Most of the biggest names in the business were there, along with a lot of its hottest young stars. Some looked great in their classic clothes, while others showed off more hip, casual garb. And there was so much smiling, sunglasses were needed, even for those who didn’t normally sport them as part of a California look.
Yes, it was Oscars weekend in Los Angeles, but this scene wasn’t happening in Hollywood. Instead, it took place 30 miles to the southeast in Anaheim, as golf course superintendents, owners, general managers, chefs and others involved with the club and resort business all came together for the first all-encompassing Golf Industry Show (GIS).
At a wrap-up press conference that quickly took on the tone of an awards ceremony, the heads of the three major associations behind the new GIS made it clear they felt it was both a box-office hit and a critical success. Steve Mona of the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America reported record seminar attendance. Mike Hughes of the National Golf Course Owners Association called the show a “grand-slam home run.” And Jim Singerling of the Club Managers Association of America told a story to illustrate why he was convinced his organization had done the right thing—despite grumbling from some members—to fold its once-independent conference into the larger GIS.
“A club general manager told me that he had walked the trade show floor with his superintendent, who’s been with him for 10 years,” Singerling related. “He said he got to know [his superintendent] better in the hour and a half they spent together at the show than in all those previous years, and that he now has much higher regard for him because he never realized before how much he knew about all aspects of club operations—not just course maintenance.
“Most importantly,” Singerling added, “this club manager told me that because he was able to look at everything at the show with the other members of his team, they will now be able to go back and prepare and present their budget [for capital purchases] to their Board 45 days earlier than in previous years—and with a lot more detail—to help get things approved more easily.”
Away from the lights, cameras and notepads, it wasn’t too hard to find people at the GIS who weren’t quite as gushing in their praise. Some exhibitors, especially those on the edges of the nearly 300,000 sq. ft. of show floor space, felt it had become too big for attendees (their potential customers) to visit all the booths. Others felt attendance was too top-heavy with superintendents.
In the April C&RB, we’ll have complete coverage of the show, including thoughts and reactions from clubs and resorts that sent teams of managers, those that just sent one representative, and those that pulled a Marlon Brando and didn’t go at all. For the new GIS, it may be a while before it can finally be announced who “the winner is”—and isn’t.
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