyancy and do not rise to the surface of the water and burst like you might expect. Lake before nanobubble aeration Amazingly, they remain within the water column for up to 2-3 months, providing unparalleled oxygenation to struggling lakes and ponds at your property. The benefits of a continuously oxygenated lake or pond are enormous. First, oxygen is a key player in the battle against undesirable nutrients by facilitating the conversion of phosphorus to forms that do not sustain algae development. Excess nutrients can easily enter golf course lakes and ponds in the form of grass clippings, lawn fertilizers, trash, and droppings
from geese and other wildlife. The presence of oxygen also helps to balance pH and other related water quality parameters that encourage the growth of fish, native organisms and beneficial phytoplankton – rather than detrimental bacteria like E. Coli, and cyanobacteria species that can be toxic to humans and wildlife and are believed to contribute to degenerative diseases like ALS, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. Another amazing benefit of nanobubbles? In addition to engulfing an entire aquatic ecosystem in concentrated oxygen, nanobubbles are negatively charged and, therefore, attracted to positively charged organic matter in the water column. When they connect with positively charged metals and pollutants, including dangerous cyanobacteria toxins, nanobubbles cause them to implode(!), holistically cleansing the waterbody from the inside out. This innovative water quality solution did not just appear overnight. Nanobubbles have been used in the medical field, the oil and gas business, food preparation areas, and even the beauty industry for purification purposes. However, SOLitude Lake Management is the first environmental firm to advance this technology for large-scale freshwater management applications through continuous research and development with select manufacturers and regulatory agencies. Through many promising tests and trials, we’ve learned some exciting things: Golf course superintendents and property managers who utilize nanobubbles can expect to signifi-
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F ROM T HE F IELD BY
JEFF JENSEN GCSAA FIELD STAFF
Jeff Jensen
I hope this finds your spring golf season off to a busy start after a long and wet winter. While it continues to provide challenges to courses throughout Central and Northern California, the rain and snowpack was much
needed. On the advocacy front, the arrival of spring signals the approach of National Golf Day. This year’s event is scheduled for April 29-May 1 in Washington, D.C. We Are Golf, a coalition of the game’s leading associations and industry partners including GCSAA, hosts the annual event. National Golf Day celebrates the game’s $84 billion economy, nearly $4 billion annual charitable impact and many environmental and fitness benefits. Industry leaders meet with Members of Congress, the Executive Branch and federal agencies to discuss golf’s 15,000-plus diverse businesses, 2 million jobs impacted, tax revenue creation and tourism value. In addition to the lobbying day on May 1, National Golf Day features a
community service project on April 30 that will focus on turf and irrigation restoration projects between the Lincoln Memorial and Washington Monument. Key issues for this year’s National Golf Day include Waters of the United States (WOTUS), H-2B Visa legislation, the ongoing legal battle over glyphosate and promotion of the country’s municipal golf sector. At the time of this column, GCSAA already has over 100 members who will be representing the industry on Capitol Hill. For more information and a complete schedule of events, visit the website at https://www.gcsaa.org/ advocacy/get-involved/national-golfday/. Over the past year, one of my areas of focus has been moving superintendents from Class B to Class A. Class A status is obtained through a combination of formal education, experience as a golf course superintendent, continuing education and providing proof of a valid pesticide license. The sliding scale for Class A eligibility can be viewed at https://www.gcsaa.org/docs/defaultsource/membership-documents/class-asliding-scale-for-eligibilityorg.pdf?sfvrsn=5bb5173e_0. Once you obtain Class A status you are required to maintain it by earn-
ing 5 points (minimum 3 education) over a five-year cycle. In addition to enhancing your resume, all Class A members receive admittance to The Masters each year. If you have interest in obtaining your Class A, please contact me and I will go through your transcripts to determine what you are missing. Thank you for your support of GCSAA and if you have any questions or I can assist you, please email me at jjensen@gcsaa.org and follow me on Twitter @GCSAA_SW for daily industry updates.
The SNGCSA is now on Facebook and Twitter. Check it out!
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Sustainable Lake & Pond Management Continued from page 5 cantly reduce and even eliminate reliance on traditional algaecides. Nanobubbles have no negative impacts on turfgrass or ornamental vegetation when monitoring and managing dissolved oxygen levels. Nanobubbles help strengthen the health and longevity of the entire food chain, providing unparalleled aesthetic and ecological balance. Nanobubble aeration isn’t just a quick fix or band-aid; it’s a custom, datadriven solution rooted in years of scientific study and first-hand monitoring experience. The technology doesn’t necessarily replace regular proactive management strategies, but it is truly one of the missing pieces to the puzzle of sustainable freshwater management. Used in conjunction with traditional tools like floating fountains, buffer management, mechanical hydro-raking and regular lake and pond inspections, nanobubbles can
help keep your water resources healthier and prettier for much longer periods of time, while eliminating nuisance algae and dangerous cyanotoxins before they begin causing problems. Nanobubble aeration is poised to transform the entire way we approach the management of lakes and ponds and will be an invaluable tool as urban development and undesirable nutrient loading continue to increase. We’re excited to shepherd this new technology in to the freshwater management realm and look forward to further enhancing water quality on your property and throughout the world.
Lake after nanobubble aeration
Bo Burns is a Market Development Manager at SOLitude Lake Management, an industry-leading environmental firm. He specializes in the research and development of new technologies using more than 30 years of industry experience along with a Master of Environmental Management degree in Resource and Wetland Ecology from Duke University. This article is the first in a series featuring new break-through technologies that will revolutionize the management of lakes, stormwater ponds, wetlands and fisheries in 2019. Learn more at www.solitudelakemanagement.com/ knowledge
FORE YOUR INFORMATION Published by the Sierra Nevada Golf Course Superintendents Association EDITOR Bill Hamilton, CGCS OFFICE SNGCSA 3273 Richert Ave., Clovis, CA 93619 559-298-6262 Fax# 559-298-6957 sngcsaa@aol.com
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2019 Scholarship & Research Tournament The excitement is climbing. Auction items are coming in for the Research and Scholarship Tournament. This year’s tournament is scheduled for July 15th at The Ridge Golf Course. We thank Scott McCullough, our host superintendent for offering us his fine facility for this special event. Once again Syngenta and Joe Ballmer will be sponsoring the tee prizes. We would like to thank all the golf industry suppliers who have already stepped up with equipment displays, donated items for the live auction, and for those who sponsored tee signs and games on the course. Superintendents, we also want to thank you for continuing to support this event by bringing guests, and bringing great prizes for the raffle. We are still ac-
cepting and asking for donations for this year’s event. As always the money raised from this tournament goes to Scholarships, Turfgrass Research, Personal and Professional Development Program, and our Benevolence Fund. Lets make this year another successful event. Be sure to let us know if you can help. You can call either David Bermudez, or Kurtis Wolford. You can also email or call the association office with your donation. SNGCSA 559-298-6262 Ask for Irene or Kim they will be happy to help.
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WELCOME NEW MEMBERS Randy Raymond, Class C, Empire Ranch G.C. James Beaver, Mechanic, Empire Ranch G.C. Raziel Ruiz, Class C Tahoe Donner G.C. Mike Scheel, Affiliate Harco Fittings John Homquist, Affiliate Horizon
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