Per a GAM email I received, Michigan AM qualifiers begin May 18th. Let’s hope these organizations and courses have some inside info! I have an annual golf trip at Treetops Memorial Day weekend, at this point they are still confident that we will be able to go. Fingers crossed…
Right or wrong, TPC Michigan is still closed. If it was open, I’d be comfortable to go play there. Walking only, no clubhouse, only my family with me.
On the other hand, I went for a run on some trails that are open near me (owned by Wayne County) and people were running in each direction and were shoulder to shoulder. I also saw a few cyclist groups out riding together on Hines Drive…and unless they are some kind of Detroit based pro team, there is no chance they all live together.
The private courses being open and sticking to the rules I stated above has to be safer than me walking the sidewalks in my neighborhood, which have become covered in discarded masks and gloves.
Public courses could go to “pay on line only” and do the same, in my opinion. I’d be personally comfortable doing that too
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This SAH order is written very poorly as it relates to golf. How does use of private land make sense but those with a summer home THAT THEY OWN, and is thus PRIVATE, cannot visit their own property.
Hence why some are pissed off. I know I am. This screams entitlement and exclusionary. Shame on the AG for allowing this loophole and downplaying it like its no big deal.
I also think that public courses who go to online pay only, no cart, etc should be allowed to open as soon as any private course allows it. I already know of public courses ready to go but are confused by the wording of the order and they hypocrisy of application in some cases.
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Yes. I fully agree with you. Particularly the restriction on travel to/from a 2nd home. Absolutely baffling.
EDIT: I would also add that if you consult with an attorney, you would learn that the SAH order is not enforceable on private residences. Including travelling to/from the 2nd residence. Whether a private citizen is willing to take on that fight is another discussion.
Either way, the SAH order is preposterous on that point.
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My only thought on this is that if you are a permanent resident of a place like Gaylord or TC, do you want a bunch or people from “down state” where the COVID numbers are worse flooding your town while they are working from home?
The idea still pisses me off, since my family owns a house in Gaylord and I’d really like my Pancreatic & Breast Cancer survivor mom to go use it.
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Most importantly, congratulations to your mom. Sounds like she is as tough as nails.
My overall struggle isn’t really with the purpose behind restricting travel to a 2nd home, but more so that it has no legal backbone and therefore has simply served to piss people off.
I would argue (as would attorney’s I have consulted) that enforcement/prosecution of someone travelling to a 2nd home in Michigan is nearly impossible. Essentially, the State/County wouldn’t win in court - assuming they “caught” you AND they attempted to prosecute AND you were willing to take on that battle.
The point you mention is a fairly valid argument. The most recent study of NW Michigan seasonal population growth is a delta of about 94,000 people. Certainly not insignificant - and if that number of people brought the virus to a hospital system that was ill equipped to manage - it would certainly be a challenge.
My overall point is this: if you can’t enforce/prosecute the offense, what is the damn point? You’re just pissing people off by making arbitrary Executive Orders without any substance. You’d be better off releasing the EO that says “we highly recommend you remain at your primary home to avoid transmission of the virus to hospital systems that may be understaffed to support significant population growth at this time.”
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Thanks for that.
She’s basically the Keith Richards of housewives…
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Spot on.
And speaking of economic devastation, after a mediocre ski season that was essentially cut off how many “up north Main streets” are going to be empty by mid-June? Really sad to think about how many owners of small shop restaurants, boutiques, etc will be gone.
I’m apparently in the minority here considering this stance over the years, but I’ve always thought Ambo pizza was overrated. Then again, I’m not a big vegetable guy so I’ve never tried the legendary tostada pizza
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I totally see this. Where we cottage the area is trying to keep even daytrippers out of town and keep essentials in town only available to locals since resources are limited (especially on the medical front).
I think the offense is enforceable and procecutable by starting with an order issued by an officer, up to and including a ticket. Its happening all over. I get that resources for the police may be limited but the understanding that fines can be issued (including private clubs who chose to disobey an order… an order that is clear obviously) goes a long way vs the assumption that everyone will contest every ticket and whatnot.
I’m still pissed at the AG. Nothing worse than exclusionary laws/regulations that benefit those who “have” and those who do not.
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It’s interesting to me how inconsistently the order is enforced/applied across the state.
I am a member of the Watermark CC group of clubs in the Grand Rapids area. Our 3 courses in Kent County (Watermark, Stonewater, and Thousand Oaks) are open for members to walk ( with no carts, no touching pins, no range, no bathrooms, etc.). We’ve been told the plan to remain open was endorsed by the county prosecutor’s office, as well as the county sheriff. The fourth course in the group; however, is in Ottawa County and was shut down by the Ottawa County Sheriff for two weeks (just recently re-opened for walking).
Having walked a few times at a couple of the courses in the evening, my take is that the safety of golfing is extremely specific to the course. One of our courses is surrounded by homes and is packed. We even had media filming the stacked up first tee (shout out to Freddy Couples for retweeting the story: https://twitter.com/fredcouplesgolf/status/1249372978720034816?s=20). The other courses are quite empty. I feel much safer there than at the local park or running on the trails near my house.
Note: I completely agree private courses being open is an image problem for golf and not fair. I would LOVE to see some enterprising public courses create an interaction-free process for allowing play.
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Yep, I think there’s a lot of room for courses to get creative here. There’s so many WiFi outdoor home security cameras out there with 2 way audio that you can get for $100-200 that could courses to have a starter working remotely.
We out here!!!
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I’m all set to play tomorrow afternoon. I’m really excited but I’m going to be super cautious.
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@weirdfishes, where are you playing? I saw that Rackham and Crystal Lake are opening tomorrow.
Rackham!
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