Swan Song for Torrey Pines Superintendent

Mark Woodward, CGCS, has one remaining task before he assumes the duties as chief executive officer of the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA) next month. Woodward wraps up a three-year stint as manager of golf operations for the city of San Diego by hosting the 108th U.S. Open, June 9-15 at Torrey Pines Golf Course. It is the first true, city-owned, municipal golf course ever to host a U.S. Open (state-owned municipal golf course Bethpage State Park in Farmingdale, N.Y., hosted the 2002 U.S. Open).

Under Woodward's direction, the staff at Torrey Pines has the course prepared to challenge the world's best golfers. "You can't believe how much Mark Woodward has meant to Torrey Pines," said Mike Davis, USGA senior director of rules and competition. "I can't even begin to list the things Mark has done. We've said this before, and I truly believe it, there's no one person that has more impact on the success of a U.S. Open than the golf course superintendent. The effect that Mark has had to date, the last couple years, have been incredibly significant. Both he and his assistant, Jon Maddern, amazingly, are past presidents of the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America. You're getting top-notch people here."

Woodward, who served as GCSAA's president in 2004, will take over as the association's chief executive officer July 1. He fills the vacancy created by former GCSAA CEO Steve Mona, who stepped down in March to take the newly formed CEO position with the World Golf Foundation.

Torrey Pines, which hosts the PGA Tour's Buick Invitational each February on both the North and South courses, switched from bentgrass to Poa annua on the greens, Kikuyugrass fairways and a Kikuyugrass/ryegrass/Poa annua blend in the rough over the past three years. The par-5 sixth hole has been converted to a par-4 by the USGA, and the U.S. Open will play as a par 71 on the South Course. Some fairways have been modified, a graduated rough is in place and different teeing grounds will be used with the option of stretching the course to 7,643 yards.

"This is a completely different course than the one that hosted the Buick only four months ago," said Woodward. "The ryegrass we overseeded the fairways with last fall has died out and the Kikuyugrass, which was semi-dormant then, has really come alive. The rough is a thick stand of Kikuyugrass, ryegrass and Poa annua that really grabs at a club head. Torrey Pines should be a great test for the players and something the San Diego community can be proud of. Every city department has representatives involved in working with the USGA staff to get this done. We're represented on virtually every committee that the USGA has in their structure and we're proud of that."

Last year, Woodward had new cart paths installed on the South Course, restricted power golf cars to those paths only and moved the last tee time up to 1 p.m. each day to reduce traffic on the turf from the 64,000 rounds played annually. The fourth hole, which runs alongside the cliffs overlooking the Pacific, was moved closer to the cliffs to bring the challenging crosswinds off the ocean more into play and the torrey pine trees guarding the cliffs there, were transplanted to the other side of the fairway.

Six of the tees were leveled and enlarged for the championship and the landing area on No. 18 was leveled as well. All the bunkers on the South Course were reshaped and restored, as 2,500 tons of sand has been added. Five new bunkers have been added in the last year and the 615-yard, par-5 No. 13 has a new championship tee that carries 250 yards over a canyon.

In his capacity in San Diego, Woodward and his staff developed a five-year business plan that has resulted in generating an additional $3 million in revenue from 2006 to 2007, including the implementation of the Advance Tee Time program that added $500,000 in revenue in the first year. His department has hosted numerous high-profile events including three junior world golf championships, three city amateur championships, three PGA Tour events and the upcoming U.S. Open - on top of the three golf facilities annually hosting 260 golf outings. His plan resulted in creating 20,000 additional rounds available for the public golfer. From a golf course standpoint, Woodward has implemented a management plan that has produced drastically improved course conditions and enhanced environmental stewardship. Golf Inc. magazine named him one of its most admired operators in 2006.

Torrey Pines, in La Jolla, Calif., is bounded by mountains to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Fog, rain and wind often sweep the seaside courses that were designed by William Bell Sr. in 1957. Prior to becoming golf courses, the land was Camp Callan, a naval training area. The course was named after the torrey pine tree, a species indigenous to the area and nearby Santa Rosa Island. The tree is distinguished by having clusters of five needles.