Over the past few months, I’ve had the privilege of getting to know the staff at Oregon State University’s turfgrass research program. Under the direction of Dr. Alec Kowalewski, this strong team of seven people continues to churn out impactful data that helps not only golf facilities, but landscape professionals, school districts, municipalities and sports field operators. Brian McDonald, Emily Braithwaite, Dr. Ruying “Wrennie” Wang, Alyssa Cain, Dr. Chas Schmid and the newly minted Dr. Clint Mattox are all part of Dr. Kowalewski’s group.

In March 2020, OSU’s Horticultural Department celebrated Dr. Mattox becoming the first person to get a Ph.D. with a focus in turfgrass management from the university. Dr. Mattox’s work on fungicide alternatives for the control of Microdochium patch has been well documented in many publications around the world. As fungicide restrictions and bans continue to increase, this type of research is invaluable. Mattox’s research on the use of iron sulfate, phosphite, sulfur and mineral oils to control Microdochium patch on Poa annua greens provides course managers with new strategies should they want to reduce traditional fungicide use or are required to do so. A secondary benefit to this research has been noticing sulfur’s role in the severity of summer anthracnose incidence.  

Oregon State is certainly not the only university doing great research for the turf industry. The USGA Turfgrass and Environmental Research Program is supporting university research across the country to the tune of more than $1.9 million in 2020. This represents 71 different projects in areas ranging from genetics and breeding to turfgrass management and its impacts on our environment. There are 31 different universities participating in some form of USGA-funded research this year. Funding all this research is a monumental undertaking that the USGA has made a priority for decades now. To date, more than $41 million has been invested in supporting turfgrass research through the USGA Green Section.    

Research like the work at Oregon State has been, and will continue to be, a critical component in how golf courses are managed in the future. We celebrate Dr. Mattox’s accomplishment and recognize all the other people involved in our research programs across the country. Keep up the great work – please.