Article by Noah Grant. Photo by Noah Grant.
With the weather warming up outside, spring is in the air, and nothing feels more like spring than pulling out the golf clubs for a round. For residents of St. Cloud, Minnesota, the courses have begun to open their doors for the season.
Angushire Golf Club in downtown St. Cloud officially opened on March 9, welcoming members and the general public for walking only.
“We still have the covers on [the greens],” said Terra O’Neil, general manager of Angushire. “We will be taking those off this Thursday and Friday, so we’re gonna have our hard opening here on Saturday. We’ll have carts out, and pins up on the greens, and the greens are in really nice shape.”
Given the famous Minnesota winters, the chance to golf in March is certainly appreciated for local residents. “I just love it,” said Mark Plantenberg, an Angushire member. “It just cuts that winter down.”
For Terra and her staff, however, opening a course in March isn’t as simple as just waiting for the snow to melt. Rather, there is a lot of hard work required to ensure the course is ready for action.
“We have to go through and paint everything from last year,” said O’Neil. “The tee box markers, the signs, the benches, everything.” O’Neil also has to pull the covers off the greens, which are necessary to protect the greens. The process usually takes around a day to uncover all nine holes.
“It’s such a well-maintained course,” said Plantenberg. “[owner Lynn Richert] and Terra do a wonderful job.”
Despite some chillier spring days, Angushire sees plenty of use from day one, from college students enjoying time away from classes to members like Mark.
“We get pretty busy here right away,” O’Neil said. “Everyone wants to get the dust off the clubs and work out all the aches and pains.”
To join the rush out the links, stop by Angushire Golf Club or visit mngolf.org/Courses to find an open course in the Granite City.
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