| The snow of winter and the green grass of spring are both evident at Millsite Golf Course. Green grass on the green was uncovered when the green covers were peeled back recently. |
Millsite Golf Course has long been considered a tough course to play. Plans are underway to help make things a bit easier on the golfer. The troubles start on hole number one. When teeing off, many balls end up off the course in some pretty rough terrain. This slows down play and leads to a lot of missing balls and added strokes to your game. The golf course improvement committee studied hole number one to see what steps might be taken to alleviate some of the aggravation experienced by golfers. Talk centered around making a huge sand trap and taking out many of the trees bordering hole number one for a long term fix. This would make the search for a ball easier.
Temporary measures will include the construction of a berm to help stop balls from bouncing off the course. It was noted this will not stop all balls, but it will help with the problem. Any changes in the slope and the hill will be made during the winter months, as play has begun for the 2005 season, but the temporary berm can be worked on during this golfing season.
Other suggestions included moving the tee up for juniors and seniors. Fill dirt is available at the top of Millsite Reservoir for use in preparing a four foot berm. Ryan Winn, course superintendent, will begin this work as time allows. A net on the two box was also mentioned to keep balls out of the rugged areas. New grass will also be planted to the right of the first green and fill dirt will be brought in to extend the grass for playability.
Many golfers see their balls go over the edge on hole number two. A cliff descends straight down off this hole. A rock ledge was discussed to keep balls from going over the edge. A sand bar extending along the edge will help slow balls down and hopefully stop them from going over the edge. The committee wondered where they could acquire slabs for the wall and will look into finding rocks for a wall.
One method discussed for acquiring labor for the projected work at the golf course, revolved around free golf passes in exchange for labor on projects on the course.
One of the longest holes in the state is number three at Millsite which spans 606 yards. One suggestion to help golfers on this hole was to move the tee box down closer for ladies, children and seniors. This would give the golfer a straight view of the fairway they are trying to reach. The green is also visible from the closer tee.
The golf course is working in conjunction with the recreation department to establish a youth golfing program. The program would include involving the youth in work projects on the course.
The improvement committee is looking forward to the opening of the restaurant by Jerry Stotler from California. It will open approximately April 10. They will offer fine dining on Friday and Saturday evenings for the communities and feed the golfers. They will cater tournaments played at the golf course and hope to attract business meetings to Millsite.
The committee is working to make Millsite Golf Course, restaurant and Millsite State Park a destination spot which offers fine golfing, dining, and camping facilities with fishing and water sports. They are working to establish packages for corporations and businesses looking for a place for meetings or an employee awards and incentives destination.
Ferron Mayor Gil Bowden said he recently had a class reunion committee contact him to see if their event could be held at Millsite. Also, a corporation is interested in the spot for business meetings. Kathleen Truman said she is currently working with an agent in Salt Lake that books packages for conference goers in Salt Lake. They are very interested in a destination only three hours away from Salt Lake which offers recreational opportunities. Conference goers attend a couple of days of meetings and then look for a spot to vacation before returning home.
In the next improvement committee meeting on March 23, the group will look at putting some of these promotional packages together.