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The USGA Greenkeeper Apprenticeship Program (GAP) started in Pinehurst, North Carolina, at Sandhills Community College and has expanded to its second location at Horry-Georgetown Technical College (HGTC) in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina Led by instructors Charles Granger, Jim Huntoon and Alan Owen, GAP at HGTC offers another opportunity for people working in golf course maintenance to increase their knowledge and develop new skills that will help advance their careers. The program at HGTC is built on the same foundation as GAP in the Pinehurst location, but it is tailored to the needs of the students in the Myrtle Beach area. It also takes advantage of the impressive teaching facilities at HGTC and the robust golf industry network in the Myrtle Beach area, with more than 50 courses located within a 15-mile radius.

I recently spent an afternoon visiting the GAP program at HGTC and was immediately impressed by the facilities and the great group of students and teachers. Instructors Granger, Huntoon and Owen have over six decades of professional experience in the golf course maintenance industry between them. They also have deep roots in the Carolinas golf community, which has been a huge asset for recruiting students and mentors and providing educational opportunities. As I poked around the classrooms, the students showed me a collection of sprinkler heads set up for them to learn how different models work, growth chambers for studying turf diseases, mower reels they use to practice making adjustments, and much more.

A short walk from the classroom, HGTC has an outdoor Turf Care and Demonstration Center that looks something like a short par 3 with various learning areas located throughout. During my visit, Briza Roblero, a landscape team member at Caledonia Golf and Fish Club and True Blue Golf Club, was getting her first chance to operate a greens roller with guidance from Owen and a fellow student, Craig Kucharski. Nearby, Shaun Mauro was making his first passes with a greens mower in a different practice area, again with help from another student. A different group of students was repairing and leveling a sprinkler head, as Owen hopped from group to group providing guidance.

With a range of experience among the students, the instructors establish a skill level for each so that they can ensure meaningful progress throughout the program. According to Owen, “Some students come in with strong foundational skills and set their sights on higher-level goals, others are learning the basics. While most of the development occurs at their workplaces under the guidance of mentors, I like to create opportunities within the program for experienced students to demonstrate leadership by coaching and training their peers during class sessions at HGTC.”

Toward the end of class, the whole group gathered to review some turfgrass identification in the research plots and to adjust a surrounds head to make sure it didn’t hit the nearby green. Student Clayton West from The Dunes Golf and Beach Club noted that, “Being at the Turf Care Center makes the classroom feel more alive. I enjoy getting out of the traditional setting and actually working with the grounds, tools and equipment. It gives us the chance to learn by doing and helps translate what we are studying into the real world. We can see the results of our work firsthand.” Going beyond their studies on campus, students in the GAP program at HGTC have opportunities to visit and learn at the many golf courses in the area, including The Hackler Course at Coastal Carolina University, which is right next door to HGTC.

Owen knows the value of apprenticeship firsthand. Before his career as a superintendent and turf industry professional, he was a turfgrass maintenance apprentice back in his native England, where he attended college classes one day a week for four years while working full-time on a golf course. When describing his educational philosophy, Owen said his time as a superintendent plays a big role in how he structures his lessons, focusing on hands-on experiences. He thinks about what it took to help some of his past employees reach the next level in their careers and designs lessons based on that.

Students are also given assignments and projects that require them to work closely with mentors and supervisors at the courses where they work. “The students are taking more responsibility at work – leading projects, getting more involved with spraying, doing irrigation work, and generally stepping up their game a bit,” said Owen. That’s exactly the progression GAP is designed to foster.

There are 17 students in the inaugural cohort of the HGTC GAP program. They work at 14 different golf facilities located all around South Carolina, from courses just a few minutes away to almost two hours down the road at Florence Country Club in Florence, South Carolina. The students range in age from 19 to 60 with experiences that are just as varied – from less than six months in golf course maintenance to over 20 years. The HGTC GAP students are studying a curriculum that is aligned with what students receive at GAP in Pinehurst, but their lessons are tailored to the needs of the local golf market. All three instructors agreed that many of the topics covered are universal in golf course maintenance but some – like overseeding and salt-water intrusion – are more unique to the area.

For next year’s class, the professors are spreading the word about GAP at HGTC far and wide – at association meetings, golf outings, and at local courses to see if they have anyone on staff that might be a good fit. Applications are accepted from around the country and there is housing support available. If you’re interested in GAP at HGTC in Myrtle Beach or at Sandhills Community College in Pinehurst for the 2026 program year, click here to learn more!