LAKE CARROLL — Golf course superintendents are like a silent partner for every golfer on their course. They may not be playing every round, but they’re with them every step of the way.

Without them, there wouldn’t be much of a course to play. They keep the greens green, acting as a doctor when disease threatens, a landscaper who knows the lay of the land, and a master of mowing who stays on top of turf tech.

In Lake Carroll, that’s Tim Throop.

Before most golfers arrive, before the first tee time is called and carts scatter across 220 acres, Throop is already watching the course breathe, having been doing that for 47 years at Lake Carroll’s Golf Course.

The course typically opens around April 1 and closes just before Thanksgiving, though some seasons stretch longer, depending on what nature allows. For Tim and his grounds crew, those dates are only markers. The real work never fully stops.

Throop came to Lake Carroll as a teenager in 1979 looking for summer work, starting at the bottom with weed eaters and hand tools on what was then a nine-hole course, and ending up at the top, as the course’s superintendent — but he’s more than just the that: He’s also Lake Carroll’s longest serving employee.

He became superintendent in 2002, stepping in to golf shoes Duane Kloepping had filled for more than 20 years before him. Since his first days on the job as a high schooler, Tim has seen decades of change: the addition of nine more holes, homes rising around fairways, technology transforming equipment and irrigation, and a course that continues to demand constant vigilance.

A typical day at work, he says, is never quite typical: There is mowing; scouting for disease; managing water; and reacting to storms, humidity, wildlife and whatever else shows up overnight. Helping him is a crew of two full-time assistants and seasonal help that ranges from college students to retirees, and even occasional volunteers from the Lake Carroll community who step in because they care about the place.

Shaw Local recently caught up with Throop to reflect on his rise through the ranks in a Q-and-A interview, what it takes to keep Lake Carroll’s course in shape, and why, after all these years, he still comes to work fired up every morning.

Have you been a golf enthusiast all of your life?

I would come out to play golf with my stepfather, and the superintendent out here, Duane Kloepping, asked me if I was looking for any summer work, and I said, “Yeah.” That’s how it all started. I came out here that first year, and you start out at the bottom weed eating and doing all of the hand stuff. I didn’t get to see much mowing. At that time, it was only nine holes.

Sticking with this as long as you have, was that a plan, or did it just happen?

It just happened that way. It wasn’t a plan. When you’re in high school, 16-17 year old, you don’t know what you’re going to do yet; you’re still running around and playing sports, stuff like that. I just love it every day, from sunrise to sunset. It’s always a different day. We have a lot of wildlife I enjoy seeing.

When I first started here, there was one home on the whole golf course, and now there’s over 40. It’s a gorgeous atmosphere.

What did you learn from Duane that still helps you today?

He taught me a lot of good stuff, and he suggested that I get the job when he retired. He knew he taught me enough that I’d get at it. [Course pro] Jason [Hill] — because Duane was very old-school — Jason would sometimes say, “You’re sounding like Duane today.” Old-school was the way you did it.

What was the course like when you first started, compared to now?

It was in rough shape. We had probably four employees and old, old mowers, nothing like the new technology today. It was mostly a lot of hand work. There wasn’t a lot of cash flow to buy a lot of new equipment.

Do you remember when the back nine was built?

In 1989 they started it. We got lucky on that because we figured it would be two years before we could open it. We had a great fall and a great spring with rains, and everything filled in nicely to where we got to open early.

What makes the course at Lake Carroll one-of-a-kind?

With the way it’s laid out, most courses are probably 90 to 100 acres, but we have 220. It’s spread out and aligned, and that makes a difference.

Do you have a favorite hole?

My favorite hole is No. 14. It’s down in a valley and has a creek that runs through it. It’s lovely. It was a pasture back in the day before we developed it. To me, it’s a gorgeous setting. It’s very nice.

Does playing on the course help you see things differently?

It helps when you’re out playing. And I play. I never thought I would again after having a stroke in 2004. I didn’t get my whole left side back, but Jason said, “I’ll teach you how to play again.” And he did. I thought it would be something I’d never do again. The community out here is wonderful.

What does it take to be good at what you do?

Just keeping up with technology and listening to other people about what they experience. Your [turf] diseases and problems start in the south and then heads north, and you just have to follow it in order to be ready for it when it gets here. There’s a lot of understanding nature. Humidity is one of the worst things, you hate it when it gets hot and humid. Humidity kills a lot of grass, so you have to do a lot of scouting and having preventative chemicals ready. It’s a challenge.

Is there anything a casual golfer may not notice on the course, but that you think about constantly?

It’s got to be in good condition. We mow every day and rake traps. They don’t know what goes in chemical wise. One of the diseases is pythium [severe water-mold infections], where you’ll come back the next day and the grass will be dead. When people drive through it, or people walk through it, they’ll carry the host to other areas, and it will keep going. It’s difficult in the summer time. We try to beat them out. On the weekends we’re here at 5:30 a.m. and through the week we’re here at 6 a.m., and we try to get everything done before they get here, and then we go to other projects: raking, clearing trees, pulling weeds around the clubhouse flower beds.

How has technology evolved since your first days here?

It’s gotten way better. When I first started here, you’d spray for most summer diseases every week. Now you can get 14-day protection and stuff like that. It’s like everything else that keeps up with the times.

Have things been particularly challenging in recent years?

Last year we had to dump a water on because we were in drought conditions. We put 24 million gallons on the golf course. That’s a lot of water. Our irrigation system ran every night. It’s all computerized now; when I first started here, you’d have to go out at night, put the heads in the ground and turn them on yourself. We had a morning and night shift.

What are some of the biggest challenges you’ve had to deal with over the years?

Our back pond that we water out of has a dam in it, and we came out one morning and the whole dam was gone, and we’ve had to rebuild that a couple of times over the years. We’ve had heavy winds that have come here and have had to clean up 50 to 100 trees – and you got to get it done in a hurry to get it back open. It’s all about getting cash in the door so that the golfers can go.

Animals do a good bit of damage, too. You see deer run across the green and scuff it up. Then the skunks in the fall. They’re usually after the white grub (a high-protein food source for them) and they’ll dig it up very good. You got to put your chemicals on to keep them away. During the fall, we’ll trap around the whole course and catch them to keep them off. If you don’t trap them, they’re just going to keep coming.

What are some of the major projects you and your crew have worked on in recent years?

We’ve been involved in a lot of reconstruction of the golf course since 2008, building all new bunkers, tee complexes, and the driving range. We once took one hole out of play and built a whole new par-3 hole. It’s just like owning a house: You know when it gets worn out. We try to rebuild five sand traps a year. Once they’re originally put in, then all we have to do is take the product out of them, edge them a little bit, freshen the pea gravel and the drain lines, and add new sand

What has it been like to have dedicated help – from your staff and the community?

There are two main jobs besides mine. My assistant supervisor is Josh Amenda. He’s more of a new-school technology guy because he’s younger. My mechanic is Robbie Frazer, and he does a super job of keeping the equipment in great shape. He comes in about an hour before we come in and does all of the greasing and everything. So when we show up, we’re ready to roll.

A few years ago, we started an Adopt-a-Tee program, and players go out and plant some flowers, bushes and mulch around out tee box areas where we have our signs to describe the hole. Then we went with a divot program, where when they make a divot in the fairway, they’ll go out and fill them. It’s really helped a lot. Having good help helps.

Is there anything on the course that you’re especially proud of?

I love seeing our members out there every day, and they always come and tell us about having a great time. We have a lot of outside outings here, and I like to listen to the people tell our staff members how it’s in great shape and how they had a great day. I love, when I’m mowing the fairways, looking back at them and seeing them perfectly striped.

Does it get busier for you during the winter months?

It depends on the weather conditions. Last year, we worked outside until February cutting trees, and we had a lot of equipment to take care of. We stay busy throughout the winter. Normally we take December off to prepare for January and February to clean up from the winter and having the course ready.

We start in March and early April getting it ready to go, and we’re on it from April to November during the playing season. It’s a 7-day-a-week job.

Does every day still feel exciting, or does it ever feel like just another shift?

My wife, Debra, says that she never knew anyone who enjoyed going to work every day, doing it as long as I do. I’m always fired up every day. Sometimes when you come out and have some storm damage, it’s like, “Ugh, son of a gun ...” I’ve not lost the passion at all. Not too many people who have carried a job [as long as I have] can say that. I’ll be laying in bed at night and my wife will come in and tell me that the humidity is 97 percent. I’ll tell her, ‘Yeah, dear, I know." I know someone’s going to be out there in the morning. When your wife knows your job, you’re really into it.

What do you hope people take away from experience of coming here?

I want them to come here and say they had a great day. That means a lot when they say they shot good and the course is in great shape. We like to hear that. To ourselves, we know at the end of the day we did our best job. When people tell you that, that adds a little more. A guy likes to hear he’s going a good job.

Lake Carroll Golf Course is located at 2911 Ironwood Drive in Lanark. Go to golflakecarroll.com, find it on Facebook or call 815-493-2808 for tee times or more information.