Stanley Golf Course opens for the season

NEW BRITAIN, CT (WFSB) - It’s a big day at the Stanley Golf Course in New Britain.

Not only is it opening day, but it’s also the first day for their new driving range.

The mild winter has allowed golfers to really get into the swing of things.

Golfers got to dust off their clubs and hit up the greens, perhaps for the first time this season.

They can practice their swing ahead of time at the new driving range that has tracking technology.

Rich Goff of Southington will try out the range another day but didn’t hesitate to get on the golf course for opening day.

“I told my wife I was going to play golf today; she says ‘yay’!” said Goff. “The guys I play with who are all injured right now, we play up to the last day of the year that they are open, it’s about 28 degrees that day so this is like summer compared to that.”

Mayor Erin Stewart wasn’t sure this day would happen so soon, but since Winter Storm Brenda didn’t produce much snow in New Britain, it allowed them to open the range today.

Typically, they open the first week in April, so they are thrilled to open a few weeks early. It doesn’t come without any possible challenges.

“It’s very difficult when you are trying to open up early, in the spring, because your staff, first off you are getting your staff off of their winter break, so we got to get you in and start growing grass guys, start plugging in all of the holes, doing all of the aeration needed to get the course up to par, no pun intended,” said Stewart.

Being open this early on, the mayor said you aren’t going to see perfect conditions, but playable conditions. It’s only going to get better with the predicted nice weather ahead.

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