SAULT STE. MARIE -- It has been three weeks since golfers in Ontario were allowed to start their season. Since then, the Sault Ste. Marie Golf Club hasn’t been able to keep up with the demand.
“It’s been extremely popular,” said club pro Jeff Hamilton. “We’ve got demand every day -- more demand than we can supply.”
Nancy Viita was spending her afternoon golfing with her friends.
“Oh it’s wonderful because with this quarantine, you know, you can’t go shopping, you can’t do so many things," Viita said. "So it’s just been great to being able to get out in the fresh air and you can walk.”
The province didn’t institute many restrictions when it allowed golf courses to open. Instead, the Conservative government decided to leave the safety decisions to the owners of each course.
Hamilton says most people have been good in following physical distancing and other protocols.
Golfers we spoke to said the hardest part is not being allowed to be courteous to fellow golfers.
“You just have to be careful -- don’t pick up somebody else’s ball," said Bob Aaltonen. "Don’t touch the flags …don’t shake hands after a round.”
Aaltonen said those are things most golfers do to show respect to the group they are playing with.
