Jackie Byler puts a lot of stock in the quality of a golf course’s greens. They have been her primary focus these past two years as superintendent of Hobe Sound (Florida) Golf Club, a private facility with a small membership that sits amid some of South Florida’s most prominent courses – Medalist and McArthur to the north, Jupiter Island Club to the east.
This is something that Byler, 38, picked up from Dick Gray, the former head greenskeeper at PGA Golf Club in St. Lucie, Florida, who became an important mentor for her as she navigated her way to the superintendent position at Hobe Sound.
“When I first started, my biggest focus was the greens and just kind of start getting my program figured out on what products I wanted to use and the timing of all of it,” Byler said, “and I felt like just with my experience working with Dick Gray, he was kind of always known for his greens also…