Jeff Green | May 12, 2021


“It's going to be a short article,” said Cynthia Kennedy of Hunter's Creek Golf Course in Cloyne, when asked to comment about what it is like to own a golf club this spring.

“We are just trying to stay afloat, trying to get the course ready,” she said.

Last summer, Hunter's Creek made all the necessary adjustments in order to operate safely and follow all of the COVID protocols, and she is ready to do the same in 2021.

“The only thing we might change is we might not offer club rental this summer. Each time we rented out a set of clubs, we had to pull them out and lay them on a table and wipe them down afterwards,” said, “I'm not sure if we are going to want to take on all that labour this summer.”

Because the weather has been cool and wet so far this spring, the 2021 income for Hunter’s Creek has not been heavily impacted as of yet, but the extension of the lockdown is starting to make the organisers of some tournaments that are scheduled for this summer become nervous.

“The tournaments were different last year than in other years because we could not offer dinner in the clubhouse after the round, but they went off quite well. Even though  they are not as profitable as they were before COVID, they are still very important to our bottom line,” she said.

During the lockdown, Cynthia and her husband and business partner, Patrick Bassett, have been working on the course, doing landscaping, all part of the upgrades they have been working on since they purchased it 3 years ago. And they have also developed the course as a disk golf course which has the potential of bringing a whole new, younger market to Hunter's Creek.

But all of that is on hold because of the provincial 'stay at home' order. 

Even so, Cynthia was relieved when she found out the order will not be lifted on May 20.

“I was afraid that if that happened before the long weekend it would result in many more cases and we would end up back in lockdown. Better to be safe.

That does not mean that she considers golf to be a risky sport for COVID-19.

“Golf is a perfect sport for isolation. Last summer we had no rakes in the traps, the pins stayed in the holes, and it was safe. If we have to ask people if they are in the same family before renting them a cart together, we can do that as well,” she said.

Another thing that Cynthia has been doing during COVID, is cooking. She is preparing a take out Turkey Dinner this weekend for the Lion's Club, which is sold out, and has done some other similar events.  And the kitchen is also open for takeout during snowmobile season as the trail passes next to the course.

In the medium and long term, she is optimistic about Hunter's Creek. The first season was a learning experience and then came 2020 and now 2021, so it has been hard to gauge how all the work and product development will pay off. But the community response has been enthusiastic and the pent up demand for golf and disc golf will kick in whenever the course opens.

Still, it is hard to make decisions about purchasing when the course opening date is not set, the tournament season is a question mark, and the chances of the clubhouse being open this summer is slim.

“It is not an easy time at all. But we carry on, What else can we do.”

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