Sep 4, 2020 3 min read

The sun finally came out for the area’s golf courses this summer.

What looked like a disastrous year has turned out to be one of the better summers for golfers and thus the courses.

Cars packed parking lots and the sport is thriving, coming a long way from the depths and the threat of financial ruin caused by the coronavirus.

“It was like the switch was flipped,” said Dave McGinnis, manager of Lindenwood Golf Course.

The final two weeks of March, all of April and the first day of May were lost to the quarantine restrictions and bad weather. But just when things looked most dire, the sun arrived. Well, it took some time. The official opening of the state’s golf courses was Friday, May 1, a dark, dreary day with temperatures barely above 50 degrees. Most of the reservations were cancelled.

The next day was bright, sunny and warm.

Gov. Tom Wolf opened the golf courses across the state, appeasing many of the cooped-up people from his stay-in order because of the coronavirus pandemic. He also freed up boaters and skiers. There are still social-distancing regulations and the course is responsible for providing sterilized carts. Masks must be worn in the clubhouse.

“Obviously, golf is up everywhere,” said Beverley Fossum, who runs Rolling Green for owner David Wylie. “Right now, it’s one of the few things you can do. I think everyone would agree that (the pandemic) has had an influence on it. If you look at the COVID-19 regulations, being outdoors is a good thing. You can only spend so many hours inside before the four walls come in. Outside, the sky changes and things look better. Who knows? Maybe your game gets better, maybe not.”

Fossum, who has been working at the course for more than four decades, said the good weather has been key.

“I can’t imagine what the pandemic would be like in the past five or six years of monsoon-like summers,” Fossum said. “As bad as this has been with the mask and all, that would have not helped at all.”

McGinnis believes that being outdoors is attracting a lot more golfers.

“It’s a way to get out and get some fresh air.” McGinnis said. “It’s one of things people can do. Movie theaters are closed down. Bowling alleys are limited. We have leagues out here that typically end on Labor Day but most of them have asked if they can still keep playing until (the lack of) daylight stops them.”

Will Noble, who runs Dogwood Hillls, said the window of opportunity has shrunk and that makes the sport even more attractive.

“I see an increased number of golfers.” Noble said. “I think that people can say that across the board. The weather has been good and bad for me. We’ve been getting some rain and the course has bounced back pretty good. We had pretty much zero rain days in August.”

Dogwood Hills had to close a couple weeks back because the weather was too dry. Golf carts were makeing ruts in the fairways. Carmichaels Golf Club, meanwhile, was closed Thursday because of flooding.

“All through August, it was what you could call perfect golf weather,” said Noble. “I hope it continues.”