By Ava Veith; David McCall, Ph.D.; Chase Straw, Ph.D.; Daniel Sandor, Ph.D.; Jay Williams, Ph.D.; Elisabeth Kitchen; Kevin Hensler; Aaron Tucker, Ph.D.; and Caleb Henderson, Ph.D. A safe playing surface is essential for athletic competition; and key field characteristics such...
As the top soccer players in the world head to North America for the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup and FIFA World Cup 26, the pitch management team at FIFA has rigorously prepared training pitch locations for the team base...
In a June 2 letter to members, Sports Field Management Association (SFMA) President Adam Thoms, Ph.D., announced Paula Sliefert as the association’s new CEO. The letter read as follows: On behalf of the SFMA Board of Directors, I’m thrilled to...
By John Kmitta Turfgrass education at the high school level has been on the rise in recent years. We have shared news of the success of the programs at Brentsville District High School, Atlee High School, Louisa County School District,...
Q: I noticed that UNC-Chapel Hill is converting its football stadium playing surface from synthetic turf back to natural grass. Why would they do that? [Author’s note: This question came from someone outside the sports field management industry.] A: A...
By John Kmitta During the 2025 SFMA Annual Meeting in Palm Springs, Adam Thoms, Ph.D., associate professor, commercial turfgrass at Iowa State University, was sworn in as the thirty-first president of the association, becoming one of only a few academic...
Jeff Ross, head groundskeeper at Great Lakes Loons, is the winner of the 2024 SFMA Mowing Patterns Contest with his “Fan Appreciation Pattern.” Ross credited his assistant groundskeepers, Ryan Wolter and TJ Fairchild, for helping with the design. “The pattern...
By Nick Kordsmeier, with contributions from Marya Barlow and Tobie Blanchard Whether it’s a football field, golf course or home lawn, a new multi-state study offers recommendations for keeping some varieties of turfgrass greener, longer. Researchers based in six states...
Advanced Turf Solutions, Inc., has reached an agreement to acquire substantially all assets of Atlantic Golf and Turf. The transaction is scheduled to close at the beginning of the new year, at which time Advanced Turf Solutions will welcome the...
By John Kmitta Rising Star Award Winner Andy Hebrard called me from outer space. Well, at least it appeared that way as he showed off his galaxy background during a late-August Zoom call to discuss his career journey. For Hebrard...
