MIDWAY, Utah -- The warm winter has meant an early opening for several of northern Utah's golf courses, and Soldier Hollow in Midway had its earliest opening on record.
The official opening was Thursday, and business at the course as well as several others across the Wasatch Front is booming.
"This is the first time I've heard of this in March! Haha,"said Heber resident Monroe Gibson.
It was the first day on the green since last fall for many of the golfers at Soldier Hollow Golf Course. The course, which is just a short drive from Park City’s ski resorts, opened five days earlier than the course has ever opened in the past.
"In 2005 [we] opened on St. Patrick's Day, and we opened on the 12th this year," said Chris Newson, the head golf pro at Soldier Hollow.
And it wasn’t just a soft opening, either. Saturday, both courses had parties on tee, deck, and hole--meaning one group was playing and two others were waiting in line to.
In 2014, the course opened on March 21, so they aren’t that far ahead of schedule. But the opening date sets a record, and Gibson said that gives them an extra 10 days as compared to last year.
"I love it,” he said. “It couldn't be better for the whole neighborhood here. Everyone can get out and enjoy this beautiful sunshiny day."
Four Lakes Golf Course in Taylorsville said they never really closed this winter, and Mount Ogden Golf Course opened a few weeks ago. They described the winter as record-setting short.
The warm weather means more time to golf, but it also means more crowds. One group of golfers drove to Midway from Salt Lake City because there were no available tee times Saturday morning in the valley.
"Yeah, it is really weird; I was calling probably about 10 to 12 different courses yesterday, couldn't get a tee time," said Salt Lake City resident Conner Hand.
