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THE

CONN
c L I P P I N GS
VOLUME 9 No. 5

DECEMBER 1976

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GCSAA’s
48th Turf Conference
Readied For Portland

The Golf Course Superintendents As­
sociation of America will sponsor its 48th
International Turfgrass Conference and
Show February 6 -11 in Portland, Oregon.
With over 150 companies filling exhibit
space of 100,800 square feet in the $8
million Portland Memorial Coliseum and
Exhibit Hall, a record-breaking attendance
of over 5,000 persons is expected.
“Turfgrass Management: A Synergis­
tic Approach“ is the theme of the confer­
ence, and its education program will focus
on the interdependence and interrelation­
ship among the many parts of golf course
management. A total of 70 speakers from
universities, industry, government and the
ranks of the Association itself will present
the most up-to-date information in the
world of turfgrass management.
Heywood Hale Broun, famed sports
writer and CBS television sports essayist
and commentator, will be the keynote
speaker of the conference. He will speak on
“The Role of Big Games in Society.“
Prior to the official opening of the con­
ference, the Association will once again
hold Certification and Recertification ex­
aminations and a series of seminars on
landscaping, management, pesticides and
turfgrass nutrition.
Other features of the week-long event
are the association’s annual meeting and
election, tours of Portland-area golf
courses, tours of the Oregon grass seed
industry, a ladies’ program and social
events during the week.
Also, the 1977 GCSAA Golf Tourna­
ment will be February 3 and 4 at three
courses on the Monterey Peninsula in Cal­
ifornia, including the prestigious Spyglass
Hill layout.

.a ® $

H i

a

CHRISTMAS PARTY
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 18,1976
WATERTOWN GOLF CLUB
Guemseytown Road
Watertown, Ct.
Cocktails & Hors d'oeuvres 7:00 - 8:00%
^
DINNER 8:00
-4 J
Dancing 9:00 p. m. -1:00 a. m.
Open Bar 7:00 p. m. to 1:00 a. m.
Choice of Baked Stuffed Shrimp or
One Pound New York Boneless Strip Steak
•4$35.00 per couple
Rte. 6 in Watertown to Guemseytown Rd.
Q
(next to Taft School)
/ [Please send cards in promptly ]
* Qw

7

Grass Catcher

The October meeting, hosted by Dick
Cook at the Black Hall Club, was greeted
by absolutely fine weather and an excellent
turnout. The course played very well and
chewed up a hefty number of golf balls.
Dinner at the 100 Acres Restaurant
couldn’t have been better. A salad bar of
all you could eat followed by an enormous
portion of prime rib proved to be the un­
doing of several diets. The day was capped
off by a “few” comments from Dick and an
interesting talk on irrigation by Mr. Wil­
liam Cluster.
[Continued on page 3]

President’s Message

It has been my pleasure to serve as
President of the Connecticut Association of
Golf Course Superintendents during the
past year. Many long hours have been put
in by your Board of Directors to insure
better management of the association and
to make it a more efficient and effective
organization. It has been a year of ac­
complishments and disappointments.
After two years of struggle I am pleased
to say that the by-laws revisions were
completed and were approved at the an­
nual meeting. Also during this past year
our association was incorporated. I worked
with the Department of Environmental
Protection in setting up a pesticide pro­
gram for the members of our association.
This proved a disappointment in that so
many of our group chose to ignore the
program entirely. This will hopefully
change in the future.
The past year also saw our group meet
with members of the P.G.A. Executive
Board to establish better lines of communi­
cation between the two groups. Our initial
meeting dealt with drawing up an im­
proved format for the Pro-Superintendent
Tournament. It is my hope that these meet­
ings will continue.
The association was also active in the
area of scholarship and research. It was my
pleasure to represent C.A.G.C.S. at the
Annual Fine Turf Conference sponsored by
the University of Massachusetts where I
presented scholarship plaques to two de­
serving students as well as a grant to Dr.
Troll. A grant was also awarded to Dr. C.
Richard Skogley at the University of Rhode
Island.
In closing I would simply like to thank
the membership for their continued sup­
port and I look forward to serving you in
the future.
Respectfully
Robert Tosh, President

2

Connecticut Association
Of Golf Course
Superintendents
Officers
President....................................Robert Tosh
Rockrimmon C.C.
Office 914-764-8846
Home 914-764-4425
Vice-President . . .............Robert Osterman
The Golf Club At Aspetuck
Office 203-261-2544
Home 203-268-9081
Sec-Treasurer.............
David Stimson
Tumble Brook C.C.
Office 203-243-0150
Home 203-289-6979
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Ed Anderson
Jim Medeiros
Ron Holcomb
Bob Viera
Ken Kelliher
Steve Cadenelli
Lloyd Russel, Associate Director
Frank Lamphier, Immediate Past President
The object of this association is to pro­
mote research, education and an exchange
of practical experiences in the field of turf
grass culture so that the increased knowl­
edge will lead to more economic and ef­
ficient management of golf courses and
related turf areas.
The CONN. CLIPPINGS is an official
publication of the Connecticut Association
of Golf Course Superintendents.
Stephen G. Cadenelli, Editor
161 W. Broad Street
Pawcatuck, Conn. 02891

Editorial
In an attempt to better organize state
government in Connecticut, Governor
Grasso earlier this year appointed a com­
mission to formulate ideas in this regard.
This commission, known as the Filer Com­
mittee, issued its preliminary discussion
draft in October. Stated simply, the com­
mittee recommends placing approximately
256 agencies into 14 superagencies with
more efficient government being the net
result. At first glance this seems accept­
able but given further thought it becomes
alarming and downright frightening.
Government is already extremely slow in
moving to action and coldly unresponsive
to the needs of the individual. Super­
agencies would create more, not less, in­
efficiency and red tape. An agency with
greater responsibilities requires more em­
ployees, more departments, and more spe­
cial interests. Thus greater bureaucracy,
not less. But even more frightening is the
thought of the Department of Agriculture
and the Experiment Station coming under

the control of the Environmental Protection
Agency.
EPA is a regulatory agency. Its duties
are to protect our environment from further
damage. It provides a much needed watch­
dog service against those who would abuse
what's left of our natural resourses, our
atmosphere, and our water supplies. This
is not to say that this agency hasn't over­
reacted at times. It has! However, to give
control of agriculture and agricultural re­
search to EPA would result in stifling the
independence needed for successful re­
search and continued advances in agricul­
ture. An independent experiment station is
required to insure residents of the state
that their needs will be handled promptly
and that those involved in scientific study
will be free to carry out their research
without outside interference. An indepen­
dent Department of Agriculture and Ex­
periment Station is a must.
S.G.C.

S & R Fund Raiser

The following is a letter which Ed Anderson received from Mr. William M.
Tuach, Greens Chairman at the Race Brook Country Club. It is a follow-up to a
tournament held there recently to raise funds for scholarship and research which
were donated to the S & R fund of C.A.G.C.S. It is hoped that this type of
tournament might be held at other courses throughout the state to help in raising
funds which are badly needed by the S & R fund.
Mr. Edward Anderson
5 Wayne Road
Wallingford, Conn. 06492
Re:

Conn. Association of Golf Course Superintendents

Dear MR. Anderson:

New Members
THE FOLLOWING HAVE BEEN VOTED
IN AS NEW MEMBERS OF OUR ASSO­
CIATION. CONGRATULATIONS AND
WELCOME!
Peter D. Burnham
Assistant Superintendent
Golf Club of Avon
Avon, Connecticut
Paul Mierzejewski
Assistant Superintendent
Farms Country Club
Wallingford, Connecticut
James H. Rowe
Fern Go Golf Car Company
Danbury, Connecticut
Thomas Porter
Alpine Tree Care, Inc.
New Canaan, Connecticut

Enclosed please find a check in the amount of $65 from the members
of Race Brook Country Club.
This check is a donation to the Scholarship
and Research Fund of the C.A.G.C.S. and represents the proceeds from a
special club tournament held on October 24, 1976.
Having learned of your recent d iffic u lt ie s in ra isin g funds for the
Scholarship and Research Fund, our Greens Committee voted to hold a special
go lf event called "Revenge" with the proceeds going to C.A.G.C.S. The
tournament was played with pin positions and tees located in places which our
members had never seen before. Prizes of f e r t iliz e r were donated by the
Greens Committee and the response was enthusiastic although weather conditions
limited our turnout. Post round conversations about 4 putt and 5 putt greens
were heard a ll through the locker room. Our members agreed that i t was a
"fun" type of tournament.
We, as golfers, are interested in the professional a c tiv itie s of your
Association as we know that Scholarship and Research Funds w ill ultimately
benefit a ll Connecticut golfers. As member of Race Brook C. C ., we support
the membership and interest in your Association through our Mr. Maurice Ryan,
Geens Supt., and MR. Armand LeSage, Assistant Greens Supt.
Race Brook Country Club hopes that other g o lf clubs in the State w ill
join us in supporting your a c tiv itie s.
Sincerely,

.

William M. Tuach, Chairman
Greens Committee
Race Brook Country Club

3

Future Happenings
Scott’s Proturf Seminar
Holiday Inn, Hartford
Thursday, December 16, 1976
9:00 A.M. to 3:00 P.M.
C.A.G.C.S. Christmas Party
Watertown Golf Club
Saturday, December 18, 1976
7:00 P.M. to 1:00 A.M.
GCSAA National Conference
Memorial Coliseum
Portland, Oregon
February 6 - 12, 1977
UMass Fine Turf Conference
Springfield Civic Center
Springfield, Massachusetts
March 2 - 4, 1977

Maples Directs
GCSAA Education

Palmer Maples, Jr. has been appointed
Director of Education for GCSAA, accord­
ing to an announcement by the Executive
Director, Conrad L. Scheetz. Maples, a
past President of the Association, will be­
gin his new duties the first of December.
His qualifications are impressive: He
has been a golf course superintendent for
17 years, first at the Charlotte (N.C.) Coun­
try Club and most recently at The Standard
Club in Atlanta. He is a certified golf
course superintendent. He completed a
two-year turf course at Abraham Baldwin
College in Tifton, Ga., and he studied
agronomy at North Carolina State College
and Texas A & M before graduating from
the University of Georgia with a Bachelor
of Science degree in agronomy.
As Director of Education, Maples will
produce and disseminate teaching aids,
coordinate the educational program for the
International Turfgrass Conference and
Show, oversee GCSAA’s certification pro­
gram, develop educational seminars and
assist with the Association’s Scholarship
and Research Fund.
A member of GCSAA for 16 years,
Maples served as Secretary-Treasurer in
1973, as Vice President in 1974 and as
President in 1975. He is currently serving
as a Director in his capacity as immediate
past President, but he will resign when he
joins the GCSAA staff.
Maples also has been a member of the
Carolinas GCSA, which he served as Vice
President and President, a member of the
Georgia GCSA, which he served as a Dir­
ector, and a member of the Southern Turfgrass Association and the USGA Green
Section Committee.
He is married and the father of six
children.
“Forefront"

Tosh Re-Elected President At Annual Meeting
Bob Tosh, superintendent at the Rockrimmon Country Club was re-elected Pres­
ident of C.A.G.C.S. at the annual meeting
held at The Woodbridge Country Club on
November 12. Also elected were Bob
Osterman, Golf Club at Aspetuck, Vice
President; Dave Stimson, Tumble Brook
Country Club, Secretary-Treasurer; Ed
Anderson, Wallingford Country Club, Dir­
ector; Bob Viera, Watertown Golf Club,
Education Chairman; Ken Kelliher, Man­
chester Country Club, Public Relations
Chairman and Jim Medeiros, H.B. Brownson Country Club, Golf Chairman. Also
voted in at this meeting was the adoption of
the revised by-laws which had been worked
on for nearly two years. These revisions,
which had been mailed to each member
and which have been discussed at several
monthly meetings, are streamlining in na­
ture. For the most part they are intended to
make the business meeting run more
smoothly and allow for more decision mak-

Grass[Continued
Catcher
from page 1]

Although the annual meeting is des­
cribed elsewhere in this issue, many
thanks must be given to Jack Lynch who
hosted the meeting at the Woodbridge
Country Club. Although few played golf
due to the coldness of the day, all that was
needed to see the fine job that Jack does
there was a short walk around the grounds.
The clubhouse there is breathtaking and is
accented by the excellence of the grounds
surrounding it. Many thanks to the mem­
bers of Woodbridge for having us there.
•••
Bob Viera posted a net score of 72 to
take the Roy McLaughlin Trophy and the
Connecticut State Golf Association trophy
which are offered annually. Although
usually played for at separate meetings, a
scheduling conflict necessitated their being
played for in October. Congragulations,
Bob!
•••
The Sprinkler Irrigation Association
voted at its annual meeting to change its
name to The Irrigation Association. This
was done “ in accordance with plans to
broaden its scope and purpose.”
•••
The 50th anniversary celebration of
GCSAA held at Sylvania Country Club in
Sylvania, Ohio, was a thorough success.
Although some discourteousness was
shown to a few of our members who at­
tended, the over-all opinion was that the
event was handled well. Arnold Palmer
speaking at the banquet, challenged golf
golf course superintendents to “aspire to
greater personal and professional
heights” . Palmer’s was a personal and
heartfelt appearance before golf superin-

ing on the part of the Board of Directors.
Also given approval was an increase in
dues for the following year. Bob Osterman,
who has acted as Budget Chairman for the
association, pointed out to the membership
that our income for the coming year would
be severely below our anticipated needs.
This was due to increased services to the
membership, greater printing and mailing
costs, and a lack in alternative methods in
raising funds. It was also noted that even
with an increase to $40.00 for regular mem­
bers and $50.00 for associate members, our
dues structure is equal or below that of
neighboring associations.
Finally, Harry Meusel volunteered to
represent the association in asking the
state DEP to lift the ban on mercury. This
has been done at the national level and
needs only to be okayed by the individual
states. Letters to the state DEP in this
regard would be of great help.
tendents in that his father was a golf course
superintendent in Ohio for many years
prior to his death this past year.
•••
On behalf of the Board of Directors of
C.A.G.C.S. I would like to extend our best
wishes to everyone for a very Merry Christ­
mas and a most prosperous New Year!

Life and Honorary
Members Elected
At Annual Meeting

The membership at the annual meeting
approved life memberships to two regular
Class A members and voted an honorary
membership to three people in the aca­
demic world. Vernon Bumam, retired
from the Country Club of Darien and Rob­
ert Capstick, who will retire from the Coun­
try Club of New Canaan at the end of this
year, were approved as Life Members of
C.A.G.C.S. These men, with a combined
total of 43 years in our association, have
served well and have been fine represen­
tatives of our association. It is hoped that
each will find every happiness in their
retirement years.
Another highlight of the annual meet­
ing was the election of William Dest, Dr. C.
Richard Skogley, and Dr. Joseph Troll as
honorary members of C.A.G.C.S. These
men from the Universities of Connecticut,
Rhode Island, and Massachusetts, respec­
tively, have contributed extraordinarily to
turf management, turf research, and to the
world of golf course superintendents in
general. It is with great pride that the
association welcomes these individuals and
looks forward to working closely with them
in the future.

4

The Following Companies Are Contributing To The Support Of The Conn. Clippings:
ALFCO, INC.
P. O. Box 267
Marietta, Ohio 45750
Frank Downey, CAGCS member
(413) 596-3009
John Murphy
(203) 325-0967

I & E SUPPLY INC.
66 Erna Avenue
P. O. Box 9
Milford, Conn. 06460
Richard W. Smith, CAGCS member
Richard W. Hosking, CAGCS member
(203) 878-0658

ALLEN SEED STORE, INC.
South County Trail
Slocum, R. I. 02877
Howard Allen
(401) 294-2722

THE MAGOVERN CO.
Windsor Locks, Conn. 06096
Lloyd Russell, CAGCS member
(203) 623-2608
Curtis Stimson, CAGCS member
(203) 255-2817

ANDERSON-WARNER
ENGINEERING CO., INC.
Turf Irrigation
164 Nod Road
Avon, Conn. 06001
Jesse Anderson, CAGCS member
(203) 677-0225

METRO MILOGRANITE, INC.
P. O. Box 267
Hawthorne, New York 10532
John Wistrand, CAGCS member
(914) 769-7600

CHAS. C. HART COMPANY
304 Main Street
Wethersfield, Conn. 06109
Robert Kennedy, CAGCS member
(203) 529-2537

OLD FOX CHEMICAL CO.
Hazardville, Conn. 06082
John Grant, CAGCS member
P. O. Box 62
Pleasant Valley, Conn. 06063
(203) 379-3579

CLORO-SPRAY
Div. Henry E. Sanson & Sons, Inc.
475 Beaver Street
Bristol, Penn. 19007
E. J. Sanson, CAGCS member
Frank Paladino
(212) 338-2153

O. M. SCOTT & SONS
Pro Turf Division
Marysville, Ohio 43040
Al Arison, CAGCS member
(203) 336-9890

FERN CLO GOLF CAR CO.
5 Shelter Rock Rd.
Danbury, Conn. 06810
James H. Rowe, Jr.
(203) 744-7757

THE POWERHOUSE
Rte. 6 & Dingle Ridge Road
Brewster, New York 10509
Russ LeClair, CAGCS member
(203*879-7183

TOM IRWIN, INC.
11 B A Street
Burlington, Mass 01803
John Callahan, CAGCS member
(203) 677-7054
TURF PRODUCTS CORP.
1496 John Fitch Blvd.
South Windsor, Conn. 06074
Roy Sibley, CAGCS member
Gary Bryant, CAGCS member
(203) 289-3471
VALLEY FARMS TURF NURSERY
Box 81
Avon, Connecticut 06001
Joe Bidwell, CAGCS member
(203) 658-6886

WHITE TURF, INC.
5 Summer Drive
Winchendon, Mass. 01475
William E. Usinger
(203) 434-8629

Please Support These Companies
FIRST CLASS
«MAILED BY

THE LETTER HOUSE
98 Huntington Street
I New London, CT« 06320

M I C H I G A N S T A T E UNI
L I B R A R Y - S E R I AI S
E . L A N S I N G , MI C H. 4 8 8 2 4

¥ y ¥ ¥ ¥ ¥ V ¥ ¥ ¥ ¥

CONN. CLIPPINGS
Stephen G. Cadenelli, Editor
161 W. Broad Street
Pawcatuck, Conn. 02891

3*

SOMERS TURF SUPPLIES
P. O. Box 294
Devon, Conn. 06460
Bill Somers, CAGCS member
(203) 878-2108