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Maintenance staff's attention to detail is priceless

There have been many reviews of Jack Nicklaus’ 18-hole course at the Hualalai Resort on Hawaii’s Big Island, but none is more telling than this comment: “The maintenance staff pays attention to detail and takes care of the little things. That dedication doesn’t cost a lot of money, but it’s priceless nevertheless.”

That statement sums up the career of director of golf maintenance Earl Sanders. His goal is to make Hualalai, located north of Ka`upulehu-Kona, the best-maintained golf course in the state, and then take it to the level of worldclass facilities. Players who participate in the Senior PGA MasterCard Championship call Hualalai the best course they play on.

“Attention to detail is everything,” Sanders says. “For example, when we walk-mow greens, we’re looking for straight lines with three-quarters of an inch or less of overlap. If anyone on our staff sees a problem, they bring it to our attention right away, regardless if it’s a dry spot, a weed or a low or high cup.”

Even today, a small spray bottle of Roundup is at Sanders’ side when he tours the course.

"It's easier to get the best product if someone is doing a good job because they want to instead of feeling they are being forced." - Earl Sanders, superintendent

“I wouldn’t say there is any secret to our success here,” he says. “All I know is that I don’t get everything from a textbook. I try to communicate to my assistants and the staff that sometimes we have to do things by the seat of our pants. Solving problems is often a function of what we see and how we react to it. There’s no set formula. If someone asks me about my program for the rest of the year, I can’t tell them exactly what it will be. There are certain practices that are scheduled, but I have to react to what’s happening on the golf course. I encourage input, analyze the situation and determine what needs to be done.”

Commitment to excellence

The Hualalai maintenance staff numbers 32 full-time people, including assistants and mechanics. Sanders says superintendents who want top-quality courses have to treat their people with dignity and respect, then instill in them a commitment to the desired expectation level.

“Most people are capable of performing quality work,” he explains, “and we spend time with them during training to teach them how to perform the job well. Take the guy raking bunkers, for example. The person instructing him has to treat him properly, because it’s easier to get the best product if someone is doing a job because they want to instead of feeling they are being forced.”

Sanders understands that everyone has ups and downs. Maybe they aren’t performing to the best of their abilities because they are distracted by personal problems.

“I try to bring them back by reminding them that this is what we do for a living,” he adds. “I encourage them to do the best job they can for personal pride and their family. If someone is working for their family, they will do their best.”

Rediscover the past

The way Sanders handles his staff is part of a conscious effort by the resort to incorporate Hawaii’s traditions into the facility’s management philosophy. The mission statement is based on “Ho`okipa,” the art of hospitality. Everyone, from staff to residents, is treated with the aloha spirit, which is love, caring, genuine concern, dignity and respect. This spirit permeates all activities.

According to Hualalai’s director of marketing and cultural programs, Barbara McDonnell, by the early 1990s the Hawaiian experience had degenerated tremendously. Visitors to the islands were presented with many canned, stereotypical experiences, and Hawaii didn’t feel like the old Hawaii anymore.

“When we opened,” she says, “we decided to go back to that gentle, more genuine time. Most of our staff is local and holds these values. When they were given the opportunity to express them in a business setting, it just clicked for us.”

Personnel management is a big part of Sanders’ job, and he admits he is learning every day.

“This company is very supportive of increasing my management skills,” he says. “I meet every morning with my staff, and weekly with department heads. We apply the values we’re trying to achieve to the issues we’re going through.”

Move into the big leagues

Sanders got his first taste of the golf industry while working for an Arizona irrigation company. He liked the concept of going to work at one place every day, and went back to school for a degree in agronomy and plant genetics. He says his career breakthrough came in 1981 when he was hired as an assistant at Scottsdale’s Desert Highland Golf Course.

“This new Jack Nicklaus course took me to the major leagues of championship layouts and conditions,” he explains.

Sanders’ next stops included Kauai and Guam, where he fell in love with the construction grow-in phases of golf course maintenance. He came to the Big Island in June of 1994 to build its first Nicklaus course.

Hualalai opened in 1996. The resort is built on the site of an ancient village, destroyed in 1802 by an eruption of the Hualalai volcano, which hovers in the background. A stated purpose of the developers is to preserve the historical and environmental integrity of the area. Visitors realize this immediately because there are no big buildings visible from the highway two miles away. Most resort hotels on this scale tend to be high-rises with many floors. Hualalai, with its 243 rooms, is lowprofile and spread out.

The course is literally carved out of hardened lava, which flowed to the sea from Hualalai’s dramatic eruptions. Nicklaus says his goal was to fit the course topographically into the lava flows. The design also incorporates the area’s historic sites, playing over old fish ponds and around prehistoric footpaths and petroglyph carvings. The jet-black lava contrasts strikingly with bright green grass and the golden yellows of the bunkers, all against the deep blue Pacific Ocean.

Sanders’ role is to make sure the owners get their money’s worth. “Much of my input during construction comes during irrigation installation,” he says. “Drainage in this material is unique. We’re dealing with solid basalt rock, so we have to install basins by drilling and shooting. We can’t put irrigation lines in very deep, so the challenge is to lay them out correctly and make sure the contractor performs quality work. A rock next to PVC or a stone lying on a wire is our worst enemy.”

Sanders is presently supervising construction of a second 18-hole course designed by Tom Weiskopf.

“It’s quite a bit different for me,” he says, “because I’ve followed Nicklaus courses for quite some time. The new course is farther away from the ocean and will be more difficult for golfers. It’s a new challenge for me, and I’m enjoying it.”

This is my business

Sanders runs his operation like it was his own business. A computer program tracks every line item, including labor costs.

“There is a document for everything we do,” he says. “That’s important because historical data can help us determine the cost of a project we may be considering. Our residents and guests come from country club atmospheres, and they are used to quality. As long as I can provide those conditions within my budget, there’s not a lot of conflict. I enjoy having owners who are committed to excellence.”

Sanders says it is crucial to be honest with club management.

“The budget has to be realistic and supported by the owners,” he explains. “Staff training is very important to this equation. If our crew is efficient at what they do, we can save on labor costs. Tasks won’t take as long to complete, and work will be done right the first time. Conversely, we’re not in a race to get done. Our No. 1 objective is quality; production comes in second.”