By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

It has been a tough few years for Bald Eagle Golf Club, the Point Roberts layout that was forced to close during the Covid pandemic, then re-opened in 2022 only to close again for the 2023 season.

It is now scheduled to re-open sometime early this summer with a new, but familiar name and a new owner. The course is returning to its former name, Point Roberts Golf & Country Club, and has targeted June 15 as a re-opening date, although there is a good chance it could be a week or two after that.

“We won’t be updating the website for another two weeks with our opening date,” says Tracy Evans, a Point Roberts realtor who has been doing double-duty as the club’s general manager.

“We want to get a better feel for where we’re at and then I’ll put something out there and start doing some advertising in the Metro Vancouver area.”

Evans said the course is now owned by a Vancouver-based businessman named Jack Li, who is an avid golfer and has instructed staff to make some changes and improvements prior to re-opening. The front and back nines will be flipped and the clubhouse is now undergoing renovations.

“He wants us to have the wow factor of a really nice golf course,” Evans says. “He’s a member at Point Grey and he wants to make Point Roberts Golf Course similar to Point Grey.” That figures to be a considerable challenge. The course has a solid design and foundation, but after being closed for the past 18 months it is in need of much work to get it in playable condition.

Longtime course superintendent Rick Hoole remained on staff during the closure and did what he could. He now has a skeleton crew of about half-dozen individuals. “Rick and crew are trying to deal with all the work that has to be done out there, but it’s a big job,” Evans says. “It’s a beautiful golf course and we hope to get it back to what it was before Covid shut us down.”

Evans says a green fee structure has not been set, but knows they must be competitive to lure British Columbia golfers across the border. “Point Roberts is in such a unique location, you can’t be way over-priced and expect people to cross the border and deal with lineups and such to come down and play,” she says.

BEVY OF BRITISH COLUMBIANS: This week’s RBC Canadian Open at Hamilton Golf & Country Club will feature eight British Columbians. In addition to PGA TOUR regulars Nick Taylor and Adam Hadwin, both of Abbotsford, Adam Svensson of Surrey and Merritt’s Roger Sloan, other British Columbians with spots in the field include Stuart Macdonald of Vancouver, Jared du Toit of Kimberley, Kevin Stinson of Mission and Jake Lane of Charlie Lake. Svensson played in last week’s Charles Schwab Challenge at Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, Tex., where he tied for 24h and made $70,866.

T-BIRDS SIXTH: They entered the tournament ranked sixth and that is exactly where the University of B.C. men’s team finished at the NAIA national championships in Dalton, Ga. The UBC team of Mackenzie Bickell, Manhu Gandhi, Dylan Macdonald, J.P Kahlert and Hudson Lafayette completed the 72-hole tourney at 58-over par. That was 28 shots behind the winning team of Dalton State University. Macdonald was the top UBC player, tying for 20th in the individual competition at 11-over par.

The University of Victoria men’s team did not make the 36-hole cut. UBC, UVic, University of the Fraser Valley and UBC-Okanagan are all competing in the men’s and women’s divisions at next week’s Canadian University/College Championships at Idylwylde Golf & Country Club in Sudbury, Ont. Last year, UBC won the women’s title, while Victoria took the men’s championship.

SENIOR MOMENT: Burnaby’s John Gallacher and Steve Savage of Surrey teamed up to win the 30th Washington Senior Men’s Four-Ball Championship at Loomis Trail Golf Course in Blaine. Gallacher and Savage fired rounds of 70 and 66 and won the championship by two shots.

SEASON FINALES: Lauren Kim and Rebecca Kim, both of Surrey, concluded their freshmen seasons at the NCAA Women’s Championships in Carslbad, Calif. Lauren Kim’s University of Texas team made the 54-hole cut, but finished the 72-hole stroke play portion of the tournament tied for 11th.

The top eight teams advanced to match play, where Stanford University ultimately won the championship. Lauren Kim tied for 34th at seven-over par in the individual competition. Rebecca Kim’s Oregon State team missed the 54-hole cut. Lauren Kim will defend her Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship title this summer at Royal Colwood Golf Club in Victoria. That tourney goes July 30-Aug. 2.

CLOSE SECOND: West Vancouver’s Jenny Gou was a close second at the NextGen Western Championship played at Leduc Golf Club in Alberta. Gou finished the 54-hole event at 11-over par, one shot behind winner Sarah Armstrong of Medicine Hat, Alta.

FOUR IN A ROW: Point Grey Golf & Country Club appears to have a lock on the PGA of BC Tournament of Champions. Pro Clark MacPherson and club champion Ben Bay won the event for the fourth straight year for Point Grey. Head pro Dave Zibrik and former club champion Jeff Dagg won the previous three. MacPherson and Bay combined for a five-under 66 in cold, rainy conditions at Highland Pacific Golf Course in Victoria to beat 35 other teams.

CHIP SHOTS: Adam Niles of Kamloops completed his collegiate career at Western New Mexico University by tying for 29th in the individual competition at the NCAA Division II Championship tourney in Winter Garden, Fla. . .James Allenby of Langley Golf Centre closed with a one-under 69 and his 36-hole total of seven-under was good for a one shot win over Richmond Country Club’s Ziggy Nathu and Khan Lee of GreenTee Country Club at the Vancouver Golf Tour’s Tsawwassen Springs Open.