He received his undergraduate and doctoral degrees from Purdue University. His research interests include diseases of warm season turfgrass species and disease management for southern highbush blueberry. In addition to providing efficient and effective disease management strategies for clientele, additional research goals include selection for turfgrass and blueberry disease resistance in collaboration with plant breeding programs. His extension efforts have focused on providing rapid and accurate diagnostic services to the turfgrass, small fruits, and ornamental plant industries. Recommendations given as part of diagnostic services include practical, research based, disease management solutions. He has served as an assigning editor for Plant Disease Management Reports and as an associate editor of Applied Turfgrass Science.