CHIPS & PUTTS OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE POCONO TURFGRASS ASSOCIATION www.ptga.org Founded in 1936 VOL. 21 NO. 8 October 2015 October Meeting Fox Hill Country Club Host: Ron Garrison, GCS October takes us to one of the PTGA’s favorite stops which is Fox Hill C.C. Founded in 1920 as a 9 hole course, the Club quickly expanded to 18 holes in 1924 under the architectural design of one of the most famous classical architects, A.W. Tillinghast. This 6,555 yard par 71 course winds over the gently rolling ter- rain to present a challenging and memorable experience. The primarily bentgrass fairways and poa/bent greens are always in great shape, and I’m sure host Superintendent Ron Garrison will have them rolling smooth and fast for us. Ron is a 1987 Penn State graduate who has been in this industry all his life. A Berwick native, Ron has been at Fox Hill since 1997. Before coming to Fox Hill, Ron gained experience working as superintendent at Glen Oak C.C. He was also the construction and grow in superintendent at The Center Valley Club and served at two different TPC courses. In his 18 years at Fox Hill, Ron has seen a large contingent of former assistants move on to superintendent jobs in the area, as well. Continued on Page 6 Page 2 President's Message..... Officers & Directors 2015 Greg Boring PRESIDENT Greg Boring, CC of Scranton 570-587-4046 VICE PRESIDENT Gino Marchetti, Glen Oak CC 570-586-5791 TREASURER Patrick Healey, Scranton Canoe Club 570-378-2249 SECRETARY Chris Moran, Honesdale CC 570-253-9094 DIRECTORS Steven Chirip, Grass Roots, Inc. 973-418-3468 Corey Pries, 570-994-8270 Ron Garrison, Fox Hill CC 570-655-1065 Jerry Decker, Elkview CC 570-282-3080 __________________________ Editor’s Notes….. CHIPS & PUTTS STAFF EDITOR Brian Bachman, Genesis Turfgrass, Inc. 484-661-6105 bbachman@genesisturfgrassinc.com Last meeting of the year….hard to believe meeting season is Managing Editor over already. Melinda Wisnosky 570-388-2167 mmel500@aol.com As the season comes to an end and we all get to recharge our batteries, PAST PRESIDENT don’t forget to try to attend some winter seminars. The schedule is at Ray Waddell the end of the newsletter. 570-903-9571 Keep sending me pics….. Brian Bachman PTGA Office 309 Terrace Avenue Harding, PA 18643 Phone/Fax: 570-388-2167 Any opinions expressed in this publication are those of the author and/or person quoted, and may not represent the position of PTGA. Information contained in this publication may be used freely, in whole or in part, without special permission, as long as the true context is maintained. We would appreciate a credit line. Page 3 Pennsylvania Golf Day Rendered a Success By Chase Rogan On Tuesday, June 9, we made golf history in the Keystone State. This date marked our first ever Pennsylva- nia Golf Day hosted in Harrisburg, the State's capital. What's Pennsylvania Golf Day? It's an opportunity. An opportunity to tell golf's story. An opportunity to build relation- ships with the legislators who govern the land where we reside and work. For superintendents specifically, an opportunity to promote ourselves as professional land-managers and stewards. We had seven participating organizations from around the State, including the CMA, two PGA sections, Pennsylvania Golf Owners (PGO), Western PA Golf Association (WPGA), Golf Association of Philadelphia (GAP), and, of course, the PGCSA. Throughout the day, participants engaged in about 80 meetings with state legislators and/or their staff. We talked about golf's L-R: Chase Rogan, Micah Lowell, economic impact in Pennsylvania – almost $2 billion annually. We Senator Vulakovich, Tim Fitzgerald talked about the number of jobs golf creates in the State – about 30,000 with a payroll approaching $500 million. We talked about the charitable contributions of golf – almost $4 billion annually across the U.S. We also met with chairmen of the committees that are responsible for fer- tilizer and drought legislation in the State, both of which impact the way we do business. By cultivating these relationships with our state government, it improves our chance of having a "seat at the table" when new bills are proposed, or existing legislation is reviewed. If we can establish the trust that em- powers our legislators to seek our opinions, then we are doing ourselves and our industry a great service. In addition to the meetings, we had a large exhibit set up in the East Wing rotunda of the main capitol building. Imagine a trade show. There was a hitting simulator (huge draw), a putting green and booths for each participating organization. At our table, we promoted our BMP manual, multiple irrigation technologies, different types of turf plugs and any- thing else that highlighted water, fertilizer or environmental manage- ment. Anybody – including legislators – coming through the rotunda that day could stop and talk with us. The traffic was steady. Everyone that participated found the day worthwhile and educational. Not only does this day help us promote the industry we love, but there is a great deal of learning that takes place simply by engaging. I think it's safe to render Pennsylvania Golf Day 2015 a great success. We look forward to building on that momentum in 2016! PagePage 3 4 Valley C.C. Superintendent, Eric Reed, Gets Recognition from Members and GCSAA for Unique Approach to Winterkill We are well aware of the brutal conditions the Mid-Atlantic region experienced this past winter. Horror stories of devastation on greens swept through the grapevine. Un- doubtedly, turf kill was widespread. These situations require a lot of hard work and pa- tience for recovery, and often times our golfer clientele do not fully understand the unpre- dictability of winterkill, nor the time and ef- fort it takes to recoup putting surfaces. How- ever, sometimes they do understand, and it's always nice to hear positive feedback from our customers during testy times. That's why we were delighted when we got a phone call from Valley Country Club member Larry Klemow, praising the work of his su- perintendent, Eric Reed, CGCS. Eric has been busy babying his greens back to health after a challenging winter. Larry said of Eric's hard work, "There's a whole bunch of people who like you, and a whole bunch who don't. I'm one of those on his side. It's be- cause of how much he respects his golf course." Continued on page 5….. Page 5 …...Continued from page 4 Eric had nearly 20 percent damage on his greens com- ing out of winter, the worst he has ever had. He and a group of industry friends (volunteers) replaced approx- imately 8,000-9,000 plugs by taking live turf from the edge of greens and replacing it with the damaged plugs. This method allowed him to complete the work as quickly as possible since he eliminated the travel time of hauling plugs from another location. In work- ing through restoration, Eric said communication to his Greens Committee was important for setting realis- tic expectations of recovery time. As is typical with winterkill, it's hard to pinpoint ex- actly what caused the damage, but Eric believes it was a combination of crown hydration and ice cover. In preparing for next year, he plans on being diligent with his K fertility, as well as improve surface drainage by stripping and lowering the greens' collars. Eric was also quick to acknowledge those who loaned a helping hand, and wants to recognize those individuals: Brian Bachman, Genesis Turfgrass; Charlie Miller, CGCS, The Springhaven Club; Pat- rick Knelly, Sugarloaf Golf Club; Matt Kuchta, Sugarloaf G.C.; Joe Horan, Sugarloaf G.C.; Chris Snopkowski, Wyoming Valley Country Club; Scott Kotula, Wyoming Valley C.C. ; Chuck Usher, Blue Ridge Trail Golf Club. Page 6 Continued from Page 1 Some of the recent projects at the Club include the construction of new tees and the installation of some grass bunkers. Ron is assisted by long time assistant John Polak and their crew of 3 full timers and 7 seasonal employees. Be sure to make it out to enjoy our final meeting of the year at this beautiful venue, and knowing Ron, the odds are that he will make it a memorable event. September Meeting Results Elkview C.C. 1st Place Closest to the Pin #7 T. J. Hart 76 Brandon Wisnosky 16’8” 2nd Place Closest to the Pin #12 Greg Boring 79 Greg Boring 18’1” 3rd Place Longest Drive Les Lear 80 Bob Seltzer 18th Place Skins John Chassard 96 Bob Seltzer -Eagle #1 Page 7 GOOD NEWS!! The PTGA is now accepting SAME DAY credit card payments for our monthly meetings. (Extra fee applies) Page 8 Photo of the Month We all see interesting things every day….wildlife (like bald eagles and bears), strange turf problems (like a lightning strike), an employee who stayed out too late the night before, etc. So if you have a great photo, send it to me (bbachman@genesisturfgrassinc.com) and share it for everyone to enjoy (or laugh at). October Photo of the Month The power of a grass rhizome…. If you don’t send me pictures then you get one of mine. This rhizome grew directly through a carrot from my gar- den. Pretty cool if you ask me…. Chips & Putts PATRON SPONSORS AERIFICATION AND OVERSEEDING Aer-Core Stephen Thompson 610-972-5933 IRRIGATION AND DRAINAGE William Mast 610.327.3390 John Deere Brent Wood 570.499.1441 Air2G2 Saturated John Downer 570-840-0078 Turf Equip. & Supply George Skawski 610.554.9366 Andre & Son, Inc. John Vojick 607.768.0575 Rich Gdovin 570.278.1131 Lawn & Golf Matthew Brown 610.933.5801 PLANT PROTECTANTS Andre & Son, Inc. John Vojick 607.768.0575 Rich Gdovin 570-278-1131 EQUIPMENT Fisher & Son Bob Seltzer 610.704.4756 Aer-Core Stephen Thompson 610-972-5933 Genesis Turfgrass Brian Bachman 484.661.6105 William Mast 610.327.3390 Grass Roots, Inc. Steve Chirip 973.418.3468 Air2G2 Saturated John Downer 570-840-0078 John Deere Brent Wood 570.499.1441 Andre & Son, Inc. John Vojick 607.768.0575 Growth Products Craig Lambert 973-601-3303 Rich Gdovin 570.278.1131 Lawn & Golf Matthew Brown 610.933.5801 Lawn & Golf Matthew Brown 610.933.5801 Syngenta Lee A. Kozsey 610.861.8174 Turf Equip. & Supply George Skawski 610.554.9366 Finch Services Ted Zabrenski 484.614.6436 SEED & SOD Andre & Son, Inc. John Vojick 607.768.0575 Rich Gdovin 570.278.1131 FERTILIZER Finch Services Ted Zabrenski 484.614.6436 Andre & Son, Inc. John Vojick 607.768.0575 Fisher & Son Bob Seltzer 610.704.4756 Rich Gdovin 570.278.1131 Genesis Turfgrass Brian Bachman 484.661.6105 Fisher & Son Bob Seltzer 610.704.4756 Grass Roots, Inc. Steve Chirip 973.418.3468 Genesis Turfgrass Brian Bachman 484.661.6105 Lawn & Golf Matthew Brown 610.933.5801 Grass Roots, Inc. Steve Chirip 973.418.3468 Growth Products Craig Lambert 973-601-3303 Lawn & Golf Matthew Brown 610.933.5801 Plant Food Co., Inc. Tom Weinert 914.262.0111 TOPDRESSING / SOIL AMENDMENTS Andre & Son, Inc. John Vojick 607.768.0575 Rich Gdovin 570.278.1131 Blue Ridge Peat Farms Gene Evans 570.443.9596 GREEN AND TEE SUPPLIES Fisher & Son Bob Seltzer 610.704.4756 Andre & Son, Inc. John Vojick 607.768.0575 Genesis Turfgrass Brian Bachman 484.661.6105 Rich Gdovin 570-278-1131 Grass Roots, Inc. Steve Chirip 973.418.3468 Fisher & Son Bob Seltzer 610.704.4756 Lawn & Golf Matthew Brown 610.933.5801 Genesis Turfgrass Brian Bachman 484.661.6105 Grass Roots, Inc. Steve Chirip 973.418.3468 John Deere Brent Wood 570.499.1441 Lawn & Golf Matthew Brown 610.933.5801 Support our Sponsors - They support us! PTGA SCHEDULE POCONO ROUNDUP Oct 7 PTGA Golf Meeting Fox Hill CC Oct 20 MET Area Championship “My favourite words are possibilities, oppor- tunities and curiosity. I think if you are curi- Nov 10-12 Penn State Turf Conference ous, you create opportunities, and then if you open the doors, you create possibilities.” Dec 8-10 NJ Turf Expo -Mario Testino Jan 5-6 Eastern PA Turf Conference Jan 28 NEPA Turf Conference Woodlands POCONO TURFGRASS ASSOCIATION R.R. 1, BOX 219 POSTAGE HARDING, PA 18643 POCONO TURFGRASS ASSOCIATION 309 TERRACE AVENUE HARDING, PA 18643 NAME & ADDRESS PHONE/FAX 570-388-2167 WEBSITE: ptga.org ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED.