Winter Golfing

Lake Padden’s Winter Golf Tour is a two and half month long event that allows players to come play golf when they otherwise would be inside avoiding the cold weather.

During the tour, individuals compete in different events for a place on teams of four that then play for $1,000 credit that can be used for the shop, food, or reoccurring fees. This $1,000 prize is paid for by the entrance fees that the golfers have to pay to participate in the events and by the golf course itself, said Greg Morris, founder of the golf tour.

The fourth annual tour started on Jan. 8 with the Polar Bear Open and will end on March 12.

There are a lot less people who come out to the golf course in the winter than in the summer, Morris said. “If we didn’t have these type of events, people wouldn’t come out as much.” He said there is an average of 300 regulars in the summer and around 15 in the winter. But the lack of golfers doesn’t affect business as much as it could, he said.

“This year we’ve averaged about 50 people each weekend, which on the weekend is pretty good,” Morris said.

Morris first founded the tour at the North Bellingham Golf Course, and then established one at Lake Padden when he changed jobs. Morris got into the sport of golfing when he was 10-years-old and has been playing ever since.

“I love to come to work and know that there’s a sport I enjoy,” he said.

There are three major events throughout the tour: an individual tourney, the winter five-man, and a one person scramble. There are no teams in an individual tourney; everyone competes for the highest score. During the five-man event, each player of a five person team takes turns being the “choker,” someone who’s score counts for half of the team’s overall score. And in the one person scramble, a two person team tees off, picks the best drive, and then both hit from that spot.

Being in Bellingham, the weather affects the game more than other places, Morris said. “But the tournaments we have now wouldn’t be something you’d be able to play in the summer so it works out,” he said. People don’t seem to have an issue with too much rain or too much snow.

“There are a lot of nice golf courses out there, but this is the best public course I’ve seen,” said Don Lewis, one of last year’s tour winners. He says he’s pretty much a golf fanatic and has been playing for more than 30 years.

“I really appreciate the fact that you can go golfing in the middle of the winter,” Lewis said. He said he likes playing golf because “it’s a walk in the park.”

The Lake Padden Golf Course has been voted King 5’s NW Backroad’s 2009 Best ‘Out of the Way’ Golf Course and the Bellingham Herald’s ‘Best Golf Course in Whatcom County.’

“It’s designed for every level of player,” said Lauren Williams a recent Western graduate and an employee at the course. “There are different places to tee off from so it’s more fair.”