With the sun cresting and the greens sparkling with the reflected light, the Palouse Ridge Golf Club opens for another day of golf.

It has been a month since the course opened. The course contains 18 holes of rolling greens surrounded by sprawling wheat fields, the spitting image of Pullman.

“The golf course has been open since Aug. 29 and has met and exceeded the expectations of our golfing patrons and ourselves,” said Todd Lupkes, superintendent of the Palouse Ridge Golf Club.

More than 3,000 people, including 600 WSU students, played on the course during its first month open to the public, General Manager Bruce Perisho said.

“(The attendance) far exceeded our expectation and we hope this trend continues in the upcoming months,” he said.

WSU Assistant Golf Coach Kari Sampson said the university golf teams enjoy playing on the course.

“It’s a pretty amazing golf course and is a great test of ability,” she said. “The men’s and women’s golf teams are excited to be part of it in the coming years.” Perisho said the golf course has run efficiently since its opening, with no immediate problems.

“To have no problems form and have the golf course run smoothly in the first month is amazing and is a testament to the staff at the Palouse Ridge Golf Club,” he said.

One of the main issues during the planning and construction of the Palouse Ridge Golf Club was the environmental impact of the 315-acre course.

In came CourseCo, a golf course management and development company based in Petaluma, Calif.

With the company’s nature-first golf course design, WSU aimed to make the course an integral part of the Palouse and not disturb the land’s character.

“Our philosophy of ecology-sensitive design and maintenance spoke to their values,” CourseCo President Tom Isaak said.

Also, the course’s grass is treated with certain types of pesticides regulated through the Department of Agriculture.

“It is a highly technical and much regulated, safe procedure to help keep the grass in great shape,” Lupkes said.

Isaak said the cornerstone of operating an environmentally stable program was creating effective, efficient drainage and irrigation systems from the outset to ensure healthy turf, while still protecting the surrounding environment.

This was met by installing 2,000 computer-regulated sprinklers to regulate water use and not strain the local groundwater levels, which the surrounding plants rely on.

With advanced technology at the golf course, the irrigation system achieves 90 percent efficiency, compared to 30 percent for most home-watering systems, Isaak said.

CourseCo also helped install programs emphasizing environmental planning, wildlife and habitat management, chemical use reduction and safety, water conservation, water quality management and outreach and education.

The golf course will host the 2009 Washington State amateur golf tournament and others in the upcoming years.