The York Lake Golf and Country Club has been alive for ninety years, but the past five have been the most difficult that the course has ever faced. A dedicated group of volunteers is working to save the course, and are steadily working to rebuild it and bring it back to life.
Rick Schrader and Tom Seeley are two of the people dedicated to reviving the course. The course is entirely run by volunteers they emphasize, with no funding support from the city. Seeley says that鈥檚 what makes it a unique course, because it鈥檚 a course that does bring people together to complete projects and make it a place people want to golf.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a relaxed, family, fun kind of place... People pitch in and volunteer,鈥� Seeley says.
The problems began on July 1, 2010, the flood that affected the Yorkton area hit York Lake hard, ruining the back nine. There was an attempt to rebuild after, with the assumption that it was a single event, but the course was hit again in 2011. While there were two years to redo the drainage and make some headway, the course was hit again in 2014, right before plans to reseed the back nine were going to begin, which sent the course back to the drawing board.
鈥淚鈥檝e been golfing here for 40 years, and I鈥檝e never seen water like there has been the past few years... It got whacked three times,鈥� Seeley says.
Three separate floods to the back nine have done massive damage to the course鈥檚 finances, and the course was on the edge of being shut down.
鈥淩ight now, we鈥檙e sitting in a situation of dire straits, coming into April of 2015 the course was going to go under, it was going to shut down. Individuals stood up, got on the board, changed the paradigm,鈥� Schrader says.
鈥淚t鈥檚 just through the tenacity and stubbornness of the people who love this place that this thing is functioning.鈥�
The crisis has meant that the course had to take a different approach to getting back in the black and renew golf at York Lake. Current plans involve rebuilding three holes on the course, turning it from a nine hole course as it stands now into a twelve hole.
鈥淭he three holes that are going to be redeveloped are the high holes that did not get water on them. But, because the rest of it was flooded they couldn鈥檛 be used. The golf course has a plan to integrate those high holes into the nine holes, and it will make a world of difference for the golf course. You can run bigger tournaments, you can maintain the thing on a nine hole course budget but have three extra holes,鈥� Seeley says.
The move to nine holes is something that other courses in North America are doing, Seeley adds, because it鈥檚 makes good sense for business as well as for the average golfer.
鈥淣ine鈥檚 not enough, 18 is too many, it鈥檚 like the three little bears,鈥� Schrader adds.
It鈥檚 not going to be easy to get the holes back in shape. They need water delivery to the holes, as well as to completely reseed them. There also need to be new paths made, because it鈥檚 a complete change in the way the course flows.
鈥淎 lot of it is labour, and out here we get a lot done by volunteer labour. So a lot of that can be done by the people who love this place with volunteer labour,鈥� Seeley says.
The existing nine holes have also been improved, with better drainage and new cart paths, which are significantly smoother than they used to be.
Keeping the dream alive requires a dedicated group of volunteers, and a plan to keep the course viable, which they have. But it also requires money, and they鈥檙e holding a Keep the Dream Alive fall fundraising dinner at the Painted Hand Casino on October 9. The Painted Hand CDC is also donating the meals, so all funds raised will go directly to the course. Tickets are $50 for individuals, and $400 for an eight seat corporate table. They are available by calling Judy at 306-782-6353 or Donna at 306-621-5694.
鈥淚t鈥檚 going to be a fun evening... The spring one was a lot of fun, people had a great time, and they鈥檒l have a great time at this one too,鈥� says Seeley.
That great time is all in service of keeping the great times going at York Lake, and Schrader says that it鈥檚 worth the struggle to keep the course going.
鈥淥nce you let these places go, they don鈥檛 come back,鈥� Schrader says.
