Award focuses on non-traditional students planning a career in golf course management
LAWRENCE, Kansas (May 13, 2021) – The Alan MacCurrach Jr. Award, a scholarship offered through the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA) and administered by its philanthropic organization the Environmental Institute for Golf (EIFG), has been revamped into a stand-alone scholarship with the purpose of recognizing an outstanding non-traditional student seeking a career in golf course and turfgrass management.
The Alan MacCurrach Jr. Award is funded by Allan MacCurrach III and the PGA Tour. It is named in honor of the late Allan MacCurrach Jr., who became the PGA Tour’s first staff agronomist in 1974 and was the GCSAA Distinguished Service Award winner in 1994. He was a GCSAA member for 31 years and was one of the first to become a certified golf course superintendent.
“My father came to the industry after some time and found his direction. He had a wife and a child and wasn’t an 18-year-old kid,” Allan MacCurrach III said. “He was a late bloomer, and the award gives late bloomers and others a chance to advance.”
Previously the Alan MacCurrach Jr. Award was part of the GCSAA Scholars Competition, which awards scholarships ranging from $500 to $6,000 for undergraduate students majoring in turf management or a related field.
The scholarship now provides $10,000 to the winner along with an all-expense paid trip to the annual Golf Industry Show. Applicants must be enrolled in a recognized undergraduate program or technical school in a major field related to golf course management and turfgrass science, be 23 years of age or older, planning a career as a golf course superintendent or closely related professional discipline and be a member of GCSAA. Preference will also be given to historically underrepresented groups.
Applicants will be evaluated based on academic skill, potential to become a leading professional, employment history and the recommendation of at least one golf course superintendent, academic advisor or employer.
Applications will be due on June 1 of each year.
“We know there isn’t one path to becoming a golf course superintendent, and the MacCurrach Award celebrates those who enter the career a bit later but still have a great deal to offer to the profession and the industry,” said GCSAA CEO Rhett Evans.
For more information or to apply, visit https://www.gcsaa.org/education/scholarships.
