Colorado Basin Golf and Water Summit announces full education program

The Colorado Basin Golf and Water Summit shared the full education program for the one-day event held on Oct. 12 at the Vdara Hotel and Spa in Las Vegas.

This event is designed to provide golf course owners, operators and managers in Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming with current and forward-looking research, perspectives and guidance, insight into the drought’s current impacts and what to expect in the future.

Education will include an exploration of federal and state policies and funding that is available to golf facilities, steps to continue successful water consumption reduction efforts and discussion of the industry’s significant progress and how it will continue to contribute to the Southwest’s economy and lifestyle. Attendees will also be provided with examples of effective public relations messaging and techniques to educate customers about what they can expect when visiting courses.

Education sessions include:

Current state of policy – Federal level

• Amy Ostdeik, chief of interstate, federal and water information section, Colorado Water Conservation Board
• Stacy Wade, lower Colorado basin deputy director, United States Bureau of Reclamation

Current state of policy – Lower/upper basin and state level

• Robert Cheng, Ph.D., assistant general manager, Coachella Valley Water District
• Amy Ostdeik, chief of interstate, federal and water information section, Colorado Water Conservation Board
• Colby Pellegrino, Deputy General Manager of Resources, Southern Nevada Water Authority
• Sarah Porter, director, Kyl Center for Water Policy, Arizona State University
• Deven Upadhyay, assistant general manager and executive officer, Southern California Metro Water District

Best practices – Short-term and long-term tactics

• Pat Christoffer, CGCS, director of agronomy, Red Ledges Golf Club, Heber City, Utah
• Tyler Truman, director of agronomy, Mountain Vista Golf Club, Palm Desert, Calif.
• Curtis Tyrrell, CGCS, MG, director of agronomy, Desert Highlands Golf Club, Scottsdale, Ariz.

Impact of reduced water – Examining our options

• Parker Cohn, founder and CEO of Performance Resource Management
• Stephanie Duer, water conservation manager, Salt Lake City
• James Symons, director of agronomy, Anthem Country Club, Las Vegas, Nev.

Marketing to your golfers — Customer-minded communications and PR messaging strategies

• Thom Blinkinsop, general manager, Red Rock Country Club, Las Vegas, Nev.
• Shelley Caiazzo, general manager, Anthem Country Club, Las Vegas, Nev.
• Kevin Fitzgerald, assistant director, public affairs, Southern California Golf Association

New research — What’s on the horizon?

• James Baird, Ph.D., turfgrass specialist, UC Riverside
• Tony Koski, Ph.D., professor and Extension turf specialist, Colorado State University
• Bernd Leinauer, Ph.D., regents professor and turfgrass Extension specialist, New Mexico State University
• Matteo Serena, Ph.D., senior manager, irrigation and research services, USGA Green Section