Mike Perpich, the 1994 Georgia PGA Teacher of the Year and a Golf Magazine Top 100 Instructor, is the PGA director of instruction at RiverPines Golf Club in Johns Creek, Georgia.

Mike Perpich on the importance of maintaining a pristine practice facility:
Here at RiverPines, we pride our facility on always maintaining an exceptional and sustainable practice facility for all customers. Throughout the southeast, a majority of facilities will repair and regrow inanimate range areas through a very highly concentrated sand-based seed mixture. Through extensive research, I collaborated in part with my superintendent to capture a cross-mixture of topsoil and sand to repair and regrow pristine surfaces throughout the year. Additionally, we have established a rotational schedule which allows time for our surfaces to recover and regrow as we hit outside nearly 365 days per year. This rotational schedule is yet to change in 12 years.

Mike Perpich on the business impact of maintaining a pristine practice facility:
When both my superintendent and I set out to research the subject, we wanted to find a component that blended well with sand and could robustly grow through extensive heat and also freezing temperatures. We found that in addition to 40 percent sand, topsoil helped hold moisture and nutrients better which provided a firmer base turf quality. In addition to cultivating in this process, meticulously following our rotational schedule and over-seeding during the fall and late winter yields fairway-type surfaces that always produce a memorable experience.

If you would like to email the author of this Best Practice directly, please email perpinc@comcast.net