Letter From Bryan Nicholson, PGA Director of Golf

I’m not sure about you, but I am happy to have February in the rearview mirror! At the beginning of last month, America’s beloved groundhog meteorologist declared we will have a longer winter Punxsutawney Phil rose from his burrow and saw his shadow, meaning that spotting his shadow translated into six more weeks of winter I’m not sure I put a lot of stock into our furry friend, but his prediction of an extended winter isn’t too far off from reality Much of the West Coast has been inundated with record snowfall and much colder than average temperatures – including 21 days consecutive (and counting) of below normal high temps for the Plateau This hasn’t been favorable for golf, as we had 12 closed days for the course from either snow cover or freezing cold throughout the month However, our sunsets are now after 6:00 pm, and with the days getting longer, I can feel that spring is surely going to be better than the close of winter!

We have some exciting golf events on the horizon to kickoff the 2023 golf season. Our Sahalee Men’s Division will host their annual opener on Saturday, March 18 with the appropriately named “Frostbite Open.” This will be a great mixer opportunity as teams will be created by separating the field into “A”, “B”, “C” and “D” players based on course handicaps. The format will be a shamble, using one net and one gross score from each team. The team scores will be converted to Stableford points, which will make for some fun competition. After the kickoff event, we will host our annual draw for the Men’s Invitational field, which currently has over 130 applicants. There is still time to get into these great events (or register for the lottery draw for the Invitational), so please login into Golf Genius to add your name, or call the golf shop for assistance

Later in March, on Friday the 24th, we will host a spring “Husky Day” at the Club This is a great opportunity to play with some of the top student-athletes from the defending PAC-12 Champions Currently UW is ranked in the Top 30 of the NCAA, and the top 3 players, Taehoon Song, Petr Hruby, and Bo Peng, are amongst the top 150 players in all of Division 1 Men’s Golf Come join the team for a fun afternoon, and the event is open to anyone that would like to play Teams will play a one low gross and one low net best ball competition while on the course Afterward, the team will be joined by Coach Alan Murray for a discussion on our upcoming Sahalee Player’s Championship in September. Registration for the Husky Day is available through Golf Genius.

In early April, all eyes will be on this small town in northeast Georgia, and one of the premier golf events of the year, The Masters. A tradition unlike any other in golf, we are looking forward to hosting our very own “Par 3” tournament, on Wednesday, April 5 from 2 – 5 pm. One of our Sahalee sides will be transformed into a par 3, and each contestant’s score will be added to a player they randomly select that is participating in the Masters Par 3 tournament. Create your own foursome, and enjoy some Masters themed food either before or after the event. Scoring will be individual – both gross and net. By the way – the trophies for this event are going to be really, really cool! I would recommend coming out to join this fun with some friends!

This month, the practice tee and the range fairway will soon look refreshed! Charlie and his team will be installing new PVC targets on the range with various colors to enhance the practice experience Targets will be established at 25-yard intervals throughout the range (starting at 75 yards) and going through 250 yards The purpose of this to have more targets to practice toward when hitting various clubs in your bag We are also excited to introduce our new custom practice tee furniture, with matching bag stands, range dividers, range sign, amenities boxes, and golf ball containers Sahalee is one the premier clubs in the country, and our practice area is highly visible from the clubhouse and is often the first impression of members and guests upon arrival to the Club We desire to showcase a practice area that is reflective of our brand, and reflects our Sahalee mission of providing an outstanding golf experience

Throughout the spring, many of our Club vendor partners will be visiting Sahalee to introduce you to the new 2023 products. Your 14 friends in the bag should be helping you to play your best! I recently came across a very interesting article in Golf Digest that shared some data from Arccos Golf. According to Arccos, as we move from our 20s to our 60s, we lose almost 50 yards in distance. Even more distressing, the bulk of that drop (about 35 yards) happens after age 50. What we lose in power, however, we gain in accuracy. Arccos data reveals that players in their 20s and 30s hit the fairway barely 40 percent of the time. However, golfers in their 60s and 70s are hitting more than half their fairways, and those in their 70s hit the short grass 55 percent of the time.

Some keys to remember when thinking about your own bag:

Do you carry a hybrid? They will always beat their comparable irons head-to-head Are hybrids the smarter choice over the corresponding irons they replace? The answer is yes for just about all handicaps and for every loft Golfers from scratch to 25-handicappers who hit a 3-, 4- or 5-hybrid were 87 percent more likely to hit the green according to Arccos than with the corresponding iron

Have you been fit for wedges and what is your approach to short game? Wedges are worn after 75 rounds – and the launch monitor numbers will prove it Additionally, all manufacturers are producing wedges with various “grinds” to help the club more effectively move through the turf when striking the ball If you want to improve in your scoring clubs – start with making sure the tools in your hands are correct for your technique and approach around the green. Have you checked your carry distances? We play the game through the air – and knowing how far the ball will travel is dependent on air time rather than ground time. If you haven’t checked – you should consider making certain that you have the proper distance gapping between all of the clubs in your bag. How bad might it be? I see many members that are carrying long irons in their bag – and their 7 iron flies further than a 5-iron. You’re allowed 14 clubs in the bag, but let’s make sure all 14 are playable and all 14 serve a purpose!

If you’d like to schedule an appointment to join one of our fitting days, or if you’d like to be fit by one of the Sahalee Golf Professionals, we would be delighted to help support your goals and journey with the game of golf!

See you on the tee!

Bryan