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| Lieutenant Governor Brian Calley addresses the attendees at Legislative Golf Day |
Wednesday, June 11, 2014
June is Golf Month in Michigan
There has been a flurry of activity for your Association in early June. Starting with the 2014 Northern Fundraiser at Arcadia Bluffs, the largest, by far, fundraiser the MiGCSA has ever had. With 190 on Monday and 80 on Sunday night we were able to raise more than $20,000. This is the first of our three fundraisers every year with the next on September 9th at Battle Creek Country Club and the final at Tam O Shanter on October 6th. 100% of the proceeds from these events is distributed every year to fund student and member dependent Heritage Scholarships, donations, and philanthropic interests like the Wee One Foundation, EIFG and the MSU Turf Club. But the vast majority will go directly to funding turf research at Michigan State University in donations to the Michigan Turfgrass Foundation.
The second big event in June was Legislative Golf Day on June 5th. My day started at 7:15 am on the Michigan Big Show with Michael Patrick Shiels along with my counterpart from the PGA Kevin Helm. We spoke about the economic impact golf has on Michigan and that June was proclaimed Golf Month in Michigan by Governor Rick Snyder. To hear the entire interview you can CLICK HERE. After the interview we were treated to our first speaker of the day in Lieutenant Governor Brian Calley. He spoke about the comeback of the Michigan economy and the impact of the wildly successful Pure Michigan campaign, now the most successful tourism campaign of all time! Lunch on the turn hosted a record number of legislators and their staff members after the visits to their offices in the morning. After lunch the heads of the Michigan Golf Alliance met with representatives from Pure Michigan to discuss more interaction on both sides to help utilize the campaign to grow the game of golf in Michigan. This is a great event, I highly recommend you try to attend at least once, it is a great way to promote and preserve the game in Michigan which is very important to all of our members.
Tuesday, April 29, 2014
Ice, What we Know for Sure
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| For the most up to date information on this important issue be sure to follow http://msuturf.blogspot.com |
Here is what we do know: As frustrating as this is to the golfers is is devastating to the Superintendent. As inconvenient as is it is to the members, it is something that has caused loss of sleep, fights with spouses, missing family activities, weight loss, mental anguish and fatigue for the Superintendent. As much as the golfers want the greens to be ready multiply that 100 fold to reach the desire the Superintendent has to get them open. We do know that every single Superintendent would have done anything to prevent this from happening, every single one. No one would have skipped a practice no matter what it is or how hard it would be if they thought it would help. There is no one more distraught, a very fitting description (dis·traught adjective \di-ˈstrȯt\ : very upset : so upset that you are not able to think clearly or behave normally) than the Superintendent about the damage. It will take time to recover, and there is no substitute for time. Not money, not effort not a single thing can substitute for time with the exception of a little help from Mother Nature which has yet to arrive.
Here is what we do not know: Why this has affected some greens and not others. What practices are best to prevent ice damage in the future regardless of what theories are out there based on what happened or did not happen this winter. We do not know if there is a best practice that can be stamped across all situations, in turf management there usually is not.
What disturbs me the most is when I hear of anyone saying that they did the right thing while someone else did the wrong thing. This is just pure speculation, if course A has damage and course B does not it is not because one Superintendent cares more, or did more than another. Anyone in this business knows you do not become or stay a Superintendent for long if you do not have passion for this work and for the results they produce. In this close knit community of professionals it is the exception to hear that one Superintendent is critical of another, especially on an issue that is as tenuous as this. I know this is the exception and very far from the norm, but even one comment to a member or guest can have a ripple effect that can lead to even more problems for a fellow Superintendent.
Please remember that we are all in this together and should support one another, you never know when Mother Nature will turn her wrath on you. With a short season already off to a slow start the pressure is immense to get the putting surfaces back open, and once open to get them up to what would normally be mid summer speeds. Please be patient and know that your Superintendent is doing EVERYTHING they can to get the course back to normal, and remember that they would give ANYTHING not to have this problem in the first place.
Adam Ikamas, CGCS
MiGCSA Executive Director
adamikamas@migcsa.org
Monday, February 17, 2014
MiGCSA wins Social Media Award at GIS
On Wednesday at the 2014 Golf Industry Show the MiGCSA was one of the recipients of the 2014 Golf Course Industry Social Media Awards presented at the Aquatrols booth. The Overall Social Media Award was presented to Executive Director Adam Ikamas, CGCS at 3:30. This award was given out by Pat Jones of GCI. Along with this award MiGCSA Member Adam Garr of Plum Hollow also garnered an award for his use of video, well deserved for his pioneering work in this field.
Monday, January 20, 2014
MTF Donations crest $100,000 since MiGCSA Inception in 2008
One of the most important and mutually lucrative relationships the MiGCSA has is with the Michigan Turfgrass Foundation. The MTF’s primary goal, as a foundation is to assist in the funding of the turf management programs at Michigan State University. Most of us are quite familiar with the MSU programs and know the high caliber of real world research that the Turf Team produces every year.
As Superintendents our members are among those most benefiting from the tremendous program at MSU. Those who had the opportunity to attend the turf program at MSU know they received a solid education, and we all know that the students coming out of the program each year will be valuable assets to Michigan golf courses and great additions to our workforce.
For these reasons and more, the MiGCSA feels it is necessary and a privilege to be able to contribute to the MTF’s efforts. Each year the MiGCSA hosts multiple fundraiser events which help fund the MTF. In 2008 the MiGCSA hosted four separate events in each district of the MiGCSA. In 2009 we hosted three. Each year, the MiGCSA Foundation committee distributes the proceeds from these events to the multiple parties but the vast majority goes to the MTF and then on to the MSU Turf Team. In 2008 the MiGCSA donated $15,000 to the MTF and in 2009 and 2010 we made another $15,000 donation. In 2011 the MiGCSA was able to add $10,000 to the donation for a total of $25,000 and in 2012 the donation was $16,800, and with the donation of $14,021 the chapter has crested the $100,000 mark since inception in 2008!
As Superintendents our members are among those most benefiting from the tremendous program at MSU. Those who had the opportunity to attend the turf program at MSU know they received a solid education, and we all know that the students coming out of the program each year will be valuable assets to Michigan golf courses and great additions to our workforce.
For these reasons and more, the MiGCSA feels it is necessary and a privilege to be able to contribute to the MTF’s efforts. Each year the MiGCSA hosts multiple fundraiser events which help fund the MTF. In 2008 the MiGCSA hosted four separate events in each district of the MiGCSA. In 2009 we hosted three. Each year, the MiGCSA Foundation committee distributes the proceeds from these events to the multiple parties but the vast majority goes to the MTF and then on to the MSU Turf Team. In 2008 the MiGCSA donated $15,000 to the MTF and in 2009 and 2010 we made another $15,000 donation. In 2011 the MiGCSA was able to add $10,000 to the donation for a total of $25,000 and in 2012 the donation was $16,800, and with the donation of $14,021 the chapter has crested the $100,000 mark since inception in 2008!
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| The 2014 check presentation from L to R: MiGCSA President Gregg Matthews, MiGCSA Executive Director Adam Ikamass, CGCS and MTF President Brian Schweihofer at the Michigan Turfgrass Conference. |
Monday, November 11, 2013
Michigan Golf Alliance
Last week on Wednesday 11/5 I met with the other three Executive Directors in the Michigan Golf Alliance for lunch in East Lansing. The attendees were Kate Moore of the Michigan Golf Course Owners Association, Kevin Helm with the Michigan Section of the PGA and David Graham from the Golf Association of Michigan.
The Michigan Golf Alliance was formed in 2011 and is an informal meeting of all golf parties in Michigan to discuss the industry and plan our Legislative Golf Day in Lansing at the Capitol building. We met to discuss the other impact our groups can have to promote golf in Michigan. All of us have our own member needs and goals, but the one thing that directly affects all of us is the goal to get more people to play more golf.
Even with the slow "return" of the economy I have yet to see it really help many golf course in our state. The cost of maintaining a course has not decreased and has gone up over the last 10 years, but this is with a slow decline of golfers either established or new.
We are exploring many options to get more people to play more golf. Including partnering with the Pure Michigan campaign and creating curriculum for schools to use to introduce golf to kids. We plan to meet again to decide where we would like to put our resources and time. If you have any ideas or directives you have seen work to bring more golfers into the game please let me know and I will take it to the Alliance.
The Michigan Golf Alliance was formed in 2011 and is an informal meeting of all golf parties in Michigan to discuss the industry and plan our Legislative Golf Day in Lansing at the Capitol building. We met to discuss the other impact our groups can have to promote golf in Michigan. All of us have our own member needs and goals, but the one thing that directly affects all of us is the goal to get more people to play more golf.
Even with the slow "return" of the economy I have yet to see it really help many golf course in our state. The cost of maintaining a course has not decreased and has gone up over the last 10 years, but this is with a slow decline of golfers either established or new.
We are exploring many options to get more people to play more golf. Including partnering with the Pure Michigan campaign and creating curriculum for schools to use to introduce golf to kids. We plan to meet again to decide where we would like to put our resources and time. If you have any ideas or directives you have seen work to bring more golfers into the game please let me know and I will take it to the Alliance.
Tuesday, September 10, 2013
Fundraisers, where the funds go
We are only a few weeks away from the Western Golf Day Fundraiser and about a month away from the 48th Annual Big Event. These are two of the three fundraisers the MiGCSA puts together every year, the first is the first Monday in June at Arcadia Bluffs. If you were wondering here is where the funds raised go.
none of the funds raised at these events go into the operation of the MiGCSA, 100% of these funds are allocated to our Foundation. The Board of Directors for the MiGCSA decide where these funds should be allocated based on our MiGCSA Foundation Charitable Contributions Policy Statement
It is the policy of MiGCSA Foundation to promote the Turfgrass Industry by making charitable contributions to qualified Turfgrass and Golf Foundation Charities and Student Scholarships affiliated with Professional Golf Course Superintendents and their families.
The benefactors of these charitable contributions include, but are not limited to, the Michigan Turf Foundation, The Wee One Foundation, MiGCSA Heritage Scholarships and Academic Scholarships to Michigan State University Turfgrass students.
This policy is administered by the Executive Director of the MiGCSA with approval from the MiGCSA Board of Directors.
In the past these funds have been dispersed in the form of 4 Heritage Scholarships, these are awarded by the MiGCSA Scholarship Committee to dependents of MiGCSA Members who have applied and completed an essay on a topic set by the committee. Each one is worth $1,000 and up to 4 can be given in any one year. There are also two MSU Student Scholarships that are worth $1,500 each and are also awarded by the Scholarship Committee after interviews with MSU Students who apply and are current members of the MiGCSA. This year the Foundation matched Member Donations to the Wee One Foundation and sponsored the Wee One as a Platinum Tee Sponsor.
But as it has always been the number one recipient of these funds is the Michigan Turfgrass Foundation. Last year the MiGCSA donated more than $16,000 to the MTF. And the total donation sine the inception of the MiGCSA in 2008 is over $100,000!
Our hope is that we can branch out into the golf community with these events and get back to selling these events out. So please let your members, family and friends know of these great events.
none of the funds raised at these events go into the operation of the MiGCSA, 100% of these funds are allocated to our Foundation. The Board of Directors for the MiGCSA decide where these funds should be allocated based on our MiGCSA Foundation Charitable Contributions Policy Statement
It is the policy of MiGCSA Foundation to promote the Turfgrass Industry by making charitable contributions to qualified Turfgrass and Golf Foundation Charities and Student Scholarships affiliated with Professional Golf Course Superintendents and their families.
The benefactors of these charitable contributions include, but are not limited to, the Michigan Turf Foundation, The Wee One Foundation, MiGCSA Heritage Scholarships and Academic Scholarships to Michigan State University Turfgrass students.
This policy is administered by the Executive Director of the MiGCSA with approval from the MiGCSA Board of Directors.
In the past these funds have been dispersed in the form of 4 Heritage Scholarships, these are awarded by the MiGCSA Scholarship Committee to dependents of MiGCSA Members who have applied and completed an essay on a topic set by the committee. Each one is worth $1,000 and up to 4 can be given in any one year. There are also two MSU Student Scholarships that are worth $1,500 each and are also awarded by the Scholarship Committee after interviews with MSU Students who apply and are current members of the MiGCSA. This year the Foundation matched Member Donations to the Wee One Foundation and sponsored the Wee One as a Platinum Tee Sponsor.
But as it has always been the number one recipient of these funds is the Michigan Turfgrass Foundation. Last year the MiGCSA donated more than $16,000 to the MTF. And the total donation sine the inception of the MiGCSA in 2008 is over $100,000!
Our hope is that we can branch out into the golf community with these events and get back to selling these events out. So please let your members, family and friends know of these great events.
Friday, July 5, 2013
MiGCSA Mid Year Review
The MiGCSA Fiscal year runs with the calender from January 1st to December 31st so I thought I would give a little 1/2 way update on the 2013 year for the Association.
Of course the #1 priority for the MiGCSA is our members, but just like a golf facility we can not service our members without a successful budget. Thanks mainly to overwhelming Industry Partner support including two new 2013 Silver members in Epar and John Deere Landscapes and an increase in level by Residex to Gold. As well as continued support from long time partners like Platinum: Syngenta, Bayer, BASF. Gold: Spartan Distributors, and Silver: Tri-Turf, Direct Solutions, Harrell's, WinField, J.W. Turf, Jacobsen, Great Lakes Turf and Rain Bird.
We have had a very successful membership renewal cycle as well and are up 36 members from the same time last year and up 91 from 2011. Our renewal starts in October of each year and we try to renew everyone throughout the winter.
With our largest ever Northern Fundraiser in the books it looks like a banner year for the MiGCSA Foundation as well. All of the funds raised at our three golf fundraisers go directly back into the turf industry in Michigan, and a vast majority goes directly to turf research at MSU with a donation to the MTF.
As of June 30 the financial report for the Association is positive, we are about $5,000 ahead of June 2012, and almost $15,000 ahead of budget. Thank you to all of our members and Industry Partners for making the MiGCSA one of the best chapters in the country, we hope to see you soon at one of our events.
Of course the #1 priority for the MiGCSA is our members, but just like a golf facility we can not service our members without a successful budget. Thanks mainly to overwhelming Industry Partner support including two new 2013 Silver members in Epar and John Deere Landscapes and an increase in level by Residex to Gold. As well as continued support from long time partners like Platinum: Syngenta, Bayer, BASF. Gold: Spartan Distributors, and Silver: Tri-Turf, Direct Solutions, Harrell's, WinField, J.W. Turf, Jacobsen, Great Lakes Turf and Rain Bird.
We have had a very successful membership renewal cycle as well and are up 36 members from the same time last year and up 91 from 2011. Our renewal starts in October of each year and we try to renew everyone throughout the winter.
With our largest ever Northern Fundraiser in the books it looks like a banner year for the MiGCSA Foundation as well. All of the funds raised at our three golf fundraisers go directly back into the turf industry in Michigan, and a vast majority goes directly to turf research at MSU with a donation to the MTF.
As of June 30 the financial report for the Association is positive, we are about $5,000 ahead of June 2012, and almost $15,000 ahead of budget. Thank you to all of our members and Industry Partners for making the MiGCSA one of the best chapters in the country, we hope to see you soon at one of our events.
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