“Last fall we started talking about it and doing some research. Mack (Tiller) did some looking at courses in Palm Springs. We started looking online and found there was a Canadian footgolf association and progressed from there.”
— Larry Schick, York Lake Course superintendent
York Lake Golf and Country Club launched Saskatchewan’s first foot golf course on Saturday, August 27th.
Foot golf is just as it sounds – golf with your feet. Players use a soccer ball to play the 12 holes of the course. The holes are made big enough so the ball fits right in.
Larry Schick is the superintendent of the course. Schick, along with Mack Tiller, are the brains behind the footgolf operation.
“The first thought was just ‘what can we do to generate some revenue, and what can we do with that ground,’” said Schick. The ground he’s referring to is the former back nine of the course, which was damaged by floods.
“Last fall we started talking about it and doing some research,” Schick said. “Mack did some looking at courses in Palm Springs. We started looking online and found there was a Canadian footgolf association and progressed from there.”
The majority of the work came from transforming the grounds back to a usable state. Tiller said the course is unrecognizable compared to how it was when they started.
Tiller said so far, there’s been a lot of interest in the course. When comparing it to golf, it’s much less of a time commitment, and requires much less equipment
“Not everybody plays golf, so this is a time for people to do something different,” said Tiller.
Tiller said they don’t have a specific demographic for the sport because it can be enjoyable for everyone, from schools to corporations to soccer clubs.
“We have a great picnic area and fire pit in the back, so if someone wants to have a party or function, what a great thing – come out and play some foot golf, and have a wiener roast,” said Tiller.
Both Tiller and Schick agree that they’d like to make some adjustments to the course, if business allows.
“If we see the traffic is going to warrant it, we can start to work seriously to improve the condition,” said Schick. “To get it so it’s in as good of shape as the golf course – that would be my goal.”
“We have plans in terms of what we’re going to do – lengthen some holes and move some around,” said Tiller.
Footgolf is open seven days a week from 7:00 a.m. to dusk at York Lake Golf and Country Club.
