Dr. Fred Yelverton, described by peers as “a titan in turfgrass weed science,” has won the Distinguished Service Award from the 1,800-member Carolinas GCSA. The award, the highest bestowed by the association, comes as Yelverton concludes a career spanning nearly 30 years at NC State University.
“Fred is arguably the best turfgrass weed scientist ever,” NC State colleague Dr. Jim Kerns wrote in a letter supporting Yelverton’s nomination. “His contributions in research laid the groundwork for current and future weed scientists and will serve as the backbone for literature searches in research for a very long time.”
The award from the Carolinas GCSA follows a long list of honors and recognition that Yelverton has earned over the years.
For example, earlier this year, he accepted the Outstanding Contribution Award from the GCSAA. In 2021, he became a Fellow of the Crop Science Society of America. His expertise is sought internationally, through speaking and consulting engagements as far afield Australia, the United Arab Emirates and Europe, where he is helping with preparations for the Ryder Cup in Rome in September.
For all his work on large stages, as another nomination letter, from the Triangle Turfgass Association, pointed out, Yelverton still finds time to work with individuals in the field. “Fred’s long list of accomplishments illustrates how incredibly busy his schedule has been over the years,” the letter said. “However, when he is called on by a golf course superintendent or any other turf professional in the Carolinas, he makes you feel as though your turfgrass issue is his highest priority. That is the definition of Distinguished Service.”
It further speaks to Yelverton’s standing that three of six letters supporting his nomination for the award came from previous recipients. One of them, Dr. Bruce Martin, now retired from Clemson University, wrote that Yelverton’s accomplishments would be “considered ‘upper echelon’ when compared with other scientists’ lifetime career achievements.” “…it is so obvious that he is more than worthy of the honor,” Martin continued. “Actually, I think this award is overdue…”
Yelverton and his three older brothers grew up on a farm, with tobacco as the primary crop, near the tiny town of Black Creek, just south of Wilson, North Carolina. “Yeah, I knew what work was at a young age,” he says. During the tobacco harvest, “We literally worked from 5 a.m. to probably 9 p.m. My father was a World War II veteran, kind of a no-nonsense guy. He’d say, ‘Alright boys, let’s get this done.’ And you didn’t question it. You’d just go do it.”
He was similarly matter of fact in his approach to being diagnosed with a highly aggressive form of prostate cancer in 2009. Doctors gave him a 20 percent chance of survival. “It was tough. It was tough, you know, because I had a 10-year-old at the time,” he says. “But they removed it, and I had chemotherapy and radiation. They threw the book at me. But there was only one way to go, so you do what you’ve got to do, man. Just like a project on the golf course. You do what you’ve got to do.
“You know that old saying, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. I think that’s true because all of a sudden, I had a totally different perspective on life. We’re not here forever so you better enjoy it while you are. That thinking permeates everything I do now.”
It is why Yelverton made the decision to enter phased retirement. His current half-time duties will wrap up entirely next summer. “I love what I do. I don’t feel like this is work,” he says. “I’ve loved every minute of it. But you know that John Lennon quote from just before he was shot? ‘Life is what happens while you’re busy making other plans.’ It’s time to start doing some other things I want to do.”
One of which will be traveling with wife of 38 years, Kimberly, to parts of the world he has seen through his work. “She has been so wonderful and so patient with me being away so much,” Yelverton says. “I look forward to us being able to enjoy those places together.”
Yelverton will receive his Distinguished Service Award during a special ceremony at the Carolinas GCSA Conference and Trade Show in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, in November.
