The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
The nice weather, for the most part, has played a positive role for the Phantom Lake Golf Course this season. This year, the club was able to open the greens to the public on April 23. Due to a minor Mother Nature lapse, the course was closed again until the next week because of the snow. But the greens have been open ever since and have been flooded with golfers. Brett Berkner, head golf professional and manager, says this year the course was able to open two and a half weeks earlier than last season. It's a steady place, he says, when the weather is nice. "We haven't missed a Men's night so far and last year, we missed 11," he said. Looking back over the books from last season until now, Berkner says there has been a significant increase in play. "Last year, May had just under 200 rounds of golf. This year, May had 3,000 rounds," he said. "It's a night and day difference." According to the PLGC almanac (or the seniors, rather), Berkner says it's going to be a hot and dry summer. "I hope so," he said. "It benefits the golf course." The golf course will benefit in other ways this season as well. Berkner says the plan for the greens is to finish last year's project clean-up. Tractor marks are one thing that needs to be cleared up, he said, making note of last year's renovations. "Our goal is to clean up the course and make it look like (it did in) 2008," he said. As well, the tee box and the ditch on Hole 5 will be finished. As of last week, membership in the PLGC sat at 430 Ð a little down from the end of last season. But, Berkner said, the rounds have increased throughout the week. He says he sees the change of shifts at HBMS as a positive thing for the golf course as more golfers are able to participate. The golf pro said he knew the membership would be down as golfers 14 years and younger are able to golf for free. The PLGC has a few tournaments scheduled for this season as well as their regular nights.
