Borman to accept Carolinas DSA

It was just announced that Chuck Borman will accept the Distinguished Service Award at next month's Carolinas GCSA conference and show. It's a great gesture by the Carolinas to one of the great personalities in our industry.

I worked at GCSAA during Chuck's brief stint as the association's COO. You could always hear Chuck coming from about a mile away because he has this loud, booming voice, and he simply must greet every person he sees. "Hi Judy, how's it going? Dave, what's happening? Ed, how's the family?" And you'd hear this while he was on the other end of the wing!

My first impression of Chuck was, "Who is this loud guy we hired?" But then I quickly learned that the man can motivate people and get them working toward a common goal. The Carolinas very obviously benefited from these qualities.

Another thing about Chuck: great taste in cars. He's a Chevy muscle car fan, which I can appreciate.

Here's the press release, below. Congrats, Chuck, from all your friends at Golfdom!

Long-time golf industry administrator, Charles M. “Chuck” Borman, CAE will receive the Distinguished Service Award from the Carolinas Golf Course Superintendents Association next month. Borman led the association as executive director for a decade over two stints beginning in the late '90s. Under his leadership the association experienced significant growth in membership, services and revenues. The Distinguished Service Award is the highest honor the 1,800-member association bestows.

Borman will be honored at a special presentation during the association's annual conference and trade show in Myrtle Beach, S.C. that runs Nov. 14-16. The conference and show itself tripled in size during Borman's administration, today providing more than 100 hours of formal education and occupying some 100,000 sq. ft. of exhibition space.


The Carolinas GCSA recruited Borman from the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America where he had served in various roles including that of membership services manager. His first day of work for the Carolinas GCSA was April 1, 1998. It may have been April Fool's Day but the association never looked back. At least not until several years later when Borman returned to GCSAA as chief operating officer, but then only briefly. About a year later he returned to the Carolinas GCSA where he served until he retired in 2009. Even today he works as a part-time consultant for the association.

“Chuck Borman's impact on the golf course superintendent profession in the Carolinas cannot be overstated,” says Carolinas GCSA president, John Davis, of Secession Golf Club. “He took this association from a very solid base to being a force in golf in our region and a champion of the interests of every single one of our members. Superintendents for many years to come will benefit from his legacy.”

During Borman's time the Carolinas GCSA:
-- Grew membership from 1,200 to 1,800
-- Grew the annual operating budget from $400,000 to $1.1-million
-- Grew Conference and Show gross revenues from $230,000 to around $600,000
-- Became the first regional superintendents association in the country to own its own headquarters
-- Employed its first professional government relations expert
-- Became an integral part of South Carolina Golf Week celebrations and promotion
-- Led the campaign to have North Carolina Golf Day proclaimed by the governor, twice
-- Steered the first North Carolina Golf Economic Impact Study