
Rafael Barajas joined Boca Grove at the end of 2015, bringing with him a total of 35 years in the golf industry. He has been a member of the GCSAA for 30 years and Certified Golf Course Superintendent for the past 25 years. He is the Past President of the Golf Course Superintendents of Southern California, Past President of the California Golf Course Superintendents Association and a board member of the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America for the past 5 years. Originally from Colima, Mexico, Rafael immigrated to the US at the age of 14, only knowing two words of English. He followed in his brother’s footsteps and worked as part of the maintenance crew at a municipal course in the San Fernando Valley. By the age of 20, he was the superintendent at the Recreation Park Golf Course in Long Beach, Calif. He spent the following six years in professional development courses and seminars about turfgrass maintenance and agronomy, eventually leading him to become a Certified Golf Course Superintendent in 1990. In the mid-1990’s Rafael became the superintendent at Hacienda Golf Club in Southern California, where he spent 20 years before coming to Boca Grove.