The Golf Course Superintendents Association of America reports attendance for its GCSAA Conference and Trade Show – the largest annual event in the turfgrass management industry – was up 69 percent over the 2022 event in San Diego. Total attendance was 11,000 versus 6,500 in-person attendance in 2022 and comparable with the 11,700 who attended the last pre-pandemic event held in Orlando in 2020.
A total of 6,300 seminar seats were filled, according to the GCSAA, which was up 70 percent over 2021, and was the highest number since 2008. In addition to education for superintendents, the event also included specialized education for assistant superintendents, equipment managers, students and more.
The trade show hosted nearly 450 exhibitors and covered nearly 250,000 square feet of exhibit space of Orlando’s Orange County Convention Center.
Johnny Morris, founder of Big Cedar Lodge in Ridgedale, MO., as well as Bass Pro Shops, was presented the GCSAA Old Tom Morris Award the final night of the event. Morris has made the Branson area of southen Missouri a prime destination for golf, with courses designed by the likes of Tiger Woods (Payne’s Valley), Jack Nicklaus (Top of the Rock) and Ozarks National (Coore and Crenshaw).
The GCSAA Conference and Trade Show is produced by the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA) along with its presenting partners the Golf Course Builders Association of America (GCBAA), United States Golf Association (USGA) and the American Society of Golf Course Architects (ASGCA) .
GCSAA will continue to offer conference learning with a two-day virtual event of new education offerings for everyone at the golf facility March 14 and 16, 2023. Details and registration information can be found at www.GCSAAConference.com.
The 2024 GCSAA Conference and Trade Show will head to Phoenix Jan. 29-Feb. 1, 2024, at the Phoenix Convention Center.
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