GolfClubAtlas.com > Golf Course Architecture
how long is the tenure of the average superintendent?
Mike_Young:
There is no more difficult job I know than that of a golf superintendent at a private club with a board. From year to year they often have no idea what the committee will expect and all it takes is the wrong guy getting on the board and 20 years of efforts are gone. This site will not admit or recognize that for 99% of golfers architecture means nothing and the “architecture” is usually confused with maintenance level. IMHO there is much good architecture out there with average or less maintenance and much shitty architecture with top maintenance levels that are judged and rated not on architecture but solely maintenance. The golf design business is at the mercy of the golf superintendent and his budget.
Now, today, there seems to be an epidemic of young Slapdick type boards who don’t know just enough to not know what they don’t know. I just saw a prominent club remove a good superintendent who had busted his ass for these guys and gotten them thru large renovation for no reason other than hanging with their buddies from other clubs and discussing firmness of greens and flower beds.
I firmly believe that if two qualified golf superintendents were to revert back and forth between their respective clubs every three years both clubs would be better. That’s not a slap at either but a compliment to two sets of eyes. The recent trend of destination clubs visited by boardmembers and then watching golf news dudes talk about design and maintenance has created a dangerous environment for the average good hardworking golf superintendent.
I think the golf superintendent is becoming almost like a professional running back . When He gets the good job just plan on 5-10 years before they turn on you and have a good exit strategy whether it sales or course ownership or consulting etc.
Mike_Young:
It seems superintendents seem to agree but have to answer via PM.
Terry Lavin:
I hope our current superintendent at Beverly is serving a life sentence. So ordered! But on a statistical guess I would say 4-5 years. Fickle employers nervous employees make a volatile mix.
Mike Sweeney:
--- Quote from: Mike_Young on January 20, 2019, 10:32:57 AM ---There is no more difficult job I know than that of a golf superintendent at a private club with a board.
--- End quote ---
Boo hoo for the golf guys :)
https://www.navy.com/careers/explosive-ordnance-disposal-technician
Okay, I get it, you were probably focused on the golf industry. In that limited universe, I agree.
Your idea of trading Supers between two clubs is interesting because is it a lot of pressure on one person. Mother Nature is bigger than one person.
The other side of having a Private Club Doofus on the Greens Committee is that person will love the club. Sure, he does not "get it", but his love for the "club course" versus his lack of agronomy and architectural expertise has to be weighed.
Do you want all Professional Politicians to run the country ?? :)
SL_Solow:
Very club-centric. Other factors to consider are the number of clubs that are closing which creates further pressure due to the reduced number of jobs. On the other side of the ledger are the reduced number of qualified graduates being produced by turf schools. Many who do study are interested in areas other than golf.
Committees and boards that care need to educate members as to expectations, budgets and the impact of weather etc. There are always "expert" members who make unfavorable comparisons with neighboring clubs. They are often the same folks who can't understand why a course is closed after a significant weather events (heaven forbid that cart use is restricted) and who object to standard maintenance practices that have short term negative impacts on conditioning. But with the right leadership and proper communication with the entire membership, these malcontents can be isolated. At our club, we retired our Superintendent after 48 years (granted him full privileges along with his retirement benefits) and his youthful replacement (who is a member of this board) is into his 2nd decade. It helps that both are outstanding professionally and personally. But its hard work for the Super, the board and the committee.
Navigation
[0] Message Index
[#] Next page
Go to full version