I recently played an OregonCourse that I have avoided for several years. When I last played it, conditions were awful (although my ball rolled far because the ground was so barren). But this time, the course was in great shape and I had a grand time playing (even though my score wasn’t that great). Every time I passed a greenskeeper or maintenance person I would stop and thank them for doing such great work.
Except for a very small garden, I have never done anything near “greens keeping.” But I can imagine that being successful in operating and maintaining a golf course requires a lot of effort, time, resources, knowledge, and dedication. In other words, a good golf course requires a really good superintendent (who often has a really good team).
There is a wide variety of golf course operations in Oregon, from world class operations with multiple courses like Bandon Dunes (shout out to Senior Director of Agronomy Kevin Nice), to small town 9-hole muni courses like Echo Hills (shout out to Randy Speer who did so many things for so many years). Because of the diversity of situations, the role of a golf course superintendent in Oregon can be very different from course to course. Some may only focus on course conditions while others may serve in one or all of the following capacities: superintendent, greenskeeper, equipment manager, general manager, pro, and even course architect. In any event, being a golf course superintendent on any course is not an easy job. But the quality of the course you are playing will depend on the effort, knowledge, and skill of the course superintendent and his/her team.
The Oregon Golf Course Superintendents Association (OGCSA) provides education, a forum for communication, and the enhancement of the image of its members (this is the mission statement of the OGCSA). The organization traces its history back to 1928 when superintendents in Oregon and Washington formed the Oregon-Washington Greenskeepers Association. Oregon split off in the late 1950s to form the OGCSA. The OGCSA is an affiliate of the national Golf Course Superintendents Association of America, which was formed in 1926 and has over 20,000 members worldwide.
OGCSA has over 330 members, who work at almost 60 percent of the golf course facilities in Oregon. Although members are primarily superintendents, members also include greenskeepers, maintenance personnel, equipment managers, and people interested in getting an education in turf management and course operations (like regular golfers). Members also include folks working with turf in non-golf industries, like municipal parks.
How does OGCSA help? As its mission states – education and communication. Throughout the year, the OGCSA hosts remote and in-person seminars (including Field Days through Beaver Turf) on all aspects of operating a golf course. OGCSA also provides formal (classroom) and informal (golf tournaments) opportunities for members to meet and share ideas. OGSCA also provides (generally weekly) updates to its members.
To further the education of its existing and potentially new members, OGSCA supports (in time and, through its philanthropic arm, Oregon Turfgrass Foundation, money) Beaver Turf. Beaver Turf is Oregon State University’s nationally renowned turf management program. In addition to doing studies and publishing papers on all aspects of turf management, if an OGCSA member has a turf issue the member can contact Beaver Turf for an answer.
OGSCA also teamed up with its sister organizations in Western Washington and Idaho to publish Environmental Stewardship Guidelines, Best Management Practices for Oregon Golf Courses. This 200-page publication covers all aspects of golf course operations from soil and water management to community outreach. As the title says, there is a ton of ideas in the Guidelines on how to make a course and its operations more environmentally responsible (including sections on conservation, preserving flora and fauna, and carbon sequestration).
OGSCA also does outreach. It annually holds First Green programs, a science, technology, engineering, math, and environmental outreach program where students in grades K-12 use a golf course as a living laboratory. OGCSA also has a scholarship to support continued education in the turf management field and a scholarship for the children and grandchildren of members.
Through the years, Oregon has been lucky to have had some of the best golf course superintendents in the country, many recognized nationally as leaders in environmental stewardship of golf courses. Some of these superintendents include Troy Russell and Ken Nice of Bandon, Ryan Bancroft of Salishan, David Phipps of Stone Creek, Gary Early of Salmon Run, and Chris Robson of Glendoveer. These folks and OGCSA have shown golf courses can serve as good environmental stewards.
Should this matter to the average golfer? Of course. Much like the course I wrote about in the opening of this article, the right supervisor and crew can make a fundamental difference in how a course looks, plays, and contributes (not harm) to the well-being of the players and the local area. If you enjoy golf, if you enjoy a golf course, if you are grateful for the green space that a golf course gives, it’s those folks who make that happen. And OGCSA helps those folks do better.
If you get the chance support OGCSA by becoming a member, donating to the Oregon Turfgrass Foundation, or participating in Rounds for Research (where golfers bid on donated foursomes from private, resort, and public facilities, with proceeds supporting OGSCA; watch for it in April 2027). And if you like the way the course looks and plays (apart from how you are playing), take the time to thank the superintendent and the crew; they work hard to allow you to enjoy the day.
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