Rutgers graduate earns Musser award

Golf Course News, Nov 2001

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. -- Stacy Ann Bonos, a Ph.D. candidate here at Rutgers University, has received the Musser International Turfgrass Foundation's "Award for Excellence" for 2001. The honor, presented to a doctoral student of turfgrass science who has made significant and innovative contributions to turfgrass science research, includes an $18,000 cash award this year.

Bonos earned her Masters degree from Rutgers in 1997 with her thesis, "Evaluation of Kentucky Bluegrass Genotypes in Response to Summer Stress." Her Ph.D. thesis is titled, "Heritability of Dollar Spot Resistance in Creeping Bentgrass."

Her recent golf course experience included a summer internship and assistance with the Audubon International Sanctuary Certification Program at the Hominy Hill Golf Course in Colts Neck, N.J.

"During her Ph.D. thesis, instead of trying to study in a growth chamber, she took her bentgrass populations to the field and studied them under summer stresses of New Jersey," said William Meyer, professor at Rutgers.

'GENETIC RESISTANCE'

Bonos will be staying on at the university as an assistant professor, working on research projects like dollar spot resistance in creeping bentgrass and helping with the turfgrass breeding program. "Stacy's current thesis research in studying and developing genetic resistance to dollar spot disease shows very promising results," said C. Reed Funk, professor at Rutgers.

Bonos has co-authored 28 peerreviewed scientific papers, progress/field day research reports, extension publications, abstracts and articles since 1995. "The need for the development of improved genetically disease resistant, insect resistant and stress tolerant turfgrasses is important to the advancement of golf courses, athletic fields and landscape management," said Bonos.

"The development of improved turfgrasses can potentially reduce the use of fungicides and insecticides," she added.