Sunday marked a beautiful, sunny day in Stanhope, P.E.I., and golfers didn’t waste it.
It's the first weekend the Stanhope Golf and Country Club has been able to open the course since its clubhouse burned to the ground in less than an hour during post-tropical storm Fiona.
The fire destroyed everything inside.
"It was up in full and then totally engulfed, and fallen down into the ground within 45 minutes from when I got here,” said manager Merlin Affleck.
The storm had severe impacts on the course as well, knocking over dozens of trees, changing the face of the course, and preventing them from reopening right away.
“One of the negatives, obviously, where they weren’t playing in the fall, but a little less traffic in the fall allowed the golf course to heal a little bit better, and come out nice and fresh in the spring,” said golf pro Shannon Grinton.
It's been months of hard work by staff to get the course back in shape. That's mostly done now and they're welcoming golfers for the first time since the storm.
“Everybody wants to play golf,” said Grinton. “They want to have a beer afterward, sit down and have some social and a meal, and all that’s taken care of, and the golf course is in beautiful shape.”
There’s no permanent clubhouse now, but temporary buildings are filling those needs, and golfers are taking full advantage of the facilities.
“Everybody’s delighted, just to be able to get back a little bit of normality,” said Affleck. “Golf is a lot of a part of people’s lives, the social aspect especially.”
Dozens were on the course Sunday. Many of them long-time members who've been waiting for their favorite course to reopen after the long hiatus.
Plans are in the works for a new cart shed, and after that, a new clubhouse.
