FMC Professional Solutions, a business unit of FMC Corp., announced that Golf Course Superintendent James Sprankle of The Loxahatchee Club in Jupiter, Fla., submitted the winning entry in its Crash Course Golf Promotion. Sprankle was one of many entrants from across the country who submitted personal tales of the oddest things they’d encountered on the job.
Sprankle won the $5,000 cash prize on behalf of his course for an experience that occurred in 1993, when he was employed as superintendent at the Cabo del Sol Resort in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. During irrigation installation on the sixth hole, human bone fragments and teeth were discovered, immediately halting construction.
According to Sprankle, a geological team was brought in for a full-scale archaeological dig and discovered Mayan ruins and several complete skeletons, which had been well-preserved 15 feet underground. The skeletons were arranged around a campfire with the fire pit still in tact. The course was shut down for two to three weeks as part of the dig. Historians later informed Sprankle that the Mayans traveled to that very site annually to conduct sacrifices.
“That was definitely the most unusual thing I’ve ever seen on a golf course,” Sprankle said. “I’ve seen a lot of crazy things but much of it is typical, like animals running around or people driving golf carts into lakes. Not many people come across an ancient burial ground in another country. This was really interesting because there was some culture behind it.”
The other 11 winners include: Mike Blackwood of Black Hawk Golf Course, Beaver Falls, Pa., David Ezzo of Mahoning Country Club, Girard, Ohio, John Gurke of Aurora Country Club, Aurora, Ill., Bill Kissick of Mather Golf Course, Rocklin, Calif., Erwin McKone of Briar Ridge Country Club, Schererville, Ind., Jason Morgan of Angel Park Golf Course, Las Vegas, Nev., Sam Reznicek of The Reserve at Moonlight Basin, Big Sky, Montana, Gene Scarbourough of Santee-Cooper Resort, Inc., Santee, S.C., Jeremy Seiler of Kettle Hills, Richfield, Wis., Scott Wahlin of The Links at Boynton Beach, Greenacres, Fla., and Anthony Williams of Stone Mountain Golf Club by Marriot, Stone Mountain, Ga. Each of the runner ups won a $250 cash prize.
Of the entries submitted in the Crash Course Golf Promotion, the 12 finalists were selected and then a panel of judges chose Sprankle’s experience as the most unique and craziest. Entries were accepted from golf course superintendents, assistant superintendents, owners and managers.
“This really was a fun promotion as we had stories come in from all over the country with some of the wildest things we’ve ever heard of happening on a golf course,” said Adam Manwarren, product manger for turf and ornamentals. “Some of the entries were not fit to print, but they were fun to read! Our selection committee was challenged to pull out a single winner, and Sprankle’s experience was worthy of the grand prize. We appreciate each and every entry that was submitted.”
The FMC turf portfolio has been designed to help superintendents be ready for any challenge with a broad range of herbicide, fungicide and insecticide products, including Solitare herbicide, Dismiss turf herbicide, Dismiss South herbicide, Echelon herbicide, QuickSilver herbicide, Segway fungicide and the Talstar line of liquid and granular insecticides.