The collaboration between professional golfer and coach Garth Cusick and renowned academic, plant pathologist, and soil microbiologist Dr. Mary Cole may seem unusual, but their combined expertise is paving the way for potential improvements to golf greens worldwide. <\/p>\n
Gazette journalist Afraa Kori reports that while the progress is exciting, they\u2019re only just beginning.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve solved tomorrow\u2019s problem today. It\u2019s up to others to choose whether to continue the traditional route or change.\u201d<\/p>\n
Having lived and taught golf in both Beijing, China, and Australia, Garth Cusick has always been committed to providing the best for golf players.<\/p>\n
Dr. Mary Cole came to his attention through someone who attended one of her extracurricular education sessions. As an entrepreneur, Garth heard about her impactful talk, looked her up and reached out, saying \u201csomeone told me about your work. I\u2019d like to use your ideas in a practical way on our golf course.\u201d<\/p>\n
Garth and Mary then met over a soil sample and discussed the possibility of this change in the management of golf greens given the heavy use they receive almost daily and the incredibly artificial manner in which they are constructed and managed. <\/p>\n
\u201cMy methods of biological management appealed to Garth and we started this relationship to prove that my methods can improve golf courses into the future,\u201d Mary said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey will be healthier, more resilient in the face of a warming climate and be more efficient in water use.\u201d<\/p>\n
Garth has access to a Melbourne Water-owned golf club in Bangholme, which made it easier to apply Mary\u2019s soil philosophies to improve the quality of the greens.<\/p>\n
When Mary first visited the 300 square metres test site, she immediately warned him \u201cyou might fail\u201d. <\/p>\n
\u201cShe said no one had tried it before. I said \u201clet\u2019s go,\u201d Garth said.<\/p>\n
Despite the challenges including no drainage and the use of effluent water, Garth was determined to push forward, saying, \u201cIt\u2019s my money, my time \u2014 I\u2019m prepared to fail if we learn something.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe club allowed us to test as long as the green didn\u2019t look visibly different from the others. If it started to suffer \u2014 if we couldn\u2019t keep it alive and green without fungicides or pesticides, we had to stop.<\/p>\n
The progress has been remarkable, with the test green going from the worst condition to its current state in just 18 months.<\/p>\n
The before-and-after photos, though green in both, highlight the key difference: one was chemically induced, while the other thrives without chemicals.<\/p>\n
\u201cBy removing synthetic chemicals from the management program of the golf course and introducing compost and compost tea we noticed very quickly the reduction in thatch in the grass,\u201d Mary said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is because synthetic chemistry kills most of the soil biota, especially the saprophytic fungi that break down dead and dying organic matter such as the grass clippings. We noticed that less water was required and the green was spongier when we walked on the grass. The colour was better \u2013 more vibrant green.\u201d<\/p>\n
Their focus isn\u2019t just on improving soil but also on reducing the risk of contamination from synthetic chemicals.<\/p>\n
\u201cGolfers put their tees in their mouths as a habit. if a green has had synthetic chemicals such as herbicides, pesticides, fungicides applied then there is always a risk that contamination can occur,\u201d Mary said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am sure no one has died from this habit but it is one more exposure that people of today have to toxic chemicals in their daily lives.\u201d<\/p>\n
Working with golf clubs and their courses is new management especially here in Australia. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe want to establish my soil health management throughout Australian golf courses and internationally,\u201d Mary said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are showing just with our first green, there is a difference in the response of the green to biology. Reducing costs of managing the golf courses is an advantage, making the environment more healthy and recycling water through wetlands, a waterways, all add to the circular economy and add to the esthetics of the course golf courses could become more profitable with reduced input costs.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mary and Garth are thrilled with the overwhelming support for their successful site and the launch of their business, \u2019The Soil and Turf Society.\u2019<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have a first job at Merimbula but have interests from Adelaide, Canberra and more. I am excited because it gives me the opportunity to show that repairing contaminated soil works on a golf courses just as easily as in an agricultural soil,\u201d Mary said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt gives Garth the opportunity to show the world of golf that greens and fairways can remain playable without the addition of synthetic chemicals.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re using golf to prove this system works. Golf is happy, they\u2019re paying for it, and now we\u2019re exploring how this method can be applied to agriculture too. Whether it\u2019s tomatoes, wheat, or pasture for cattle \u2014 it\u2019s all about improving plant health using microbes,\u201d Garth said.<\/p>\n
A chemical-free approach on golf courses lowers maintenance costs, promotes healthier plants, and creates new income opportunities through composting. It enhances the quality of greens and fairways, with the added benefit of autonomous mowers operating 24\/7. This model supports player health and makes golf courses more appealing to managers and councils, ensuring their long-term sustainability.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor us and for golf in general \u2014 the premise of our work is to offer a solution,\u201d Garth said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve solved tomorrow\u2019s problem today. It\u2019s up to others to choose whether to continue the traditional route or change.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe already know labor costs, fuel, and imported chemicals will rise. We don\u2019t know if those chemicals will even be legally usable in future \u2014 especially as other countries like Germany and California are banning certain ones. That trend will eventually reach us.\u201d<\/p>\n
The long-term vision is for golf courses to operate off-grid, capturing and reusing their own water, generating energy through solar power, and managing the whole site without the use of synthetics.<\/p>\n
This is not limited to golf courses and golf players; the wider community can also benefit from the shift from chemicals to biology.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe produce more compost than we need, so the course can become a compost hub \u2014 even a learning space,\u201d Garth said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe can invite members and the community to learn how we feed the greens using biology instead of chemicals. It becomes a way to teach better food and health practices too.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The collaboration between professional golfer and coach Garth Cusick and renowned academic, plant pathologist, and soil microbiologist Dr.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":382969,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[566],"tags":[64,63,755,85],"class_list":["post-382968","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-golf","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-golf","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/382968","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=382968"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/382968\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/382969"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=382968"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=382968"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=382968"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}