15 Selected For 2007 USGA Green Section TAS Internships


April 11, 2007
E-mail address: mediarelations@usga.org

Far Hills, N.J.  - The 2007 USGA Green Section Internship Program will provide 15 selected college students the opportunity to travel with Green Section staff members during their Turf Advisory Service (TAS) visits to golf facilities located throughout the nation for one week between May and August 2007.

USGA staff agronomists conduct on-site TAS visits to golf facilities to bring research results and practical information on construction and maintenance practices directly to golf course superintendents and course officials. The goal of the internship program is to provide students with a broader view of the golf course industry and the opportunity to learn about golf course maintenance practices through the perspective of USGA Green Section agronomists.

Begun in 1997, the TAS internship program has welcomed 144 interns in the past. Two current USGA agronomists, Todd Lowe in the Florida region and Ty McClellan in the Mid-Continent region, were once TAS interns.

First started in 1953, the TAS permits individual facilities to reap the benefits of on-site visits by highly skilled USGA agronomists located in Green Section offices throughout the country. Each agronomist visits more than 130 courses annually. Their experience helps golf course staff and officials produce the best possible golf turf for the dollars that can be spent. The TAS's purpose is to bring to golf course management impartial information regarding turfgrass growth requirements, how these requirements might best be managed for golf, and ideas that other golf courses have found to be beneficial.

Information on the 2008 Green Section Internship Program will be mailed to university personnel in September 2007 and available on the USGA Web site.

For more information, contact Kimberly Erusha, Ph.D., Director of Education (908) 234-2300 or kerusha@usga.org.

More information on the students selected to participate in the 2007 program may be found on the USGA Web site at:  http://www.usga.org/turf/internship/2007_internship.html. Following is a list of the students who will participate in the 2007 TAS internships:

Florida Region

Jason Frank has been selected as an intern for the Green Section's Florida Region. He is a second year graduate student at the University of Florida under the direction of Dr. Bryan Unruh. He is researching the various remote sensing techniques to assess water stress on Bermuda grass fairways.

He began his career in the turfgrass industry when he started his own lawn service while in high school. As an undergraduate at the University of Florida, he gained work experience at the local golf course in Gainesville, as well as participated in an internship at TPC at Sawgrass. After graduation in December 2007, he plans to obtain an assistant superintendent job at a golf course in Florida.

Brian Schwartz will travel in the Florida Region. He is currently working on a Ph.D. at the University of Florida studying the improvement of zoysia grass for resistance/tolerance to sting nematodes and overall turf quality. Dr. Kevin Kenworthy serves as his advisor.

Schwartz became interested in turfgrass research after developing a passion for the game of golf while competing on his high school golf team. Prior to attending Texas A&M as an undergraduate, he was involved in the construction of a local golf course. Upon graduation in 2008, he plans to acquire a position in the turfgrass breeding and research field.

Mid-Atlantic Region

Anthony Garzia, Jr. will intern in the Green Section's Mid-Atlantic Region. He is currently a junior at Delaware Valley College majoring in agronomy and environmental sciences with a specialization in turfgrass management. Dr. Douglas Linde serves as his advisor.

Garza became interested in turfgrass management the first time he laid eyes on a golf course. At 16, he worked at Willow Brook Country Club, a public golf course in his hometown of Delran, N.J. After graduation in May 2008, he plans to become a head golf course superintendent at one of the top100-ranked golf courses in the United States.

John Willis also will travel with the agronomists from the Mid-Atlantic Region. He is pursuing a Ph.D. at Virginia Tech, where he is researching turfgrass weed control. Dr. Shaun Askew serves as his advisor.

Willis was born and raised on a small farm in rural west Tennessee. He received his B.S. degree from the University of Tennessee at Martin and his M.S. degree from Oklahoma State University in 2003. In addition to working toward his doctorate at Virginia Tech, he also holds the faculty position of research associate. Recently, he won first place for his research presentation in the Southern Weed Science Society graduate student contest, and received the Virginia Golf Foundation graduate student research award.

Mid-Continent Region

Matt Gourlay was selected for the 2007 season to travel in the Mid-Continent Region. He is currently a junior at Kansas State University majoring in golf course management under the guidance of Dr. Steve Keeley.

Following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather, both long-time golf course superintendents, it was only natural that Gourlay follow this career path. He has participated in internships at both the Cypress Point Club (Calif.), and Oakland Hills Country Club (Mich.), and is currently the assistant superintendent at Colbert Hills Golf Course (Kan.). He is keeping his future career plans open to all opportunities, including golf course superintendent and/or general manager. He is expected to graduate in May 2008.

North-Central Region

Bill Kreuser will travel in the Green Section's North-Central Region. He is double-majoring in both soil science and plant pathology under Dr. Doug Soldat, at the University of Wisconsin - Madison.

He became interested in turfgrass management after he installed an A-4 putting green in his backyard. Kreuser then began working at Westmoor Country Club in Brookfield, Wis., where golf course superintendent Jerry Kershasky further enhanced his love of turfgrass management. Kreuser also has worked during the summers at Whistling Straits in Sheboygan, Wis., and Blackhawk Country Club in Madison, Wis.

After graduating with his B.S. degree in May 2009, he plans to continue his studies in turfgrass research on the graduate level.

Adam Moeller also will travel in the North-Central Region this summer. He is a graduate student at Purdue University in the Agronomy Department studying turfgrass science. He is pursuing a master's degree under the guidance of Dr. Cale Bigelow.

Moeller became interested in turfgrass management through playing golf. He is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin - Madison with a B.S. degree in horticulture with a concentration in business and turfgrass management. Currently his M.S. thesis research involves an evaluation of various sand topdressing practices on putting greens.

He is currently undecided about his future career plans. He is considering pursuing a Ph.D. at Purdue University, becoming a golf course superintendent, or getting involved in the turfgrass management consulting industry.

Northeast Region

Lindsey Hoffman has been chosen to travel this summer with the agronomists from the Northeast Region. She is a second-year graduate student in the department of Plant, Soil, and Insect Sciences at the University of Massachusetts - Amherst. Hoffman is currently working with Dr. Scott Ebdon in the area of wear tolerance.

She became interested in turfgrass management while working on a golf course during college and received her B.S. degree from the University of Massachetts in turfgrass management in 2005. Hoffman is expected to receive her M.S. degree in December 2007, and after that would like to work as an educator and researcher in the area of turfgrass management and environmental sciences.

John Inguagiato will intern in the Northeast Region. He is a fourth-year Ph.D. student at Rutgers University, evaluating the effects of management practices on anthracnose, with Drs. Bruce Clarke and James Murphy serving as his advisors.

His interest in turfgrass developed from an appreciation of the outdoors and the four years he spent working at both municipal and private golf courses in Ohio. When Inguagiato began his college career he majored in turfgrass science and received his B.S. degree in agriculture and natural resources from Ohio State University. Upon completing his doctorate in October 2008, he plans to continue researching current challenges facing the turfgrass industry as an extension turfgrass pathologist at a land grant institution.

Northwest Region

Shaun Knutzen has been selected to travel in the Green Section's Northwest Region. He is a turfgrass management major at Washington State University, where Dr. Bill Johnston serves as his advisor.

An avid golfer since age four, Knutzen became interested in turfgrass management in high school by observing how golf courses are maintained. After working with the assistant superintendent at Bellingham Golf and Country Club (Wash.), he knew he wanted to make turfgrass management his career. He is vice president of the WSU Turf Club and this summer also will be interning at The Old Baldy Club in Saratoga, Wyo. After graduation in May 2008, he would like to become a golf course superintendent at a golf course in the Montana/Wyoming area, or near his hometown of Skagit Valley, Wash.

Megan Marchovecchio will travel in the Northwest Region this summer. She is a junior at Colorado State University - Pueblo, majoring in business management under the advisement of Stig Jantz.

She recently became interested in turfgrass management after working at Walking Stick Golf Course in Pueblo, Colo., during the summer of 2006. During this time, she learned to mow greens and tee boxes, and witnessed first-hand the preparations for the 2006 U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links, held at the course in June 2006. Her expected graduation date is December 2007.

Southeast Region

Christian Baldwin will fill one of three internship positions this summer with the agronomists from the Southeast Region. He currently is working on his Doctor of Philosophy degree in plant and environmental science specializing in turfgrass management at Clemson University. Dr. Haibo Liu serves as his advisor.

At the age of 10, Baldwin had his first experience working with turfgrass at a soccer field complex, and to this day he continues to volunteer at this facility. He began working for Dr. Liu in 2002, assisting with research projects. After graduation in May 2008, he plans to purse a career in turfgrass research and teaching.

Michael Vysocka will travel in the Southeast Region. He is currently enrolled at North Carolina State University, as a fourth-year undergraduate student majoring in turfgrass science. Dr. Daniel Bowman serves as his academic advisor. Six years ago, Vyscocka began working part-time on a local golf course, and quickly found the variation of daily responsibilities and outdoor activity to be something unparalleled by many other professions. Four years into his employment, hel began compiling lists of universities that would afford him the skills he would need to make a career on the golf course, and eventually turned this information into a Web site containing a national database of available turfgrass internships (Turfintern.com). After graduation in December 2007, he plans to obtain a job as a golf course superintendent at a reputable facility in the eastern United States, and work towards becoming a certified golf course superintendent.

Joey Young also will intern in the Southeast Region. He is in his first year of graduate school at Mississippi State University, studying turfgrass pathology under Drs. Maria Tomaso-Peterson and Gregg Munshaw.

Young was an avid golfer throughout high school and junior college, and it was this love of the game of golf that brought him to his career choice. Other internship opportunities for Young include: The Country Club of Birmingham (Ala.), and Spring Creek Ranch (Tenn.). He also is currently a graduate research assistant in the MSU turfgrass pathology lab. He expects to graduate with his M.S. degree in December 2008, and then would like to begin his career as either a golf course consultant or a turfgrass disease diagnostician.

Southwest Region

Nick Hanson has been selected to travel in the Southwest Region this summer. He is currently attending California State Polytechnic University - Pomona, where Dr. Sowmya Mitra serves as his advisor.

He serves as the assistant superintendent at De Bell golf course in Burbank, Calif., and had previously gained much of his experience working at the Apple Valley (Calif.) Country Club. Hanson is due to graduate during the winter of 2008, and then plans to find work as a superintendent at a private golf course that could one day host a PGA Tour event.