Outstanding US students rewarded

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A student at North Dakota State University has won the Mendenhall Award of $6,000 (approximately £4,800) in the 2019 Scholars Competition offered through the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA).

Chad Blank was recognised as an outstanding student planning a career in golf course management. He gained experience operating a golf course through assisting his parents, who own Lake Miltona Golf Club.

He then majored in horticulture with an emphasis in sports and urban turfgrass management at university and interned for Hazeltine National Golf Club and The Maidstone Club.

He conducted routine daily maintenance, improvement projects, taught seasonal workers and gained hands-on experience with championship conditioning.

In July 2019, Blank began an internship with the USGA in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Chad Blank

“Winning the Mendenhall Award means everything to me,” he said.

“It is humbling to know this benefits the next generation of golf course managers and that there is a focus on assisting students.

“This will inspire me to become a more active member.”

Daniel R. Allison, who attends Penn State University, received the second-place award of $3,000.

Blank and Allison will also receive all-expenses-paid trips to the 2020 Golf Industry Show in Florida in January.

“GCSAA is committed to supporting our student members’ ventures in golf course management,” said GCSAA CEO Rhett Evans.

“We wish each student much success in the pursuit of their education and future careers.”