Thank a greenkeeper day

[Thomas Dai]

Today is thank a greenkeeper day, so thanks guys and gals for all you do for us golf enthusiasts and others. We'd be lost without you. Well done all.
atb

[Jeff_Brauer]

Every day should be "thank a greenkeeper day." Or at least "Thank a golf course superintendent day."

[A.G._Crockett]

My son has been an assistant superintendent for a number of years now, and I make it a point to say hello, or at least wave, to the crew at my club, and to stop and talk whenever I get the chance. Knowing what time those guys get there, and what time they leave, and how hard they work in between, is a pretty big reveal, and it’s no get rich quick scheme.


When I left my previous club, I brought a full BBQ lunch for the entire crew as a way of thanking them for giving me a beautiful place to play.  I got that idea from a buddy who brings a grill and cooks for the crew twice a year when aeration is going on.


When I’m playing elsewhere, ESPECIALLY at a public course that might be a little rough around the edges, I always try to tell somebody on the crew how much I like their course, and that I can tell they’ve been working hard. It’s a pretty safe assumption when you see a course that’s scruffy that there are budget issues; the crew is probably too small, and they may not even be able to buy the chemicals they need. However much golfers want the course to look and play perfectly, I think the super wants it even more.

[Ira Fishman]

A.G.


A feast for the crew is a great idea. Sheryl and I are going to have to appropriate that one.


Ira

[A.G._Crockett]

A.G.


A feast for the crew is a great idea. Sheryl and I are going to have to appropriate that one.


Ira

Ira, I highly recommend it.  Those guys are always happy to find out that someone is paying attention and values their work.  99% of their “interactions” with golfers are to listening to bitching from people who can’t grow grass in their own yard about conditions on a 150 acre farm with three or four different crops, which is really what a golf course is.


My favorite is, “Why’d you aerate the greens? They were perfect!”, followed closely by complaints about being in a footprint in a bunker and leaves on the green in the line of my putt.

[Ira Fishman]

I shoot the breeze with the Superintendent quite a bit, and my wife is on the Green Committee so she gets to thank him. But something for the whole crew is a great idea.


Ira

[Tim Martin]

I try and make it a point to thank the crew when I get the chance. The guys always seem to appreciate and graciously accept a compliment in the spirit it’s intended. Keney Park in Hartford, Connecticut where I play a lot of rounds has been in terrific shape all year and despite a large gap in budget dollars is as good condition wise as the area privates.

[Tommy Williamsen]

I play with a guy that thanks every worker he encounters on the course. Others in the club have followed his example. Thanking people is always appreciated and a nice habit to have.

[Jim Franklin]

I have a question for the supers. If your fairway grass has very short root structure, is it better to continually water the fairway or only water periodically so the roots will grow and search for water? 007 bent is the grass. Thanks for any help.

[V_Halyard]

I thank my friends "Old Tom" Feller and now "Young Tom" Feller everyday for their leadership and delivery of a outstanding everything.
A successful restoration and now, the renovation of that restoration after a storm thrashed the restored course into architectural chaos.
We couldn't be more blessed.

[Ira Fishman]

So appreciative for this thread. My wife went to the Green Committee this evening with gifts for the whole green keepers staff as we get close to the end of our season. They have done a fantastic job with our course, but I doubt we would have thought to thank them without the prompt here. It is easy to remember to thank the golf shop staff because we interact with them all of the time. The green keeper staff often is doing their work when few Members are around or on equipment that does not lend itself to real interaction.


Ira

[David_Tepper]

If you have some used golf clubs in your garage or closet that you know you are never going to use again, you might want to ask the head super at your club if some of the minimum wage guys on the crew might like to have them. My guess is the are a fair number of golf course workers have never owned a set of clubs or even hit a golf ball. Giving them a chance to play some golf might improve their interest in doing their jobs.

[Duncan Cheslett]

The greens staff are literally the most important people at any golf club.


Yet they are expected to do a highly skilled, physical, and technical job at unsociable hours for scandalously low wages.


I recently retired from my cabinetmaking business and have taken a full time job as a greenkeeper at our local muni. I love the work and can afford to live comfortably on the much reduced pay. How young guys with families and mortgages manage is a mystery.


Some recognition would be nice. Maybe named reserved parking spaces outside the clubhouse for all greens staff… 🤔