U of A Horticulture Turf Bowl Team Places 13th in National GCSAA Competition

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U of A's turf bowl team of (from left) Austin Pettit, Patrick Smith, Kyle Livesay and Thomas Walton, all turfgrass management students in Bumpers College, finished 13th of 58 teams in the national competition.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The University of Arkansas turf bowl team placed 13th recently in the national Golf Course Superintendents Association of America Collegiate Turf Bowl Competition in Orlando, Florida.

The team consists of Kyle Livesay, Austin Pettit, Patrick Smith and Thomas Walton, all turfgrass management students in the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Science's Horticulture Department. Coached by graduate students Dan Sandor, Travis Russell and Eric DeBoer, they began preparing for the competition last fall.

"I am extremely proud of the hard work and many, many hours of practice our student competitors and graduate student coaches contributed to this event," said Doug Karcher, professor of horticulture. "They represented our turfgrass science program, our department, Bumpers College and the U of A extremely well. In fact, one student, a graduating senior, left the conference with a full-time job offer in the Hamptons at one of the world's finest golf facilities."

Fifty-eight teams, totaling 204 students and representing 36 different schools, competed in the event at the annual Golf Industry Show. More than 13,000 individuals associated with the design and management of golf courses from around the world attended the show.

The undergraduate competition helps future golf course superintendents develop and test the knowledge deemed critical to the profession in all areas of agronomy, business management, communication, environmental management and leadership. The competition includes a written case study as well as a variety of multiple choice, short answer and identification questions.

Arkansas finished 10th in the nation in 2015, second in 2013 and fifth in 2012.

About the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences: Bumpers College provides life-changing opportunities to position and prepare graduates who will be leaders in the businesses associated with foods, family, the environment, agriculture, sustainability and human quality of life; and who will be first-choice candidates of employers looking for leaders, innovators, policy makers and entrepreneurs. The college is named for Dale Bumpers, former Arkansas governor and longtime U.S. senator who made the state prominent in national and international agriculture.

About the University of Arkansas: The University of Arkansas provides an internationally competitive education for undergraduate and graduate students in more than 200 academic programs. The university contributes new knowledge, economic development, basic and applied research, and creative activity while also providing service to academic and professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the University of Arkansas among only 2 percent of universities in America that have the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the University of Arkansas among its top American public research universities. Founded in 1871, the University of Arkansas comprises 10 colleges and schools and maintains a low student-to-faculty ratio that promotes personal attention and close mentoring.