Photo courtesy of Elite Casinos

During the COVID-19 pandemic not many recreational activities are still allowed, but enjoying fresh air and hitting the links is something Iowans are still able to do.

Golf is a sport that is naturally played at a social distance, but area golf courses are still taking proper precautions to ensure player health and safety. Jacob Shultz, Golf Professional at Blue Top Ridge in Riverside, tells KCII Sports some of the measures they have taken.

“We hold weekly meetings about the requirements with sanitation, how we interact, and how we sell a tee time. We have stepped up our game in cleaning our carts with a special sanitizer. We also removed our coolers, tees, pencils, and scorecards on the carts and are handing those out individually. We suggest that there should be just one person in each cart to practice social distancing. The holes are covered by a three-inch section of a pool noodle so the golfer does not have to reach down into the hole to pick up their ball and limits contact. We are trying to make things as convenient as possible.”

Clubhouses and shops are prohibited at this time, but Blue Top has a shack close to the course where they are selling rounds. Currently the tee times range from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. everyday and are scheduled 10 minutes a part.