Psst.
We’re going to let you in on a bit of secret.
For the first time since the pandemic broke out, the city is hosting a golf tournament.
The two-round Glen Bryant senior men’s open is on for this weekend at Prince George Golf and Curling Club and 104 players have signed up.
They won’t all be there at the course at any one time. Crowd sizes will be kept below the provincially-mandated 50 people and there’s no post tournament banquet or prize presentation ceremony. But there will be golf.
“We’re just going to play,” said tournament organizer Claude Bertoli, the golf shop manager at PGGCC. “We’re going to give it a try and see if we can manage it and possibly do some other tournaments.
Social distancing protocols and hand-sanitizing measures will be enforced to reduce the threat of COVID-19 transmission.
“Those are the rules and they are abiding by them, Bertoli said.
Golf courses in the city have been open since late April and have been busier than normal. Bertoli said his course has hosted 1,500 more rounds this time year than it did last year and the wet weather hasn’t kept golfers off the course.
“If you don’t play in the rain, you don’t play,” quipped Bertoli.
The weekend weather forecast isn’t very promising. Up to 15 millimetres of rain is expected Saturday with winds gusting to 40 kilometres per hour. There’s also a 60 per cent chance of rain on Sunday, Highs both days will be an unseasonably cool 15 C.
The senior tournament will be a test event for the Men’s Simon Fraser Open (Aug. 8-9) and Ladies Simon Fraser Open (Aug. 22-23) tournaments at PGGCC in August. The Junior Simon has been cancelled.
The tournament is named after Bryant, the former owner of Bryant Electric, a PGGCC member since the early 1960s. Bryant, who died about 10 years ago, was a key organizer of the annual senior men’s tournament.
Players from Dawson Creek, Houston, Fraser Lake, Vanderhoof and Quesnel will join a large local contingent on the course. The opening tee times today are at 8 a.m. and on Sunday at 8:30 a.m. The final foursome will be on the course at noon each day.
