Work for play

Some high school and college golfers are learning about the turfgrass side of the golf industry, thanks to Tim Busek.

Busek is in charge of the grounds at St. Ives Country Club, a private facility in Johns Creek, Georgia, a little more than 25 miles northwest of downtown Atlanta. The Tom Fazio design was completed in 1988.

Busek has been at the club since March of 2020. A veteran of more than a quarter of a century in the industry, he is the immediate past president of the Georgia GCSA and has served on the organization’s board of directors since 2011.

Three high schools, plus Oglethorpe University, an NCAA Division III institution, practice and host their home matches at St. Ives. The club does not charge the schools for access to its golf course but stipulates that the student-athletes spend one day each season assisting Busek’s crew, which includes around 12 workers. The arrangement has been in place since the spring of 2021.

“Before COVID, the club was letting the high schools and colleges that approached us use the club for practice and their home matches,” he says. “We didn’t have a full membership, so there was no contraction with the tee sheet and tee time availabilities. It was a lot easier to accommodate that.”

In the wake of the pandemic, it was suggested the student-athletes give back to the club in exchange for the access they were receiving.

“The idea actually started at a green and golf committee meeting, that under the circumstances that whomever we’re permitting to use the course also commit to a workday of some sort,” Busek says. “We got a general consensus on that.

“We took it to our risk and compliance committee to review to see what type of liability we might have and what type of tasks we could ask the kids to do, and they came back and said we think this a great idea and we should proceed with it.”

What followed was a discussion about the tasks that untrained student-athletes could safely take on.

“We obviously didn’t take them out, putting them on machines and swinging weed eaters and things like that,” Busek says. “What we’ve done with the groups is have them pick up broken tees off the range tee, pick up broken tees out on the course, fill divots on the range tee and out on the course and also pick up pinecones and limbs.”

Busek holds two work sessions each spring, with two schools attending each session. They are scheduled on Mondays, when the club is either closed or hosting an outing.

“Typically, it’s done during school time,” Busek says. “The high schools, instead of a formal practice, come out for two hours that day.”

Prior to the work session, Busek holds a sit-down session with the students and provides them with insights into what a career in turf is all about.

“I used the opportunity to introduce them to our side of the profession,” he says. “I’ll talk to them for five or 10 minutes about my job and what we do before I get them started and kind of introduce them to this side of it.

“Everybody thinks they’re going to be a pro golfer and that’s just not the reality. Usually, for the most part, the kids at both the college and high-school levels have been good listeners and then, about the third or fourth sentence, I tend to mention that the golf course superintendent earns more, by average, than the head golf professional. That tends to get some attention.”

Busek says the golf coaches and athletic directors of the participating school have been totally supportive of his efforts to share his passion for his profession with their students.

“The coaches don’t allow the kids to have their cell phones,” he says, “and so far, each one that we’ve done, everyone has been attentive. They’ve listened, they’ve worked hard, so it’s been a grand slam.”

Jim Owen has been the men’s golf coach at Oglethorpe University for 30 years and the women’s golf coach for 17. He’s been named the Dave Williams NCAA Division III Coach of the Year twice and his men’s teams have won two national championships. Owen been at the university for 42 years and was previously its men’s basketball coach. He says the workdays allow his players to show appreciation to the members and staff at St. Ives.

“We were excited to give something back,” he says. “They are a generous partner of ours, allowing us to practice out there once a month, so when Tim and (golf professional Mollie Boney) reached out and said, ‘Hey, we’re having this work day and would love as many of your kids that want to be involved to come out,’ I thought, ‘What a good way to learn about the industry, give back to the community, and have these guys work a little bit for their supper if you will.”

Owen says Busek and his team give his players a close-up look at what the turf industry is about.

“They talk them through the process,” he says. “What goes on behind the scenes, how the sausage is made. (His players) asked some great questions and we loved leaning in and listening to the answers.”

Owen says the experience is hands-on and leaves a lasting impact on his players.

“The turf industry is an incredibly interesting field,” he says, “and it applies so directly to us as college athletes, but we just don’t have too much access to the how-tos. So it’s nice to get a hands-on while we’re raking bunkers, removing tree limbs, repairing divots, talking about how they grow back, and what the best practices are. We really enjoy our day out there.”

Busek says the workdays have been eye opening for the student-athletes.

“Certainly, I think the pay surprised them,” he says. What else might the students not have expected to learn about golf course maintenance? “I think some of the technology that’s being used now by superintendents. And the apps that are on your phone. The soil moisture meters, and the technological sided of what’s going into creating today’s conditions and the science behind it.”

Rick Woelfel is a Philadelphia-based writer and senior Golf Course Industry contributor.