The snow has cleared, flowers are blooming, and days are longer. With the spring semester ending, warmer weather is heading towards Grand Forks this summer.  

With this in mind, people are searching for reasons to head outside and enjoy the fairer weather after surviving the cold during the winter months. Whether that includes going for a hike, a bike ride or playing a round of golf.  

Golf courses throughout Grand Forks are officially open for the season, and there is not a better time of the year than now to potentially give the outdoor sport a shot. Ray Richards Golf Course, UND’s official golf course, offers rates for students that want to golf but are on a budget. The discounted rate is $11 per person for nine holes Monday through Thursday and $17 on the weekend. A Ray Richards UND Student Membership for the season at $315. 

Blake Henrichsen, a third-year student at the University of North Dakota, stated that “golf can be therapeutic and competitive at the same time.” Henrichsen started playing at a young age and stated that he loves the fact that “people of all ages can play and have a good time.”  It is evident that Henrichsen is a passionate person, and he found his competitive outlet through golf.  

This emphasizes the fact that golf is more than a sport because it can become a lifelong skill that you progressively improve over time. Other sports can become incredibly physically demanding after you reach a certain age and are not sustainable to play at a high level anymore. Another benefit of playing golf is the outdoor aspect of playing on a course, forcing you to become integrated with your surrounding environment and burn calories while you are at it.  

If this sounds like something that interests you or if you are an amateur golfer seeking to improve your skills, golf is the perfect sport for you. The timeless saying proves true that practice makes perfect. Golf is a technical sport that can take years to master. Golf is what you make of it, so book a tee time with a group of friends and see if it is something that you want to pick up and learn this summer.  

Daniel Silva is a Dakota Student General Reporter. He can be reached at [email protected].