Anuvia Plant Nutrients names David Stone to its Legends Initiative for his lifetime of innovation and achievement in golf course management. Stone, retired from The Honors Course near Chattanooga, Tennessee, will be honored at the Golf Industry Show in Orlando.
Now in its third year, the Legends Initiative recognizes integrity, passion and innovation in golf course management. Stone was unanimously selected by a peer review panel of past winners and other golf course professionals.
Stone will be recognized for his decades of contributions to the industry at 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, January 29 at Booth No. 4800, at the stage area adjacent to Inside the Shop.
“Innovative leadership shapes and guides this industry,” Anuvia chief commercial officer Hugh MacGillivray said. “David Stone’s reputation as a creative problem-solver and critical thinker throughout his storied career makes him an ideal addition to the Legends Initiative and we’re honored to recognize his achievements.”
Stone’s leadership at Tennessee’s famed Honors Course is recognized throughout the industry. While there, he was responsible for running extensive control experiments to successfully change the fairways from Bermudagrass to zoysia, and the course hosted five USGA events — as well as a young Tiger Woods at the 1996 NCAA Division I Championship. Stone was honored with the USGA Green Section Award and is one of only two superintendents inducted into the Tennessee Golf Hall of Fame.
Stone will be joined by Legends Initiative recipients Bob Farren of Pinehurst Resort, Ted Horton of BrightView Golf Course Maintenance and formerly of Pebble Beach, as well as Marsh Benson, who recently retired from Augusta National, and Matt Shaffer, retired from Merion Golf Club.
“David is incredibly innovative! If he couldn’t find an answer, he would take it upon himself to set up an experiment and solve the problem,” Shaffer said. “He is a wonderfully curious individual who is kind, thoughtful and an amazing colleague, friend and mentor to so many for so long.”
“I’ve just always enjoyed trying to figure out ways to make something better,” Stone said. “That, to me, has always been part of the joy of this job. I’ve learned a lot from other people, and so it’s very rewarding to have the opportunity to share some of that information with younger people who are newer to the industry and, ultimately, going to shape the future of what comes next.”
Stone and other Legends notables will be on hand to celebrate during an open bar at Anuvia’s Booth, No. 4409, following the presentation.