On August 17, I made my annual visit to western Nebraska. During the three-day visit, I began to reflect on the uniqueness of the open plains, and see first-hand individuals working together to make a difference.
One of my fist stops was in Ogallala, NE. Western Winds Golf Club, an 18-hole facility just south of I-80, is a traditional family-owned, small golf course operation with friendly people enjoying their craft.
Corey Crandall is a 20-year GCSAA member and serves as the owner/operator and superintendent. As I toured the front nine, I noticed numerous cars entering the parking lot. In fact, it looked a lot like the high school girls' golf team.
Not paying much attention, I continued on. About 30 minutes later, I looked over to the driving range. Here they were, the entire group of girls working together to pick range balls?! I'll admit, it's been a while since I've seen that type of effort picking and prepping the driving range. In fact, I have to go back to my college coaching days when our teams were required to pick our own range balls during the early spring.
The following day, I ventured to Kearney, NE to meet Scott Schurman, the president of the Nebraska GCSA and the superintendent at Kearney CC. We had an excellent visit. We were able to speak specifically on chapter issues. We discussed chapter meeting formats and the what type of schedule might best serve the membership. We talked about how the chapter can best serve members at the local level. We discussed resources GCSAA can provide to assist.
Ultimately, these visits are about the members and how GCSAA and chapters can work together to enhance value.
Following my visit in Kearney, I talked to former NGCSA President Josh Mahar at his facility in Gothenburg, NE. Wildhorse GC is an excellent golf course. Knowing Josh had been president of the NGCSA, we discussed how members needs have evolved over the past years. We discussed how superintendents receive information and how they consume education.
With the concept of "140 characters" leading many of our lives, we talked about different types of on-site education. Could chapter education consist of six or seven subjects with 30 minutes for each? Would this type of format allow for something of interest for everyone, thus making attendance valuable? Ultimately, it was great to catch up.
That evening, I worked my way back to Ogallala. I had dinner at a local restaurant called the Open Range Grill. It was a casual restaurant with burgers, chicken sandwiches and salads. All of the beef was grown and produced locally. Ogallala, with a population of 4,770, is a small community.
After I received my food, I noticed a mother and her 2-year-old son go up to the staff and ask for a job application. The restaurant was scheduled to close in 15 minutes, so it wasn't busy. Staff was cleaning up. Knowing the 2-year-old had other priorities, staff members exchanged time with the boy, keeping him content, helping him use a coloring book and interacting.
At that point, I realized this doesn't happen everywhere. I thought of how golf course superintendents also help each other.
The next day, I met with Kyle Hegland at Sand Hills Golf Club and he spoke of a huge hail storm that pounded his course this summer. The facility was closed for four days. Citizens, superintendents and other volunteers came together to help clean up. It was a team effort.
As I returned home, I reflected on our vision with GCSAA's chapter outreach program. "Working together to accomplish the "We." These visits were a reflection of that.
All the best to our membership as we work through the fall season.
One of my fist stops was in Ogallala, NE. Western Winds Golf Club, an 18-hole facility just south of I-80, is a traditional family-owned, small golf course operation with friendly people enjoying their craft.
Corey Crandall is a 20-year GCSAA member and serves as the owner/operator and superintendent. As I toured the front nine, I noticed numerous cars entering the parking lot. In fact, it looked a lot like the high school girls' golf team.
Not paying much attention, I continued on. About 30 minutes later, I looked over to the driving range. Here they were, the entire group of girls working together to pick range balls?! I'll admit, it's been a while since I've seen that type of effort picking and prepping the driving range. In fact, I have to go back to my college coaching days when our teams were required to pick our own range balls during the early spring.
The following day, I ventured to Kearney, NE to meet Scott Schurman, the president of the Nebraska GCSA and the superintendent at Kearney CC. We had an excellent visit. We were able to speak specifically on chapter issues. We discussed chapter meeting formats and the what type of schedule might best serve the membership. We talked about how the chapter can best serve members at the local level. We discussed resources GCSAA can provide to assist.
Ultimately, these visits are about the members and how GCSAA and chapters can work together to enhance value.
Following my visit in Kearney, I talked to former NGCSA President Josh Mahar at his facility in Gothenburg, NE. Wildhorse GC is an excellent golf course. Knowing Josh had been president of the NGCSA, we discussed how members needs have evolved over the past years. We discussed how superintendents receive information and how they consume education.
With the concept of "140 characters" leading many of our lives, we talked about different types of on-site education. Could chapter education consist of six or seven subjects with 30 minutes for each? Would this type of format allow for something of interest for everyone, thus making attendance valuable? Ultimately, it was great to catch up.
That evening, I worked my way back to Ogallala. I had dinner at a local restaurant called the Open Range Grill. It was a casual restaurant with burgers, chicken sandwiches and salads. All of the beef was grown and produced locally. Ogallala, with a population of 4,770, is a small community.
After I received my food, I noticed a mother and her 2-year-old son go up to the staff and ask for a job application. The restaurant was scheduled to close in 15 minutes, so it wasn't busy. Staff was cleaning up. Knowing the 2-year-old had other priorities, staff members exchanged time with the boy, keeping him content, helping him use a coloring book and interacting.
At that point, I realized this doesn't happen everywhere. I thought of how golf course superintendents also help each other.
The next day, I met with Kyle Hegland at Sand Hills Golf Club and he spoke of a huge hail storm that pounded his course this summer. The facility was closed for four days. Citizens, superintendents and other volunteers came together to help clean up. It was a team effort.
As I returned home, I reflected on our vision with GCSAA's chapter outreach program. "Working together to accomplish the "We." These visits were a reflection of that.
All the best to our membership as we work through the fall season.
