REDMOND — The sound of a grass trimmer doing its job and the distinctive ping of metal meeting golf ball could be heard in the distance.

Golfers at Eagle Crest Resort were milling about Thursday on the dormant, greenish-brown turf under a cloudless sky.

The course was peaceful and quieter than on a bustling summer day. But the parking lot outside the clubhouse for the Ridge and Challenge courses was half full with automobiles presumably belonging to golf nuts willing to play in the cool, crisp weather.

As sure as the sun has been shining on Central Oregon this week, the open golf courses in the region had sprung back to life.

“The guys are stir-crazy,” said Jim Kelly, a 64-year-old Redmond resident, explaining why so many Eagle Crest men’s club members were on the course. “We’re all retired and used to playing just about every day … so it’s good to get out and do that. And it’s beautiful out. It’s not too cold.”

For the courses that have been able to open this week, business has been relatively brisk.

But opening has not been easy, even for those courses that are generally winter golf meccas in the region, such as Crooked River Ranch in Jefferson County and Meadow Lakes Golf Course in Prineville.

On Thursday, the Meadow Lakes maintenance staff was armed with shovels, trying to break up the ice that had formed on some of its greens in recent weeks in hopes of getting the course playable by the weekend, according to head professional Zach Lampert.

“We were worried that if we didn’t do anything (with the ice) it was just going to sit there,” said Lampert, who expected the course to be open today. “Usually a little bit of rain or a little bit of wind will take it off. Well, it’s not going to rain and there’s really been no wind. It’s been pretty calm.”

Lampert then paused, thinking about those conditions before concluding: “It would be great to be playing.”

Crooked River Ranch has taken similar measures to make the course playable — CRR opened on Friday — including using an oversized fan to circulate air around some icy spots.

Pat Huffer, the club’s head pro, said that despite the relatively pleasant recent weather, cold temperatures at night have made melting a gradual process.

That can be a bit frustrating when the daytime high reaches 53 degrees, as it did Wednesday at the Redmond Airport, and the phones are ringing with golfers itching to play.

“It would have been packed,” Huffer said Thursday of days like Wednesday. “We’ve got a lot of people on the tee sheet that they’re just dying to play. But we just couldn’t get them out yet.”

The courses that choose to stay open during the winter — weather dictating of course — know the bargain.

A mild stretch of weather during the winter can provide a little extra revenue and some added value for a course’s membership. But counting on regular income in Central Oregon’s unpredictable winter climate can be a fool’s errand.

“We do budget for certain dollar amounts in those winter months, but if (the course) does close, that’s the risk you take trying to stay open during the winter,” said Troy Eckberg, head pro at Bend’s River’s Edge Golf Club, which planned to open today. “It’s always nice to have those rounds. And for us — obviously the dollars are important — it’s really important to see the people walking in and still have an interest in your product.”

Juniper Golf Club in Redmond was able to open Thursday, and nearly 50 golfers took advantage despite the course’s use of temporary greens and at least a few patches of snow.

“Everybody must have cabin fever because the phones are ringing off the hook,” said Bruce Wattenburger, the longtime head pro at Juniper.

What motivates these golfers to jump at any moderation in the weather?

It can’t be the course conditions.

“It’s an entirely different game because the fairways are frozen and the greens are frozen,” said Kelly, the Eagle Crest member, as he loaded his clubs into his pickup truck after his round. “You can’t actually hit it into the green until about 1 o’clock (p.m.). Then they (the greens) start to thaw out and you can do a little bit better.”

Fellow Eagle Crest member Tim Swope, 60, played on Wednesday and practiced on Thursday. This time of year, he carries a screwdriver to pierce the frozen ground enough to actually use a golf tee.

For him, playing in the offseason is a matter of getting outside during a long winter.

“If there is no snow on the ground, I’m out here,” he said as he walked off Eagle Crest’s driving range.

A Chicago native, Swope was not always so willing to take on the winter elements in his old hometown.

But he moved to Eagle Crest last year to be close to golf. So if the course is open and playable, he takes advantage.

“When the weather starts being a little nicer, I’m out here three times a week,” Swope said. “I love it out here. It’s a good deal.”

Tournaments

Bend golfer second at mini-tour event — Andrew Vijarro narrowly missed his first developmental mini-tour win this week but still collected one of the biggest paychecks of his young professional golf career. The Bend golfer shot a 10-under-par 71-68-67—206 in a Gateway Pro Tour tournament at Southern Dunes Golf Club in Maricopa, Ariz., near Phoenix, to finish in a tie for second place in a field of 138 players. Vijarro, who turned pro last June after a four-year collegiate career at the University of Oregon, finished one stroke behind winner Ryan Dillon, of Desert Hills, Ariz. Vijarro, a graduate of Bend High School, earned $6,750 for the result.

— Bulletin staff report

Course awakening

Current status of Central Oregon golf courses (excluding private courses) that stay open during winter but close temporarily due to weather. All dates are tentative:

Aspen Lakes Golf Course (Sisters): Reopening TBD

Crooked River Ranch: Open

Desert Peaks Golf Club (Madras): Open

Eagle Crest Resort (Redmond): Challenge and Ridge courses open

The Greens at Redmond: Open as early as Sunday afternoon

Juniper Golf Course (Redmond): Open on temporary greens

Kah-Nee-Ta Resort: Open

Lost Tracks Golf Club (Bend): Open as early as Sunday

Meadow Lakes Golf Course (Prineville): Reopening today

Missing Link Family Golf Center (Redmond): Open

Prineville Golf Club: Three holes open, the rest TBD

Pronghorn Club’s Nicklaus Course (Bend): Reopening TBD

River’s Edge Golf Course (Bend): Reopening today