Month: February 2018

2-18-18

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This past week has been one filled with education.  I am required to complete a certain level of continued education to retain my Class A GCSAA Golf Course Superintendent status.  Fortunately, one of the benefits of this membership is the ability to watch webinars to receive education points.  I am able to choose which videos appeal to my needs and our golf course and watch them for no charge.
I have viewed approximately 1080 minutes of continued education the past few weeks.  These range from bunker management and maintenance to developing quality maintenance program.  There is always something positive to take away from each speaker.  It also allows me to refer to our Business Plan and the Quality Standards Manual.  These are definitely the framework for how our golf course is managed and the cost of doing business in each category of golf course management.
There was also a couple of personal days I missed work in order to complete clinical hours in the Emergency Department at Spencer Municipal Hospital.  This is a requirement for the EMT class I am currently attending.  It was invaluable training time and I am excited to continue moving forward to graduation.  I am currently scheduled to take my National Certification at the end of March.
Tomorrow, I will be back in the shop with Ryan Lux to finish the last little bit of reel sharpening maintenance we have scheduled.  We will also be working on some of the equipment, at both golf facilities, in order to better accomplish our maintenance needs.  This has been a wonderful work relationship and I know we are both excited to expand on the benefits in the future.
This is the end of another week at the golf course (more like classroom this past week).  Please contact me with any questions or comments that might arise.  Have a great day everyone!

2-11-18

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It is another frostbite type of morning in NW Iowa.  I would rather have this weather take place now instead of happening in March.  When the golf course is able to open in mid March it helps increase our season pass totals for the season.  If the weather is not favorable until April, there is a noticeable decline in passes.  Bring on the March sunshine!
I spent the past week working with Ryan Lux sharpening reels at the Country Club.  This has been an extremely smooth process for both of us.  I hauled all of my reels to the Country Club and we have worked together sharpening and repairing reels for both golf courses.  We are almost completely done with a job that normally takes more than a month individually.
Our next plan of action is to start working on some of the equipment repairs together.  We are both responsible for our own equipment repair and maintenance which can also become very time consuming.  With two “semi professional” mechanics working together it will make repairs easier and less time consuming.
In the golf department there are many different hats to wear on a daily basis.  I am the business manager, clubhouse supervisor, grounds supervisor, spray technician, irrigation technician, mechanic, public relations director, human resource director, and the list goes on.
When any area of the golf course “breaks down” that becomes my first priority to get it up and running again.  A lot of projects are placed on hold to deal with situations.  It takes a great team to run the golf course successfully.  Ryan and I are going to use one another’s experience to ease the day to day curve balls in 2018.
I updated the website with our 2018 list of events.  There are a few new additions of golf course sponsored events, later in the season, to help boost revenues during this normally slow time of year.  Past events take precedence on reserving the same date annually.  Some of these events might also change in the near future.