Call us biased no more! We like to claim that we have the best grounds crew in pro sports. Now the experts agree. The Sports Turf Managers Association has named MoneyGram Soccer Park Field 8 Professional Soccer Field of the Year for 2017.
FC Dallas manages MoneyGram Soccer Park in partnership with the city of Dallas. The park itself sits on a 120-acre site that was formally a landfill. Because of that, that ground is constantly moving which makes maintaining a level playing surface a remarking challenge.
“This is a testament to never giving up no matter how difficult the challenge,” said Tom Jones, Vice President of Complex Management for Toyota Stadium who oversees management of MoneyGram Soccer Park. “The grounds crew adapted, developed a plan with limited resources and executed that plan to perfection. Very proud of the boys!”
The field was renovated in mid-2017 to alleviate the challenge of watering soil and roots underneath a one inch layer of thick clay sod and a six-inch sand cap. The field, which featured TifTuf bermuda grass now has just a six-inch sand cap that can withstand almost double the field usage hours of other fields and shows few signs of wear and tear.
A panel of 13 judges scored the entries based on playability, surface appearance, utilization of innovation solutions, effective use of budget and implementation of a comprehensive agronomic program.
Field 8 groundskeeper Troy Crawford and his team will be honored at the 29th annual STMA Conference in Fort Worth, Texas January 16-19, 2018.
