Willow Lake hosts ice golf course

By Jim Huston

Willow Chamber of Commerce

WILLOW — The Willow Area Community Golf Course has been busy this season, but tee times are still available. The sixth annual Iditarod Restart Golf Tournament took place just six days after the 40th annual Iditarod restart from Willow Lake. And two weeks later on March 24, the Willow United Methodist Church held its fifth annual Spring Classic golf tournament there.

The Willow Chamber of Commerce reshapes and enlarges the area on Willow Lake that is cleared each year for the Last Great Race. The area becomes fairways that average about 150 yards with a par 4 difficulty. Often, the longest fairways exceed 300 yards.

Between tournaments, local residents use the longer sunny days to improve their winter golfing skills. The course also provides great introductions to golf for local elementary schools and high schools on field trips.

The week of March 27 saw kindergarten, fourth- and fifth-grade and fifth- and sixth-grade classes from Willow Elementary and high school students from American Charter Academy on the course.

The remainder of the season, families and friends gather regularly to enjoy the golf course. Clubs and balls are kept on site for loan from the chamber of commerce. The chamber also provides an outhouse and polices the area for litter.

The Iditarod Restart Tournament was recently recognized by the state Legislature as the State Championship of Winter Golf. More than 60 golfers participated in this year’s event. Golfers from around the Valley and Anchorage competed as individuals and teams. This year’s state champions were sponsored by Alaska Golf Shot from Wasilla.

Willow Lake has become one of the most used and enjoyed winter recreation point in all of Alaska. The Iditarod puts thousands of participants and spectators on the lake at one time, but there are also other Iditarod qualifiers, the Junior Iditarod and sprint dog races that start, finish or pass through the lake.

There are many other events connected to the State Willow Winter Carnival, including Nordic ski races, snowshoe races, skijoring, snowmachine races, broomball and specialty golf events. The lake is used by the local elementary school for ski classes, and the local fire department does rescue training through the ice. All in all, Willow residents have turned the lake into a source for a huge variety of fun and indirectly revenue for local businesses.