Cooke Municipal Golf Course has gotten more than enough snow this year after a dry previous winter. (Facebook/Cooke Municipal Golf Course)

By Rob Mahon

Snow Helps Golf Course

Above-average snowfall good news for local golf courses

Feb 15, 2022 | 5:00 PM

You might be sick of shoveling and ready to be done with all the snowfall, but the heavy dumps of snow the Prince Albert area has been getting haven’t been bad news for everyone. For anyone trying to grow grass in the spring, the moisture is welcome.

That includes local golf courses, and Cooke Municipal Golf Course has gotten all the snow they need. The snow is important to them not just for what it will do for the grass as it melts, but for shielding the grass beneath it.

“It’s not so much about the moisture, it’s about getting enough protection for the turf,” said Darcy Myers, head golf professional at the course. “We’ve gotten over a couple of feet this winter so far, so that’s going to be more than enough protection for the turf. Hopefully, we have a nice slow melt in the spring so we don’t have any flooding.”

According to Myers, the biggest challenge with a rapid melt is standing water. Frost needs to come out of the ground in order for it to soak up the melting snow and get the moisture it needs to let grow. The good news is, the extra snow this year puts the course on a better pace than last year’s dry winter did.

“Last year, we had some April golf,” Myers said. “We opened up on April 28 last year. It really depends on temperatures and how things warm up in the spring. In order to get people out on the golf course, it’s not necessarily all in the amount of snow, it’s getting the temperatures where they need to be so the grass is warm enough to start growing.”

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There’s little that can be done at the moment to help speed up the eventual opening process, but soon enough they’ll be lifting snow to check the ground conditions and see how the turf wintered. The snow is two feet deep or more in many places, and that will provide good cover for what is hopefully a busy opening season.

“We are looking forward to it,” Myers said. “The last couple of years have been challenging for everybody but things are starting to lighten up with restrictions and mandates so we’re looking forward to another busy season. Hopefully the weather cooperates and everybody can get out and enjoy the golf course.”

The forecast calls for more snow today, Thursday, and throughout the coming weekend.

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rob.mahon@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @RobMahonPxP