Monthly Feature Hosted By:
	Bob Farren, CGCS, Director of Grounds and Golf Course Management for Pinehurst Resort and Country Club

“The wonders of nature and the scientific know-how to explain them surrounds you in Massachusetts…..There is almost no limit to the natural wonders you can explore in Massachusetts.”

I found the above text as the leading statement on a state of Massachusetts’ tourism website during my research for this month’s Green Links featured case study. Massachusetts truly is a state full of history, environmental beauty, and natural wonders. It is very fitting that it is also home to the award winning “organic” golf course and Jeff Carlson, CGCS the superintendent at The Vineyard Golf Club.

The Vineyard Golf Club opened on May 22, 2002 and is one of the most environmentally sensitive golf courses ever built in the United States. It is the first course built on Martha’s Vineyard in the past thirty years and there were individuals who questioned if it could be done. As one would expect, the development plans were met with great scrutiny and many constraints during the permitting process dating back to early 2000. The course was permitted with the restrictions that no synthetic pesticides would be allowed and only natural organic compost fertilizers could be used for nutrition. Many other alternative management practices have been implemented and are constantly evaluated. Jeff works with the USGA Green Section and Cornell University to further develop organic maintenance programs that the golf industry may benefit from.

Jeff is a 22 year GCSAA Class A member and has worked on Cape Cod for thirty years. He spent several years at Brewster Golf, later known as Ocean Edge. He later worked with architect Michael Hurdzan to develop the environmentally acclaimed Widow’s Walk in Scituate, Massachusetts. Jeff’s work at Widow’s Walk earned him GCSAA’s Environmental Steward Award in 1998. Jeff’s dedication and expertise was once again recognized by the GCSAA as being the recipient of the 2008 President’s Award for Environmental Stewardship. It is evident that Jeff not only practices environmental stewardship, but it is actually part of his make up and fabric.

Jeff attributes the success of The Vineyard Club to the fact that the members have such passion for environmental stewardship and have embraced the concept with full understanding. The proactive outreach and education plays a huge role in its success. Jeff will be the first to tell you that it is “all about communication.” Even greater evidence in their support lies in the fact the Vineyard Club President, Mr. Owen G. Larkin, has been appointed to the Advisory Council for the Environmental Institute for Golf.

I think you will agree, after having read the study, that the members of the Vineyard Golf Club have a great deal to be proud of and are enjoying the experience of “organic golf.”

If you are compelled to share an environmental case study, we would love to hear from you. You will earn 0.25 service points for your case study. If you have any questions feel free to contact me at bob.farren@pinehurst.com or Mark Johnson at mjohnson@gcsaa.org.

April's Guest:
	Jim Skorulski, Senior Agronomist USGA Green Section

Vineyard Golf Club is unlike any other golf course in New England or North America for that matter. A group of inspired golfers and a courageous golf course superintendent joined together to create a unique golf property on Martha’s Vineyard. It was not easy, but their persistence and power of persuasion succeeded in obtaining permits to build a golf course that would have to be managed in a sustainable fashion. The course was to be maintained and operated with minimal fertilizer, no synthetic pesticides and under strict mandates to preserve unique scrubland habitats. Most doubted that it could be done. But, to the credit of Jeff Carlson and a supportive membership, the golf course without traditional pesticides has proven many of us wrong.

It has not been an easy road. The lack of traditional chemical tools has necessitated an altogether different management approach and attitude that is more commonly seen in sustainable agriculture operations. The primary emphasis focuses on producing a healthy plant that can better resist and recover from pest damage and remain competitive with weeds. Alternative biorational products are an important component of the program, and culling and regrassing practices are utilized to keep pest damage and weeds at tolerable levels. The approach is labor intensive and the learning curve steep. Jeff’s case study is indicative of the sometimes frustrating and always interesting approaches used to manage a golf course without traditional chemical inputs. The Vineyard Golf Club project has and will continue to teach us a great deal, but perhaps most importantly reaffirms the amazing resiliency of grass.