TurfNet RADIO

From when he first started caddying at Muirfield Village while in high school, Phil Shoemaker has spent most of his career within a stone's throw of Jack Nicklaus. In this episode of Living Legends, host John Reitman chats with Phil about his first stint at Desert Highlands in 1982 through moves to the Loxahatchie Club in Jupiter, Florida, TPC Scottsdale and back to Desert Highlands in 1999... where he remains today.

Phil attributes much of his career success to luck and timing... being in the right place at the right time, knowing what you want and being willing to embrace change when the opportunity presents itself.

Spend a half hour with Phil Shoemaker and John Reitman.

Presented by the Nufarm Insider.

In this episode of The TurfNet Renovation Report, host Anthony Pioppi chats with Doug DeGrood, past chairman of the grounds committee at the Minikahda Club in Minneapolis. They discuss the pros, cons and politics involved in the upcoming fairway and greens regrassing of the famed Donald Ross course.

Presented by Golf Preservations, greens drainage and total renovation services.

In this episode of Frankly Speaking, Frank Rossi chats with David Bataller, Director of Golf Operations at PGA Catalunya Resort near Barcelona, Spain.

An admittedly bad student who was "fired from high school", David went on to high school and riding BMX bikes in Kansas before embarking on his career at PGA Catalunya. After serving as golf course superintendent for 15 years, he was recently promoted to Director of Golf Operations. David quips that he has never been fired from a golf course.

PGA Catalunya is a GEO-certified (Golf Environment Organization) property. Listen in as Frank and David discuss it, along with David's trials with hydrogen peroxide to dissolve surface organic matter.

Broadcasting from our mountain cabin as we take a break from golf for some trout fishing, we sit around the campfire and learn why Momma decided to ban tobacco at Rockbottum CC (Something terrible happened at the US Open)

Also, Brandy Chablis, noted turf expert, gets nominated for the Angry Elf Trophy, Ludell explains Toxic Masculinities and TurfNet cyclist Ty Magner wins the National Championship.

Presented by VinylGuard Golf.

In this episode of the TurfNet Renovation Report, host Anthony Pioppi chats with Scott Ramsay, CGCS, about the ongoing restoration of the Seth Raynor-designed classic at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut.

Ramsay has been at Yale since 2003 and was the TurfNet Superintendent of the Year in 2006. Working for an academic institution, he occasionally claims the tongue-in-cheek title of "Director of the Department of Applied Botany" at Yale.

The "renovation of the renovation" at Yale -- a complete renovation was finished up in 2003 -- focuses on reclaiming lost green area and tree removal. The Yale course in the middle of a 450 urban forest owned by the university.

Ramsay quips that "we don't measure greens here in square feet... we measure them in acres".  He relies on a 1934 aerial map along with poking a lot of holes to find the gravel choker layer that Raynor liked to use. Once the original green outline is determined, he uses the "scalp and pray" method to bring the turf to green height.

He also discusses his new 15,000 sq ft plug nursery in which he has cultivated the mix of German bents, velvets, Penncross and Poa that match the original turf on the golf course.

Spend a half hour or so with Tony and Scott!  Good conversation!

Presented by Golf Preservations, the greens drainage specialists and full service restoration/renovation contractors.

In this episode of Frankly Speaking, Dr. Frank Rossi chats again with Jim Wagner of the Hanse Design Group, this time about his current project working with Paul B. Latshaw (again) at the East Course of Merion Golf Club, Ardmore, PA.

How critical is the golf course superintendent in a renovation project? Wagner says that the ultimate success of a project can be predicted by gauging the enthusiasm level of the superintendent, and that often depends on their inclusion in early conversations and later in the decision-making processes.

How can superintendents leverage the current and continuing influx of investment money into golf course renovation projects? Listen and find out.

The "Howard Stern of TurfNet?" Really?

Presented by Civitas/Intelligro and DryJect.

In this episode of Living Legends, presented by the Nufarm Insider, host John Reitman chats with Bob Farren, director of golf course maintenance at the Pinehurst Resort. With nine courses, seven superintendents and up to 250 full and part-time staff, management of the Pinehurst courses seems a daunting task, but one which Farren takes in stride.

Spend a half hour learning about how one of the most visible people in golf turf management became so, starting with his family involvement growing up in West Virginia and moving along to mentoring and developing an army of former assistants.

Farren weighs in on how the industry and superintendent responsibilities have changed over the years, and if he were King for a Day, what he would do to "fix" golf. For one, he would start by eliminating out of bounds from the game.

In this episode of Rockbottum Radio, Randy explores Skeletal Golf Theory (SGT) and why it's important (think "Contingency Plan").

Also, Rockbottum gets a corporate makeover, the truth about collecting and weighing clippings, and that "new" spray out there. 

Finally, a consultant story, the winner of the Turpentine Corncob Award, and in Storytime, a tale from the days when golf courses were closed on Mondays.

Be sure to check out this jam-packed podcast and catch up with all the latest Reality Philosophy, Business Genius and other cut-through-the-smoke-and-mirrors Common Sense from Rockbottum Country Club... where stark reality reigns.

Presented by VinylGuard Golf.

In this episode of the TurfNet Renovation Report, host Anthony Pioppi chats with Michael Vessely about the 2016 renovation of the long-fallow William Langford/Theodore Moreau 9-hole golf course at Culver Academies in Culver, Indiana.

Vessely, now golf course superintendent at Culver Academies, explains how the "Picasso was discovered in their attic" and Bobby Weed and Chris Monti brought in to spearhead a complete recovery/restoration project. And there's a Dye connection as well!

Listen in as Tony and Mike dig into how the Langford/Moreau classic was brought back to life as a rustic, classic early 20th Century golf course with 2018 conditioning.

Presented by Golf Preservations, offering golf course drainage and full renovation services.

In yet another fascinating discussion, Dr. Frank Rossi chats with Jim Koppenhaver of Pellucid Corp, about the current state of the golf industry. In an era of "flat is the new 'up'", 2017 was a "solid sideways" for golf. Some metrics are indicating that the slide of recent years is abating somewhat.

Spend 45 minutes for a better understanding of where golf is and where it can go... both good and bad.