The day golfers have long awaited arrived on Saturday as the Dauphin Lake Golf Club opened for the season.
General manager and head professional Shawn Woods said the course wintered well.
“We don’t seem to have any spots or anything, so that’s a good sign. As long as the weather stays warm and it doesn’t get too cold again, I think we’re probably in the right direction,” he said.
There will be a fund-raising tournament, May 17, hosted by the Northwest Métis Council for the Waskaa’igan Neegan Safe Warm Space in Dauphin, followed by the Gary Brandon Memorial Tournament, June 5 to 7.
Woods said the club did get some new members, including an increase in the number of women who have joined for the year.
“I think the spring has been an odd spring. So looking at last year, we’d already been opened for 10 days, so it’s been a little bit different than last year,” Woods said.
“But as far as memberships go, I think we’ll be about the same, maybe a few more this year.”
Like many people, Woods is looking forward to hitting the links himself.
“I really do not like winter, so every spring is a good year for me. I think it will be a good season, chock full of beautiful stuff and good equipment. And I’m just waiting for everyone to show up,” he said.
“If you haven’t tried Dauphin before, grab some time. It’s a hidden gem in the area and people should give us a chance.”
Junior golf lessons are scheduled to begin, Thursday, at 4:30 p.m. for ages four to six, 5:30 p.m. for ages seven to nine, 6:30 p.m. for ages 10 to 12 and 7:30 p.m. for ages 13 and older.
As for the Gilbert Plains Country Club, after a good week of drying, general manager and golf professional Scott McCallum said staff will get on the course this week to go over it with mowers with the aim of opening on Friday.
“The greens all wintered really well. So we’re really excited about the season ahead,” he said.
GPCC has received assistance from the provincial government to help put the course back together after flooding two years ago.
“We did some extensive work on the golf course in terms of our drainage and that type of thing. People can definitely look for a refreshed look in all the waterways on the golf course,” McCallum said.
“We’ve got a little bit of work to tidy up this spring, but we’re really excited.”
GPCC will host this year’s Diamond Athletic Men’s Mid-Amateur Championship and the Diamond Athletic Women’s Amateur Championship, July 1 to 3.
“We’re really excited and the course is going to be in fantastic shape this year,” McCallum said, adding memberships have been coming in steadily.
“I think everybody is excited about some of the things we’re doing at the golf course,” he said.
“We’re really excited to welcome everybody back to the Gilbert Plains Country Club.”
The first tournament at the GPCC is the Fusion Credit Union’s men’s open, May 23, with a 10 a.m. shotgun start.
