GCSAA headquarters in Lawrence, Kan., hosted 88 chapter delegates for a meeting October 27-28. Photo by Tyler Stover
Until October, Matt Czarnecki, CGCS, had never been a part of a GCSAA Chapter Delegates Meeting.
So after volunteering to represent the Mississippi Valley GCSA at this year’s event at GCSAA headquarters in Lawrence, Kan., Czarnecki reached out to the two previous chapter delegates to get the lay of the land.
“I just wanted to get some perspective on what to expect coming down there,” says Czarnecki, director of agronomy at Bear Creek Golf Club in the St. Louis exurb of Wentzville, Mo., and 12-year association member. “They let me know what to expect and said that it was a lot of information in a short amount of time.”
In that regard, Czarnecki was not misled. All told, 88 delegates representing 90 chapters took part in the Oct. 27-28 event. Czarnecki was one of 30 first-time delegates.
“No surprises for me,” he says. “Being new, I wanted to go into it with an open mind, so I had no expectations other than the basic framework.”
The meeting’s theme was “Connected for a Century,” stressing the collaborative nature of the relationship between GCSAA, its chapters and members — and paying homage to the national association’s nearly 100 years of existence. The organization that over the years morphed into GCSAA was founded in 1926.
The theme struck a chord with Czarnecki.
“More than anything, what I took out of it was that this is a two-way relationship,” he says. “Often, we’re so focused on, ‘What can national do for us?’ What came up as a talking point was, ‘What can we do to help that? How can we be proactive in that relationship?’”
This year’s meeting was the second in two years for Asa High, CGCS, the director of golf course and grounds at Frederica Golf Club in Saint Simons Island, Ga. He had a similar takeaway to Czarnecki’s.
“Both meetings have been awesome experiences. I wish everyone could experience it,” says High, a 19-year GCSAA member. “It just opens your eyes to everything the board and staff, more importantly, at GCSAA are doing for superintendents nationally and internationally. It’s such a great experience to see all the offerings there are. The big discussions last year, the hot topic, was the dues discussion. This year was a little lighter with no dues discussion, but once you start to really look at all the things GCSAA is doing, all the programs and the staff added, it’s eye-opening. There really was that need for that increase in dues.”
Case in point: A year ago, members had identified a need for a basic crew video training series. Now, 11 videos in that series are available free of charge for members, in English and in Spanish.
“I knew that was coming, but I didn’t know as many were out as there are. I was able to watch two of them yesterday during catch-up time. I turned those on to see what they were about. I can definitely see the value to members when it comes to training staff.”
GCSAA CEO Rhett Evans spoke to GCSAA chapter delegates during an opening session. Photo by Andrew Hartsock
The Chapter Delegates Meeting started with an evening reception and dinner that featured a state-of-the-association address from CEO Rhett Evans; a recap of the year from T.A. Barker, CGCS, the association’s president; and an overview from Paul Carter, CGCS, the current vice president.
GCSAA directors Josh Tapp (environmental programs) and Chava McKeel (government affairs) stressed best management practices (BMPs) and the association’s push for facility adoption of BMPs. They noted that widespread implementation of BMPs is essential to ensuring members and facilities continue to have access to vital resources. GCSAA has updated its BMP facility adoption tool, making it easier for members to develop and provide BMPs on their golf courses.
Delegates also were presented information about the association’s Centennial Celebration, emphasizing the opportunity for member and chapter involvement. Chapters were encouraged to include 100-themed activities during their events. Some of those include 100-yard par-3 holes, 100 acts of kindness and other ways to highlight the connection between GCSAA, chapters and members.
A full second day was held at GCSAA HQ and featured discussions on Rounds4Research; the association’s continued push toward career pathways; and a Town Hall session. Candidates for director and officer positions then made presentations to small groups.
The candidates are: Carter, for president; Marc E. Weston, CGCS, for vice president; Steven J. Hammon, CGCS, and H. Scott Griffith, CGCS, for secretary/treasurer; and Aaron Fankhauser, CGCS; Renee Geyer, CGCS; Ryan S. Kraushofer, CGCS; Brandon Razo, CGCS; Brian J. Roth, CGCS; and Matthew Rusch, for director.
There are two open director positions, each for a two-year term, as the terms of Kraushofer and Roth are expiring. Both candidates running for the secretary/treasurer position are serving the first year of two-year director terms. As a result, the outcome of the secretary/treasurer election will create an additional one-year vacancy on the board, which will need to be filled.
The 2026 GCSAA Annual Meeting with take place Feb. 5, 2026, at the GCSAA Conference and Trade Show in Orlando.
“I enjoyed getting to meet each candidate,” Czarnecki says. “Now I can go back home and say, ‘I felt this person was very sincere in his approach.’ Meeting each candidate in person was big, because now I’m able to make a more-informed decision.”
Paul Carter, CGCS, GCSAA vice president, gave chapter delegates an overview of planned events for their meeting. Photo by Tyler Stover
Following the meeting, delegates were charged with presenting all they had learned to their chapters. But they didn’t leave empty-handed.
“One thing I really liked was, the GCSAA was willing to hear our message where we asked if they could consolidate everything into eight to 10 slides so we can all be on the same page,” Czarnecki says. “Now that GCSAA is providing the highlight slides, we’re better able to present.”
High agreed.
“You don’t want to forget anything, and you want to get all the information back," he said. "I’m excited to get that direction, where they distilled that so we know what’s most important.”
Czarnecki said the camaraderie of the event guaranteed he’d want to return again next year.
“I think my favorite part was having a representative from each chapter in the room all the time,” he says. “I just felt very united. We’re somewhat divided by chapters, but it meant a lot to get everybody’s view. We’re all in this together. It’s just a very fraternal organization, and you could feel that very strongly.”
“I really did enjoy it,” High added. “I know I heard other delegates mention, as a GCSAA member, you only really know all that GCSAA is doing for you if you’re active and engaged. Two years ago, I didn’t realize all the things GCSAA is trying to do for golf course superintendents. I was around Rounds4Research and Thank a Golf Course Superintendent Day, but when they got down to all the nuts and bolts of all the things they’re doing and trying to do, it’s really rewarding, and it’s rewarding to get to share those things with the full delegation. They need our support. Rhett talked about ‘no chapter left behind.’ It’s really a team effort.”
Andrew Hartsock is GCM’s editor-in-chief.