The Country Club of Spartanburg’s Superintendent Zac Ramey has experience preparing a course for the BMW Charity Pro-Am, dating back to his time at Thornblade Club. Now at the Country Club of Spartanburg, he’s getting the course ready for Korn Ferry Tour rounds scheduled June 4–5.

From Paint to Pins Zac Ramey will have Spartanburg ready

By Stan Olenik. Editor-Publisher. The Golf Club

The first sign a professional tour is coming to town doesn’t show up on the leaderboard—it shows up in stacks of paint.

For Zac Ramey, superintendent at the Country Club of Spartanburg, those pallets of yellow and red marking paint are just the beginning. What follows is a steady, detailed transformation of a member course into a tournament-ready test.

“It starts with the details,” Ramey said. “You look at everything—green speeds, fairway width, rough height—and make sure you’re presenting the best product possible.”

Learning from the Best

Ramey didn’t arrive at this moment by accident.

He came up through the profession working under some of the most respected names in the region, spending time at the Walker Course at Clemson with veteran superintendent Don Garrett before moving on to Thornblade Club, where he served as assistant under highly regarded superintendent Randy Long.

Those stops helped shape both his approach and his expectations.

“You learn how to do things the right way,” Ramey said. “And you learn what championship conditions are supposed to look like.”

Now, with the Korn Ferry Tour arriving in Spartanburg, he finds himself in the lead role.

Working with the Tour

Preparation has been a collaboration.

Ramey has worked closely with Bland Cooper, the tour’s agronomist, who has. made multiple visits to evaluate conditions and offer guidance. The process is less about mandates and more about refinement.

“They ask about what you’re doing, what your targets are,” Ramey said. “Then they’ll say, ‘This is where we’d like to see it.’”

Adjustments have included expanding tee boxes, refining surfaces, and potentially changing the course to a par 70 setup for professionals.

Defending Without Distance

At just under 6,700 yards, the course won’t rely on length to challenge players.

Instead, the defense is more subtle.

“The strength of the golf course is in the greens,” Ramey said.

Firmness, angles, and precise pin placements will demand as much discipline as power, especially for players seeing the course for the first time.

A Battle with the Elements

If there has been a challenge, it hasn’t come from the tour—it’s come from the weather.

A cool, dry spring has made it difficult to grow the rough to tournament height, forcing Ramey and his crew to rely heavily on irrigation while waiting for warmer nights.

“Every time temperatures drop, it sets the grass back,” he said.

Even so, the course is moving toward the look and feel the tour expects—something not always easy for the membership to embrace.

“There have been some complaints,” Ramey admitted. “But a lot of members are excited to see what it’s like to play it the way the pros will.”

A Profession That Shows Up

Like most tournament weeks, preparation extends well beyond the home staff.

Superintendents from across the region, along with vendors and volunteers, will step in to help bring the course to life.

“It’s a brotherhood,” Ramey said. “Everybody in this business is willing to help.”

Let the pros take their best shots

At first glance, the scorecard raises a fair question.

At just under 6,700 yards, some will look at the layout and assume the professionals are headed for a week of low numbers—and they may be right.

But if that happens, it won’t be because the course didn’t hold up.

“If somebody goes deep, it’s because they’re playing great golf,” Ramey said.

The setup will ask for precision, discipline and the ability to finish—especially on and around the greens, where the course does most of its defending.

Ramey’s job isn’t to trick the field or protect par. It’s to present the course in the best possible condition and let the players decide the rest.

Measuring the Week

When it’s over, success won’t be measured in yardage or green speeds.

“For me, it’s handling whatever comes our way,” Ramey said. “You hope for the best, but you plan for the worst.

There are issues for the tournament to consider in getting fans in out and around the course, but Ramey has his part of the tournament under control.

With a little help from the weather and a lot of attention to detail, Ramey’s goal is simple—have the course ready, let the players decide it, and give the membership something to be proud of.