I think it goes both ways. When I worked at GCSAA I talked some of the members about it because I often heard from some of them and a lot of staff that supers were all likely to get fired and/or move on.
But that didn't square with the many superintendents I knew of who stayed in one place for 20-30 years, including places like Pine Valley.
On of the job jumpers finally made me understand the difference. I could tell from the words he used that he wanted to say the stayers lacked ambition, but wasn't going to be on record saying that.
He had pursued and held a number of "high-end" positions in the years I knew him, and he'd been fired from some of them. What I realized is that there are a percentage of supers who want to work in places where the expectations are through the roof. The like the prestige of those places, and they like the compensation. And they're willing to pack up and move every few years whether it's to a better job or due to being let go.
One of the upwardly mobile types once said, "There are two kinds of superintendents, those who have killed the grass, and those who will kill the grass." I spent a weekend with him once, and it happened that earlier in the week he'd been out of town leaving one of his assistants in charge, and a fungal outbreak had almost wiped out several greens while he was gone.
The level of stress he and others like him are under is more than I would EVER be willing to take, regardless of the prestige and salary. Places like that can have maintenance budgets upwards of $2 million.
The other side includes people I have known for years and while they may lack the "ambition" of the first fellow I mentioned, they are all as dedicated to producing the best golf course they can on the budget they have. But because of the budget, and the kinds of places they live and work, the stress is a little lower, and they aren't constantly expecting to move.
Personally, I see benefits to both kinds of supers. The movers have seen it all and nothing is likely to faze them. And because of the resources available where they've worked, they probably know where and how to get the latest technology and equipment.
The stayers, OTOH, usually know everything there is to know about their golf course. They know exactly which greens need to be babied and how. And they often have been asked to do more with less so much that some of them seem to be able to anything with nothing. I know of a couple whose whole budget is less than half the superintendent's salary at the high end.
One of those guys, at a course where I was a member, once said, "I've got 18 senior citizens out there, and they each need a different kind of treatment to survive."
Of course there are LOTS of supers in between those extremes.
One thing I do know, I've been playing golf for 50 years, and I know a lot of supers. Every one of them cared deeply about their golf course.
K