“Cathedral Spires” is the ninth hole on Blackwolf Run’s River course.
minds. These electric generator sets soon spread throughout America’s countryside, bringing light to the darkness. At the same time, the company’s indoor toilets soon turned the outhouse into a quaint symbol of the olden days. It was on this foundation of quality, dependability and innovation that decades of growth were built.
In the 1970s, Herbert V. Kohler Jr., who
is the grandson of John Michael Kohler, led
the business into a new era of expansion,
based on the iconic slogan that would come
to define the company: “The Bold Look of
Kohler.” The goal was to add style and
color to the bathroom and to improve upon
the basic plumbing engineering that had
remained virtually unchanged for years. In
short, Kohler wanted to revolutionize the
The very idea is daunting: hosting not one, but two major golf events within less than a month of each other. The Kohler-owned Old Course Hotel was the host-hotel for the
150th Open Championship in St. Andrews, Scotland, in mid-July, and this week Kohler hosts the
92nd PGA Championship at Whistling Straits. Kohler is the first entity to play host and host-hotel to two of golf’s four major championships in one calendar year.
Luckily, Scott Anderson (pictured),
92nd PGA Championship General Chairperson and Kohler Co. Group President – Hospitality & Real Estate, has experience supervising large events: he was the Managing Director of the 1996
Olympic Games in Atlanta.
The logistics are mind-boggling. Consider, for example, the volunteers for the PGA Championship: more than 3,600 of them from 46 states and four countries, and each one needs a uniform that fits well, a work schedule, and special hospitality training.
“They are vital to the
success of the event,” explains
The operations matrix is incredibly
detailed, including making sure 12,000
cases of soda and water are on hand, that
the buses run on time for the 750 trips
they’ll make throughout the week, and
that the 200,000-plus
A “majors” year for Kohler
brats and hot dogs are grilled to perfection.
“In Wisconsin, you’ve got to have your brats and beer,” laughs Anderson. However, he notes, if beer’s not your thing there’s also a specialty wine tent where guests can find out which vintage pairs best with that brat.
For two Kohler-owned properties to be at the center of half of the game’s four majors within the same year, let alone within a month of each other, is an unprecedented honor that comes with an enormous responsibility.
“We’re in the business of creating
memories,” says Anderson. “Our main
goal is to make them great experiences
for people from the moment they
arrive.”
PHOTOS COURTESY OF KOHLER CO.
82 THE OFFICIAL PROGRAM OF THE 2010 PGA CHAMPIONSHIP