General manager at Fort Jackson Golf Club signing off after 32 years

Fort Jackson Golf Club’s version of “The Man Who Came to Dinner” is finally leaving. On Tuesday, Mike Casto will say goodbye to the club after 32 years.

Like the lead character in the Broadway comedy and later movie who became a long-term house guest, Casto had no intention for making a career of overseeing the golf facilities on the sprawling U.S. Army post.

“I thought (Fort Jackson) would be a stepping stone,” he said in recalling his taking the job of general manager and head golf professional on May 29, 1990.

Instead, he clicked with his membership, gained a profound appreciation for the men and women who serve in the armed forces and became the epitome of a golf professional.

Casto’s job, he believed, centered “on keeping the golf course off the general’s plate.” And he did.

“Mike listens to his employees even it they have wild ideas,” said Jeff Connell, Fort Jackson Golf Club’s superintendent since 2009 who’s been known to think outside of the box. “We have his support.”

Soon after Connell’s arrival, the superintendent’s “wild idea” focused on removing the sod from the lush practice greens to make badly needed repairs on the courses’ greens. “We needed to do that for the members,” Connell said. The boss thought long and hard before giving the OK.

Casto can laugh now about that scenario — and he laughs about the base commander, an avid golfer, who ignored the chain of command and would call him directly to talk about the course.

“Then,” he said, “I would have to tell my bosses what the general said. They didn’t like it, but I couldn’t tell the general to follow the chain of command.”

A native of West Virginia who got his start in golf in his home state, Casto reached out to the Carolinas PGA Section for potential job opportunities and received information about an opening at Fort Jackson Golf Club.

Soon after signing on, Casto received word that funding had been approved to expand the facility from 18 holes to 36. A challenge: He had no experience in course construction.

But, with assistance of architects and engineers who know those things, pieces of the puzzle tumbled into place. He learned, for example, that timber cut to route the new course could be sold, but what happens to the roots and other debris?

They buried what they could not sell and, Casto said, the dirt from that excavation “became the elevated sixth green and seventh tee” on the Wildcat course.

Under Casto’s stewardship, FJGC has staged the Monday after the Masters pro-am; the South Carolina Open and State Juniors, focused on the PGA’s Jr. Golf League; played host to a myriad of junior competitions and fund-raisers; and became a fixture on the Drive, Chip and Putt calendar. Named the Carolinas PGA Section’s 2005 Professional of the Year, Casto also coached the Dreher High golf team during the years son Zach played.

Along the way, Casto became involved in the Carolinas PGA Section’s policy-making functions, serving as an area director and then an elective eight-year commitment — secretary, vice president, president and past-president.

An accident of timing led to the highlight of his 32 years at Fort Jackson. He became the Carolinas PGA Section president in 2012, and his position moved him behind the scenes at that year’s PGA Championship at Kiawah Island’s Ocean Course. His responsibilities included representing the Carolinas Section at the Champions’ Dinner and seating arrangements put him at the table with, among others, then PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem and Tiger Woods.

Through the years, he discovered relationships are one of the joys of a golf professional’s job, and he especially treasured those with members who served in the armed forces.

“A lot of memories,” Casto reflected. “Serving here has been a great blessing to me.”

Chip shots. South Carolina’s women’s team finished 14th in the NCAA Championships, failing to earn one of the eight spots in match play that leads to the title. “Although our expectation was to make a run at the national championship, our body of work ... is something for which to hold our heads extremely high,” coach Kalen Anderson said. “We had a record-breaking season.” ... Both the USC and Clemson men’s teams missed the NCAAs after sixth-place finishes in their respective regionals. The College of Charleston squad advanced by finishing fifth in its regional. ... Eddie Hargett (Blythewood) and Todd White (Moore) earned spots in the U.S. Senior Open. ... Ella Stalvey (Blythewood) won the WSCGA Foundation Junior Championship at the Links at Stoney Point in Greenwood. ... Bob Edens (Columbia) and Tom Eberhard (Johns Island) combined for a final-round 10-under-par 62 to captue the SCGA’s Super Senior Four-Ball title at the Legends Golf Course at Parris Island. ... Kerry Rutan (Daniel Island) took the WSCGA Senior Championship at Mt. Vintage Plantation in North Augusta.