Mitch joined my team as the equipment manager almost three years ago. He owned the Yamaha boat dealership in Kalkaska for years, sold it and retired, so he thought. Mitch's best friend saw my employment post for the position and said, "this is what you have been waiting for Mitch." Mitch came in and interviewed, the rest is history.
Mitch has transformed the maintenance of our entire fleet of golf course equipment. I didn't know a level like this even existed. He has created standards for the standards in bedknife and reel grinding as well as a 12 month detailed preventative maintenance program.
Besides this short introduction of Mitch, this blog post is to share with all of you that Mitch has become the first Certified Turf Equipment Manager in Michigan and is the 28th in the world to achieve this accreditation. Started by the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America, this three phase program has dozens of steps for proficiencies with topics like best management practices, cutting units, drive trains, hydraulic systems and electrical just to name a few.
The final step is the have our shop and facility attested by two certified equipment managers. There are over 165 rubrics/topics to show your competencies and understanding. A few examples of these topics include employee safety, facility safety, daily equipment procedures, local and state Haz Mat regulations as well as equipment and reel maintenance operations for all of our equipment, the attesting process is quit substantial!
Mitch has also been chosen by his peers in the state to serve on the board of directors for the Michigan Golf Course Superintendents Association. The club and I are extremely fortunate to have Mitch Hunt on my grounds staff leading the country in his profession.
Congratulations to Mitch for this certification and for being the first one in Michigan to accomplish this huge professional development certification. Our smooth and consistent playing surfaces all start in the shop, thank you Mitch.
