Ryder Cup at Valhalla Golf Club—Louisville, Ky.
The Ryder Cup came to Kentucky a few weeks ago and it was a big hit for the USA team and golf in the local area. It gave local golf courses in central Kentucky a boost in rounds as well as a little exposure. BASF was able to sponsor dinner one evening for the maintenance crew and volunteers at Valhalla during the tournament. The Ryder Cup amazed me with its enormity. This club has hosted two PGA championships and a Senior PGA championship but this tournament was bigger – a true international event. Valhalla uses BASF fungicides as part of their disease management program.

Hurricane Ike affected Blue Grass State and many others
Kentucky truly is a great state to live and work. The dry beautiful weather hasn’t hurt rounds either with the exception of the powerful hurricane-force winds that ripped through Louisville, Cincinnati and up through Ohio on September 14-15. Folks were without power for days and weeks in some areas. (See Jerry Husemann’s last blog post.)

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Gentleman, Start Your Engines!
Greetings once again from FarmLinks! Things have been busy this fall here at FarmLinks. As the summer winds down to a close, golf course superintendents have found the time to come to FarmLinks for some much needed relief from the rigors of a busy golf season.

FarmLinks guests experience the thrill of “Amp Energy 500” at Talladega
One of the highlights this fall has been last week’s Talladega Fall Race. FarmLinks invited over seventy five people from all over the country to NASCAR’s biggest spectacle in racing! The “Amp Energy 500″ saw more than 28 different leaders during the course of the race, with two major crashes ruining the day for several drivers. Eventually the crowd of 170,000 people saw Tony Stewart emerge as the winner. This was my first trip to a NASCAR event and I am still in awe of the enthusiasm these fans show in support of their favorite drivers.

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Congratulations, Danielle—the new bride!

Saturday, October 4th was our youngest daughter and son-in-law’s wedding. It was an outdoor wedding with the reception taking place in a real nice, very large tent near the wedding location.

Danielle is my step-daughter; my wife and I wed 19 years ago when Danielle was only 3-years-old. Danielle and I have been very close all through her childhood and adult life. Due to this close relationship, Danielle arranged for both her father and I to walk her down the aisle. Danielle also arranged a special dance for the both of us, in addition to her father. I have attached a picture of the two dads walking Danielle down the aisle.

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Boston Red Sox beat L.A. Angels, Patriots beat 49ers and Chargers
All hail from the City of Champions. Just a few quotes I’ve heard the last week or so….. “The Angels have the best team in baseball;” “The Angels have the best 3-man rotation;” “NO-ONE can beat the Angels in the Playoffs this year.”

Oh pray tell, have ye’all forgotten so quickly that the hometown teams from the City of Champions feast on weaker minions from the other coast. Yo baby that’s right, I am talking about the spanking the Red Sox gave the “whatever city they are from this year Angels.” And yes when you live in the City of Champions, you earn the right to talk smack! The California massacre—Patriots beat the 49ers and fraud South Dakota Chargers while the Red Sox take the series 3-1, all within a two-week span. Love that Dirty Waatah.

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