New greens represent the crown jewels of venerable LinRick Golf Course’s revitalization

Turn off Camp Ground Road into the parking lot at LinRick Golf Course. An immediate reaction: Hey, this is different.

Walk into the pro shop to register to play a round at the Richland County-owned public golf course and even longtime players at the Russell Breeden design pause: Whoa! What’s happened?

Next, roll a few balls on the practice green, then test the first green, and a LinRick regular who has been away for a while might stop and wonder: Am I in the right place?

Yes, this is the right place, still the venerable LinRick, which dates to 1972, but a different and much-improved LinRick — thanks to the recently completed facelift.

Sandwiched between U.S. 321 and state Highway 215 about 10 miles north of Interstate 20, LinRick has been a busy place, especially since the golf revival during and after the COVID outbreak.

Before the upgrades — new Sunday Bermuda greens, a repaved parking lot, a new bag drop, lighting worthy of a football field, a new cart barn and a revitalized pro shop — LinRick averaged about 38,000 rounds a year.

Now?

“I expect there will be more demand” for tee times, said John “E” Rutherford, the general manager who has been at LinRick since 2002.

The county-owned facility does not receive any tax revenue and pays its own way.

Improvements in the parking area and pro shop create a nice introduction to golfers, but they are bonuses. The new greens are the crown jewels.

“From planning to completing the work took about a year,” Rutherford said. “We knew we needed to do the greens. The old ones were the originals, 53 years old, and we had some drainage issues and problems with carpet grass.

“Knowing we would be closed for two months or so for the greens to be grow in, we decided we should try to do the other improvements at the same time.”

The country recreation board — “We get great support from the Commission,” Rutherford said — signed off of the project and away they went.

The course closed for play July 7 to begin work on the greens with hopes of reopening by Labor Day. Alas, the inevitable delays pushed the date back to mid-September.

“Even though we had to wait to reopen, the greens filled in very nicely with the new grass,” Rutherford said.

Rutherford, whose career in the industry includes stops at old Indian River, Timberlake, WildeWood and Woodcreek, noted an added benefit. With no traffic on the golf course, the fairways naturally improved.

“There’s been so much advancement in turf grasses since our original greens,” said Rutherford, who also handles the superintendent duties. “Greens also change through the years. This is something we needed to do.”

Then, there’s the inside work.

Among other things, they discovered a window that had been boarded up for more than 30 years and now, Rutherford said, “There’s more natural light in the pro shop.”

Freshly painted walls, new furniture in the dining area, new carpeting, new light fixtures, a new ceiling, new countertops, a new ice machine and an increased selection of merchandise in the pro shop provide an inviting welcome.

The final step: resurfacing the parking lot.

After that introduction, a nice test of golf awaits. The course can stretch to 6,941 yards from the tips, and one of the more memorable — or forgettable — holes anywhere awaits late in the round.

The 16th, a double dogleg par-5 with the third shot over water, commands attention. And the 17th, an uphill par-3, can leave players snarling, too.

But now golfers can remember LinRick for another reason — a revitalized facility that commands attention.

Chip shots. In the season’s first NCAA golf rankings, USC’s women are No. 7 and Clemson No. 46. USC’s Eila Galitsky is No. 7 among individuals. On the men’s side, Clemson is No. 31 and USC No. 38 with the Gamecocks’ Frankie Harris No. 23 among individuals. ... Zach Adams tied for 10th and Frankie Harris shared 12th in pacing USC’s men to a fifth-place finish in The Bryson Invitational at Daniel Island Club. The Gamecocks complete the fall season in the Fallen Oak Collegiate Invitational that begins Saturday in Mississippi. ... Rodric Overholt (Abbeville) claimed top honors in the gross division and Chase Sturkie (Lexington) led the net division in the SCGA’s 40-plus Series event at Carolina Lakes GC in Indian Land. ... Bennett Scaletta (Belton) won the 16-18 division and Ty Childers (Gaffney) led the 13-15 division in the SCJGA’s Jackie Seawell Junior at Cobb’s Glen CC in Anderson.