Unless you took a vacation to a warm climate this winter or caught on to the simulator craze, chances are you haven’t swung a golf club in a while.
At least that was the case for us. It had been many moons since we pulled out the old driver and hit a bucket of balls, so when we got an email early last week that the driving range at Beaver Meadow Golf Course was opening for the first two official days of spring, we couldn’t pass up the opportunity.
It didn’t matter there was still several inches of snow on the ground in spots – if we could take part in an activity that somewhat remotely made us feel like spring was finally here, we were going to do it.
Since the clubs are still buried way in the back of the shed for the winter, we borrowed a set of much nicer ones from Beaver Meadow in order to take our first swings of the year.
Armed with a small bucket of balls, we had our choice of green mats as we were the only ones out there, while both indoor simulators were taken.
With a thin layer of snow still covering the ground, we knew it was going to be hard to see just how good our shots were. It didn’t matter, though, because it was pretty obvious early on that this session was not going to be done in midseason form.
Using a driver, the first couple skipped across the ground, while the first one we got a hold of hooked way to the right. Even if we did hit it straight (which didn’t happen often), you’d either lose it in the air or it would sink into the snow. No generous bounces on this day.
We also tested out the 3-wood, 5-wood and a 3-iron, which resulted in many shots that we probably would have asked for a mulligan if it had happened on the course.
But it wasn’t about how we hit the ball, more about the fact we were out there. It was nice to get some fresh air that didn’t include a snow shovel, and for a second, it almost made you actually think that spring will be here soon.
You can get two sizes of buckets, small and large. Small is $3 and large will cost you $9. Since it is still early in the season, the range will be open depending on the weather – and how many balls the course has. It’s not all that easy to pick up white balls in snow. So it’s probably a good idea to give a call over to the course (228-8954) before making the trip.
Don’t worry though, spring will be here soon and the range will be open every day. At least that’s what we keep telling ourselves.
