Golf is one of America’s fastest growing sports, and for evidence of that one needs only to look at the number of courses that dot our land.
Unfortunately for the casual golfer, few options are available unless he or she is willing to join a private club or pay greens fees that can be a bit pricey.
On July 30, when Hooper’s Landing opens in Seaford, however, that will change.
“We’re hoping to give people another choice, and really the first one in this part of the county,” Hooper’s Landing Course Pro Michael Connor said. “And, we are going to be affordable.”
Formerly the bankrupt Seaford Golf & Country Club’s course, the city elected recently to purchase the property and turn it municipal.
Because of that, Hooper’s Landing is available to the public at large.
The course, however, will offer memberships that will cut costs for those who seek to play several rounds a month, although a price for that, as well as what a single round will run, has not been completely determined yet.
“Our goal is to get back the members that we lost when the country club closed and to attract new members,” Connor said. “We also want to get some of the casual golfers who maybe haven’t had the money to play as much as they would like to come out and play here.
“At a lot of these places, although you may only want to play golf, you have to pay for the clubhouse, pool and other things,” he continued. “Here you are paying strictly for golf.”
Conner added that here will be promotional activities in the future, tournaments will be planned for golfers and the course will offer a full pro shop.
From the time the new year began until just a few days ago when the purchase was complete, Hooper’s Landing had remained unattended.
Because of that, a lot of work will need to go into the course, and superintendent Greg Thomas cautioned golfers who are in line to play at the grand opening that it will not be perfect.
In fact, Thomas thinks the course will not be at its highest level for quite some time.
“Right now, our fairways and rough are OK, but the greens are in bad shape,” Thomas said. “I’d say a lot of them are 40 percent of what they should be at best.”
That means golfers will have to get used to a 90-degree rule with carts and several other small nuisances at the beginning.
Connor, however, does not think that golfers will be upset with those aspects.
“I think people will understand,” he said. “And, I hope, they are excited that we are opening soon.”
