Profile’s market development manager talks about how the correct rootzone can protect an architect’s vision and deliver top-class playing surfaces
Over the past few years, I’ve had the opportunity to spend time on a number of golf course renovation and construction sites.
Each project, no matter how different in scale or style, has reinforced the same simple lesson: soil determines how well a golf course performs long after the final grow-in. It influences how surfaces drain, how turf roots, how playable features behave and how consistently the course plays from day to day.
This perspective began to take shape during a visit to Crooked Stick Golf Club in Indiana in 2024. Walking the rebuilt greens with the superintendent and discussing the rootzone specifications, it became clear that soil decisions made during construction play a direct role in how design intent holds up over time. That experience has since informed how I view renovation and newbuild projects, shaping how I think about the role soil plays in preserving architectural intent long after construction.
Many architects, builders and superintendents already understand that drainage plans, shaping work and turf selection are critical elements of success. But the soil itself – what it is made of, how it behaves and how it supports turf – should be a focus early on in the planning stage. Soil is the foundation of nearly everything that happens above it. When performing well, it strengthens the design. When it struggles, problems surface gradually and can affect playability, maintenance and long-term integrity of the soil.
Even the best projects face familiar challenges related to the rootzone. Whether working with native soils, imported mixes or a combination of both, the following issues appear again and again: drainage limitations, compaction, low nutrient availability and moisture inconsistency. These challenges extend beyond agronomy and directly affect how design features perform.
Greens constructed with organic amendments may infiltrate well soon after construction but will slow considerably as the organics break down. Fairways designed to encourage the ground game can lose their intended bounce and roll if moisture levels fluctuate. Even subtle contouring can lose its intended impact if the underlying soil conditions change. These limitations highlight why greater attention to rootzone performance is becoming an increasingly important consideration in modern course construction and renovation.
One solution that has gained traction across newbuilds and renovations is the incorporation of inorganic porous ceramic soil amendments into rootzone blends. These materials are manufactured through a controlled calcination firing process, which creates durable particles that maintain their structure indefinitely.
What sets porous ceramic amendments apart is their stable, inorganic structure and functional internal porosity, which supports consistent drainage, accessible oxygen and retention of plant-available water and nutrients over time. Because they resist breakdown and compaction, these materials remain permanently in the rootzone, helping preserve healthy soil structure and the performance characteristics established during construction – unlike organic amendments that degrade and restrict pore space.
While every project’s rootzone specifications are unique, porous ceramic amendments consistently support several key goals. They help water move through the soil more evenly, encourage deeper and healthier root systems, and help minimise the swings between too wet and too dry that can create unpredictable playing conditions. The resulting benefits lead to fewer corrective maintenance practices and more consistent course conditions, ultimately supporting both the superintendent’s management goals and the architect’s design vision.
From a design standpoint, these improvements translate into greater consistency in how features play. Firmness, ball response and surface character remain closer to what was intended at construction, even under stress from weather or traffic. As a result, long-term maintenance demands often decrease, not through reduced care, but through fewer interventions that would otherwise alter playability or compromise design features. Taken together, these outcomes have important implications for how architectural intent is preserved.
From my experience working alongside architects and superintendents during renovation and construction, I’ve seen how closely the performance of soil is tied to how a design functions. Soil may not be the most visible element of a project, but it plays a significant role in how the final product supports the architect’s goals.
Features such as surface firmness, moisture uniformity, green consistency and the recovery of stressed or damaged areas are all influenced by how the rootzone behaves. As drainage efficiency declines or compaction increases, turf response becomes less predictable, and corrective maintenance begins to replace design intent. A stable, predictable rootzone allows playing characteristics to remain aligned with the original design objectives.
The Crooked Stick team focused on preserving critical green contours and intended playing characteristics while the soil structure below the surface was enhanced (Photo: Profile Golf)
That relationship was evident throughout the renovation at Crooked Stick. The team focused on preserving critical green contours and intended playing characteristics while improving soil structure below the surface. Seeing that work underscored how a reliable rootzone helps maintain the integrity of those design decisions well beyond grow-in. The shaping and surface refinement were essential, but it was the performance of the profile beneath them that ultimately allowed the architecture to function as intended over time.
Across many projects I’ve visited, the same pattern holds true: when the soil is built to support uniform moisture, balanced porosity, and long-term structure, the course is easier to maintain. Turf response becomes more consistent, surfaces retain their intended character, and the course requires fewer adjustments that compromise design features. Good soil doesn’t replace good design, but it plays a critical supporting role in how consistently those design decisions perform over time.
The future of golf course construction is becoming more thoughtful, more sustainable and more focused on long-term success. Water use, labour efficiency, resource management and environmental responsibility are now central considerations in nearly every project. Soil plays a major role in each of these areas.
A stable, well-designed rootzone supports long-term efficiency and resilience, allowing the course to perform under a wide range of conditions. It allows the course to hold up under pressure from weather, traffic, or high player expectations. Additionally, it protects the investment that architects, builders and superintendents make in creating a course that can stand the test of time.
For these reasons, more design teams are treating soil as a long-term investment in the course condition and playability. Inorganic porous amendments are one of the tools helping move this philosophy forward. They offer a way to build a rootzone that performs well from the first season and continues to support the architect’s vision for decades.
The golf industry is continually evolving, but one thing remains constant: the soil beneath the turf influences everything above it. When we build better soil, we support healthier turf, more consistent conditions and a course that plays the way it was originally designed
Justin Olmstead is the market development manager at Profile Products.
This article first appeared in the January 2026 issue of Golf Course Architecture. For a printed subscription or free digital edition, please visit our subscriptions page.