New Greenkeeper at Olympia Fields

[Jeff Goldman]

According to the Detroit News, Tom Gray, from Michigan, was named the new greenkeeper at Olympia Fields.  I did not see this publicized anywhere else, but it seems pretty definitive.  According to the article, he was at Oakland Hills and Franklin Hills, and lately at somewhere called Fieldstone.  Is he a firm and fast guy?

Jeff Goldman

[Jeff_Mingay]

I got to know Tom a bit when he was at Franklin Hills. He's a wonderful guy, and a superintendent with knowledge and respect for golf architecture and its history. He did a lot of in-house work over many years at Franklin Hills (partly in conjunction with Bruce Hepner) to bring back the original Ross character of that golf course.

This is good news for Olympia Fields and its membership, in my view.

[SL_Solow]

Nice to hear.  OFCC lost an outstanding greenkeeper in Dave Ward who left to supervise the construction and grow in of a complete overhaul of Cherry Hills in Flossmoor which was acquired by the park district.  It is surmised that Dave got tired of the politics at OFCC.  He is a talented professional and a real gentleman.  It sounds like OFCC hired someone of similar ilk.