DECEMBER 2022 • VOLUME 2 • ISSUE 4
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Talking Ocean Organics with Steven McGlone,
Superintendent of Siwanoy Country Club, Bronxville, NY
The 4th edition of our 2022 “Talking Ocean Organics” Newsletter takes us to the iconic Siwanoy CC in Bronxville, NY. Our article will focus on Steven McGlone who’s been the superintendent at Siwanoy since 2008.
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18th hole at Siwanoy Country Club |
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We’ll talk about Steven's personal and professional journey, the special property he looks after, and how he’s incorporated Ocean Organics products into his agronomic programs.
About Steven
Steven was born in 1980 and grew up in Westlake, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland. He was the youngest of three, having two older sisters. “I wouldn’t trade my childhood for anything,” Steven remarked, “the Midwest was a great place to grow up. I felt like I experienced a little bit of everything and everyone was always welcoming.”
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“The Midwest was a great place to grow up.” |
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Steven’s dad Bradley was an engineer. “I don’t think my dad enjoyed his job. It was a grind,” Steven remembered, “but he felt obligated to do it because it was a good job and he wanted to take care of his family.”
Steven’s mom Carole worked in health care. She juggled working part time at the Cleveland Clinic while raising her family. “I owe a lot to my parents,” Steven said, “We lived modestly. They taught me to be smart with money, live within my means and save. The vacations we took were not lavish but they were fun. My parents are retired now and still live in the same house I grew up in.”
Steven became interested in golf in high school. “I played every sport in high school,” Steven reminisced, “I also liked to work. I’m a morning person. I had a job at a bagel shop on weekend mornings and worked at a shoe store in the afternoon. In senior year, I tried out for the golf team and made the 4th spot on the varsity. The dad of a friend of mine on the golf team was the superintendent at Lakewood GC, a local course. I caddied at that club. I got a job working on the grounds crew my senior year working the 6:00-2:30 shift and enjoyed the experience.”
After high school, Steven enrolled at Ohio University to pursue a career in Geography/Urban Planning. “My chosen career was about information systems, climate, statistics, and sitting in front of a computer tracking it all,” Steven lamented, “As time passed by I just couldn’t see myself doing this. Every summer I was still working at Lakewood. The superintendent, Jim Noel, suggested that I enroll in the two year turfgrass program at Penn State, which I did after I received my bachelor’s degree from Ohio University.”
After year one at Penn State, Steven’s first internship was at The Country Club in Pepper Pike, Ohio. It was an old William Flynn design and was considered to be the best course in the Cleveland area. “Matt Shaffer had just left to go to Merion,” Steven recalled, “They were doing a huge renovation on the course. McDonald and Sons was doing the work. It was a great learning experience. I was there from March to September before going back to Penn State for my second year. I loved the program at Penn State. We had great professors and it opened my eyes to the potential and possibilities in my new chosen profession.”
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"I loved the program at Penn State. We had great professors
and it opened my eyes to the potential and possibilities
in my new chosen profession.”
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After graduation Steven traveled to California for his first interview. “I flew to San Jose. An interview was set up with 12 superintendents from all the best clubs in the San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Monterey areas,” Steven remembered, “I really wanted to work at Cypress Point and they hired me. It was called the “Graduate Internship Program.” So, I went home and gathered my stuff and drove out to Pebble Beach with my dad. We drove 700 miles a day. I remember driving over the Sierra Nevada’s through the Donner Pass through snowstorms and an hour later we hit the Central Valley and it was 90 degrees. We got to Monterey and I found a place to live, a 4-bedroom house with 3 other guys. Here I was, working on the most beautiful property in golf. I worked for Jeff Markow. Jeff taught me a lot. He taught me about maintaining a good work/life balance. He taught me how to manage a crew. We had a crew of 16 at Cypress. There was no overtime. Everyone on that crew knew how to perform any task required to maintain the golf course. If you were short a couple guys, no problem, the work got done. I utilize that cross-training philosophy to this day with the crew at Siwanoy. My greatest lesson from Jeff was to keep it simple. Managing a top club, Jeff wasn’t distracted by fads or snake oils, he kept his programs strong and always had outstanding conditions. He is always in the back of my mind when I need to make tough decisions on the Siwanoy Property.” |
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"I went home and gathered my stuff and drove out to Pebble Beach with my dad. We drove 700 miles a day. I remember driving over the Sierra Nevada’s through the Donner Pass through snowstorms and an hour later we hit the Central Valley and it was 90 degrees." |
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"Everyone on that crew knew how to perform any task required to maintain the golf course. If you were short a couple guys, no problem, the work got done. I utilize that cross-training philosophy to this day with the crew at Siwanoy." |
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While in Monterey Steven reconnected with his college girlfriend Margie. She moved to the West Coast and they got a place together. Margie worked in the theatre industry and had been touring the country. After settling in, Margie got a job at Pebble Beach involved with the managing and planning of their annual car show. Even though Steven had moved up to senior assistant in his time at Cypress, after three years, the couple decided to head to NY. Margie landed a position with the Disney Company in NYC and continued her touring. Steven secured a position working as 1st assistant at Quaker Ridge Golf Club in Scarsdale NY, another top 100 course in the US. (Cypress is currently #2 and Quaker Ridge is currently #34). But Steven’s time at Quaker Ridge was brief.
“I was only at Quaker Ridge for a year and a half,” Steven stated, “In late September of 2008 the superintendent at Siwanoy, Dave Mahoney, suddenly passed away. I was asked to fill in as interim superintendent for the fall with a promise that I would get an interview for the job at the end of the season. There were no guarantees. I remember the first time I was introduced to the crew. I told them I was there to help until the winter hit. I tried to show the membership what could be done with the property. In October, Margie and I got married but we postponed our honeymoon. In December, the club offered me the superintendent’s position. That was 14 years ago.”
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During Steven’s tenure at Siwanoy, under the guidance of architect Mike DeVries, the club went through a massive renovation for three years (spring and fall) which included greens expansions, new irrigation, bunker construction, and rerouted cart paths. The clubhouse was also renovated and the club built a new pool along with paddle courts. As there is never any rest for the weary, the club is now renovating their bunkers again with capillary concrete.
On the personal side, Steven and Margie have two children, son Finley 12 and daughter Sydney 9. Steve said they are both extremely talented musically (they got that from Margie). Finley plays the sax and is in the high school jazz band. Sydney plays the piano. The kids love sports too. Steven is involved in coaching baseball, a travel team. He’s practicing that work/life balance he learned from his old boss Jeff at Cypress. The family lives in a house at the club. To get away, Steven and Margie bought a lake house in the Berkshires (Mass). The family likes to spend time there year-round and with it being less than a 3-hour drive, Steven sneaks up there as often as he can during the summer months. And Margie is still working in NYC as Associate GM for Disney Theatrical.
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Steven and his wife Margie |
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About Siwanoy
The origins of Siwanoy CC go back to the late 1890’s. Real estate developers and brothers Augustus and Middleton Rose bought land adjacent to a harness track in Bronxville, NY where they laid out a nine-hole golf course that they called Fairview Park. A group of golfers who traveled from Mt. Vernon to play the course wanted something a little closer to home so they leased land on White Plains Road and built a nine-hole tract. The club was named Siwanoy CC after a local Mohican tribe that had lived in the area.
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After the members found out that their lease would not be renewed after the 1903 season, the club moved north to where White Plains Road now intersects the Cross County Parkway. A new nine-hole course, designed by Willie Dunn, opened in 1904. Siwanoy CC remained at this site until 1913. It was becoming obvious that the nine-hole tract couldn’t satisfy a growing membership so the decision was made to purchase 110 acres of Paulding Manor in Bronxville to build an 18-hole course. This land had been given to Revolutionary War hero John Paulding by the Continental Congress for his role in the capture of Major John Andre, co-conspirator with Benedict Arnold. Architect Donald Ross was hired to design the course. Ironically, the new course was across the street from the original Fairview Park course. |
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"...the decision was made to purchase 110 acres of Paulding Manor in Bronxville to build an 18-hole course. This land had been given to Revolutionary War hero John Paulding by the Continental Congress for his role in the capture of Major John Andre, co-conspirator with Benedict Arnold." |
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In the fall of 1914, the club hired Massachusetts native Tom Kerrigan as the golf professional. He remained at Siwanoy for 50 years. Kerrigan was an accomplished player and a driving force behind the creation of the PGA. In 1916, the first PGA Championship was held at Siwanoy. “Long Jim” Barnes emerged from the 32-man field to edge Jock Hutchison 1-up in the 36-hole final. |
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Siwanoy is known for its numerous elevated tees that offer lovely panoramic vistas, as well as brooks that cross several fairways near the greens. The greens are fiendishly contoured and well bunkered.
It is a true test of golf.
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In 1916, the first PGA Championship was held at Siwanoy. |
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Ocean Organics and Siwanoy
In his own words, Steven talks about the Ocean products he uses and how they fit in to his agronomic programs:
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SeaBlend 5-7-5 Granular Fertilizers:
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“This was the first Ocean Organics product I used. My Metro rep Rich Apgar suggested it to me. I was using a competitor’s product as a starter fertilizer when we were laying sod. Rich said that SeaBlend 5-7-5 was a great product and it was lower in price. I used a lot of pallets of 5-7-5 during the renovation. I’ve expanded its use for my greens and tees during aerification.”
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“I started to use the Ocean Surfactants a few years ago. I use Nautilus on
my greens. I put it out every 3 weeks at 6oz/1000. I like the consistency. The soils wet up easily and it’s easy to dry them down. Nautilus gives me a lot of flexibility and there’s no burn potential.”
“My 26 acres of fairways present their own problems. We’re a dry property. We’re pretty open and the golf course kind of tilts to the south. South facing turf tends to dry out and heat up and wilts easily. I started using Mariner on my fairways and it’s done a great job to eliminate those issues.”
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“I’ve been using a combination of Stress RX and XP at 3oz/1000 each when I spray my greens. It’s 33% of my program. I like the color, the resiliency it gives the turf, how it gives to turf the ability to fight back, and how both products give you great rooting. You need to hold on to those roots as long as you can.
It all works.”
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Thank you, Steven, for your time.
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Visit our website for more about our products |
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SeaBlend®
Granular Fertilizer
Stress Rx® Foliar Fertilizer
XP® Foliar Fertilizer
NuRelease®
Soil and Fertilizer Additive
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Guarantee®
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Turf Surfactants
with a Difference
Helmsman® • Mariner® • Nautilus®
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Ocean Organics high-performance surfactants optimize nutrient and water use efficiency while helping boost plant fitness. Each formulation contains a surfactant, an infiltration agent, and a biostimulant.
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“Thanks for Making Me Look Good.”
– Al Choiniere
“From May through Labor Day, I can sleep at night.”
– Matt Kowal
“The color is fantastic.”
– Ethan Haveman
“The recovery was great. The greens filled in and
the color was unbelievable. We were able to weather
the storm and open the course on time."
– Rob Dorsch
“I like the color, the resiliency it gives the turf, how it gives
to turf the ability to fight back, and how both products give
you great rooting. You need to hold on to those roots as
long as you can. It all works.”
– Steven McGlone
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Superior Strategic Stress Management
Ocean Organics, The Industry Leader
45 Years in the Golf Industry
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Superior Surfactants:
Mariner® Privateer® Nautilus® Windjammer®
Superior Liquids:
XP Extra Protection® Stress Rx® Guarantee®
Superior Granular Fertility:
SeaBlend®
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Need information? Want to chat?
Email or call your local distributor
or Kevin Collins
914-621-1151
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Manufacturers of High-Performance, Science-Based
Plant Strengthening and Fitness Materials for Growth, Protection, Stress Tolerance and Recovery
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