The warm fall weather is keeping local golf courses open longer than normal after a late and rainy start to the season.
Mark Beckwith, general manager of the Sturgeon Valley Golf & Country Club, said the last day of play is Oct. 23. The day before is the final club event of the year, the Fall "Brass Monkey" Windup.
"At present the course is in great shape and we are doing some irrigation improvements on the back nine," Beckwith said. "No question, August and September were good months and we caught up a little bit from the wet spring and summer."
Kevin Easthope, head golf pro and manager at the Sandpiper Golf & Country Club, said the course will remain open for business until Oct. 23 and after that it will depend on the weather.
Last year the Sandpiper opened on April 1 and there were only a few rainy days in the season.
"This year we didn't open until April 27th and then it rained pretty much every day until the end of July," Easthope said. "August and September were the best months of the year for sure with October still holding on."
Ed Sims, superintendent at Twin Willows Golf Club, hopes to remain open until at least the end of the month on permanent greens.
"Unfortunately, the fall can't make up for lost revenues from the spring and summer. With the late opening, and rainouts in June and July, it all adds up to about a 20-per-cent loss in revenue," Sims said. "It's ironic in that the rains kept the local courses in great shape, but it also prevented golfers from enjoying the conditions."
Meanwhile, the Terrae Pines Golf & Country Club will stay open until the end of the month or until the snow falls. The Cardiff Golf & Country Club and the J.R. Golf Course are closed for the season.
Club champions
The following are some of the big winners on the local links this year.
Sturgeon Valley: Shane O'Neill (men), Sandra Fisher (women), Noah Lubberding (junior), Jerry Stevenson (senior men) and Shirley Taylor (senior ladies).
Sandpiper: Stu Campbell (men) and Allison Easthope (ladies).
Twin Willows: Murray Dawson (men), Marco Casella (men's open), Rhonda Beaudry (ladies low gross) and Loree Astleford (ladies low net).
