Greg and Bob: A Searle Secret Service
- Brick + Tides
- 5 days ago
- 13 min read
From President Bush at Cape Arundel to mornings on the Atlantic, a family’s life on the land
If you arrive before sunrise at the Abenakee Club in Biddeford Pool, you can watch the world brighten in layers. The ocean moves first, catching a strip of pink before anything else. Wood Island Lighthouse glows white long before the neighborhoods wake up. And then, at a certain angle that only appears in spring and fall, when the air is sharp and the sky is perfectly clear, the faraway peak of Mount Washington appears with snow draped on it. It looks unreal. The mountain seems to float above the Atlantic, a reminder that in this part of Maine the land and sea and sky all share the same stage.
This is the scene that greets the Searle family. It greeted Greg Searle for nearly half a century. It greets his son, Bob, every working day. Now it greets Bob’s own son, Spencer, age seven, who climbs into carts and onto machines with the same wide eyes his father once had.
A superintendent’s morning begins when most people are still asleep. There is the quiet hum of engines warming up, the smell of cut fescue, the salt air drifting in from the water, and the feeling that the whole golf course is waking in slow motion. Abenakee is a seasonal club, but in late fall, even when the wind sharpens and the temperatures drop, the course can still look and feel like July. One cold afternoon in November, a single golfer wandered the fairways in a hat and gloves, enjoying the entire landscape to himself. Bob looked out across the links and smiled. “It is forty degrees and we have a trooper out there just enjoying nine holes. That is cool to see.”
It is more than cool. It is the kind of moment that reminds the Searles why they do this work. A golf course is not just a stretch of land. In coastal Maine, it is a living thing. It is shaped by history, weather, and people who care enough to fight for its health every day.
Greg’s Beginning at Cape Arundel
Greg Searle’s story begins in a different era but not far away. In the early nineteen seventies, his future brother in law, Bryce Roberts, was the golf professional at Cape Arundel Golf Club in Kennebunkport. Bryce was dating Greg’s sister. Greg says, “He asked me if I wanted to work at Cape Arundel.” It sounded simple enough. Greg said yes.
He began the way almost everyone begins in this profession, with early mornings, long days, and simple tasks. He says, “I was just a maintenance employee out on the course. I had no title, just one of the workers.” His job was mowing greens and mowing grass. There was nothing glamorous about it. But something about the place pulled him in.
By the fourth year, Cape Arundel approached him with a question. Would he consider becoming the superintendent? Greg did not hesitate. “I said yes. I would love to.” It became a role he would hold for twenty seven years.
Cape Arundel is one of the most historic courses in the country. It is small but wonderfully quirky. It hugs the Kennebunk River and has a personality all its own. Those who know the course love it. Those who play it one time tend to remember it. For Greg, it became the center of his life, a place where he grew up professionally and personally, a place where he met friends he still talks about today, and a place where the Searle story would take root across decades.
Cape Arundel gave Greg more than a livelihood, because it was on that same small property, with him on the grounds crew and her in the pro shop, that he met his wife, Karen. Greg remembers those early days with a smile. “Her family were members of Cape Arundel, and she worked in the pro shop for Ken Raynor in her younger years, and that is how I met her.” The connection was immediate, and it became the foundation of his life beyond the course. “Meeting my wife there in the pro shop, that was unbelievable. That was number one.” They began dating, and as Greg puts it simply and proudly, “We have been married 43 years now.”
A Sitting President on the Tee
Not every superintendent ends up working with a world leader. But Greg did. Cape Arundel gained national attention because it was the summer course of President George H W Bush. Every August, while the Bush family stayed at Walker’s Point, Cape Arundel turned into something extraordinary. Greg says, “The Bushes and the Walkers were all members there. And forty one, who I became really good friends with, he was a great guy. I played golf with him many times.”
Imagine cutting a fairway with a small child in the seat beside you, and then turning around to see a Secret Service agent watching from the woods. That was life for the Searles. Bob says, “I have some memories of some of the extravaganza that comes along with a sitting president being in a small coastal Maine town.” He remembers helicopters, Navy personnel, Secret Service vehicles, and state troopers. He remembers days when the Secret Service would set up inside the Cape Arundel maintenance facility itself.
There were unforgettable moments. Greg recalls being called to the fourteenth fairway one morning because a woman in an enormous hat and long trailing dress was wandering the property. He approached her and said, “I am Greg Searle, superintendent. Could I help you.” She leaned in close and said, “When is the President playing?” Greg told her he did not know. She stepped even closer and shouted, “Do not bullshit a bullshitter.” Greg returned to his office and immediately called the head of the Secret Service detail. Later he learned that she had recently been released from a hospital in Massachusetts and had been put on a bus back to Boston.
There were lighter moments too. Visitors would ask, sometimes with alarm, why there were people with rifles in the trees. Greg would say, “They are Secret Service.” When people asked why, Greg would answer simply, “The President of the United States plays here.”
The Bush family brought more than security. They brought friends. Greg remembers meeting Fred Couples, Davis Love, Arnold Palmer, and Roger Clemens. “The people I met because of the President were great,” Greg says. “Forty one was a great guy. Barbara played a lot of golf too.”
For decades, Cape Arundel was a place where world history and small town Maine mingled in a way that felt entirely natural to Greg. It was a place where he raised his children and where Bob experienced a childhood few kids ever see.
Childhood on the Course
Bob describes his early years simply. “It has been a part of my life forever. Literally forever.” He grew up surrounded by crew members, machines, early mornings, and the wide green spaces of Cape Arundel. He loved riding with his father. He loved being part of the group. He loved the feeling of being on a golf course before the day really began.
Greg remembers the same thing from the other side. “He just loved getting on some of the equipment,” Greg says. “My memories are that every time I would take him to work, he loved it.”
Bob learned things that most children never do. He learned to drive on a golf cart. He learned to drive a standard on old utility vehicles. He remembers shifting with his left hand because the shifter was on the left side. He spent time near Secret Service agents, helicopters, and famous golfers. He saw his father manage people through respect and kindness, something he would later carry into his own leadership.
He also watched his father take care of others in ways that went far beyond mowing patterns or bunker work. Bob tells a story he always remembers. One of Greg’s crew members had mentioned severe tooth pain and could not afford treatment. Greg called Dr. Petrin, a Cape Arundel member and longtime dentist. “It took Dr. Petrin eight months, multiple visits, but he got his teeth all fixed up, pro bono,” Bob says. “He just took care of him because he was a Cape Arundel guy and my dad asked him to help.”
These were the lessons Bob absorbed without realizing it. Leadership is not about barking orders. It is about taking care of people. It is about community. It is about looking out for those who work beside you.
Abenakee and the Return to the Coast
Even though Bob studied business in college, the pull of turf work never left him. After school he saw an opportunity at the Abenakee Club, one of the oldest courses in Maine. Founded in 1898, Abenakee sits on natural links land at the edge of Biddeford Pool. The terrain is sandy, rolling, wind shaped, and almost surreal in its beauty. Bob says, “The course was just carved out of the natural landscape.”
Shortly after arriving, Bob made a decision. He would go back to school to study turf science at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, a place known for producing some of the best superintendents in the world. “I was doing the what,” he says, “but the schooling really helped with the why.” He learned about soil profiles, pests, diseases, and the science behind every decision that keeps turf alive and thriving.
Abenakee quickly became his new home. It is a course that can feel wild one hour and peaceful the next. The ocean surrounds the property on three sides. The winds change daily. The ground drains so quickly that even after a storm the course can be playable within hours. Bob says, “Most courses get an inch of rain and you cannot mow anything for two days. Here it rains an inch overnight and we are out there at six mowing greens.”
Abenakee is also a place anchored in tradition. Many members have families who have been coming here for four or five or even six generations. Bob says, “They come here with their best friends, their lifelong friends, their kids, their grandparents. They make experiences out here every day.” Many of them walk to the course. Many spend their summers in homes that overlook the fairways.
Bob says, “It is an honor and a privilege to be able to take care of this land that our members care for so deeply.”
Working Beside His Father Again
In 2008, Abenakee hired Greg as a consultant to help elevate the course. The next year, Bob arrived. Over time, their roles shifted. As Bob gained experience and completed his turf degree, he moved quickly into leadership. Around 2011 he became superintendent. Greg eased into retirement but stayed on to help.
Bob says, “Dad is my right hand man.” Greg comes in not because he needs to, but because he wants to. He likes being around the crew. He likes spending time with his son. He likes being around the rhythms of the work that shaped his entire adult life.
Working with a parent in a physically demanding outdoor job can be tricky, but for Bob and Greg, it feels like a natural continuation of everything they began decades earlier. They speak the same language. They understand what matters. They know how to handle a problem without speaking a word. Bob says, “He just loves coming in and hanging out with me and hanging out with the guys and staying young.”
There is a sense of pride in that. For Bob, it is the feeling of seeing his father still active and involved. For Greg, it is the feeling of seeing his son succeed in the same career he once loved.
The Science and the Struggle
Being a superintendent on the coast is not romantic work. It is rewarding, but it can be relentless. Bob explains it clearly. “The golf course never sleeps.” There are miles of pipes and wires underground. There are machines that need constant maintenance. There are pests and diseases and droughts and storm surges. There are schedules, budgets, expectations, and the unpredictable rhythms of Maine weather.
There is a unique challenge to growing cool season grasses beside the ocean. Summers can be harsh. Winters can be severe. The transition months require precise timing to fertilize, aerate, seed, and prepare for whatever comes next.
Bob, a former president of the Maine Golf Course Superintendents Association, says the spring and fall are the most beautiful times of year. Those are also the moments when the turf responds best. But even in the beauty there is pressure. A small mistake in April can show up as dead turf in August. A misjudgment during a fall storm can damage fairways all winter.
Technology helps. Bob uses moisture meters, weather stations, and modern irrigation controls. He says, “Dad never had that stuff.” Back in Greg’s days, decisions were based on feel and experience. Today Bob can measure precisely how much water the greens need at any moment. Technology has not made the job easier, but it has made it more exact.
Still, no technology can eliminate every problem. Bob has stories of storm damage, irrigation lines bursting, and moments when he had to leave a birthday party or a family trip because water was shooting thirty feet into the air back at the course. He says, “There is no waiting. You have to get in there and fix it right away.”
To outsiders, golf course maintenance might look like mowing grass. In reality, it is a blend of science, leadership, problem solving, physical labor, and love for a piece of land.
A Third Generation Arrives
On a warm day last summer, Greg took his grandson, Spencer out on the course to change tee markers. Spencer listened closely, held the markers carefully, and watched his grandfather with absolute focus. A member walking by stopped and smiled. “Is this another Searle getting into the business.” Greg answered, “I think it is a good start.”
Spencer is seven. When Bob brings him to the course, the plan is usually to play a few holes. The plan almost never sticks. The machines always win. Bob says, “He tends to get sidetracked by the tractors and the big machines and all the cool stuff we get to work with.” They often end the day by driving around the course, the same way Bob once drove with Greg.
Bob laughs when he talks about it. “I love doing that too because that is what I did with my dad.”
Some families pass down recipes. Some pass down heirlooms. The Searles pass down early mornings on the course, time inside maintenance barns, lessons about leadership, the smell of cut grass, and the feeling of standing on high ground with the ocean moving around the edge of the course.
The Gift of a Coastal Course
On the highest points of Abenakee, you can stand in the wind and see everything the Searles have cared for, along with the landmarks that define this coastline. You can see the lines of the fairways. You can see Wood Island Lighthouse in the distance. You can see the Atlantic crashing onto the rocks. On a clear day you can see Mount Washington shining bright white on the horizon.
This is the land they have shaped. This is the land that shaped them.
Three generations have spent their days here. Greg at Cape Arundel with the President and the Secret Service. Bob at Abenakee with modern tools and ancient wind. Spencer arriving now with a curiosity that mirrors both of them.
They have lived the successes and the struggles of turf work on the coast. They have seen the storms and the beauty. They have seen the people who make a place feel like a community, from members who walk to the course, to longtime friends, to employees who become part of the family.
There is a thread that connects all of it. It is the feeling of doing meaningful work in a place that deserves it. It is the feeling of taking care of land that many generations have walked before. It is the feeling of looking over the property at first light and knowing that you have helped create the conditions for someone’s best memories.
When Bob looks at the course, he sees more than turf. He sees his father. He sees his son. He sees the future. He sees the kind of place that raises people.
And that is what makes this story powerful. It is not a story about golf. It is a story about family, about community, and about a coastal piece of Maine that continues to shape the people who care for it.
Many thanks to Bob and Greg Searle for their time. Before I left the interview with Bob, I asked him "What can local York County, Maine residents do to improve their turf? Thanks to Bob, we compliled these tips:
Bob Searle’s Turf Tips for Southern Maine
What residents of York County can learn from a superintendent who grew up on the coast
One of the surprising things about sitting with Bob Searle is realizing how much of his knowledge is valuable for local homeowners. He cares deeply about helping residents in Biddeford, Saco, Kennebunk, and the surrounding towns build healthier lawns in a region with challenging weather patterns.
Bob says, “Spring and fall is your opportunity to sort of boost your turf’s immune system.” Cool season grasses grow best at these times, so this is when homeowners should thicken their lawns, fertilize, overseed, and prepare the turf for the stress of a dry summer or a harsh winter.
He shares something he learned at the University of Massachusetts. “Bad turf is not the result of weeds. Weeds are the result of bad turf.” Healthy grass crowds out weeds by itself. Dense turf is always the first defense.
Bob encourages homeowners to choose the right grass seed. “In our region we have cool season grasses. Make sure you are getting northern grasses. That would be fescue, rye grass, and bluegrass. If you are seeding a home lawn I would recommend a blend of all three.” A mixed blend ensures that during heat, cold, drought, or stress, at least one of the grasses will survive and hold the lawn together.
He also advises homeowners to look to the experts. “If you need pest control I would recommend looking at the UMass Extension website. Any pest you may come in contact with has a fact sheet.” Extension sites offer science based advice for weeds, insects, and disease, something that many homeowners do not realize is publicly available.
One of the biggest problems he sees is overwatering. He says, “Grass does not like to be saturated at all times.” He often drives to work the day after a heavy rain and sees sprinklers running across yards. “Between a quarter inch and a half inch of rain there is no reason to water anything for the next couple days.”
For homeowners with an irrigation system, he recommends every homeowner install a simple rain sensor. “It is a thirty dollar part.” A sensor shuts the system off automatically when the lawn has already received enough moisture from a storm. It protects turf from rot and disease and prevents wasted water.
Bob sees lawns across York County suffering from the same two issues: too much water or poor turf density. Improving each one comes down to the same philosophy he uses at Abenakee. Build strong turf in the good seasons so it can survive the tough ones.
That is the heart of his advice. Healthy turf begins with understanding the natural rhythms of the land. In coastal Maine the seasons swing fast. Winters put turf to sleep. Summers dry it out. Fall and spring bring the best conditions for growth. The trick is working with nature instead of against it.
Bob has spent his entire life caring for turf in this region. Offering that knowledge to local residents feels like a natural extension of the way he was raised in the business. It is the same simplicity his father taught him, the same attitude that shows up in every part of his work. Take care of the land. Take care of the people who share it with you.
BRICK+TIDES is a weekly digital magazine based in York County, Maine. We share positive and inspiring stories about local businesses, people, and places that make Southern Maine special. If you'd like to read our free weekly email, we'd love for you to subscribe!
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