NGF TOP 100 BUSINESSES IN GOLF
GCSAA
Category
Corporate Headquarters
Lawrence, Kansas
Website
Key Employees
Rhett Evans, CEO
Bob Randquist, COO
Cameron Oury, CFO
Greg Stacey, Senior Manager, Market Research
Eileen Bangalan, Senior Director, Business Strategy
Shelia Finney, Senior Director, Member Programs
Profile
The Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA) is the professional association for more than 18,000 men and women members who manage and maintain the game’s most valuable resource – the golf course. The GCSAA provides education, information, advocacy, and representation to its members in more than 78 countries.
The mission of the GCSAA is to serve its members, advance their profession, and enhance the enjoyment, growth, and vitality of the game of golf.
GCSAA has elevated the industry’s and superintendents’ voices through advocacy efforts at the national and grassroots levels. (Photo courtesy: GCSAA)
The GCSAA’s philanthropic arm is the Environmental Institute for Golf (EIFG), a collaborative effort between the environmental and golf communities dedicated to strengthening the compatibility of golf with the natural environment. The EIFG concentrates on delivering programs and services that communicate best management practices of environmental stewardship on the golf course.
The association continues to notably invest in the future of the golf industry by supporting turfgrass research projects throughout chapters across the country.
GCSAA is spearheading the development of centralized best management practices at the state and facility levels. (Photo courtesy: GCSAA)
NGF Takeaways
Since taking over as the GCSAA’s CEO in 2011, Rhett Evans has focused on expanding the association’s reach and influence to become the global leader in golf course management. The GCSAA has also elevated the superintendents’ collective voice through advocacy efforts at both the national and grassroots levels.
Under Evans’ leadership, the discussion of sustainability has progressed from theory to action at golf facilities. Additionally, GCSAA is developing centralized best management practices, tools, and templates to enhance environmental progress, while also improving the financial health of golf courses around the country.
GCSAA members are often called upon as conservation, environmental, stewardship, and water management experts in their communities on subjects or issues unrelated to golf.
Herb Graffis, a founder of the NGF and a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame, was a pioneer in the creation of the GCSAA and was the most vocal and influential advocate for changing the old “greenskeeper” nomenclature to “superintendent,” helping to elevate the profession and the super’s standing at the golf course.
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