FORE YOUR INFORMATION September/October 2017
The Ridge Golf Course November 6, 2017 Annual Association Meeting
2017 President’s Cup Tournament Coyote Moon Golf Club September 18, 2017 Host Ram Sena
F o r e Y o ur I nf o r m a ti o n
P age 2
P R E S I D E N T ’ S M E S S AG E
Scott Dickson
I have come to the end of my term serving as President of the SNGCSA. It has been an honor to serve as president and I would like to say thank you to all the board members and association managers that have helped me throughout the year. Our association covers a large territory. We have representatives on our Board who volunteer their time to keep the association moving in the right direction. We have a very active and fiscally strong association. This strength comes from all its members
BY
SCOTT DICKSON
who contribute to it. Thank you to all the vendors who advertise in the newsletter and sponsor meetings. Thank you to all the members who volunteer to host meetings and to the members for coming to those meetings. Our position as an association is in good standing within the golf community. This happens directly from the efforts put forth by our members. Their involvement with allied golf organizations, writing articles, being Ambassadors, and serving in various community organizations is why we have this reputation. Don’t hesitate to get involved, and volunteer to help out. It is a very rewarding and the experience is well worth it. We are always looking for ways that we can serve the members better. If you have an idea about something or just have suggestions please call or email a board member or the association office. Your feedback and communication is how we will
continue to be successful. If you are not getting emails from the office please call in and update your contact information. If you would be interested in hosting an event, talk to a board member. We would love to get you on the schedule. Coming up we have the election meeting at The Ridge hosted by board member Scott McCullough. In December we will holding our holiday event at Teal Bend G.C. We also have the Mechanics and Irrigation Tech seminars on January 9. This will now be known as the “Turf Tech Workshop” and will be a one day event at The Ridge Golf Course hosted by Scott McCullough. Be prepared for a great educational opportunity. Once again I would like to thank all who have supported me during this year and every superintendent, mechanic, and affiliate member that attended an event.
2017 SNGCSA BOARD OF DIRECTORS PRESIDENT Scott Dickson Brightview VICE PRESIDENT William Hamilton CGCS Lake Wildwood Association
SECRETARY/TREASURER John Jorgensen The Reserve at Spanos Park
PAST PRESIDENT Kurtis Wolford Cherry Island Golf Course
DIRECTORS Dave Bermudez Del Rio Golf & Country Club
Wes Hull Nakoma Golf Resort
Rob Williams Shaffer’s Mill
Affiliate Representatives Matt Graves Belkorp 209-484-5096 Tim McCoy, Turf Star 916-861-7924
John Farley Teal Bend G.C.
F o r e Y o u r I n f o r m a ti o n
P age 3
M E E T I N G DA T E S
November 6, 2017 Annual Election Meeting The Ridge Golf Course Hosted by Scott McCullough
December 7, 2017 Annual Holiday Tournament & Dinner Teal Bend Golf Course Hosted by John Farley
2018
February 3-8, 2018 2018 GCSAA Golf Industry Show San Antonio, TX
February 7, 2018 California Room San Antonio, Texas The Buckhorn Texas Ranger Museum & Bar
March 2018 Annual GrassRoots Tournament Location and date to be determined
January 9, 2018 TURF TECH WORKSHOP The Ridge Golf Course Hosted by Scott McCullough
August 21, 2018 Tri Chapter Meeting
Cinnabar Hills G.C. Hosted by Nor Cal Association
F o r e Y o ur I nf o r m a ti o n
P age 4
FROM T HE F IELD BY
J EFF JENSEN GCSAA FIELD S TAFF
Registration is now open for the 2018 Golf Industry Show (GIS) and the GCSAA National Championships to be held Feb. 3-8 in San Antonio, TX. The newly renovated Henry B. Jeff Jensen Gonzalez Convention Center will play host to GIS and early indications are that the floor space and number of exhibitors will continue their upward growth.
put on your calendar include the Opening Night Celebration, Women in Turf Reception, Health In Action 5K, GCSAA Annual Meeting and Election and the Closing Celebration. And don’t forget about the annual California Room event that will be held on Wednesday, Feb. 7. Registration for the California Room is available by clicking here. To register for GIS visit http://www.golfindustryshow.com/regist ration and housing (including a low rate guarantee) is available at www.golfindustryshow.com/hoteltravel.
Advance registration fees for GIS (through January 12) is $450 for GCSAA members. Seminars are $185 for a full-day (.70 education points), $130 for a half-day (.35 education points) and $80 for two-hours (.20 education points). More than 430 hours of education including 97 seminars and 20 sessions are available in San Antonio. Information on all the educational offerings is available at http:// www.golfindustryshow.com/gcsaaeducation-conference/tracks. Some other events during the week to
In addition to the Golf Industry Show, The GCSAA Golf Championship is scheduled for Feb. 3-5. The event features the National Championship, Golf Classic, Four-Ball and Shamble. The event returns to the host courses that were used in 2015 including Cordillera Ranch, La Cantera Resort, The Quarry and TPC San Antonio. The National Championship (open to the first 100 superintendents with a handicap index of 5.0 and below) and the Golf Classic (flighted by handicap, using a point quota scoring system) are
$475 per player through Dec. 20 ($575 for affiliates participating in the Golf Classic). Entry fee for the Four-Ball and Shamble are $175 per player through Dec. 20 ($275 for affiliates). Tournament entry includes green fees, cart, range balls, tee prize, grab-and-go breakfast, drink tickets, on course contests, awards, Welcome Reception and 19th Hole receptions following each day of play. Registration for the championships is available at http://www.golfindustryshow.com/gcsaa -golf-championships/registrationinformation. If I can be of any assistance to you with planning your trip to GIS or if you have any questions concerning our showcase event, please feel free to contact me at jjensen@gcsaa.org. Thank you for your support and I look forward to catching up with many of you at upcoming chapter events.
F o r e Y o u r I n f o r m a ti o n
P age 5
2017 Election & Annual Meeting By Irene Cline
Scott McCullough at The Ridge Golf Course in Auburn is hosting the 2017 Election Meeting. This year we have a full field of candidates that have stepped up to serve as your representatives. As President, Bill Hamilton, CGCS of Lake Wildwood Golf Club will be running unopposed for the position. Bill first came to the board in 2014 as a director and has moved up through the duties, serving as a director from 2014 and 2015. He became Sec/ Treas in 2016 and then 2017 VP for the association. We greatly appreciate Bills continued support and leadership. The VP position will be Rob Williams, Schaffer’s Mill G.C. Rob has been a vibrant member of the board since 2012. He served as President in 2015 and remained active as the Past President and then Director again last year. Scott McCullough, The Ridge G.C. will seek the Secretary/ Treasurer position. Scott has had board experience in separate terms
as a director and has decided now to make the move to the officer position. Scott did an outstanding job as the Education Committee Chair this past year and he will once again be hosting the 2018 Turf Technician Workshop which was formally known as the Mechanic Seminar and Irrigation Technician Seminars. We have four open Board of Director positions this year. First we have Dave Bermudez seeking reelection to the board as director. Dave continues to do an outstanding job as the Committee Chair for the Scholarship & Research Tournament and we look forward to his continuing with that challenging job. In addition we have three members who have volunteered for the job. Mark Callahan, Plumas Pines Golf Resort Mark has been the Golf Course Superintendent at Plumas Pines Golf Resort for the past 18 years. Stacey Baker, Haggin Oaks Golf Course Stacey joined our chapter in 2005. Then we have Keith Hill, CGCS from Hidden Valley C.C. in Reno. Keith has been a member of the association since 2015.
Remaining on the board and who is not up for re-election this year is John Farley, Teal Bend G.C. In the Affiliate Position we have Tim McCoy, Turf Stat who will be completing his term and Matt Graves, BelKrop who will continue in his position until his term is up in 2018. Seeking the open affiliate position is Akoni Ganir, Simplot Partners. Akoni first joined our chapter in 2014 as a Superintendent Member and decided on a career path change when Simplot Partners needed a representative in the Sacramento area. We are fortunate to have such a wonderful group of individuals who are dedicated to the industry and are willing to give of their time to represent the members of the Sierra Nevada GCSA.
Don’t forget to vote!
FORE YOUR INFORMATION Published by the Sierra Nevada Golf Course Superintendents Association EDITOR Bill Hamilton, CGCS OFFICE SNGCSA 5322 N. Leonard, Clovis, CA 93619 559-298-6262 Fax# 559-298-6957 sngcsaa@aol.com
P age 6
F o r e Y o ur I nf o r m a ti o n
CHAPTER NEWS
BY
IR E N E C L I N E & K I M B E R LY MI L NE
I am sure that most of you have heard the news that Chris Thomas Executive Director & C.O.O. of the Northern California PGA and President of the California Alliance for Golf has passed away. There will be a memorial service on November 15th at El Macero Golf Course. If you would like to join in making a donation to a special college fund for his children Taylor and Tara, you can do so through the "Chris Thomas Memorial Fund" at Five Star Bank, 2400 Del Paso Rd. Ste. 100, Sacramento, CA, 95834 It is with great sadness that we report the passing of Dan Holmes, Superintendent at Brook-
side C.C. Dan had been battling esophageal cancer. It was just reported that Hansi Kewel the Superintendent at Yolo Flyers G.C. has announced that he will be retiring as of December. The club in in search of a new superintendent at this time. Also retiring is Jessie Creencia, CGCS of Cameron Park C.C. the club has hired Jeremy Payne to fill that position. Congratulations Jeremy. With that move there is now an opening at Napa Golf Course. We have not heard whether that position is filled. The association has sent out the annual renewals for membership
dues and those are due now. The annual meeting for the association will be held on November 6th at The Ridge Golf Course at which time the association board will do reports to the membership of the progress during this fiscal year. Be sure to get your renewals in as quickly as possible. If you have any questions or if you need to make any changes to your membership information don’t hesitate to contact the association office. Sierra Nevada GCSA 559-298-6262 Fax 559-298-6957 Email sngcsaa@aol.com
F o r e Y o u r I n f o r m a ti o n
P age 7
AFFILIATE MEMBER PROFILE S A L S O R B E L L O , B E L K O R P AG BY IRENE CLINE ange county, and was working over 100 hours a week. His roommate, at the time, worked for a turf equipment company. Sal began to appreciate his work schedule and decided that he may want to make a change. He went to work for a company known as Reed Equipment and found that he enjoyed the business. Sal loves the opportunities that John Deere Ag has provided to him not only in the great people that he works with but all the opportunities that have been afforded him. He has been able to travel not only around the enSal Sorbello at St Andrews Links in the tire US but has been to London, town of St Andrews Scotland. Germany, and recently just returned from Scotland. For this issue of Fore Your He has enjoyed the friends he Information, we have chosen to feahas developed in this industry and ture one of our Affiliate Members has enjoyed watching the changes who has been around the golf industhat have taken place over the years try for 25 years, Sal Sorbello, in the golf industry. Golf Sales Manager with Belkorp Sal lives in Discovery Bay AG. with his wife, Julie, of 21 years. Julie Back in 1992 Sal decided on is an 8th grade Algebra teacher. They a huge career change. He owned a have two children, Marisa, 19, who is couple of restaurants in LA and Ora sophomore at University of Missis-
sippi “Ole Miss” and son, Joseph, 20, who is also a sophomore at a local community college. Sal loves the outdoors and is an avid hunter and fisherman. He has a bass boat that he takes out on the delta bass fishing with his son Joseph. The family recently took a family trip to Cabo where Joseph caught a 10’ Marlin. Sal is also an avid car and motorcycle enthusiast. Sundays Sal enjoys watching his Raiders a season ticket holder for 30 straight seasons combined between LA and Oakland. Belkorp Ag was formed in 2011 to acquire the Deere dealerships located in Modesto and Patterson, California. While still a young company they are a member of the Belkorp Group of Companies, a second generation family owned business whose origins date back to the 1940’s. Since that date they have grown to serve the Central Valley and the North Coast of California from eight locations. Sal’s team covers the golf course needs of our chapter’s members.
P age 8
F o r e Y o ur I nf o r m a ti o n
H I G H L I G H T S O F 2017 P R E S I D E N T ’ S C U P C OYOT E M O O N G O L F C O U R S E Ram Sena 2017 President’s Cup Superintendent Trophy Winner
The weather for this year’s President’s Cup tournament didn’t disappoint. It was beautiful as were the condition of the course. We had 55 attendees for the event. This was slightly down from previous years but still a good turnout. The superintendent flight consisted of 30 superintendents . The affiliate flight was 25. Ram Sena came in late from play but turned in the winning score to take home the trophy. Steve Byrne once again gets to take home the Affiliate Trophy. Congratulations to both winners and THANK YOU to Coyote Moon for hosting the event.
800 MOSSDALE RD, LATHROP, CA. 209 234-1500 www.brownsandinc.com PRODUCTSSERVICES AVAILABLEUSGA Top Dressing Sand Deliveries by MAGNUM TRUCKING INC. Greens Top Dressing Sand Blend Materials to Customers Specifications Bunker Sand Profile / Sand Blends 0-0-50 / Kiln Dried Sand blends Kiln Dried USGA Sand - 3000lbs Super Sacks Dakota Peat Sand Blends Peat Inc Sand Blends Pea Gravel Top Soil
FOR ALL YOUR MATERIAL NEEDS PLEASE CALL OUR OFFICE OR
REGGIE POMICPIC – Director of Sales and Market Steve Byrne 2017 President’s Cup Affiliate Trophy Winner
Cell# 209 993-5211 E-mail: reggie@brownsandinc.com
P age 9
F o r e Y o ur I nf o r m a ti o n
U PDATES & M EMBERSHIP WELCOME NEW MEMBERS The California GCSA BMP committee continues its efforts to hire a third party consultant. The committee has narrowed the search to three excellent candidates. The BMP Selection Committee will be interviewing these applicants within the next couple of weeks. The committee which is being headed up by Josh Heptig Golf Superintendent for SLO County. The original date of selection has been postponed as the selection of this company/individual has been more difficult that originally thought.
Daniel Alexander Class A Tayio Golf Club Tommy Atterberry Jr. Class A Trinity Alps G.C. Stephen Bryant Wait Class C Shaffer’s Mill G.C. Vince Keats Class Affiliate On Course Jeff Fagerhaug Class A Woodcreek GC/Diamond Oaks Levi Ellsberry Class C The Ridge Golf Course Warren Zehen Class Mechanic The Ridge Golf Course Steve Naillon Class GMS Auburn Lakes Trails
P age 1 0
F o r e Y o ur I nf o r m a ti o n