Steve Sarro on why it’s important for superintendents to always be learning and teaching

In the 1992 film “Glengarry Glen Ross” is a memorable scene of Alec Balwin badgering four salesmen to “always be closing.” That scene resonates with me from time to time as a motivator. As we continue to bust our tails, year after year and season after season, we should always be closing. Closing with staff hiring, training, agronomic practices, that new job, vendors, contractors, renovations, projects big and small, the list goes on.  

I have been a superintendent for 28 years at various clubs from Massachusetts to Colorado and Florida. When I first became an assistant superintendent, I was working for Fred Dickman at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs. That was five wonderful years of learning from the best, especially in customer service and managing people. The Broadmoor is the longest five-star resort in the country because of its commitment to training. That sticks with me today. 

Two years ago, I embarked on a new journey as my family and I said goodbye to the mountains of Colorado and said hello to the beaches of the Florida panhandle. Ironically, the growing season is very similiar in Destin, Fla., as it is in Denver. I traded the clay soils, snow, frost, Poa, winter desiccation and arid climate for sandy soils, mole crickets, nematodes, Poa, winter desiccation and, of course, that humidity you can only appreciate at the beach.  

Here at Kelly Plantation Golf Club, we continue to build a great team to keep this 365-day operation moving. During my short time here, I have had to hire new assistants, an equipment manager, irrigation techs and most of the greenkeepers. It has been the largest managerial undertaking I have ever experienced. On top of this, we recently completed a renovation to our tees and bunkers to stay competitive among many other great clubs on the Emerald Coast.  

Recently, the phrase “always be closing” popped into my mind as I was making my way through the course. In that moment, I was frustrated with the performance of the golf course. I needed to make some adjustments.  

Since I am in a completely new environment, I am a sponge and in the mode of “always be learning.” I also realized that I had more years of experience on a golf course than my entire staff combined. This is where I needed to “always be teaching.”  

When I returned to the office, I wrote the phase on our whiteboard, “always be learning, always be teaching.” Instead of just closing, I wanted to be more direct with my set of goals. The next day, I discussed my personal revelation with my assistant, John Milligan. We agreed that we needed to shift less of our focus on day-to-day goals and more focus on the long-term success of the team.   

We needed to cross-train our staff to build a stronger team, fostering greater ownership and pride while handling any course job.   

Our staff is still so young that we needed to constantly be teaching, which led to a tremendous amount of learning along the way. Thinking about this phrase helps me stay balanced and is now part of my daily routine.  

Each day, I keep a list of attainable goals. That list includes some avenue to train or teach. I find it fascinating how much I learn when I teach someone about another aspect of golf course maintenance. I learn mostly about human behavior and effective ways to communicate. But many times, a staff member will ask questions I hadn’t thought of or provide another idea that might just work.   

Maybe this phase will help you too. As someone who has been managing turf for a long time, my fire continues to burn with the many learning lessons ahead of me. And remember, “coffee’s for closers.”