From course to classroom

Jim Huntoon spent most of his days for over two decades working on golf courses.

Huntoon started in the industry in 1998 as a greenkeeper at Ames Golf and Country Club after finishing his bachelor’s degree in community and regional planning from Iowa State University. He started there to keep himself busy. Previously, Huntoon had worked with turf students at Iowa State, where he realized he wanted to pursue a career in turf management.

His professional career started in May 2001 as an assistant superintendent at Caledonia Golf & Fish Club in Pawleys Island, South Carolina. After nine years at Caledonia, he became the superintendent at nearby Heritage Club.

In January 2023, Huntoon started his new career path as an associate professor in the Golf and Sports Turf department at Horry-Georgetown Technical College, the same school where he earned his associate degree in golf course operation and grounds management. 

Huntoon and Horry-Georgetown department chair/professor Charles Granger already had a good working relationship. Huntoon regularly employed Horry-Georgetown students on his Heritage Club crews. 

“An opening came up and he reached out and basically just kind of went from there,” Huntoon says. “It’s something that I was interested in, and the opportunity arose, and I started investigating it and looking into it, and it seemed like a good opportunity for me.”

The skillset and qualities, including his ability to connect to students and comfort with social media, matched what Granger was seeking.

“You have to look out there and say, ‘Where do we see the future going?’” Granger says. “And if you see people that may have some sort of skillset, you better look and see what the talent is around you and what the talent pool is. And Jim is very charismatic, very involved with the industry and it just kind of came up one day.”

Huntoon had “big shoes to fill” as he was replacing Ashley Wilkinson, who had been at Horry-Georgetown for 13 years and now works at GT Irrigation. Granger went through the state guidelines and the job search as everyone must do, but Huntoon had the expertise that fit what Granger wanted. 

“The biggest thing that any faculty member has to bring to our programs that we teach is do they have subject matter expertise?” Granger says. “And can they translate that subject matter expertise in applications-based learning to a student? Jim certainly has that.” 

The decision to leave as superintendent was not easy, but the support Huntoon received made the decision easier. “I reached out and had a lot of consultation with people close to me, both personally and professionally,” he says, “and the overwhelming response that I got from consulting with scores of people about it was that I should do it. I really only had one person telling me that they didn't think it was a good idea. So that made the decision easier.”

The timing for Huntoon was right. As a superintendent he lived a mile and a half from where he worked. He could eat lunch at home with his wife, Molly, nearly every day and do things like pick his kids up from school and go to award ceremonies.

Now with his daughter going to college and his son starting high school, a 30-mile distance from his new job to home isn’t such a big deal. Although the transition was smooth, Huntoon did learn some things that he didn’t expect. He realized quickly what he didn’t know and what he forgot.

“There were other things that I really had to work hard on learning again, or relying on other experts to help me,” Huntoon says. “I reached out to a lot of different people to help me. A lot of the connections and networks that I already had, that I used as a superintendent, came in handy, and people were very gracious with their time and helping me. I really appreciated that.”

Being “fresh out of the industry,” Huntoon’s knowledge and experience from his years as a superintendent has helped him in the classroom. “I'm very familiar with turfgrass management and golf course management, what it's all about,” he says. “I think it gives me a certain sense, a certain bit of credibility, with the students that I've come right out and that I guess I had a proven track record of success. I think that helps. Just knowing what it takes, and what are some of the things that are maybe more relevant than others to success in the industry.”

Huntoon taught four classes during the spring semester: soils, grounds maintenance pesticides, and golf course construction and design. Granger says his first effort at teaching was “absolutely outstanding.” 

“He’s come in, he’s taking the bull by the horns. He has absolutely related to our students in a wonderful fashion,” Granger adds. “Jim has hit the ground running and absolutely could not be more pleased with the job he’s done for our students and for the college.”

He now has nine students working summer internships under him and will be teaching four classes in the fall. Huntoon loves working with young people and students who are “very passionate about the industry and about where they’re going and what they're doing.”

After finishing his first semester, Huntoon realized how much work he put in.

“I’m working harder than ever,” he says. “A lot of people assume that making this switch from superintendent to academia to professor was that I wasn’t going to be working as hard and that’s far from the truth.

“It took almost every minute of every day, workwise, to prepare for my classes and I still don't really feel like I was prepared as well as I would like to be. I guess I’m probably a little bit too hard on myself. But I know that’ll take time. It’s been a challenge for sure. I want to make that clear that it’s not been easy, but it’s been rewarding. And I will say my level of stresses has gone down for sure.”

Despite leaving his superintendent position, Huntoon feels more involved than ever in the industry. He is a part of the Carolinas GCSA and plans to continue helping the association. He remains active on social media and has been visiting schools and talking with students to expand the program’s reach. 

Teaching is something that Huntoon plans to stick with and is excited to see where he and Granger take the program. He has enjoyed the experience and sees it as a route to thanking the industry.

“It was amazing to me to be able to give back to the industry and teach the next generation of turfgrass managers,” he says. “To be able to influence them in their careers and their journey was exciting to me.”

Jacob Hansen is a Kent State University senior participating in Golf Course Industry’s summer internship program.