Breakfast with Jackie A straight-shooting Texan shares his views on golf and golf courses. BY JIM MOORE n November 2007 at the Champions ments, Burke may be best known for fessional's job is to teach the player the Golf Club in Houston, Texas, a two- his love of the game of golf and his game. If you promote the game and I hour meeting took place that will willingness to share his passion for the your club, you will become a almost certainly help shape the careers game with others. projessional. of two young men. The principal Along with Jimmy Demaret, Jackie participants in the meeting were Jackie founded the Champions Golf Club DEALING WITH Burke Jr., Charles Joachim, Brandon and continues to operate the course to COMPLAINTS Mabry, and Travis Moore. this day. Champions has the well- FROM GOLFERS Compared to Jackie and Charles, deserved reputation for being a club for The way you teach the game of golf Brandon and Travis (both in their serious golfers. Now 84, Jackie has not is the way you should manage your early 20s) have just started their golf lost a step and continues to teach all affairs. The golf swing takes two careers. Brandon is the assistant pro- aspects of the game to those fortunate seconds. You can't manage every fessional at Ridgewood Country Club, enough to share his time. Predictably, aspect of those two seconds and try to in Waco, Texas, while Travis is the Jackie has strong feelings about the control all of them. Instead, you have golf course superintendent at the Twin management of golf courses. This to learn to trust your swing. When it Rivers Golf Club, also in Waco. Both article is a compilation of his opinions comes to your work, you have to be have worked at numerous courses, shared with the author during a recent able to teach those you work for, and starting from the bottom and gradually meeting and in his book It's Only a work with, to trust you. You can't working their way up the ladder. Game - Words if Wisdom from a manage whispering or bickering. You Charles Joachim developed his love Lifetime in Golf. can't do much about petty complaints. for the game at age 15 on a golf course Just concentrate on doing your job as south of Houston. He played at the ON BEING CONSIDERED best as you can. People will learn to high school and college levels before A "PROFESSIONAL" trust you if you do. injuries and schoolwork took prece- When it comes to working at a golf dence. While attending Texas A&M, course, the term "pro" should stand for WOULD YOU he worked on turf grass research plots promoter, not professional. Whether you RECOMMEND and found a side of the game he had are the golf pro or the superintendent, YOUNG PEOPLEGO not considered before. Graduating in your job is to promote the game and TO WORK IN GOLF? 1971, he began working on courses your club. You should do everything I definitely recommend they do. But and eventually joined Jackie Burke's possible to promote people's love of the I also recommend they be a big-time team at Champions Golf Club, where game. For the superintendent, come to part of their community. Be a member he has been the golf course superinten- the board meeting and explain what of a church. Be a coach in Little League. dent for more than 20 years. you're doing out there - don't hide Be a participating member of your Jackie Burke Jr. is well known in in the barn. Get in here and get it on community. Also, you should know the game of golf for a variety of with these guys. How can they all the employees at your club. If they reasons, not the least of which are his possibly outdo you when it comes to need help, be the guy who offers to Masters and PGA Championship wins, grass? There is no way. But you need help them out. And you have to playing on five Ryder Cup teams, and to keep it simple so you don't come remember it will never be perfect. If serving as captain of two more. He has across as trying to shoot the board you spend too much time at the course, received the PGA Tour Lifetime member down. You have to make you will get to the point that you don't Achievement Award, the USGA's them understand that there are 365 love the job anymore. It is extremely Bob Jones Award, and is a member different golf courses out there - that important that you love the game. of the World Golf Hall of Fame. This a golf course is different every day. It Superintendents and golf professionals past year he received the PGA's highest can't possibly stay the same from day to need to play golf and play it enough to honor, the Distinguished Service day. That is part of the player's job - love it. They need to compete. That is Award. In spite of these accomplish- to adapt to the changes. The golf pro- how you learn to love the game. 14 GREEN SECTION RECORD Since founding the Champions Golf Club (Houston. Texas) in 1957 with Jimmy Demaret, Jack Burke Jr. has remained a hands-on manager. He discusses his golf course management philosophy with Charles Joachim. Brandon Mabry, and Travis Moore (left to right). GETTING THE GOLF PRO DEALING WITH EMPLOYEES ridiculous. We expect them to be per- AND THE SUPERINTENDENT Charles' employees are dedicated to fect. Anything less than the Gardens of TO WORK BETTER him because he teaches them to do a Babylon is unacceptable. This increases TOGETHER good job. He explains things to them; the cost of golf and puts tremendous It is simply a matter of communications. he doesn't just order them around. pressure on superintendents. Players They need to let each other know see the Masters on television and want what the other is doing so they can THE COST OF GOLF their course to look like that, not hav- help each other be successful. As a Golf is expensive. Not everyone can ing any idea how much it costs. They golf pro, I don't need to know about afford this game. The biggest challenge want wall-to-wall green - unless they calcium sulfate, but I do need to know we have is trying to present a facility are watching the British Open. Then that our greens don't drain very well that people will come and play, and yet brown grass becomes charming. It's and that they are going to be wet in keep it reasonably priced so that the insane. It's no wonder the game isn't bad weather no matter what the super- young player will be able to come here growmg. intendent does. The golf pro needs to and be a member. The equipment You can't grow golf with money. To let the superintendent know how the makes the golf courses play too short, grow golf you need to teach people to course is going to be used so there are so golf course builders produce back- love the game. Good players coming no surprises. In our case, the three of breaking golf courses that cost a out of college golf programs all want us meet almost every day. All of our fortune to create and maintain. And to go to the tour. They don't want to department heads meet regularly. And golf costs more across the board, from teach the game to others. As a result, they all know a great deal about all drivers that cost $700 to lessons costing we don't have enough good instructors aspects of the club operation so they $300 an hour to balls that set you back at the course level. better understand why certain things $50 for a dozen. Green fees are off the have to be done. No one is allowed to chart and joining a private club costs "BAD" COURSES be isolated in their operation because more than a college education. The Golf courses in the early part of the every operation affects all the others. standards for golf courses have gotten 20th century were often designed and MARCH-APRIL 2008 15 built by amateurs as a one-time thing. that they siphon attention away from financed and their courses are among In most cases the amateur owned the golf I want the club to have some the best, which is why they are sought course he designed, so he poured his semblance of balance, but in my world as venues for competition. But the heart and soul into it. These courses that means 90-10 in favor of golf members at these clubs are against such rarely were very good, even by stand- When Jimmy Demaret and I built competitions because it means closing ards of the time. Mistakes were part of Champions in 1957, I had no intention the course for a week. To these mem- their charm - poor drainage some- of building a swimming pool or tennis bers, the attention and adulation the where, a quirky hole or two with mis- courts. We wanted it to be a golf club, club receives don't outweigh the fact placed bunkers and misshaped greens, not a country club. Then, in 1960 the that they won't have a place to play for inconsistent turf, et cetera.