As the holidays rapidly approach, it’s time to reflect on 2021. There is no doubt that when most golfers tee it up in a USGA championship, it is one of the most important golf events they’ll ever be a part of. It is no different for the people preparing the courses. Hosting a USGA championship starts years in advance for the course superintendent and their team. Countless meetings and phone calls, possible course renovation work, training and securing staff, long hours, and dealing with rules officials and volunteers are all par for the course when hosting a national championship. So, as I look back on 2021, I’d like to take this opportunity to express our collective Green Section thanks to the hard-working superintendents that helped us with championships out west this year. We’ll call them the “West All-Stars.” Listed chronologically:
U.S. Amateur Four-Ball
Chambers Bay – Eric Johnson
The Home Course – Dennis Roque
A May championship in the Pacific Northwest presents some challenges. Cool and wet spring weather doesn’t necessarily help turf vigorously grow after a long winter with higher-than-normal rounds of golf. However, Eric Johnson and Dennis Roque, with the help of their staffs, managed to get both courses in top condition for the championship. The newly converted greens at Chambers Bay performed beautifully during the first USGA championship at that venue since the 2015 U.S. Open. There’s no rest for the weary though, Eric and his team will host another USGA championship in 2022 when the U.S. Women’s Amateur will be contested at Chambers Bay in August.