Washington golfers enjoy their first day back on the course

Thousands of golfers hit their first shots in over a month at courses around Washington state Tuesday, the first day of play since Gov. Inslee’s ban on golfing ended.

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The parking lot was crowded at Seattle’s Jackson Park golf course, but not packed. The course seemed quiet, though, with twosomes putting on the practice green awaiting their turns on the first tee. There was no grouping-up at the first tee as the marshal called for groups, providing for social distancing.

The sun was out, but the swings looked rusty.

“I can’t take a full shot in my garage so it feels good to be out here,” one golfer said on the first tee.

He also said golf should never have been on the banned list.

“I still think we can play golf and play golf safely,” he said.

It was busy but quiet at the Lynnwood Golf Course. I found longtime playing partners wrapping up a three hour round of 18 holes, a pretty good pace, even for a short course.

One player enjoyed some of the changes, especially having no rakes in bunkers and no holes on the greens.

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“You hit the rim of the hole, you pick it up, and it’s good,” he said. “No more lip-outs.”

His twosome partner was hopeful the governor will relax the golfing rules even further.

“I think we could have been out sooner, but it just depends,” he said. “We got it in today, and that’s all that counts. Hopefully we can move forward from here.”

If you’re heading out to the course today, be sure to check with your course on all of the changes and requirements to make sure you’re prepared to play. You can read the full list of new restrictions and requirements here.

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