The 19th Hole: Sean Sullivan
CGCS // The Briarwood CC, Billings, Mont.
Sean, what can I get you?
I’ll have a Diet Coke.
So you drove from Billings to San Antonio for the GIS this year?
I’ve only flown once in the last 14 years (to the GIS), that was to Anaheim. Generally I’ll drive, no matter what the distance. It gives me time to think about problems on the course, without all the distractions of the course problems… if that makes any sense.
I think it does! What’s been your longest GIS road trip?
I did a 6,700 mile one, from Billings to GIS in San Diego, then to Atlanta to pick up a car and some mowers, then back to Billings. It was 17 states and two weeks, including the show.
What are you most excited about for this summer?
I’ve been selected to work on the Open Support Team at St. Andrews this year. I go for a couple extra days to visit courses. I like to see how other people problem-solve.
Any maintenance practices you guys do that are unique?
I don’t have traditional white or river sand for my bunkers. I have jet-black coal slag. It’s a by-product of burning lignite coal in a special burner for power in North Dakota. The by-product is inert, very hard, a durable gloss-black particle. You can get it screened to the size of fairway fertilizer or greens-grade fertilizer. It never loses its black color and it drains very well. Because of the heat it generates in the summer it doesn’t generate weed problems like your traditional bunker material.
What do golfers think about it?
I have had it in place since 2007. The mid- to high-handicappers love it because it’s easier to get out and the particle is so dense, you never get a fried egg lie. But the low handicappers that actually practice bunker shots, they struggle, because they’re using the wrong bounce off their clubs.
You make customized ball washers… how did you get into that hobby?
I’ve owned a powder-coating gun for 20 years now. It’s a cheap, $100 hobby gun. I used to do cups and stuff. I got tired of doing the plain green ball washers every other year. And it’s an alternative to using aerosols. All you need is the initial investment of $100 for the gun, and an ordinary kitchen oven… (For) golf courses that can’t afford new stuff, they can do it themselves for next to nothing. Even the most elaborate patterns I can do for between $12 and $18, a lot cheaper than sending them out.
Photo: As interviewed by Seth Jones, March 2nd, 2015.