chips % puns OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE Founded in POCONO TURFGRASS ASSOCIATION 1936 www.ptga.org VOL. 12, NO. 8 Oct/Nov 2006 TURFGRASS ASSOCIATION ■■■■■ October Monthly Meeting and Election Results Glen Oak Country Club Mr. Greg Boring, Superintendent of Glen Oak Country Club, provided a fantastic test for our annual championship. Lee Kozsey was the beneficiary of the conditions to win the Affiliate Championship with a score of 84. Bobby Brown, Superintendent of Eagle Rock Resort shot a 78 to win the Superintendent trophy. Other results from the golf tournament were as follows: Ian Kunesch of Rolling Greens was Closest to the Pin on the 4th hole where Syngenta sponsored their Ace Golf Challenge. Brian Lafferty was Closest to the Pin on the 9th hole and Joe Kohut was Closest to the Pin on the loth hole. The long drive on the 5th hole was won by Gary Phillips, Jr. Skins were won by Gary Phil­ lips, Jr. on the 1st hole, Gary Phillips, Sr. on the 7th hole, Bill Owens on the 5th hole and Marty Lawler on the 14th hole. Kurt Aaron of WNEP TV was our speaker this month. He spoke on the topic of lightning safety. He discussed the different types of strikes, positive strikes that occur in "Blue Sky" conditions away from the storm and negative strikes that occur from under the storm. Also an interesting fact was that more people have been killed by lightning than by hurricanes or tornados. The elections resulted in Duane Schell as President for another year. Darrin Larkin, Vice Presi­ dent, John Downer, Treasurer, and Jeff Koch, Secretary also held their seats. The directors saw a change as Ray Waddell of Elmhurst was added to the Board. The remainder of the directors Steve Chirip, Rick Anglemyer, and Matt Brown will serve another term as well. Thanks again to Seeton Turf and Grass Roots for sponsoring the meeting. The Board is consid­ ering some sites for next year and would like anyone interested in hosting a tournament to con­ tact a member of the Board to express your interest so that the schedule for next year can be secured as soon as possible. Thanks again to Greg Boring, Gino Marchetti, and the fabulous staff at Glen Oak for making our final monthly meeting memorable as the cool breezes of fall bring to a close our 2006 golf season. President’s Message As the golf season comes to an end, I would like to thank all the golf clubs and their staffs for hosting meetings this past year. It was great to see such a good turnout of superintendents, assistants, affiliates and guests this year. At our Annual Meeting at Glen Oak in October we PRESIDENT actually had enough superintendents for a quorum. Although a vote Duane Schell, Blue Ridge Trail G. C. did not take place, this is the first time in a few years that enough were 570-868-8113 djschell@epix.net present to actually hold an election. I wish to thank Greg Boring for hosting our Annual Meeting, PTGA Championship, and for the VICE PRESIDENT Darrin Larkin, Panorama Golf Course outstanding greens. 570-222-9260 The PTGA Board for the next year will remain unchanged except for TREASURER the addition of Ray Waddell. He will be replacing Andy Jubinski. I John Downer, Elkview C.C. would like to congratulate Ray and thank Andy for dedicating his time 570-840-0078 to the Association over the past years. j_s_downer@juno.com The PTGA Board has begun working on the golf meeting schedule for SECRETARY 2007, so if anyone is interested in hosting a meeting, please contact Jeff Koch, Glenmaura National C.C. 570-457-8733 one of the board members. Plans are also in the works for our Annual Snow Meeting at Elk Mountain and also for the 2nd Annual Ski Trip to SERGEANT AT ARMS Steven Chirip, Grass Roots, Inc. Vermont. More information will be available when dates are finalized. 973-418-3468 I wish all the members of the PTGA and their families a Happy DIRECTORS Thanksgiving. Rick Anglemyer, Water G ap CC 570-424-6391 Duane Schell Andrew Jubinski, Finch Turf 570-378-3043 glenturf@epix.net M atthew Brown, Philadelphia Turf 215-340-5401 CHIPS & PUnS STAFF EDITOR Jim Gurzler 570 499-1441 - jim @ gurzler.com Editor’s Notes M a n a g in g Editor Melinda Wisnosky Editorial C o m m itte e Thanksgiving is no longer a distant holiday and Christmas flyers have Jeff Koch started to make their way into the Sunday papers. The leaves are falling, M att Brown the Penn State Turf Conference is here already and hunting season is a Past President few weeks old. This is the off-season? It seems each year that more and Eric Reed, Valley C.C. more days are tied up with things that need your attention. 570-788-4277 Budgets are getting more involved, planning needs to be more de­ Barley5@ptd.net tailed, expenses from labor to seed need to be scrutinized to squeeze each dollar to elicit its maximum benefit. Don't forget this time of year is a great time to seek education refreshers and other sources of knowl­ edge to help make better decisions to make 2007 a positive experience. So time management becomes even more important. And don’t forget this is a great time to catch up with those that didn’t work with you at the golf course this past season. PTGA O ffice Thanks to all those clubs that hosted our tournaments this year and to R.R. 1, Box 219 all the sponsors that helped defray the costs for our members. Enjoy Harding, PA 18643 Phone/Fax: 570-388-2167 your Turkey, be it a Butterball or one you got yourself (either by permit or motor vehicle). Happy Thanksgiving to all. Any opinions expressed in this publication are those of the author and/or person quoted, and may not represent Jim Gurzler 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. 2006 Chapter Delegates Meeting Summary Chapter Delegates Look to the Future Noting the association and its members have made significant gains on several fronts, the GCSAA Chapter Dele­ gates meeting, October 13-14-15, took a strategic approach in discussing how GCSAA could sustain that momen­ tum in achieving its mission, vision and goals. "I commend and appreciate the Delegates for the energy they displayed during the meeting,” said Ricky Heine, CGCS meeting chairman and GCSAA vice-president. “They were focused and well-prepared in giving the board of directors and staff their perspectives on how we achieve our long-term vision. They took ownership of their associa­ tion and in their responsibility as delegates. It is obvious they engaged their members in talks before the meeting." The exchange of ideas and comments focused primarily on three items: a.) the development of long-term reve­ nue streams to fund programs and services; b.) growing the GCSAA membership; c.) and positioning GCSAA and its membership classes in the marketplace (primarily to employers and influential golfers). The financial conversations centered on the establishment of a long-term dues pricing strategy. At the request of the Delegates, the board and staff presented a proposal that would tie the establishment of membership dues to an index (such as the Consumer Price Index). Historically, the association has enacted a dues increase in larger in­ crements on average every five to seven years. The result has been a loss of members. There was widespread agreement at the meeting that smaller dues increases would be more easily absorbed at the facility level and less likely to result in membership declines. Directors further discussed the issue at their fall meeting, October 20-21 in New Orleans. Tied to the discussion of revenues was an examination of GCSAA membership numbers. From a high of more than 22,000 in 2001, the association’s membership has declined approximately 10 percent to just over 20,000 today. There was agreement that the situation has been created in large part by a struggling golf economy and the imple­ mentation of member standards. Staff presented a seven-phased membership growth and recruitment campaign enacted late last year. Delegates supported the efforts, realizing such an initiative will take time to yield results and must be long-term in nature. They were especially supportive of the GCSAA field staff pilot program and encour­ aged strong consideration for expanding it in the near future. The liveliest debate was on GCSAA’s philosophy regarding the positioning of the association and its membership classes. Delegates shared a variety of opinions, but ultimately agreed that for membership standards to have value in the marketplace, then they must be promoted externally. There was unanimous support that greater resources be dedicated to marketing the association, with a focus on Class A as being the preferred membership class. It was noted, however, that promoting Class A does not mean that marketing other membership classes should not be part of the program. Noting that chapters will be integral to the success of revenue generation, membership growth and retention, and marketing efforts, discussion also included an examination of chapter effectiveness. Specifically, the delegates were charged with providing the board and staff direction as to how the association could best invest resources to enhance chapter operations. The top three items were: a.) membership recruitment and retention; b.) chapter ex­ ecutive development and support; c.) chapter meeting effectiveness (attendance, timing, satisfaction, value, etc.). It was the consensus that many of the issues were interrelated and thus could be addressed if programs and services are developed and coordinated appropriately. Once again, support for expanding the field staff pilot program was communicated, and suggested as a means to implement effectiveness programs. Delegates also expressed interest in providing support to GCSAA's advocacy efforts. They were briefed on the process the association follows for commenting to the EPA on product re-registration. The process includes an ele­ ment for member input to GCSAA actions, plus the opportunity for chapters and members to become directly en­ gaged as well. Û oc < X Z 1 3 1 NEWS RELEASE Date: October 20th' 2006 Contact: Gina Putnam, Bernhard and Company Ltd., aina.putnam@bernhard.co.uk. Phone: (888) 474-6348 Fax:(800)393-4841 Bernhard & Co. to send 10 GCSAA Class A members to England Enroll today to win a free trip and see how it's done on the other side of the pond! Bernhard and Company is sending 10 Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA) Class A members to the British & International Golf Greenkeepers Association’s (BIGGA) Turf Management Exhibition (BTME), Jan., 21-26, 2007 in Harrogate, England. Winners will have the opportunity to attend the conference and exhibition, participate in education seminars, network with greenkeepers from the UK and Europe, and visit golf courses in England. Register online at http://www.bernhard.co.uk/acsaa reaform.O.html or call (888) 474-6348. Deadline for applica­ tions is November 15th. Bernhard and Company will notify the winners by December 19th, 2006. Bernhard and Company, manufacturers of Express Dual and Anglemaster grinders, will cover expenses for airfare, accommodation, conference registration, education seminars and transportation. Based in Rugby, England, Bernhard and Company Limited are a long established horticultural and manufactur­ ing business whose origins date back to the 1880's and are the original manufacturer of spin grinding machines. For more information about Bernhard and Company, visit www.expressdual.com. For more information about BIGGA, visit www.biaaa.ora.uk. and for more information about BTME, visit http://www.harroaateweek.ora.uk/. Celebrating its 80th anniversary, GCSAA is a leading golf organization, which has as its focus golf course man­ agement. Since 1926, GCSAA has been the top professional association for the men and women who manage golf courses in the United States and worldwide. From its headquarters in Lawrence, Kan., the association pro­ vides education, information and representation to more than 21,000 members in more than 72 countries. GCSAA's mission is to serve its members, advance their profession and enhance the enjoyment, growth and vital­ ity of the game of golf. The association's philanthropic organization, the Environmental Institute for Golf, works to strengthen the compatibility of golf with the natural environment through research grants, support for education programs and outreach efforts. Visit GCSAA at www.acsaa.ora. & "Putte PATRON SPONSORS AERIFICATION AND OVERSEEDING IRRIGATION AND DRAINAGE Andre & Son, Inc. John Vojick 570.278.1131 Atlantic Irrigation Joe Jaskot Rich Gdovin 570.278.1131 Finch Services Andy Jubinski 610.213.8597 Finch Services AndyJubinski 610.213.8597 Atlantic Irrigation James Gurzler 570.788.2061 Lawn & Golf John Bodock 800.362.5650 Philadelphia Turf Co. George Skawski 610.554.9366 Matt Brown 484-357-6312 EQUIPMENT PLANT PROTECTANTS Andre & Son, Inc. John Vojick 570.278.1131 Andre & Son, Inc. John Vojick 570.278.1131 Rich Gdovin 570.278.1131 Rich Gdovin 570-278-1131 Finch Services Andy Jubinski 610.213.8597 Finch Services Andy Jubinski 610.213.8597 Lawn & Golf John Bodock 800.362.5650 Fisher & Son Bob Seltzer 610.704.4756 Philadelphia Turf Co. Matt Brown 484.357.6312 Grass Roots, Inc. Steve Chirip 570.839.3399 Harrell’s Turf Specialty Jim MacLaren 570.443.7154 Lawn & Golf John Bodock 800.362.5650 PBI/Gordon Corp. John Patten 609.970.1546 SynaTek Craig Lambert 201.874.7383 FERTILIZER Syngenta Lee A. Kozsey 610.861.8174 Andre & Son, Inc. John Vojick 570.278.1131 Rich Gdovin 570.278.1131 Finch Services Andy Jubinski 610.213.8597 Fisher & Son Bob Seltzer 610.704.4756 SEED & SOD Grass Roots, Inc. Steve Chirip 570.839.3399 Andre & Son, Inc. John Vojick 570.278.1131 Harrell’s Turf Specialty Jim MacLaren 570.443.7154 Rich Gdovin 570.278.1131 Lawn & Golf John Bodock 800.362.5650 East Coast Sod & Seed Kevin Driscoll 609.760.4099 SynaTek Craig Lambert 201.874.7383 Finch Services Andy Jubinski 610.213.8597 Fisher & Son Bob Seltzer 610.704.4756 Grass Roots, Inc. Steve Chirip 570.839.3399 Lawn & Golf John Bodock 800.362.5650 Harrell’s Turf Specialty Jim MacLaren 570.443.7154 GREEN AND TEE SUPPLIES SynaTek Craig Lambert 201.874.7383 Andre & Son, Inc. John Vojick 570.278.1131 Rich Gdovin 570-278-1131 Finch Services Andy Jubinski 610.213.8597 Fisher & Son Bob Seltzer 610.704.4756 Grass Roots, Inc. Steve Chirip 570.839.3399 TOPDRESSING / SOIL AMENDMENTS Lawn & Golf John Bodock 800.362.5650 Andre & Son, Inc. John Vojick 570.278.1131 SynaTek Craig Lambert 201.874.7383 Rich Gdovin 570.278.1131 Blue Ridge Peat Farms Gene Evans 570.443.9596 Finch Services Andy Jubinski 610.213.8597 Fisher & Son Bob Seltzer 610.704.4756 Grass Roots, Inc. Steve Chirip 570.839.3399 Harrell’s Turf Specialty Jim MacLaren 570.443.7154 Lawn & Golf John Bodock 800.362.5650 SynaTek Craig Lambert 201.874.7383 Support our Sponsors - They support usi Lake M anagem ent Aerators ■è >r Pumps and Filtration SMART Pump* Controllers C entral Control Systems FREEDOM-Parf" ATLANTIC IRRIG ATION SPECIALTIES INC Totally Integrated Irrigation Solutions Goar-Driven RESERVOIR TO ROTORS ' Rotors Decoders ATLANTIC IRRIGATION SPECIALTIES INC. Full Service Irrigation Supplier to the Golf Industry , Huge Inventory of Products readily available for Rapid Delivery Dedicated Service Technicians On-Call 24-7 We Sell Pipe, Wire, Fittings, Valves, Valve Boxes, Swing Joints, Drainage, Pumping Equipment, Hose Reels, Lightning Detection Systems, Pond Aerators, Subsurface Greens Aeration and Sensors, Landscape Lighting and More! Multiple Locations Servicingour Territory West Chester, PA 610-431-6200 Springfield, N J - 973-379-9314 Wayne, N J - 973-616-4800 Farmingdale, NJ- 877-420-8873 Deer Park, N Y - 631-667-7801 N. White Plains, N Y - 800-878-8873 Bridgehampton, N Y - 631-537-1444 Stamford, C T - 800-886-4774 Serving Eastern PA., NJ. and Metropolitan N.Y. www.atlanticirrigation.com PA# S PCNB And MSMA Updates As you may be aware, the U.S. EPA issued a decision in August 2006 to cancel registration for all organic arsenic- als (MSMA, DSMA, CAM A and Cacodylic Acid). The agency also stated that it intends to ban all turf uses of PCNB. In response, GCSAA launched a grassroots campaign to encourage GCSAA members to challenge the agency's regulatory conclusions. EPA is required to provide stakeholders with a comment period where individuals can submit comments to the fed­ eral docket as part of the process to re-register a chemical. GCSAA will submit comments to EPA in support of the continued registration and use of PCNB and MSMA on golf courses. GCSAA members are urged to submit com ­ ments to the federal docket to let EPA know how important PCNB and MSMA are as tools for golf course manage­ ment. Two action alerts are posted on GCSAA Online to help members submit comments. The action alerts include background information, a link to EPA's decisions, talking points and instructions for submitting comments. Sample letters, which can be personalized, are available to help members quickly and easily submit comments to the docket. You can use the links below to submit your comments. Important comment deadlines: PCNB - December 4 - http://www.acsaa.ora/resources/advocacv/pcnb.asp MSMA - December 13 - http://www.acsaa.ora/resources/advocacv/msma.asp ? grass roots Grass Roots, Inc, PXX Box 336 Mount Freedom, NJ 07970 4 Middlebury Btvd. UEast CSoflst S O O Sc S K K O Suite 7 Randolph, N i Ö7S69 Steve Chirip (973) 4 ! 8*3468, Mobile Kevin Driscoll (570) 839-3399, Office Technical Rep. (973) 252-6634, N J Office (973) 252-6630, N J Fax 609 760 4099 cat 856 769 9555 609 561 5384 fax 596 Pointers Auburn Road * Pilesgrove NJ 08098 son inc. Superior Products for the Turf & Horticultural Professional Bob Seltzer 165 North Center Street * Fredricksburg, Pa 17026 610-704-4756 * fax 717-865-4712 www.flsherandson.com Met Team Championship Please join us in thanking our platinum sponsors once again; Agrium Fertilizers, Aquatrols, BASF, Bayer, Syn­ genta and Toro. Without their support, this year's event would not have been organized at such a high level. The Met Team Championship netted a profit of over $2000 that will once again be donated to the Make A Wish Foundation. The Pocono team was made up of Greg Boring, Tom Fleight, Jim Rattigan, Paul Brandon, John Downer, Steve Chirip, Duane Schell, and Jeff Koch. 2006 Pocono Turfgrass Association Team at Fisher Island 2006 MET Area Team Championships Fishers Island Club - Par 70 October 3, 2006 Team Scores Par 280 Score 1st GCSA of New Jersey 282 2nd Philadelphia AGCS 286 3rd Connecticut AGCS 290 4th GCMA of C ape Cod 291 5th Central New York GCSA 294 6th MET GCSA 300 7th Hudson Valley GCSA 304 8th AGCS Pocono TGA 307 9th Finger Lakes AGCS 309 10th Mid-Atlantic AGCS 315 11,h Eastern Shore AGCS 322 12th Northeastern GCSA 323 13th Long Island GCSA DQ Skill Events CTP #2, sponsored by Syngenta Dan Wilber - Hudson Valley GCSA 6’ 5” CTP #5, sponsored by Bayer Jim Rattigan - Pocono TGA 14’ 0” CTP #11, sponsored by BASF Eric Destefano - Connecticut AGCS 10’ 0” CTP # 16, sponsored by Toro John Bradley - Long Island GCSA 4’ 9” Long Drive, sponsored by Polyon fertilizers on hole #17 Net Division Sean Flynn - Connecticut AGCS Gross Division Mike Dukette - Connecticut AGCS Putting Contest, sponsored by Aquatrols Mark Millet - MET GCSA Individual Gross Andy Drohen - Philadelphia GCSA Score of 77 Sponsorship Team Winner John Dryowitz and M att Kowal Score of 65 Skins Net: Joe Felicetti #5 and # 15 Gross: Ken Siebolt #2 $84e. John Wiblishauser #8 and #18 $130e. Greg Morac #4 Steve Chirp #9 Scott Nickerson #9 Greg Boring #13 Mike Dukette #15 Glen Smickley #16 Two Man Team High Score Gross John Kotoski and Matt F auerback- Eastern Shores AGCS Score of 91 Net Joe Perry and Todd Cowings - Eastern Shore AGCS Score of 81 POCONO ROUNDUP Upcoming Events Congratulations to Chris Butler who will be taking the November 30, 2006 GCSAA Webcast salesman position with Lawn & Golf. Plan for Replacement: How long does this stuff last? 12:00 PM EST For Sale: December 5-7, 2006 New Jersey Turfgrass Expo 3 GA-24 aerators various years all are running condi­ Trump Taj Mahal, Atlantic City, NJ tion Contact Eric Reed, Valley Country Club at 570-788- December 7, 2006 GCSAA Webcast 4277 Why doesn't everyone use environmentally preferred products? 10:00AM EST DID YOU KNOW? Syngenta now lets you use your points to register for February 16-20, 2007 the golf championship. Contact Lee Kozsey or your 2007 GCSAA Championship and Golf Classic Syngenta rep for more details. Palm Springs, CA Trivia? February 19-24, 2007 GCSAA Conference and GIS What two days each year don’t have any profes­ Anaheim, CA sional sports played on them? POCONO TURFGRASS ASSOCIATION R.R. 1, BOX 219 POSTAGE HARDING, PA 18643 NAME & ADDRESS Phone: 215-345-7200 Fax: 215-345-8132 Web: www.phillyturf.com PHILADELPHIA TURF ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED.