SEPTEMBER 1971

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OF

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^SuperintendenI
NEW

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E N G L A N D ,

55ociation
INC.

Sponsors a n d administrators of the Lawrence S.
Dickinson Scholarship Fund — A w a r d e d yearly
to deserving Turf Management Students.

B O W L I N G ALLEYS OR POLO FIELDS????
How wide should a fairway b e ?
There seems to be much disagreement on the answer. One
golfer might feel the premium of his game should be placed
on accuracy, in which case he'd call for the superintendent
to let the roughs grow in so that the hitting area resembles
a bowling alley. On the other hand, where length is proclaimed the most important asset, the golfer would lean to the
cutting down of rough to the point where the fairway looks
like a polo field.
As a matter of reason, there is no true answer to the width
of the fairway, although there has been some evidence of
country clubs leaning toward bringing them in to make for
more champion-like conditions.
The decision has been placed, for the most part, in the
hands of a few. Usually, the grounds or green committee takes
it upon themselves to determine the character of the golf
course. If, for instance, they are comprised of low handicap
players, they might tend to favor the more narrow hitting
areas . . . whereas the average golfer is liable to support a
wider target to coincide with his ability.
A recent survey of selected British courses . . . as reported
in " T h e British Golf Greenkeeper" . . . reveals that some of
the fairways measured were wandering in widths of more
than 70 yards. And on the other hand, there were found fairways that squeezed in as tight as 20 yards.

PRESIDENT'S M E S S A G E
The August meeting of Green Chairmen and Golf Course
Superintendents was played in the rain and in sub-tropical
weather. Despite the unfavorable weather conditions a fine
time was enjoyed by all.
The golf course was in excellent condition and the club
house manager, Mr. J o e Conlon, provided an excellent dinner
for all. The excellent golf course, the steak dinner and the
friendly hospitality of Vesper was most appreciated.
Dr. Joseph Troll of the University of Massachusetts gave
a brief talk on why funds are needed to establish a good research program at the University of Massachusetts. This program is long overdue and it would seem that those Green
Chairmen in attendance would carry back the word to their
respective clubs that funds are needed for research in Massachusetts. The Chairman of the Twin Hills C. C. in Longmeadow,
Mr. Nuger, said he would pledge $100.00 from his club. Hopefully, other clubs will follow his example. Every golf course
should contribute — an 18-hole course a minimum of $100.00.
Many clubs will probably want to contribute more.
Let's all get behind this program for research — put it in
the budget. It's the clubs' responsibility to support research.
— Richard C. Blake

The general feeling appears to center around an average of
40 y a r d s as the width of the fairway. Then, too, there is a
trend to treat the fairway as some kind of a barometer for
the ability of the player. The hitting area might be narrowed
around the 220-yard mark and widened back at 150 yards
or so in order to produce a degree of fairness.
One of the unpardonable sins of some committees, though,
is the complete disregard for the playing ability of the club's
typical golfer. Many courses, built in the last 10 years, concentrated on length, which added to the woes of the high
handicapper. Now, on that same course, we find committee
members tinkering with the idea of cutting the width of the
fairways in half.
It has been noticed, too, that television has come to influence those w.ho are to determine this ticklish question. Recently, the United States Open was staged on a " v e r y tight" layout
at Merion. It should be noted, however, that Merion also was
a relatively short course. But, as the scores of the world's
top pros indicated, members playing Merion under the same
conditions would soon learn to despise it.
Of course, the ideal situation would be to have a composite
of all the outstanding courses which are exposed to committee members by T V or personal visits. Then, a happy medium
might be reached.
Also, it should be noted . . . as one superintendent suggested . . . that the entire membership sooner or later makes
their feelings known. " I realize one thing", he laughed, " I f
my committee tells me to let the rough grow in and turn our
course into another Merion, it won't take the rest of the members long to seek me out with a blast. In turn I shall return
them to the committee . . . and the odds are overwhelming
. . . that I would be told to get the fairways back to reasonable width a g a i n . "
The fairways, then, can pose a unique problem other than
the accepted one of keeping them in playing condition. Happily, the superintendent is not involved in the decision to make
them bowling alleys or polo fields. For once, he's in the clear.
— Gerry Finn

Nominating Committee for 1972
Chairman, Norman Mucciarone; N a r y Sperandio, John
Morse, Burt Fredrick, David Clement. The nominating committee should have the proposed slate ready for publication 60
days prior to the election which will be December 6, 1971.
Delegate to National G.C.S.A.A. — Tom Curran.
Advisory Committee Delegate — Wayne Zoppo.
Both to act as alternates for each other.

ourde

J ^ u p e r i n t e n d e n t d

^^Iddocicition

KEEP 'EM ROLLING . . . A FALLACY

NEXT MEETING

There's a new cry wandering through the vocal chords of
country club green chairmen, and it has to bug the superintendent.
Maybe it's happening only in isolated cases, but this concept
of keeping the golf cart rolling, in all kinds of weather, must
be nipped in the bud before it gets out of control.
In the beginning of the golf cart it was understood that the
super held the last word as to the feasibility of allowing its
use during or after adverse weather conditions. After all, despite the members' taunts concerning the superintendent's fear
for the safety of his turf, it still was considered sound to have
him cast the deciding vote as to when and where . . . and in
what manner the golf cart should be used.
Slowly but surely this grasp of the situation is slipping away
from the superintendent. In some instances he has made a
ruling against the use of golf carts on the grounds it would
be detrimentaTfo the condition of the course and Tttohg comes
a chairman who overrules him.
"That's all right with me", spouted one confused super. " I f
the chairman wants to assume full responsibility for the condition of the golf course, then he can allow the carts to roll
at midnight. However, when the same chairman snaps back
at me and complains about turf injury, brought about by flagrant misuse of the golf cart, then it's time for others in the
line of command at the club to take notice."
It has been tossed in as ammunition by opponents of the
superintendent's theory that restricting the carts to the rough
makes their use practically 100 percent harmless, even when
the course is saturated with water.
"That really is not the answer", the same super returned.
" I can show you where cart users travel the same path, over
and over again, through the rough. In some places the grass
has been matted down so much that severe compaction has
occurred. And now I must add the burden of keeping the
rough green to the already complex job of keeping the fairways in suitable playing condition."
There is further room for the superintendent to question
some of the questionable actions of the chairman's release
of golf carts. One other area is the so-called "selective permission to use carts." This involves occasions when 10 or 12
carts are allowed on the course to certain members because

The next meeting of the G.C.S.A. of N.E. will be at the
South Shore Country Club on September 20, 1971. There will
be golf after 11:00 A. M. and the snack bar will be open. Dinner will be served at 7 P. M. and a regular and directors' meeting will be held prior to that.
11:00 A . M .
Golf — Super-championship
4:30 P.M.
Directors' Meeting
5:00 P . M .
Regular Meeting
6:00 P . M .
Cocktails
Dinner
7:00 P.M.
A1 Auger is the super in charge of
the South Shore layout and has been
so for the past ten years. Prior to
that he was the assistant at Concord
C. C. under Nary Sperandio, and before that a laborer at Framingham
e r John " Sperandio. Ai h a s
done much renovation to the 50-yearold course. Wayne E. Styles was the
designer. The most recent renovation
is the complete redesigning of the
number 5 hole by Al Auger and owner Philip Farina. For the past two years the course has been
private and before that it was semi-private.
Directions —

Again this tangles the outlook of the super. "This happened
to me several times", the involved super pleaded. "After I
had issued the decision against the use of carts, I was confronted by walking members who wanted to know why a
'select few' were allowed to ride and the rest of the membership had to abide by the original rule."
Of course, the whole thing boils down to the confidence the
country club has in its superintendent. Surely, it must realize
that the super is the ultimate judge in the matter of determining when the course is leaving itself open to damage . . .
whether it be from the use of golf carts or the playing of the
layout by walking members.
It's time for the country club . . . and the public courses
. . . to restore faith in the superintendent. They should finalize their stand on just who calls the shots on the use of the
golf course. If they shy away from that decision, they should
be prepared to accept the consequences.
— Gerry Finn
President —
R I C H A R D C. BLAKE
211 Sewall Street
Boylston, Mass. 01505
Phone 869-2737
Club Affilii
M t . Pleasant Country C l u b

First Vice President —
Second Vice President —
'ROBERT G R A N T
THOMAS GURRAN
22 Patricia Road
153 Fisher Street
Sudbury, Mass. 01776
Walpole, Mass. 02081
Phone 443-26^1
Phone 668-7221
Club Affilii
b Affilii
Brae Burn Country C l u b
The Country Club

Treasurer —
LUCIEN DUVAL
R.F. No. 5 Gault Road
Bedford. N. H . 03105
Phone 472-3454
Club Affilii
i Hunt Club
Manchester Country Club

Secretary —
W A Y N E ZOPPO
48 Barberry Drive
Seekonk, Mass.
Phone 399-7141

A „.
9

Trustee —
Trustee —
Trustee —
RONALD KIRKMAN
ROBERT M U C C I A R O N E
NORMAN MUCCIARONE
25 Green Street
465 Summer Street '
101 Alban Road
Needham, Mass. 02T92
Westwood. Mass. 02090
W a b a n . Mass. 02168
Phone 444-8412
Phone 329-9682
Phone 332-3056
Club Affil
Club Affilii
Club Affili
Needham Golf Club
Dedham Country and Polo Club
W o o d l a n d Country Club

Finance Chairman —
NARY SPERANDIO
Concord, Mass. 01742
Phone 369-4723
Club Affiliation
Concord Country Club

OF
S O U N D

OFF!!!!

(Here we are again ready to unload the gems and germs
which hit this office through our Sound Off contributors. Remember, everyone is invited to take part in this monthly feature. The subject can be anything on golf . . . from the taming
of poa annua to the use of the cross-handed grip in putting.
Names and clubs will be withheld upon request. So, don't be
bashful. Send your views to Newsletter Mail Box, 24 Riverview
Drive, Newbury, Mass. 01950. The Newsletter reserves the
right to comment on all letters published.)
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" I ' m writing this in the hope that perhaps I can assemble
enough allies among my fellow superintendents to help stamp
out a creeping problem with labor, time, etc.
" S o m e of the members at my club feel that the greens should
be mowed every Sunday morning," that is, in addition to the
six other mornings on which my crew mows them. Since play
begins at our club at 8 on a Sunday morning (and from both
the first and 10th t e e s ) , I have tried to explain that it would
be a physical impossibility to cut the greens without causing
the golfers inconvenience.
"Certainly, the greens are entitled to one day of rest from
the regular scalping they receive. A m I being too unreasonable in my thinking on this subject, or does everyone mow
their greens on S u n d a y s ? "
JACK DALTON
(Course Withheld)
A quick poll of our panel of experts came up with this jingle,
Jack: " N e v e r on a Sunday."
•X*
*
*
" Y o u might call me an irate member of m y club, and if my
gripe seems to make me out that way I guess I'll have to wear
such a reputation.
"Anyway, I have been playing golf here for the last 10 years
or so, and it often occurs to me that the club should give our
women players more of an opportunity to better our scores
by setting up special women's tees.
" M a y b e they do it here because our course is relatively
short and doesn't require the strength that some of the others
do. However, I'm told that not too long ago there were ladies
tees on our course but they were left to grow over. Eventually, they disappeared and now we girls must hit off the 'white
or regular tees, just like the men.
" I don't know the reason for this. Perhaps you can help.
If there were ladies tees on the course in the first place, how
come they were allowed to become overgrown and eventually
phased o u t ? "
GERTRUDE SIEBERLING
Somers, S . C.
W e have two answers for you, Miss or is it Mrs. Sieberling?
First, the club's budget might have kayoed your tees or else
some wise guy on the green committee took this women's lib
thing too seriously.
" S u r e , get ready to laugh at me for bringing this up. But
I am going out of my mind playing golf, not to mention going
out of my financial worth because of my predicament.
" W h a t has happened is that my club has built two ponds to
serve as hazards on what used to be two of my favorite golf
holes. Since the ponds were put into play, m y game score has
zoomed and my pocketbook has shrunk.
" M y question perhaps is a silly one. But, it relates to what
you think is the limit on the number of golf balls a player
Golf Chairman —
JULIUS AKSTEN
6 Main Street
Southboro, Mass. 01772
Phone 4B5-8885
Club Affiliation
St. Mark's Golf Club

Educational Chairman —
ALBERT A U G E R
6 A Fort Hill Street
Hingham. Mass. 021 13
Phone 749-2272
Club Affiliation
South Shore Country Club

Newsletter Chairman —
DEAN ROBERTSON
24 Riverview Drive
Newbury, Mass. 019S0
Club Affiliation
Chestnut Hill Country Club

NEW

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should plunk into a single pond at one time. L a s t week, for
example, I heard of another member who lost nine balls before he put his 10th on the green.
"Surely, the U S G A would frown on the suggestion of taking
the ball and carrying it to the other side of the pond. But this
hole measures around 190 yards and you have to be a gorilla
to clear the p o n d ! "
RANDY CLEAVER
Johnson, L . I.
The only thing we can say to you is see your pro, Randy
. . . or start taking a body-building exercise course.
*

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v:-

" I am a superintendent in a fairly affluent club and feel
that maybe I have reason to make known a complaint.
" T h i s is strictly something between me and my club. It
concerns the fact that they refuse to hire a mechanic as part
of my work crew. As far as I'm concerned this is ridiculous.
" I have made it known to my committee members that I
have neither the desire nor the inclination to perform the
duties of a mechanic. They have come back with the view
that the superintendent should make it his business to learn
about such things.
" R i g h t now we're in the middle of our busiest season since
the course opened a few years ago. We have two or three
tournaments a week and my time has been hard to come by
in the matter of stopping to look at a golf cart breakdown or
sprinkler head injury. Isn't it about time my club smartened
up and got me a fulltime m e c h a n i c ? "
(Name Withheld)
Anywhere, U. S . A.
Y o u have a right to make a lot of noise on this. Certain
country clubs seeYn to think that the golf course superintendent
must be a man with 1,000 hats. A s it is now, the super wears
around 100. There is no reason why a club can't hire a fulltime
mechanic. In the long run it will find it least expensive. The
super has enough on his mind trying to keep the members
happy with a well-groomed layout. W h e n he has to desert
this to study some mechanical manual, it's time to throw in
the towel.
»
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(On that long-winded reply, Sound Off slips away for another
month. But we'll be back, hopefully with a letter from you.)

R. Sweed (left), Green Chairman, and W . Carter (right), Superintendent Foxboro Country Club.

Past President —
A N T H O N Y C A R A N C I , JR.
22 Hillview Drive
No. Providence. R. I. 02900
Phone 723-1688
Club Affiliation
Ledgemont Country Club

GOLF R E S U L T S AT VESPER
SUPER-CHAIRMAN TOURNAMENT
Lo'w Gross — Bill Carter, R. Sweed
67
Low Net — Ken Mooradian, R . Phillips 70
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. W e would appreciate a credit line.

IPCccue

FRIENDS OF THE ASSOCIATION
Magovern Company, Inc.
Lawn A c r e R o a d
Windsor Lock, Conn.

Agrico Chemical Company
R. D. Sibley, J r . , Representative
375 Power Rd.
Pawtucket, Rhode Island 02860

F a r m B u r e a u Association
158 Lexington St., Waltham, M a s s . 02154
F r e d Heyliger, Representative
T h o m a s F . Grummell, Representative

Alfco Rokeby Co., Inc.
Fertilizers and Chemical Specialties
P . O. B o x 267, Marietta, Ohio

Fisk, Alden F o r d Tractor Sales
Rear 900 Providence Highway
Dedham, Mass. 02026

Allen's S e e d Store, Inc.
South County T r a i l Rt. No. 2
Slocum, Rhode Island
Charles Allen, J r . , Rep.

Manuel F r a n c i s and Son, Inc.
Turf Nurseries
624 Webster St., Marshfield, Mass.

B a k e r Tractor Corp., F o r d Tractors
Harley Davidson Golf Cars
Swansea, Massachusetts

Ron G a g n e — Scotts Golf Course Div.
45 Mechanic St., A p t . 1A
Foxboro, Mass. 02035

Old F o x Chemical Inc.
Fertilizers — Seeds — Turf Chemicals
66 Valley Street
E a s t Providence, Rhode Island 02914

The Charles C. H a r t S e e d Co.
Richard M c G a h a n , R e p .
Wethersfield, Conn.

Gold S t a r S o d F a r m s , Inc.
(Canterbury, New H a m p s h i r e )
( S a l e s Office) 1265 Mass. Ave.
Lexington, Mass. 02173 Tel. 861-1111

Sil Paulini, Inc.
6, Manor Avenue
Natick, M a s s . 01760

Corenco Corporation
525 Woburn Street
Tewksbury, Mass. 01876
William F e r r i s

Grounds Equipment Co., Inc.
383 Boylston St., Newton Cen., M a s s .
-Tlellisteft-TjaBd-'
Lowland Street,
S a n d for Golf 1

^ThB-Qapper-CxK—

1121 Washington St.
West Newton, Mass.

* Geoffrey S . Cornish
Golf Course Architect
Fiddler's Green, Amherst,

Mass.

George E . Cull
Terra-Green Soil Conditioner
112 Green St., Abington, M a s s .
Arthur Curran
Rock Driller S u p p l y Equipment, Inc.
20 E . Glenwood Ave.
Hyde P a r k , Mass. 02136
C. S . Curran
T . R . C. Products, Oils and Greases
7 Linden St., F r a m i n g h a m , M a s s .
Eastern Industrial Handling Co., Inc.
44 Industrial Way, P . O. B o x 122
Norwood, Mass. 02062
F a i r w a y Equipment, Inc.
S a l e s — Service — Rentals
35 Walnut St., Reading, Mass.
:

—fee;
, Mass. 01746
nd T r a p s

Irrigation and E q u i p m e n t S u p p l y Co.
P . O. B o x 9, 66 E r n a Avenue
Milford, Conn. 06460
Telephone ( 2 0 3 ) 874-1096
* T o m Irwin, Inc.
11B A Street
Burlington, Mass.

D. L . M a h e r Co.
Water Supply Contractors
P . O. B o x 274, Woburn, M a s s .
New E n g l a n d Sealcoating Co., Inc.
Astroturf, Tennis Courts, Pavement
Sealcoating — H i n g h a m Industrial Center
Hingham, Mass. Tel. 749-3236

Richey & Clapper, Inc.
28 Rutledge R o a d
Natick, Mass. 01760
~ Trencher
E q u i p m e n t t e a s i n g , Incr
Ditch Witch Trenchers
38 Fairview St., A g a w a m , M a . 01001
Phone 413-781-4600

= = =

* S a w t e l l e Brothers
J e t . Routes 128 and 62
Danvers, M a s s .
S h e p a r d S o d Company
Merion B l u e Grass and Pencross Bent
200 Sullivan Ave., So. Windsor, Conn.

K a r a n d r e w Turf F a r m s , Inc.
S a m Mitchell, S a l e s Representative
15 Longmeadow Drive, Canton, Mass.

Tuco Products Co.
Division of the U p j o h n
Kalamazoo, Michigan

The Kenneth B a r r i e Company
Irrigation
375 Centre St., J a m a i c a Plain, M a s s .

White Turf Engineering
5 Sumner Drive, Winchendon, M a . 01475
617-297-0941

Larchmont Irrigation Co.
Larchmont Ln., Lexington,

Philip A. Wogan
Golf Course Architect
21 Budleigh Ave., Beverly,

Mass.

Mallinckrodt Chemical Works
Second and Mallinckrodt Streets
St. Louis, Mo. 63160

Company

Mass.

Wyandotte Chemical Co.
709 S a l a d a Bldg., Boston, M a s s .

Contributors to the Lawrence S. Dickinson Scholarship Fund

SEP-971

iV-

it

HD 174175

C^ourAe Superintendents -Association
OF NEW IMLIRt, INC

DEAN ROBERTSON
Newsletter Committee Chairman
24 Riverview Drive
Newbury, Massachusetts 01950
Phone 462-4540
Club Affiliation
Chestnut Hill Country Club
LEON V. ST. PIERRE
Business Manager
GERRY FINN
Contributing Editor

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