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Golf Course Superintendent Doyle Brookshire
literally grew up on the golf course. His Dad has worked at Hillcrest Country
Club in Bartlesville for the last 40 years, 35 of those years as Hillcrest’s
Course Superintendent.
Doyle graduated from Bartlesville’s College High School and then went to work at
Hillcrest for his Dad in 1980. His first Superintendent’s job was at East Lake
Hills. Doyle was only 19 at the time. He served as Course Superintendent at
Bristow for four years followed by eight years as Superintendent at Dawn Hill in
Siloam Springs, Arkansas. Doyle was hired as Course Superintendent of Ponca City
Country Club in February of 2000.
Doyle supervises a staff of 18 during the growing season. “I have enjoyed my
time here so far. I have a hard working staff, good equipment, and the Board,
Mac, and the members have all been supportive of the changes made to the course
during my tenure. I know there is always room for improvement and I get
frustrated at times because we can’t do everything that we want to do. With the
economy the way it is, all courses and private clubs are going through a period
of tight budgets and belt tightening,” Brookshire said. “My goal is to always do
the best that I can every single day.”
Doyle is one of only 13 certified Course Superintendents in the state of
Oklahoma. The certification is not easy to obtain and requires recertification
and testing on a regular basis. “The certified superintendents here in Oklahoma
work well together, and all of us are willing to share our ideas with each
other,” he said. “It’s nice to receive the expertise and advice of other
superintendents when a complex problem comes up.”
Doyle works long hours during the growing season, arriving at work no later than
5:30 am on most days, and sometimes coming back in the evenings to turn
sprinklers on and off. He also comes in for a few hours on Saturdays. He tries
to schedule his time effectively so he can spend as many hours as he can with
his 3 children, all active in a variety of sports. In his remaining spare time
he enjoys fishing.
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