USGA’s GAP preps for fourth year

The USGA is launching the 2026 Greenkeeper Apprenticeship Program (GAP) class, marking the fourth year of the program. The 35 apprentices across both the Pinehurst and Myrtle Beach locations receive a combination of on-the-job training and classroom instruction, allowing the students to take their knowledge from the classroom directly to the course.

As part of the USGA’s mission to advance the game of golf, GAP was created to promote career growth and long-term success within the golf and turf industry. Through this program, students develop their skills at top-tier facilities such as Pinehurst Resort and Country Club, Tobacco Road Golf Club, The Dunes Golf and Beach Club, Bulls Bay Golf Club and Southern Pines Golf Club.

Apprentices attend class at Sandhills Community College in Pinehurst, North Carolina, or Horry-Georgetown Technical College in Conway, South Carolina, where USGA agronomists, university scientists, industry professionals and golf course superintendents lead attendees through content anchored in the on-course experience gained during the program. The apprenticeship program has built strong momentum in its first three years. Across both sites, 68 participants have graduated, 27 have earned promotions (40 percent), and 64 remain employed in the industry (94 percent).

“GAP has been one of the more rewarding programs I’ve been lucky enough to experience in my time at the USGA,” USGA Green Section managing director Matt Pringle said. “Addressing a critical need in the golf course maintenance industry, GAP is providing real opportunities for growth that previously didn’t exist, and we’ve seen some amazing success stories in just three years. Our program leads, Carson Nesbella and Alan Owen, have done a wonderful job of curating engaging lessons for the apprentices, which are being implemented on course and are having a real impact on career progression.”

Greenkeeper Apprenticeship Program program coordinator and Horry-Georgetown Technical College associate professor Alan Owen, right, works with a GAP participant.

Participants are employed full-time at a partner golf course facility in the Sandhills of North Carolina and the Grand Strand of South Carolina to build skillsets in turf management. Each apprentice receives support from leadership on site, a mentor and a field supervisor from the USGA to further their learning and provide a network of trusted associates to call on in the future. A variety of topics are covered throughout the year-long program, including water science, pest management, fertility and mathematics of turfgrass maintenance.

The 2026 GAP class consists of students from 14 states. Seventeen of them are aged 25 or under, and eight  are college graduates, including two with master’s degrees and one with a medical degree.

Among the 2026 class of GAP apprentices are:

• Rick Shannon, a 53-year-old from North Carolina, an active military member with a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and a master’s degree in business administration.
• Haley Fox, a Colorado native with degrees in biology and exercise science, the daughter of a PGA professional and a golf course superintendent of more than 30 years.
• Nicholas Chace, who was born in Russia and moved from Massachusetts to join the program.

The full list of the 2026 GAP participants includes:  

Since its pilot year in 2022, the success of those in the GAP has already begun to address a critical need in the golf course industry at large — recruiting and retaining skilled labor on the maintenance staff. By creating these opportunities for apprentices, GAP is training the next generation of those who take care of golf courses, which also furthers the USGA Green Section’s mission of creating better turf for better golf at a lower cost to facilities.

In addition to GAP, the USGA has invested more than $75 million and supported multiple career development programs since 1991, including the P.J. Boatwright, Jr. Internship, Pathways Discover, Pathways Launch, and annual USGA internships.

Greenkeeper Apprenticeship Program program director and Sandhills Community College instructor Carson Nesbella, right, works with a GAP participant.