Thank You Supers

Dear Superintendents of the world, 

Thank you. 

Thank you for your service and stewardship of a game that is seeing more participation in recent years than ever before. With more golfers comes more rounds, and with more rounds comes more demands, and with more demands comes more stress and with more stress comes less fulfillment in the work.

Thank you for fooling everyone into thinking your job means more to you than your families. For allowing members to believe that the wet spot in 10 fairway or the hot spot on 7 green is more important than your kids' soccer game on a Saturday morning. 

Thank you for always finding ways to do more with less. More golfers with less staff. More heights of cut with less mowers. More rounds year over year with smaller budgets. More green with less inputs. Not even houdini could make magic like you do. You continue to keep the grass cut while management continues to cut your budget. 

Thank you for always coming to the clubhouses’ rescue. There may be no turf indoors yet somehow you are always on site keeping the lights on, kitchen running and range pickers picking. 

Thank you for always seeming interested when golfers want to get free advice about their lawns. 

Thank you for looking out for your crew. For making those calls to other courses so your guys can get out and play and take in a different view.  A good super will credit their crew, and a good crew will credit their super. When this is in balance things are good. 

Thank you for always politely laughing at golfers' terrible jokes. Who would have thought the pin was in the wrong spot today? 

Thanks for not kicking out all the influencers who are usually getting in the crew’s way, changing your schedule and order of operation while crashing drones and making insufferable requests. The golf world seems to have figured out our dirty little secret; golf courses always look better without golfers on them. 

Thanks to all the assistant supers. When the shit is rolling downhill as it often and inevitably does, the assistants are the first line of defense and they take it like no one else can. There are few jobs out there that require the diversity of skills of a quality assistant. There are even fewer individuals that survive the gauntlet that is this phase of their career. 

Thanks for continuing your education and being willing to learn more everyday. The level of education required for the job is beyond what many realize. Rumor has it some of you sicko’s even enjoy the extracurricular learning and certifications.  The continuing education is enough for many to move onto sales. 

Thank you for making golf happen 365 days a year. Without your constant attention to detail golf is not what it is. For many, golf is a big effing deal, and it’s also a big effing business. It does not happen without you being….well…super.  

And thanks for treating today, #thankasuperintendentday just like any other. Because it is. People are still playing golf, and you and your crew are still working to make that happen. Just like you do every damn day. Some of us know that the bulk of you supers are too busy, and/or too smart to be on social media anyways. 

Sincerely yours in turf and in golf, 

Gary Greenkeeper