19th Hole: Brad Wunderlich

Photo: Brad Wunderlich

Brad Wunderlich, CGCS

Director of Grounds and Agronomy // Edgewood Lake Tahoe GC, Stateline, Nev.

Brad, drinks are on me. What are you having? A Corona.

Tell me about the course. Edgewood is a George Fazio course built in 1968. There is a lot of history at this course, the land was originally purchased to raise cattle in 1895 by the Park family, who still own the property. It’s the only golf course on the shore of Lake Tahoe. We’ve hosted the American Century Championship for 31 years, as well as the 1985 U.S. Senior Open. Countless celebrities and players such as Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson have visited over the years.

Do you have a family, and what do you all do for fun? My wife and I have been married five years. We have a daughter, Charli — she’s three. We have a boat, so when I’m not working, we try and spend as much time as we can on the lake.

How did you end up at Colorado State? I started working on a golf course while in high school in St. Louis. I wanted to get away from the Midwest, and I loved the mountains in Colorado, so I started looking at schools. I just fell in love with the campus as soon as I was there. They had a turf program, so that helped.

Do you have any traditions with the crew? Most of the crew is seasonal, so we have an end-of-the-season barbecue every year. We play games, like a water balloon toss or an egg toss. There’s always someone rolling around on the ground in laughter because someone took an egg right in the face. It’s a good opportunity to get away from everything and let loose for an afternoon.

Do you have a favorite moment in sports? Game 5 of the 2005 NLCS … St. Louis versus Houston. The Cardinals were down to their last out, and the fans were going crazy. They thought they had won. Then, Albert Pujols hits a three-run bomb all the way to the railroad tracks. All of a sudden, you could hear a pin drop. In the interview after the game, Pujols said he looked into the dugout and was mad they were already celebrating.

Do you have a most memorable day at work? One that really stands out was during the celebrity tournament. Justin Timberlake was going to fly to Orlando to perform a concert, so he went off here real early to get his round in, fly out and get back for the next round. We had to get everything ready for him ahead of time, so we’re rushing. And he’s rushing, playing as fast as he can. We had a demo fairway unit we were using. Halfway through the 10th fairway, it just shut off. The rules official, the marshal, they’re yelling at us, ‘Hey, Timberlake is on the way, get that mower out of the way!’ We basically hooked a cable up to it and dragged it off as the balls were landing.