The Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA) and its philanthropic organization, The Environmental Institute for Golf, have been awarded a 2009 Green Award by the editors of Golf Inc.
GCSAA and The Institute were the winner of the operations and associations category for the award, which recognize golf courses, operators, developers, vendors, companies and associations that have adopted programs, practices and products aimed at promoting environmental sustainability and responsible environmental stewardship.
GCSAA and The Institute won the award based on the Golf Course Environmental Profile, a multi-year series of surveys to determine the physical features found on golf courses, practices used by superintendents to maintain golf courses and inputs and outputs associated with management of golf courses. The overall goal of the project is to develop an environmental profile of golf courses. The project began in 2006, and the final survey was completed earlier this year. It was funded by The Institute through a grant from The Toro Giving Program.
It will serve as the basis for "sustainability" within golf by providing the means to measure continuous improvement and provide data to guide industry environmental efforts. The data will provide the means for individual facilities to identify and make improvements as well as communicate golf’s values within their communities. GCSAA has and will use the data to define the competencies necessary for a superintendent to be successful and then design education programs to support the competencies.
"This is a well-earned honor for everyone involved with the GCSAA Golf Course Environmental Profile," GCSAA President and Institute trustee Mark Kuhns, CGCS, said. "It is a culmination of many years of collaboration. Thanks to the thousands of GCSAA members who participated in the surveys, we now have the data to help highlight how GCSAA golf course superintendents are environmental stewards."
In addition to the Green Award won by GCSAA and The Institute, GCSAA members were at the helm of the five facilities chosen in the "courses" category of the Green Awards. Winners included:
• Saucon Valley Country Club in Bethelem, Pa., where Jim Roney, who was the overall winner of the 2008 GCSAA/Golf Digest Environmental Leaders in Golf Awards (ELGA), is the GCSAA Class A superintendent.
• Stone Mountain (Ga.) Golf Club, where Anthony Williams is the GCSAA certified golf course superintendent. Williams is also the winner of GCSAA’s 2010 President’s Award for Environmental Stewardship and the overall winner and the 2006 ELGAs.
• Old Greenwood/Tahoe Mountain Club in Truckee, Calif, where Joel Blaker, CGCS, is director of agronomy and the 2008 National Resort Course ELGA winner.
• Bahia Beach Resort in Puerto Rico, where Robert Wigger is the GCSAA member golf course superintendent.
• Three Crowns Golf Club in Casper, Wyo., where Michael Smith is the GCSAA Class A golf course superintendent.
The awards, presented by Rain Bird Corp., will be presented at the 2009 Golf Inc. Fall Conference on Sept. 15 at the LaQuinta Resort and Club in La Quinta, Calif.