Fall golf: good prices and better tee times

While the fair-weather golfers put their cubs into the closet for the year, those of us that truly love the game know that the fall season can be the best time to play. The trees are displaying their magnificent colors, the greens are dark green and receptive, the fairways are a bit softer so that balls hit less than perfect, don’t bounce into trouble nearly as often as they did during the firm summer fairways. October still finds the courses fairly firm so you don’t have to worry about balls plugging in the fairways just yet.

Probably the best part of fall golf is playing the lack of congestion, the slow playing that is associated with large crowds navigating the course is gone. Fall time brings out the true golf lover, the ones who may not be the best ball strikers but they know how to get around the course at a fair pace. If you choose your course carefully, you can often times have the course nearly to your self. Golf was meant to be played at a speed that is comfortable and not hurried or rushed because the group behind you is starting to drive on you or having to wait on every tee for the slow group in front of you.

As the days are getting shorter it is important to plan for earlier rounds. The weather is going to be cooler so choosing your clothing is an important consideration – pick multiple thin layers that don’t restrict your swing but can be adjusted to the situation–a vest is always a good choice. Generally speaking, the close-in courses will get the majority of play in fall and winter months, which leaves the perimeter courses with more open tee times. We certainly don’t want to discourage anyone from playing the city courses. Their tee sheets should also be a bit more open as well. Most courses are still dry this time of year so the options are wide open when choosing a course to play. The grass is hardly growing this time of year so the rough should be a little more manageable in October.

This is the time of year when jumping in the car and driving out of the city can be rewarding, to places like Lipoma Firs in Puyallup, The Home Course in DuPont, Eaglemont in Mount Vernon, Alderbrook on Hood Canal, or a 30-minute ferry ride to White Horse in Kingston. There are bunches of great golf courses to choose from whether going north, south, west or east. And, don’t forget just over the mountains, Eastern Washington still has some great golfing weather where you can extend the dry season a bit longer–places like Sage Hills near Moses Lake, Leavenworth GC or Kahler Glen in Leaveworth.

One huge benefit to fall golf is the off-season green fees. For some the high-time rates can be challenging to average player who can only afford a few rounds a month while the reduced rates allows more people to play more often, which benefits the golfers and the courses.