Cheers to industry mentors!

Imagine your career, or possibly your life, without meeting the individual whom you consider a mentor.

Imagine if you had a chance to honor that person by sharing what they’ve taught you with others.

Mentorship defines many industries, especially one as unique as golf maintenance, where early mornings, varied weather conditions, and working weekends and holidays represent norms. To celebrate the oversized role of mentorship in golf maintenance, operations and management, Golf Course Industry and The Aquatrols Company are introducing the inaugural Excellence in Mentorship Awards.

The program represents the evolution of the annual Super Social Media Awards, which we’re retiring after a memorable 14-year run. Seriously, how many things last 14 years these days?

Sharing defines thoughtful and tactful social media usage. Sharing also defines impactful mentorship.

The Excellence in Mentorship Awards debut at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 4, at The Aquatrols Company booth #2341 at the GCSAA Conference and Trade Show in Orlando. We’ll recognize the first class of honorees with an engaging and educational discussion about mentorship. Bring your mentor, your industry friends or just yourself to learn best practices to help you impact the trajectory of others.

Music will begin at 2 p.m. and follow the discussion until 5 p.m. Around 3 p.m., we’ll give a “CHEERS” to mentors everywhere. Yes, drinks will be served throughout the entire three hours. Sometimes the best lessons become apparent over cold or warm beverages. Think of the valuable late-evening chats over cold drinks or pre-sunset coffee conversations you’ve had with a mentor.

Guiding somebody isn’t easy. It means stopping and restarting tasks to address the needs of somebody else. Or late-night phone calls and messages. Or candid, yet necessary, conversations. Or working longer hours to satisfy somebody else’s insatiable desire to improve. Or staking a personal reputation on somebody else’s ability or potential. Or taking a chance on an individual others might have shunned.

Those who have done any or all of the above assert it’s worth the effort.

Unfortunately, it’s too late to honor somebody for a 2026 award. The first nomination period arrived and departed in a nanosecond, as we made an early December 2025 decision to debut the awards immediately. Why wait to share, right?

But this program is designed to endure. We’re already accepting 2027 nominations. Email me a few paragraphs describing what your mentor has meant to you or the industry, and we’ll save it in a secure file.

Future awards and discussions will honor all segments of the industry in addition to superintendents. Assistant superintendents, equipment managers, technicians, researchers, instructors, architects, builders, owners, association leaders, consultants and sales professionals are strongly encouraged to nominate their respective mentors.

For those who can’t make it to Orlando this year, Golf Course Industry plans to share video of the discussion on our website and social media feeds. Find additional lessons from the Orlando discussion in our March issue.

Sharing, after all, makes this industry — and life — special.

Everybody in the industry is encouraged to participate in the 2026 celebration and discussion, either live or virtually.

Turfheads trio

Seeking more ways to amplify your engagement with us in 2026?

Senior editor Matt LaWell executed a soft 2025 launch of Turfheads Trivia in our Thursday Fast & Firm newsletters. LaWell, one of the longest-tenured and easily the best bar trivia host in northeast Ohio, asks a weekly turf, golf or industry question to subscribers. Anybody who answers a question correctly enters a monthly drawing for Golf Course Industry swag.

Also, in December 2026, two splendid reader-driven sections return for their sixth and 11th years, respectively: the Turfheads Guide to Grilling and Turfheads Take Over. Quiet winter days represent a great time to email us your recipe or article well before the Oct. 30 deadline.