Brett Eaton, the 2022 Pacific Northwest PGA Section Merchandiser of the Year for Private Facilities and 2014 Pacific Northwest PGA Section Merchandiser of the Year for Resort Facilities, is the PGA of America Head Professional at Tacoma (Washington) Country & Golf Club.

Brett Eaton on the importance of creating uneven lies on your range to simulate reality:

One of the ultimate ironies of our great game is that for a sport where very few shots are hit off perfectly flat flies, most practice facilities are…perfectly flat. It’s great to have robust teaching area but if you want to help take your students games from the range to the dance floor (AKA the golf course), you will need to be able to give them a way to practice uneven lines. That way, if you can fully practice, you will then have the ability to paint a picture with their golf shot and a game plan before heading out onto the course.

Brett Eaton on the business impact of creating uneven lies on your range to simulate reality:

When we renovated our driving range in October 2023, I worked with our superintendent to place rolling hills on the left side of the range so members can work on hitting uphill, downhill, sidehill shots. Additionally, now that we’ve given our members these lies, our PGA of America Golf Professionals can include this in their various teaching programs, encouraging and aiding additional practice time and connection with membership along with retention and revenue growth. The rolling holes and slopes are a great teaching tool for members who swing over the top. We set them up with the ball 8” above their feet, then 6” inches, then 4” to promote the swinging from an inside path. (If they were to swing over the top the heel will dig into the turf, providing immediate feedback for the member and the teaching professional providing the instruction.) It has enhanced our practice options for our entire membership as junior members, women and men along with PGA Tour players who call this club home now enjoy the opportunity to practice and play shots from various lies on the driving range. A third of my lessons will utilize the rolling hills and slopes and we also see members using the hills when warming up, to either further ingrain what we’ve been working on or to be ready for the day’s round. Needless to say, our no longer flat driving range is very popular!

If you would like to email the author of this Best Practice directly, please email Brett@golftcgc.com.