TEEING UP
Capital Region golf courses saw a boom of activity over the past year
BY Bob Burns PHOTOS BY Ryan Angel Meza
early a full year before the public began lining up for vaccinations , golf received its own shot in the arm from an unexpected source . While so much was lost during the COVID-19 pandemic , the socially distanced pursuit of chasing a dimpled ball across spacious fairways managed to not just survive but thrive . Practically alone among commercial recreational pursuits , golf saw an explosion in activity during the shutdown . “ With all the terrible things that came with COVID , it ’ s been good for the game of golf ,” says Mike Green , the longtime head professional at Del Paso Country Club in Sacramento .
The numbers back up Green ’ s assessment . Del Paso , which for the previous decade had averaged between 25,000 and 28,000 rounds per year , saw nearly 40,000 rounds in 2020 and once again has a waiting list . Ancil Hoffman Golf Course in Carmichael , a Sacramento County-owned public course , had nearly 80,000 rounds , its highest total in 20 years . Play on Sacramento ’ s city-owned courses — Haggin Oaks Golf Complex , Bing Maloney Golf Complex , Bartley Cavanaugh Golf Course and William Land Golf Course — increased 20-30 percent over 2019 .
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