Sacramento County’s very own
Ancil Hoffman Golf Course, which is owned by the
Department of Regional Parks and operated in partnership with CourseCo, was recently named the winner of the 2020 California Golf Course Owners Association (CGCOA) Community Environmental Award.
“CGCOA’s criteria for the Community Environmental Award includes preserving coveted resources such as water and electricity; implementing environmentally smart programs; maintaining a recycling program throughout the property; creating safe, natural habitats for birds and other animals that occupy the course; and increasing citizen awareness of the role played by golf courses as friends of the environment,” said Marc Connerly, Executive Director of the CGCOA. “For this year’s award, leadership and activities related to the responsible management of the pandemic were added to the award criteria.”
Regional Parks, CourseCo and Ancil Hoffman staff were recognized for their leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic, including the development and quick implementation of safety protocols that allowed golf courses to remain open. These same safety protocols have been modeled by golf courses across the nation.
“We wanted to make sure that our residents were able to safely enjoy our courses during the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Greg Bliek, Golf Division Manager. “We developed and implemented protocols and staff training to ensure a safe and healthy environment for our employees and golfers, and have been able to continuously remain open during the pandemic.”
Safety protocols implemented at Ancil Hoffman and other County courses include:
Check-in for golf is in designated areas and limited to one guest at a time
- Play is limited to individual play – no tournaments or leagues
- Golf carts are limited to one rider per cart
- We ask that all guests pay with credit card
- Pens for credit card signature are sanitized between uses
- All practice areas are either temporarily closed or reduced to 50% capacity – please call ahead to check
- Doors are propped open
- Ball washers have been removed from the course
- Rakes have been removed from golf course bunkers (we recommend playing as ground under repair)
- Cups have been set to reduce touch points – please leave flags in place and do not touch
- No shared equipment including golf clubs, every player must have their own set of clubs
- Cleaning of all surfaces has been increased to a minimum of 4 to 6 times per day
- All employees wear masks when in buildings or interacting with customers
- All employees at all point of sale locations wear gloves
- All employees have received significant training on sanitary and safety standards
- A designated Safety Ambassador is on duty at all times
- Golf carts are fully disinfected between uses
- Range balls are fully disinfected between uses
- Range baskets are fully disinfected between uses
- Garbage cans lids are removed or touchless
