12 North Shore Towers Courier n May 2015 GROUND FORCE It takes a small army to ready and care for the NST golf course BY STEPHEN VRATTOS Preparation and upkeep of the golf course at North Shore Towers each season begins the moment after the spring thaw. Country Club Grounds and Golf Superintendent Eric O’Neill makes a complete surveillance of the course to determine which areas will need reseeding or special attention, so he can go into action as soon as the soil is dry enough and temperatures are warm enough to ensure healthy rehabilitation. Mere days into the 2015 season, O’Neill has already earmarked holes 9, 15 and the putting green as needing extra TLC. “See the yellowing?” he asks, pointing to the 15th Green as he escorts me around the course. “You can tell it’s suffered ‘winter kill ice damage.’” Even to the untrained eye, one could see swaths of yellowing and discoloration on the green in question, but also to the untrained eye, there appears to be similar patches throughout the course. But O’Neill is pinpointing particular areas from fifty feet away. Is he pulling my leg? Where are the earth borers and testing equipment? The dubious look on my face must be apparent. O’Neill leads me to the Green and squats, rubbing his hand across two patches of turf with seemingly identical damage. Just beneath the tips of the lowcut grass, there is an obvious difference; one shows further yellowing, even browning, an indication that reseeding will be necessary. The other displays a light green, signaling healthy regrowth without reseeding. O’Neill’s uncanny grounds expertise is unsurpassed. He contributes his success to great mentors he worked under as an Assistant Golf Course Superintendent and during golf management internships, including John Carlone, CGCS of the Meadow Brook Club; Glenn Perry, CGCS of Rolling Hills Country Club and Matt Serverino, Director of Grounds at Scarsdale Golf Club. Then there are the friends and colleagues, with whom he speaks every day. “On a weekly basis I probable speak to at least six different golf course superintendents, which are more friends than colleagues,” he explains. “I think of being a golf course superintendent as a way of life not a job.” O’Neill also attends educational seminars to stay up-to-date with the latest science and research, as well as being the Vice President of the Long Island Golf Course Superintendents Association. O’Neill began his golf career at a young age in his home state of Rhode Island, playing golf with his grandfather on a course across the street from his house. His family owned a successful flooring business. While attending college and living across from the links, Eric became friendly with the grounds crew and course superintendent. It was at this time he grew interested in golf course management, subsequently transferring west to the University of Arizona, due to its proximity and relationship with the Ping Karsten Turfgrass research facility. Country Club Grounds and Golf Superintendent Eric O’Neill oversees pipe replacement for the golf course irrigation system O’Neill: A man out standing in his field Checking the irrigation pipes
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