August 1982
ourSe Superintendents
OF

NEW

~>upt-Association

E N G L A N D ,

I N C .

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

Never a Dull Moment
The milestone was reached without ceremony, pomp or
circumstance.
The other day, Norm Mucciarone looked at the calendar
on his office wall at the Woodland Country dub and made

•

Norm looking over the clubhouse

grounds.

NEXT MEETING

Tuesday, August 10, 1982
Dedham Polo and Country Club
Dedham, Mass.
Director's meeting 10 a.m.
Regular meeting 10:45 a.m.
Lunch
Golf - Superintendent team of two
championship (full handicap)
Host - Bobby Mucciarone

H I

Bobby has been superintendent
at Dedham for the past twenty two ;. -. <1
j
years. Prior to coining to Dedham
he was at Merrimack for five years.
m^m
Bobby has served GCSANE in
many different capacities over the
years and remains very active in
the association. We all look forward to playing a well-conditioned
golf course.
DIRECTIONS
From route 128 take route 109 west. Take first right
(Grove St.) go straight approx. 1 mile. The club will
be on the left.
RESERVATIONS
Please call if you are planning to come. Call Bobby
at 326-7860.

m

a significant discovery.
\ "Well, I'll be darned," the veteran golf course superintendent told himself. "This is my 30th year here. That's
cause for celebration. I guess I'll go out and cut the
greens."
If 30 years under the same professional roof seems like
a long time, it doesn't form a ripple of a wave with Mucciarone. Norm's one of those down-to-earth, dedicated superintendents who plunges into each day's work as if it were
his first.
"There's just too much to do, especially at Woodland,'
he explained. "We're one of the most popular golf courses
around. And when the play is heavy, you can't take time
out to mark something that reflects sentiment. I've been
here 30 years and expect to be here many more. In fact,
I'm just getting my second wind."
Mucciarone is a paradox of sorts. He's out of the old
school, having launched his career shortly after World
War H. Y e t he appreciates what youth and exuberance
bring to his profession.
" I have a lot of old fashioned ideas and I still use some
of them in my work," he said. "However, I'mnot adverse
to change and modern methods. My only gripe is that
we're into too much gadget stuff. One little piece of equipment breaks down and it throws you into a stalemate. But
that's our technological world. Sometimes, I'd rather have
a horse pulling a gang mower. All you have to do to keep
him going is feed him.''
Mucciarone got his start in the turf-grooming business
after two attempts at other types of livelihood. After serving two years in the Navy, he gave oil burner school a look
and then moved onto plastics school. Needless to say, neither venture impressed him.
"That's when I joined Tony Sperandio at Franklin," he
disclosed. "And the first thing Tony did was direct me to
turf school at UMass. We had a good class up there, too.
One of my classmates was Leon St. Pierre (Longmeadow).
Several others came out of it and into responsible jobs."
Norm followed Tony to Framingham as his assistant,
moved up to head superintendent at Marlboro for two
years, spent three more at Lexington and then got the call
from Woodland where the challenge was right down his
alley.
"The course was going under, financially, shortly after I
arrived there," Norm recalled. "But it was bailed out.
They brought in Geoff Cornish (architect) for some redesigning and I worked with him to shape up the course. In
addition to finning up its foundation, we got a maintenance program in full swing. The results came around boy did they ever."
Woodland made the transition from a little-used layout
to a full-brafflc course that inspired a population explosion. This put Mucciarone into a virtual around-the-clock
grooming pattern and he's remained in it ever since.
"The play is so heavy here that I practically have to
fight for time to keep the course in shape," Norm told. "My
crew has to start cutting greens at 5:30 in the morning becontinued

on page 2

Cjolf

(Gourde

Superintendents

Sssociation

Scratch does it all
His boss coats him with a unique descriptive "prime
time."
And in the lexicon of Framingham Country Club golf
course superintendent Chuck Lane, that term says it all of
Dick "Scratch" Petty.
"Scratch is just a darned,
good worker," Lane amplified. "Ever since I've known
him, he's come here every
day ready to do any job I
hand Mm. He's 'prime time',
all right. I'm just glad to have
him."
Petty numbers himself
among the legions of faceless
individuals who make up the
supporting cast in the conditioning and grooming of the
golf course. He's been at it
for 28 years but kisses off his Scratch, in the line of
unqualified dedication to his duty, fixing another water
work as just another, insig- line break.
nificant turn of life's cycle.
Strangely, Scratch never has expanded his vocational
aspirations beyond his present station. Obviously, he
could have taken an ambitious tug on his talents and
moved into the superintendent's field.
"I had a notion to go to school at one time," he disclosed. "It was in the back of my mind but I never could
move it to the front. Actually, I'm content to be where I
am. I'm doing all right, too. I really don't know how I could
handle taking my job home with me."
In a curious way, Scratch enjoys the best of his two
worlds. While he pulls full time as Lane's assistant at
Framingham, he also is a member of the Marlboro Country
Club where he plays golf Saturdays and Sundays. In fact,
he's on that club's board of directors.
Technically speaking, he's one of MCC superintendent
Glen Ackley's bosses. However, he shrugs that off.
"I'm not on the green committee," Scratch remarked.
"So, I never give Glen a hard time. How could I, anyway?
Have you seen the course? He does a helluva job there.
He's tops."
Scratch, who was born and brought up in Marlboro, got
into the golf course maintenance business by chance.
"I was at a gas station one day and bumped into an old
pal, John Sperandio, who was the super at Marlboro,"
Scratch revealed. "He asked me to come up to the course
and work for him and I've been at it ever since."
That was in 1954. Four years later, Sperandio took the
F r a m i n g h a m superintendent's position and Scratch went
with him. He also stayed there, working under three other
supers until Lane took over.
There also was a time when Scratch divided his time between working on golf courses and caddying in the winter
in Phoenix.
That lasted for 15 years and proved another interesting
facet of his life.
"I worked strictly at the Phoenix Country Club," he informed. "So, when the PGA tour tournament came there, I
got a bag."
Some of the players Scratch attended deserve mention.
Among them were Arnold Palmer, Ken Venturi, LawsonLittle, Lew Worsham, Mike Souchak, Jimmy Deimaret and
Paul Harney.
PRESIDENT
Brian Cowan CGCS
Robins Way
Harwich. Mass 02645
Home Phone 432-9041
Otlioe Phone 945-9230
Club Affiliation
Eastward Ho

FIRST VICE PRESIDENT
Donald Hearn CGCS
4TopekaRd.
Chelsmford, Mass 01824
Home Phone 256-8709
Office Phone 894-5906
Club Affiliation
Weston Golf Club

SECOND VICE PRESS
David Barber CGCS
145 Dedham St.
Canton, Mass. 02021
Home Phone 828-7266
Office Phone 828-6540
Club Affiliation
Blue Hills C.C.

"In those days, you couldn't make a good living caddying," Scratch told. "So, come spring and I'd make it back
to New England. After 1963 I stayed here in the winter.
That's when I became full time at Framingham."
Petty, 55 and a confirmed bachelor, mixes his life as a
golf course assistant super and player very well, thank
you.
Check out his Saturday agenda: He goes to work at 6
a.m., leaves at 9 for a golfing date at Marlboro and then returns late in the evening to change the cups at Framingham.
During the recent Marlboro Senior Classic, Scratch was
scheduled to caddy for Palmer. However, Arnold brought
his own bag toter, so Scratch changed the cups for each
day of play instead.
"I was just helping out a good buy (Ackley)," he explained. "That's what this business is all about, isn't it?
The suDerintendents in our area are just great and if I can
help them in any way, I do it."
Does Scratch ever do an "if I had only done this" replay
on his life?
"Never," he concluded. "In a way, I've just about done
everything I ever wanted to do. Right now, I have a good
job, work for a good boss and get a chance to play golf.
That's not a bad scenario for a guy who never went beyond high school."
Who could ask for anything more? Certainly not
Scratch Petty.
Gerry Finn

Never a dull moment

continued

from

page 1

cause the golfers start coming out at 7:30. This creates a
drawback in my program because I know there's no way
of catching up on everything that has to be done.''
Although his budget at Woodland is adequate, Norm
says it never comes easy.
"The members here are aware of my needs but I have to
fight for everything I get in the way of operating funds,'' he
revealed. "I've found that most golfers are reluctant to increase budgets, so I have to be prepared when I go into
session with them."
Norm still plays a pretty fair game of golf. However, he
has neither the time nor the opportunity to hone it at
Woodland.
"No kidding," he quipped, "My course is so crowded, I
can't get on it. Most of the time I play my golf at Dedham
with my brother (Bob Mucciarone, super there). That
proves just how many players get out at Woodland."
Norm has been an active member of the New England
Golf Course Superintendents Association, having served
on many committees with important assignments. And
the NEGCSA is very close to him.
"I seldom miss a meeting," he remarked. "And that's
been going on since Ifirstjoined when I was working in
Lexington. I like the way the group is progressing with new
and young people taking over the responsible administrative tasks.
There's another Mucciarone on the Woodland scene
and it appears that the name could be perpetuated in the
superintendent's files.
"My son, David is my assistant," Norm disclosed. "But
that doesn't mean I'm looking to pass out of the picture.
The 30-year mark is just another step along the way. Next
time I look at the calendar it'll probably tell me I've been
here 35. And I'm still going strong. I love it."
Gerry Finn

SECRETARY
TREASURER
Richard C. Zepp
Pete Coste' CGCS
27 Fowler Rd.
121 Granite St.
Northbridge, Mass. 01534 Medfield, Mass. 02052
Home Phone 234-8490
Home Phone 359-7247
Office Phone 234-2533
Office Phone 566-0240
Club Affiliation
Club Affiliation
Whitinsville G. C.
The Country Club

TRUSTEE
Tom Schofield CGCS
290 North Rd.
Sudbury, Mass. 01776
Home Phone 443-3712
Office Phone 235-7333
Club Affiliation
Wellesley C.C.

TRUSTEE
Paul Miller
173 Salem St.
Swampscott, Mass 01907
Home Phone 581-2808
Office Phone 595-3107
Club Affiliation
Tedesco C.C.

TRUSTEE
Stephen A. Chiavoroli Jr.
100 Airport Dr.
Worcester, Mass. 01602
Home Phone 752-6031
Office Phone 791-5373
Club Affiliation
Tatnuk C.C.

FINANCE
CHAIRMAN
Robert Johnston CGCS
128 Wilbraham Rd.
Hampden, Mass 01036
Home Phone 566-3075
Office Phone 566-3096
Club Affiliation
Hampden C.C.

OF

Divot Drift...Things got

off to a rocky start on the
first tee at Vesper when host Bert Frederick was run over
by a golf cart. Bert escaped serious injury saying it was
only a flesh wound. We won't mention who ran him
over...Scott's new product Insecticide 4 containing isofenphos is now available...Joel McKoan has been building
quite a reputation thanks to our column. Reports have
been sent to usfromthe Rhode Island and New Hampshire
superintendents group that Joel has taken some hefty
blows and caught all air there as well. One of his playing
partners (who shall remain nameless) stated that he
should have the nickname "Give me a six" McKoan...Upcoining are the Boston Five LPGA Classic at Ferncroft,
Paul Johnson, supt. and the U.S. Amateur at The Country
Club in Brookline, Pete Coste, supt...Finally our thanks to
Bert Frederick and his staff at Vesper for a wonderful day.

N E W

E N G L A N D ,

I N C .

July Meeting Results
We had a large turnout at Vesper. The course as usual,
was in excellent condition.
This was the Individual Championship and Paul Miller of
Tedesco won with a 76. Second was Brian Cowan with an
80. The big net winner was Steve Murphy of Gannon with a
66. Joe Rybka was second with 67. In the seniors division
there was a tie between the Mucciarone brothers (Bobby
and Norman). The commercial winner was Steve Butler of
Larchmont and Larry Bunn of R.F. Morse was second.

Insect Update - July 9, 1982
The record breaking rains of June appear to have affected turf insect activity. White grab populations
dropped dramaticallyfromlate April to late June. We put
out some insecticide trails in severed locations, and in
each case we observed a drop of at least 50%fromApril to
June. I suspect this was because the heavy rains left the
soil saturated for several days. When soil is saturated, air
(and more importantly, oxygen) is forced out of the pores,
and small invertebrates have trouble breathing. Worms
crawl to the surface to breathe, but grubs do not have
that option. Anyway, the grubs apparently faced a severe
oxygen deficit and many did not survive. Unfortunately,
the survivors may very well be numerous enough to produce damaging populations of grubs anyway, so be on the
lookout, especially in perennial trouble spots.
We have been collecting samples weekly to trace the
development of the Hyperodes weevil and the black turfgrass Ataenius (dung beetle). The Hyperodes weevil has
finished itsfirstgeneration and the young adults are out
now. They should be laying eggs by mid July and a second
round of damage may become evident in some areas
around the end of July orfirstweek of August. Generally
treatment after the damage has been noticed is not as efficient as treatments made during egg laying, because once
the damage is noticeable, most of the insects are in the
largest larval stages and they are the most difficult stages
to kill. In some extreme cases, such "emergency" treatments might provide some relief. Hyperodes weevil development appears to be about a week later than I would expect in a "normal" year, and I suspect the heavy rains are
responsible for the delay.
Black turfgrass Ataenius (dung beetle) larvae are showing up in large numbers this week. Many have already progressed to the second instar (stage), and the third instar
(most damaging) should predominate by mid July in most
locations. By the time this appears in press, it probably
will be too late to get good control with any chemicals.
The larvae appear to be right at the soil line, which is a bit
shallower than usual. This is probably because the turf
roots are very shallow this year, again because of the
June rains. The young adults should be active by late July
or early August, and some areas may see a second period
of larval feeding in mid August. In most cases, the August
feeding should not cause significant loss of turf.
If you have any questions about insect problems, feel
free to give me a call.
Pat Vittum 617-891-0650
Suburban Experiment Station
240 Beaver St., Waltham, MA 02254

To be voted at Dedham
Andrew St. Pierre of Ould Newbury
Richard Caughey of Meadowbrook
GOLF CHAIRMAN
Stephen M. Murphy
75 Woodland Ave.
Lynn, Mass. 01904
Home Phone 592-2554
Office Phone 592-8238
Club Affiliation
The Cannon G.C.

EDUCATIONAL CHAIRMAN
Antone DeBettencourt
7 Country Club Ln.
Merrimack, N.H. 03054
Home Phone 603-424-5380
Office Phone 475-6638
Club Affiliation
Andover C.C.

NEWSLETTER CHAIRMAN
Douglas W. Johnson, CGCS
50 Newton St.
Weston, Mass. 02193
Home Phone 894-7377
Office Phone 893-8264
Club Affiliation
Pine Brook C.C.

PAST PRESIDENT
Ronald Kirkman
25 Green St.
Needham, Mass 02192
Home Phone 444-8412
Office Phone 444-5548
Club Affiliation
Needham Golf Club

The winners (1-r) Paul Miller,

Steve Butter,

Steve

Murphy.

A good looking group of Bert Frederick, our host, Dennis
Friel of Tom Irwin Co., Dave dement of Woodstock
and
Tony DeBettencourt
ofAndover.

NOTICE - Upcoming meeting
September 13, 1982
Andover Country Club, Andover, Mass.
Directors meeting
Regular meeting
All details in next newsletter

10 a.m.
10:45 a.m.

Congratulations to the following new
members:

Charles Zeh of Sandy BunJohn Leasing of Norfolk
Doug Stachura of Springfield
Phil DiRico of Shaker Farms
We hope you all will be active in the association.
I n f o r m a t i o n c o n t a i n e d i n t h i s p u b l i c a t i o n m a y b e used
f r e e l y , in w h o l e or in p a r t , w i t h o u t special p e r m i s s i o n as l o n g
as t h e t r u e c o n t e x t is m a i n t a i n e d . W e w o u l d a p p r e c i a t e a
credit line.

PhxuefrcUfuuti^cFRIENDS OF THE ASSOCIATION
Bacher C o r p o r a t i o n
876 Boston Road
Billerica, Mass. 01866
Tel. 617-273-0398
Turf a n d Snow Equipment

181 E Supply, Inc.
66 Erna Ave.
Box 9, Milford, Conn. 06460
203-878-0658

Baker Tractor Corp., Ford Tractors
Harley Davidson Goif Cars
Swansea, Mass
Y a m a h a Golf Cars

Tom Irwin, Inc.
11B A St., Burlington, Mass.
Jack Peterson
Dennis Friel
Wayne Ripley

Bordens Spreader Service
M a y n a r d , Mass.
Tel. 617-897-2571
Sales Rep. J a c k Borden
Bulk Limestone Dealer

Lakeshore Equipment & Supply Co.
Mike H a n n i g a n , Rep.
A b i n g t o n , Mass.
800-321-5325
Larchmont Engineering a n d Irrig. Co.
Larchmont Lane, Lexington, Mass.
617-862-2550

C 8c J Lawnmower Service, Inc.
474 M a i n St., Wilmington, Mass 01887
Eric O m a n - Sales Representative
Tel. 617-658-2022

The M a g o v e r n C o . Inc.
27 Lawnacre Road
Windsor Locks, C o n n . 06096
Tel. 1-800-243-7718 or 1-203-623-2508
Louis C. Rogers, V i c e Pres.

The C l a p p e r Co.
1121 Washington St.
Newton, Mass.
617-244-7929

D. L. Maher
Box 127, C o n c o r d St.
N. Reading, Mass. 01864

* Geoffrey S. Cornish 8c William G. Robinson
Golf Course Architects
Fiddlers Green, Amherst, Mass. 01002

R. F. Morse 8c Son, Inc.
W. Wareham, Mass. 02576
Tel. 617-295-1553
J. Willen Roell, Rep.
Larry Bunn, Rep.

•if Country C l u b Enterprises
C l u b Car Golf Cars
Tennis 8c Leisure Equipment
P.O. Box 400, W. Falmouth, Ma. 02574
617-563-2284

N a r d o n e Sand a n d Gravel C o . Inc.
37 Power Rd.
Westford MA. 01886
Boston Area 648-6222,
Lowell Area 692-8221
Robert D. N a r d o n e , Gen. Mgr.

C.S. Curran
T.R.C. Products, Oils a n d Greases
7 Linden St., Framingham, Mass.
Chester Drake & Sons, Inc.
222 Walnut St.
F r a m i n g h a m , Mass. 01701
Golf Course Construction
617-875-7929
G o l d Star Sod Farms, Inc.
Sod 8c Pine Bark M u l c h
Canterbury, N.H. 603-783-4717
Weston, Mass. 617-894-5474
The Charles C. Hart Seed Co.
Weathersfield, C o n n .
Bob Kennedy, Rep.
Roy Sibley, Rep.

(Laurie

^5tif)et-inienJenh

~

or or* Eootowo, inc
DOUGLAS JOHNSON
Newsletter Chairman
50 Newton St
Weston, MA 02193
Home Phone 894-7377
Office Phone 893-8264
Club Affiliation
Pine Brook C.C.
PETE COSTE'
Business Manager
GERRY FINN
Contributing Editor

Scott Associates, Inc.
60 Water Street, Clinton, Mass.
617-365-6341
Pumps - Sales, service
Installation - Vertical
Turbine p u m p s specialists
Scoffs Pro-Turf Div.
Rep. Ed Wiacek 1-401-253-4284
Rep. Kevin Lyons 1-617-366-4825
Tuckahoe Turf Farms, Inc.
Slocum, Rl/Litchfield, N.H./Suffleld, Conn.
1-800-556-6985
Largest Producer of Penncross in New England
Alan Anderson, Sam Mitchell
Tuco Products Corp.
Div. of the Upjohn Co.
K a l a m a z o o , Mich.
David Sylvester, 203-8283790
Turf Products C o r p .
36 Sword St.
Auburn, Mass. 01501
617-791-2091
Charles Allen, Sales Rep.
* Turf Specialty, Inc.
84 Merrimac St., Hooksett, N.H. 03106
Turf & O r n a m e n t a l Supplies
Ken Turner 617-2687526

New England S e a l c o a t i n g Co., Inc.
Tennis Court Const, a n d M a i n t e n a n c e
S e a l c o a t i n g H i n g h a m Inc. Center
Hingham, Mass. 749-6800

White Turf Engineering
5 Summer Dr., W i n c h e n d o n , Mass. 01475
617-297-0941

FIRST CLASS
Hoctatian

Sawtelle Bros.
565 Humphrey St., Swampscott, Mass.
617-599-4856

Valley Farms Nursery 8r Supply, Inc.
133 H o p e m e a d o w St., Rt. 10
Simsbury, Ct. 06070
Putting Green Sod for the Professional
J o e Bidwell Pres.
Bus: 208651-8555, Res: 203-658-6886

Return to:
DOUGLAS JOHNSON
50 Newton St.
Weston, MA 02193

CfJf

Richey & C l a p p e r , Inc.
28 Rutledge Rd., Natick, Mass. 01760

N.E. Chapter Land I m p r o v e m e n t
Contractors of A m e r i c a
Professional Conservation of Soil
a n d Water. Contractor in your area,
c a l l Peter Whiting, Pres.
617-877-5323

O l d Fox C h e m i c a l Inc.
Fertilizers - Seeds - Turf C h e m i c a l s
66 Valley St.
E. Providence, R.I. 02914

Holliston Sand Co., Inc.
Lowland St., Holliston, Mass. 01746
Sand for topdressing a n d bunkers

Pro-Lawn Products Inc.
18 Legate Hill R o a d
Leominster, Mass. 01453
Sales Rep. Jerry K o l o m i c k

Phillip W o g a n
Golf Course Architect
.31 Budleigh Ave., Beverly, Mass.
* Contributors to the Lawrence S. Dickinson
Scholarship Fund

First Class
U . S. Postage

PAID

Framingham, MA
Permit

209