The three speakers were Dr. Tom Hsiang who is a disease professor at the University of Guelph who spoke on some organic methods to controlling turf diseases, Ron Scheidel, president and co-owner of GreenHorizons Sod Farm who spoke on his family business and how they have diversified over the years, and Keith Bartlett, superintendent of St. Georges Golf Club who spoke on maintenance he is doing to prepare for the 2010 Canadian Open.  All the speakers were great and well appreciated by the audience.

My personal favorite was Keith Bartlett’s presentation on how St. Georges is preparing for the Open.  He emphasized on doing things right if you are going to major projects.  I also had the opportunity to speak with Keith about possibly doing my summer internship at St. Georges which I believe would be a great experience for myself.  To work on and make a product for PGA golfers to play on would be unbelievable.  He also stated there would be nothing happening to the 3rd green for the Open.

Not only has Trevor Hunter made all of the sportsfields pesticide free for a long period of time, he has also taken on some of his own practices as well.  While working with the city to rotate soccer games he will seed the goal mounds where there seems to be the most wear and tear of turf, he then places a large tarp over the new seed for two weeks to allow the seed to germinate with no disruption.  He also states that there will be some weeds on his fields but that is something that he has learned to tolerate over his years as a manager and he says the people using the fields tolerate it or don’t even notice  it anymore.

After running a pesticide free operation for the past decade, the city of Waterloo has saved a lot of money on pesticides and have contributed to a healthier surrounding in their city.  While other cities and sportsfield managers are struggling with the pesticide ban, Trevor and his staff are just going amongst their day to day jobs the same way they always have.

In the past, students have experienced internships at world class golf courses like Glen Abby, TPC Sawgrass, and even St. Andrews in Scotland.  With the first semester coming to an end students should have a good idea of where they want to do their internship and what they are expecting from their internship.  Whether it is going back to their home course, or going to a high profile club, it is all about what is right for you and what you want to get out of your experience.

For some students their internships will just be another summer job, but for most us, it will be considered the start of our professional career in the turf industry.  As for myself, I am hoping to get the most out of this opportunity that is possible.  I hope that when my internship is over I will have  more turf knowledge overall before entering  my second year with a great reference and also a chance to return to that course when I am done at the University of Guelph.

The symposium is calling out to all sectors of the industry including sod, golf, sports field, and lawn care.  The speakers will cover a wide range of the industy and  how they are managing there professions in the decline. From the cosmetic pesticide ban, to a decrease in budget on a golf course,  or from the scientific side of the industy .

Although there are three great speakers I am looking most forward to Keith Bartlett from St. Georges and how he is managing his course for a PGA tournament in July of 2010. The 27th should be a great day enjoyed by everyone who attends and will be a learning experience for most.  If you have an interest in what is happening in this rapidly changing industry you will not want to miss this experience.

The vally holes sometimes can only see upto two hours of sunlight a day which is very hard on the plant and for photosynthesis to occur in such short amount of time.  Scotts says it is even harder in the fall when there is less sunlight and daylight hours.  These four or five greens need extra maintenence such as more aerating, verticutting, grooming, topdressing, and fertilizer.  More of the cultural practices and not just getting out the sprayer.

The average golfer might see some of these greens today and believe that they are not upto par for such a high profile golf course.  When in fact they don’t take mother nature into consideration,  or they could stop for two seconds and think about the atmosphere around them or educate themselves about it.  Scott does the best of his ability to keep these greens beyond playable.  I can also say that they were mint for the Canadian Opens because I witnessed them myself  as I was a spectator at the Open.

Someone might say it is the right time to do a major project like this. I believe for a golf club like this, and with the budget they have, why not?  After the project is finished it is said that Lambton will be one of the GTA’s nicest courses, and Reese Jones states that it might possibly be one of the nicest looking and playing holes in the country.  When all is said and done, I believe this large reconstruction will attract more members and give golfers an amazing golf experience everytime they step foot onto the Lambton Golf and Country Club.

Starting in 1975 with 35 acres to over 5000 today they have come along way.  In 1998 they invested in a golf course and built Willow Valley using all their own sod and seeding practices to start out.  In season they have 200 employees and 60 in the winter. In the early 90’s there was a huge innovation in the sod industry.  The automatic sod stacker was produced and was about to cut labour in half and do a lot of work in less time.  Green Horizon invested 1.4 million dollars in 6 of these machines.

From a small 35 acre family farm to over 5000 acres, a fertilizer, and a topsoil business. I think that Green Horizon has invested their money well and made good business decisions throughout their career.  If you are thinking about doing a major sod renovation or just a small job in your back yard be sure to talk to these guys and go with the best sod in the business.

This past golf season I experienced many unsatisfied golfers.  Not because the golf course was in bad shape, but for reasons that they would not understand due to the fact that they are uneducated with golfcourse turf issues.  Some of these issues consist of bunkers having no sand, and slow greens.   Meanwhile, it  could have rained two inches the night before and your bunkers would be soaked and packed down and your greens would be so saturated that you could not cut them that day.  These issues are more to the extreme but I think you know what I mean.

I feel that there is a need for golfers and members to become more knowlegdeable about what is talking place at their golf club and to be more involved with the superintendent.  I think some golfers are starting to ask more questions and that they are becoming more familiar to issues that are taking place.  However, I also believe that superintendents should attempt to keep members informed and upto date by possibly doing things such as blogging or posting daily or weekly updates in the pro shop.