North Coast Media, LLC

Friday Favorites: Golfdom

Best of 2015, as picked by the editors

The issue: Golfdom, September 2015

Selected by: Editor-in-chief Seth Jones

This is a tough choice for me as well, there were a few issues that stood out to me…

If I had to pick one issue though, the September issue my favorite of the year, partly for what it is, and partly for how it came about.

First, how the cover story, “Friends in High Places,” came about: I needed new golf clubs.

Seriously. I needed new sticks, and I asked my golf pro where he suggested I go to get them. He suggested Wolf Creek, about 45 minutes from my front door. Sounded good to me. Then he asked if I’d like to meet the superintendent there. Sure, sounds great. Then he mentions that they just did an interesting little project there… it might make for a good story. Yeah, OK, it might. Then he mentioned, after an hour of me hitting golf balls — maybe if I had time, I could also meet Tom Watson while I was there… I told him, “Jeff, if Tom Watson is ever available to meet, at whatever time, I’ll be there.”

The next day I was having lunch with the World Golf Hall of Famer.

The story was a fun one, too. It has maybe the best ending of any story I wrote this year. And everyone loves a happy ending, right?

Other fun things about the issue: I was able to give a shout-out to Jeff the golf pro in my column that month, as well as run a photo of him with my son… and I took the cover photo myself, and was happy with the quality of the image, especially for an amateur photographer like me.

It’s not everyday you find a good story like that right in your own back yard. And it’s certainly not every day that I get to have lunch with a legend of the game, either.

Golfdom Summit

The 2015 Golfdom Summit, an invitation-only event, will take place Dec. 1-4, 2015 at the Reunion Resort in Orlando, Florida. This is the fourth year of the event, which provides a place for superintendents and suppliers to connect. The Summit will feature guest speakers, one-on-one meetings, presentations, cocktail receptions, and group dinners. Those who qualify to attend will receive a complimentary event registration package, which will include airfare, accommodations, meals, and social events. North Coast Media CEO Kevin Stoltman, CFO Steve Galperin and events manager Ryan Bockmuller will be in attendance along with Golfdom Publisher Pat Roberts and Editor-in-Chief Seth Jones.

GIE Expo 2015

The 2015 Green Industry and Equipment Expo (GIE Expo) will take place Oct. 21-23, 2015 at the Kentucky Exposition Center in Louisville, Kentucky. Stop by booth 3018 to meet the entire Landscape Management team—publisher Bill Roddy, editor-in-chief Marisa Palmieri, North American sales manager Craig MacGregor, account manager Jake Goodman, digital media content producer Allison Barwacz and associate editor Dillon Stewart. North Coast Media CEO Kevin Stoltman, vice president of sales Pat Roberts, Golfdom editor-in-chief Seth Jones and events manager Ryan Bockmuller will also be in attendance.

Golfdom earns two ASBPE Azbee Awards

CLEVELAND, Ohio — August 18, 2015 — North Coast Media is happy to announce Golfdom magazine won two Heartland Region Azbee Awards from the American Society of Business Press Editors (ASBPE), a professional association for full-time and freelance editors, writers, art directors and designers. Golfdom received the awards at the 2015 Heartland Region Azbee Awards banquet in Cleveland on August 13.

Golfdom’s sister publications, Landscape Management (LM) and Pest Management Professional (PMP) also received awards from the organization, with LM winning four national awards and seven regional awards, and PMP winning two national and five regional awards.

Golfdom’s awards included the following:

Heartland Region Azbee Awards

Design, Opening Spread/Photo, Gold Medalist, “Driven to Distraction” (July 2014), Pete Seltzer, Seth Jones
Design, Front Cover – Illustration, Bronze Medalist, “The Golfdom Report” (January 2014), Pete Seltzer, Seth Jones

“It’s great to have Golfdom‘s work recognized by the American Society of Business Press Editors,” said Golfdom Editor-in-Chief Seth Jones. “North Coast Media is fortunate to have Pete Seltzer as its vice president of graphic design and production, and Golfdom is lucky to have Pete as its art director.”

Golfdom wins industry-leading 16 awards from Turf & Ornamental Communicators Association

CLEVELAND, Ohio — May 22, 2015 — North Coast Media is pleased to announce Golfdom continues to be recognized for its outstanding editorial and design leadership by the Turf & Ornamental Communicators Association (TOCA), which this year held its annual awards ceremony in Milwaukee. Golfdom earned an industry-leading 16 awards including one “best in show” Gardner Award for new media, seven first place awards and eight merit awards. Sister publication Landscape Management (LM) nabbed 15 awards. North Coast Media once again led all publishing companies that competed for TOCA awards in the golf and landscape markets with 31 total awards.

Golfdom won TOCA awards for:

First Place

Photography, Video, Multimedia, Best single photo – Use of stock art, “The Golfdom Report,” Pete Seltzer
Photography, Video, Multimedia, Best print magazine cover, “The Golfdom Report,” Pete Seltzer
New Media, Blogs, “The Golfdom Daily,” Seth Jones
Writing, Editorial/Opinion Piece – commercial publications, “The dangerous art of speaking your mind,” Seth Jones
Writing, Column – commercial publications, “A post-Open reminder that freedom isn’t free,” Seth Jones
Writing, Series of columns by regular department columnist – commercial publications, “Keeping up with the Jones,” Seth Jones
Writing, General feature article – commercial publications, “Jimmy the Kid,” Seth Jones

Merit

Photography, Video, Multimedia, Portrait/Personality (photo of individual or group of individuals), “Driven to distraction,” Leah Nash
Photography, Video, Multimedia, Best single photo – created by a TOCA member or freelancer commissioned by a TOCA member, “Golf’s got 99 problems, but is the big cup one?,” Sarah Nader
Design, Single page design, editorial – printed magazines, “The 19th Hole,” Pete Seltzer
Writing, Column – commercial publications, “Those guys,” Matt Neff
Writing, Column – commercial publications, “Are you ready for some Fantasy Greenkeeping?,” Matt Neff
Writing, Product information article – commercial publications, “What’s the next big idea at GIE+Expo?,” Seth Jones
Writing, General feature article – commercial publications, “True romance,” Seth Jones
Writing, Series – two or more articles defined as series – commercial publications, “Winterkill in the crosshairs; Working undercover,” Sam Bauer, Brian Horgan, Ph.D., Lindsay Hoffman, Ph.D.

The Gardner Award was awarded in the new media category to Golfdom’s blog, “The Golfdom Daily.” This is the fourth year in a row Golfdom‘s blog has won the first place TOCA award in the New Media, Publishing category.

Golfdom also demonstrated that it has the best columnists in the industry, winning three of the four individual column-writing TOCAs awarded, and a first place series award for “Keeping up with the Jones,” the monthly column written by Golfdom’s editor-in-chief, Seth Jones.

“The results of the 2015 TOCA awards reaffirmed that our publications, Golfdom and Landscape Management, are at the top of their respective markets,” said Kevin Stoltman, president and CEO of North Coast Media. “I’m confident Golfdom and Landscape Management will continue to impress TOCA judges — and most important, our readers and marketing partners — for decades to come.”

Golfdom announces Herb Graffis Businessperson of the Year Winner for 2015

CLEVELAND, Ohio — February 20, 2015 — North Coast Media and Golfdom magazine are proud to announce William Larson, Certified Golf Course Superintendent at Town & Country Club in St. Paul, Minnesota, as the recipient of its 2015 Herb Graffis Businessperson of the Year Award.

The Town & Country Club of St. Paul has saved untold thousands of dollars thanks to the efforts of course superintendent Bill Larson. An alumnus of Penn State University’s Turfgrass program, Larson has held his position at T&CC since 1989. One of Larson’s recent victories at the club was a bunker renovation that eventually grew to a small course renovation, all performed in-house and at a fraction of the normal cost. Another success was his help designing the course’s maintenance facility. Using his experience visiting maintenance facilities around the world, Larson was able to create one of the most environmentally friendly, cutting edge maintenance facilities in the country.

“Our award isn’t given for longevity in the industry, overcoming adversity or being a nice guy. Each year we look for an exceptionally savvy businessman,” says Pat Roberts, publisher of Golfdom. “We have found that in Bill Larson — and it just so happens he is a nice guy, too.”

“Bill exemplifies what we look for in the Graffis award recipient,” says Seth Jones, Golfdom’s editor-in-chief. “He is a shrewd businessman who has made an enormous impact at Town & Country Club, on and off the course.”

Larson will accept the Herb Graffis Award in person at 1 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 25 at the Golf Industry Show in San Antonio. Celebrated golf architect Rees Jones, “The Open Doctor,” will present the award. Herb Graffis was a close friend of Rees’ father, legendary golf course architect Robert Trent Jones.

Larson’s first reaction to learning he had won the award and would appear on Golfdom’s cover was that it should be him with his entire crew on the cover, not just him by himself. Thankfully, his club president convinced him to take the credit where credit was due.

“Work hard and good things will happen. You have to have a passion,” Larson says in his cover story, entitled ‘Man About Town.’ “I’m lucky that I’m at a place like Town & Country Club. I don’t want the limelight. I’m content to do the best we can do and then go home.”

For more information, read the Golfdom cover story on Larson. To contact Seth Jones, email sjones@northcoastmedia.net or call 785-690-7047. To reach Bill Larson, email tcturf@comcast.net.