Dr. Terry Riordan

Dr. Terry Riordan is a leading authority on turfgrass breeding and was the first director of UNL’s PGA Golf Management Program.

Terry was a turfgrass major at Purdue University after the Illinois native lettered in golf at Bradley University.

After developing St. Augustine grasses for home lawns while working for Scotts. In 1978, he began 32 years of teaching at UNL with agronomy and horticulture classes. A $4,000 research grant in 1983 from the USGA Green Section for developing drought-resistant turfgrasses led to UNL being a leader in the field.

Under his direction, UNL started accepting students for its new PGM program in 2004. He became a Class A PGA Professional in 2008 when he was 64, the oldest to go through the program. In retirement, he’s given back through PGA Hope that exposes golf to military veterans.

He received the 2011 Nebraska PGA Professional Development Award and the UNL Turfgrass Department was honored by the Nebraska Golf Hall of Fame in 1999.