What does the hospitality have in common with high school athletics? Quite a bit. Especially leadership and the responsibility that comes along with it. Billy Sparacio is the founder of True Victory Consulting and the former Athletic Director of First Baptist Academy where he took a non-existent athletic program and built it into something truly special, changing lives along the way to a state football championship in 2022. Over his 3+ decades of coaching athletics he's gained the leadership experience that changes and develops individuals, teams, and businesses beyond what they think they are capable of. True Victory Consulting aims to do just that, leading others to reach their full potential.

Billy shares leadership concepts from the athletic world, that all apply in the business world and the correlation to the club and hospitality industry is eye opening.

During this powerful 90 minutes we talk about:

The concept of "Both-And"

The importance of gratitude and leading with love

Defining YOUR version of success

Building trust as you cast your leadership vision

How wins come and go and how your leadership is developing others and your team beyond the game...(or the special event)

Instilling a sense of value in others and how leadership is helping everyone see the bigger picture of what they're apart of

How do you lead through seasonality i.e. the football season and what we refer to in the club business as "peak season"

This episode was truly a treat and if you're looking for some inspiration personally or for your team - reach out to Billy and True Victory Consulting. He works with groups and businesses of all types. Whether it's on the football field or in the clubhouse, a Team is simply a group of people working together to achieve a common goal to the best of their ability. Leadership is the vision and the glue and Billy is one of the best.

https://www.truevictoryconsulting.com/

2025 was awesome! And 2026 sounds like it's going to be even more awesome. In this episode, we start off talking about Fer's big news, Scott's love of hazelnuts and whether or not we set New Year's resolutions... Later in the segment, we shift gears to talk about setting expectations being willing to adjust, staying fluid with life and learning from past challenges.

As usual we share some very impactful small things....special food service, vodka, a sock crisis and diamonds....

And Mike sums it all up best with the motto of the year...."Shift your thinking from me to us"....

As usual - this one is full of some laughs and good conversation....

This episode was a treat! JD Varon, CGCS has been the Superintendent at Countryside for 26 years! He's an expert in his field and has provided our Members with incredible playing conditions for nearly 3 decades. In 2019 he led a $5.5m complete course renovation. Todd Lowe began consulting with Countryside in 2024, primarily to provide further expertise advice on our agronomical practices. Todd's input led to much needed extended summer closings for more aggressive maintenance of our greens - something that has never been implemented in Countryside's 40 year history.

A Florida native and the son of a golf course superintendent, Todd Lowe has dedicated his career to turfgrass management. From working on golf courses at the age of 14 to earning degrees in Environmental Horticulture (University of Florida) and Horticulture Sciences (Clemson University), Todd’s expertise is deeply rooted in both experience and education.

For nearly two decades, he served as a USGA agronomist, consulting on golf course maintenance, authoring industry articles, and speaking at superintendent associations worldwide. He also played a pivotal role as the lead agronomist for several USGA and IGF championships. From 2018 to 2024, Todd brought his knowledge to Bayer Environmental Sciences (later Envu) as a technical service manager, assisting turf managers, developing pest management programs, and overseeing research for innovative turf solutions.

In 2024, Todd acquired PhD Laboratory to further research soil physical properties on golf course greens. With cutting-edge Rootzone Performance Metrics (RPM), he helps courses optimize cultivation strategies, ensuring peak playability and turf health. His extensive experience, from agronomy to laboratory diagnostics, makes him a trusted authority in the field.