The 19th Hole: Mark Kuhns

Mark Kuhns // CGCS // Baltusrol Golf Club, Springfield, N.J.

Mark, what can I get you? Well, with my dietary restrictions, alcohol is out of the question… how about a tall unsweetened tea?

So you and Janet will celebrate your 40th anniversary after the PGA Championship. Yes, 40 wonderful years. We have three beautiful children and one grandchild, Abigail. She’s the love of our life. She was the inspiration for me losing weight.

How many pounds have you lost? I’m down 100 pounds right now. My trainer wants me to lose about 15 more before the PGA gets here.

What have you learned through your weight loss? I think at times we forget the most important things in life. Our jobs are important, but family is No. 1. A lot of guys forget about themselves. That yearly physical is important. I was fortunate, I didn’t have anything except a weight problem. When my daughter told me she was pregnant, that was my rude awakening — I thought to myself, “I’ll never see that little girl grow up unless I change my ways.” That little girl changed my life, and she’ll always know that.

In 2005 in Golfdom you correctly predicted the winning score. So let’s take it to the next level. What’s the winning score, and who are you picking to win the 2016 PGA Championship? I’m predicting seven-under. And I’ll take Jason Day.

I already know who your team is… You got it — any team at Penn State is my favorite team. We have football season tickets, and now we have hockey season tickets. If I could get them, we’d have wrestling season tickets too.

What one movie will always stop you in your tracks when you’re channel surfing? Gettysburg. It tells the story of the turning point in the U.S. I’m a bit of a historian. But then again, Groundhog Day sort of sums up my life… except I don’t need an alarm clock to wake up.

Any turf tips or shortcuts you can tell me about? So many guys think they can take shortcuts, say they avoid topdressing or aerification. I believe if you get away from that too much you get in trouble. I would say doing aerification efficiently is important, and something I’ll never give up. There are a lot of great tools out there to keep that soil profile from becoming hydrophobic.

Fill in the blank: If someone really wanted to impress me, they’d get me front row tickets to ______: See Neil Diamond. I already had good seats to see Elton John, now I want to see Neil Diamond up close before he leaves this earth. Or before I do!

Photos: Pete seltzer, istock.com:TheCrimsonMonkey