{"id":15548718,"date":"2024-09-11T08:22:02","date_gmt":"2024-09-11T12:22:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/golf.com\/?post_type=article&p=15548718"},"modified":"2024-09-11T08:22:09","modified_gmt":"2024-09-11T12:22:09","slug":"golf-course-superintendents-tasks-thankless","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/golf.com\/lifestyle\/golf-course-superintendents-tasks-thankless\/","title":{"rendered":"8 thankless golf-course superintendent duties that you should thank them for"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

It\u2019s a worthy exercise to wake up in the morning and reflect on things we take for granted. Friends. Family. The smell of fresh-cut grass.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speaking of which: When was the last time you expressed gratitude to your local greenskeeper?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This week would be a good time. Tuesday was Thank a Superintendent Day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To mark the occasion, we asked David Jones, superintendent at Indian Springs Country Club, in Broken Arrow, Okla., and a longtime member of the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America<\/a>, to tick off the many hidden tasks he and his cohort handle beyond dispatching gophers and mowing turf.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1.<\/strong> Critters<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Armadillos, beavers, skunks, gophers<\/a>, moles, you name it. Animals of all kinds take up residence on courses, biting through wires, digging up greens in their search for grubs, and wreaking all kinds of headache-inducing havoc. The Carl Spackler<\/a> approach is out of the question, but you\u2019ve got to do something. \u201cDepending on where you are, you might be allowed to hunt them,\u201d Jones says. \u201cIf not, you\u2019ve got to trap them. They\u2019re pretty much a constant no matter what you do.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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    <\/ol>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

    2. Fungus among us<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Fairy ring may sound romantic. It\u2019s anything but. It\u2019s one of myriad diseases supers deal with, from snow mold mold and brown patch to necrotic ring spot. And then there\u2019s pythium, the Voldemort of fungal invaders that, Jones says, is most likely to affect bentgrass<\/a>. \u201cIt\u2019s the nightmare of nightmares,\u201d he says. \u201cOnce it gets in there, it pretty much wipes out a green. And there are three or four types of it, so you\u2019ve also got to figure out which one you\u2019re dealing with.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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    <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n\n\n

    3. Equipment repair<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    A well-maintained course requires well-maintained equipment, which in turn means sharpening blades<\/a>, replacing rotors and repairing hydraulics leaks, among many other workshop duties. At clubs without the budget for any equipment manager (which is most), all of these duties fall on you know who.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    4. Vandalism<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Stolen flagsticks. Broken rakes. Delinquents on motorcycles doing donuts on greens. The depth of disrespect and stupidity can be astounding, and the worse part is, the scofflaws rarely get caught red-handed. But when they are, it’s often thanks to a superintendent and their staff. \u201cWe once followed cart tracks to a garage in the neighborhood, and sure enough, there was bentgrass in the tires, so the kid couldn\u2019t even deny it,\u201d Jones says. The boy was put to work on the maintain crew until he\u2019d made up for the damage he\u2019d done.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    5. Algae<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Not just in ponds. It also gets on greens, creating overly soft conditions. No matter where it shows up, getting rid of it is crucial. \u201cBut you\u2019ve got to be very careful with what products you use and how you use them,\u201d Jones says. \u201cYou don\u2019t want to kill fish or cause any other harm to the environment.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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    \n \n Lifestyle <\/a>\n <\/div>\n \n \n \"A <\/a>\n <\/div>\n
    \n
    7 great course-maintenance hacks, according to superintendents<\/a><\/blockquote>\n By:<\/span>\n \n \n Josh Sens <\/a>\n \n <\/span>\n <\/span>\n <\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>\n<\/section>\n\n\n

    6. Irrigation upkeep<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Broken pipes. Jammed sprinkler heads. It\u2019s never-ending. \u201cThere\u2019s always something that needs fixing,\u201d Jones says. \u201cWe call it \u2018irritation,\u2019 not irrigation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    7. Ball washers, trash bins, signage, etc.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    At any given time, somewhere on the course, something needs cleaning, emptying, straightening or repairing. Those duties comes under the super\u2019s purview, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    8. Golfers<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    That\u2019s right. Not gophers. Golfers<\/em>. A peculiar species inclined to believe that when the greens are sanded, it means that the super is out to get them. Their gift for grousing and blamed-casting is unparalleled, and it underscores a point: a head greenskeeper\u2019s job requires the patience of Job.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    From algae removal to armadillo abatement, a superintendent handles countless crucial duties beyond cutting and watering grass.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":15548720,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":true,"ep_exclude_from_search":false,"apple_news_api_created_at":"2024-09-11T12:22:07Z","apple_news_api_id":"f8bf9e4a-7431-4208-9c2d-1080226186bd","apple_news_api_modified_at":"2024-09-11T12:22:07Z","apple_news_api_revision":"AAAAAAAAAAD\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/w==","apple_news_api_share_url":"https:\/\/apple.news\/A-L-eSnQxQgicLRCAImGGvQ","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_is_hidden":"","apple_news_is_paid":"","apple_news_is_preview":"","apple_news_is_sponsored":"","apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":[],"apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false},"categories":[40],"tags":[61987],"class_list":["post-15548718","article","type-article","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lifestyle","tag-supersecrets"],"acf":{"tee_time_button_status":false,"wsum-gated-content":false,"wsotp_enable_one_time_payment":false,"ad_meta":false,"article_template":"standard","featured_image_caption":"A superintendent's job includes countless duties that golfers often take for granted.","featured_image_credits":"Getty Images","art_author":[{"ID":14045818,"post_author":"235","post_date":"2016-10-09 13:44:40","post_date_gmt":"2016-10-09 17:44:40","post_content":"","post_title":"Josh Sens","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"josh-sens","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2024-03-01 10:29:29","post_modified_gmt":"2024-03-01 15:29:29","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/www.golf.com\/?post_type=golf_person&p=14045818","menu_order":0,"post_type":"contributor","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"art_source":"None"},"apple_news_notices":[],"yoast_head":"\n8 thankless golf-course superintendent duties that you should thank them for<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"From algae removal to armadillo abatement, a superintendent handles countless 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