Dear Twin Lakes members.
I hope everyone had a great Holiday. I’d like to thank all the members for their vote and I also thank the Board for their trust in voting for me as your President. I will do my best to serve the club. The message is long, but I have so much to share with you.
The Club has had a good year. We’ve added new members and at this time our Proprietary membership is up over last year at about 270 proprietary members. As you all have seen from the communication throughout the year, we have completed many projects around the club to improve conditions and better the members’ experience, though much work is left to do.
The investment in the course and the clubhouse over the past years has been a struggle for us, the staff and the volunteers that have worked so hard with the assets they have and we’ve come through in pretty good shape. For our continued club growth, course and clubhouse improvements we must invest more. All of you that play golf know there were challenges with the course conditions this year. The course is the club’s most important asset and is the number one thing people consider before joining here. The work of our grounds crew, led by John, did an outstanding job with what they were given to work with and we are fortunate to have such a dedicated and talented crew. Next year, however, we need to give them more support so they can get and keep the course in the shape that all our golfing members expect the course to be.
What’s holding us back? I have spent much time on that question and there is only one answer…..it’s getting to a full membership. The club is full when we get 375 proprietary members, so we need 105 new members to get there and that will be my number one goal for the year. So many doors will open for us with full membership. We will have the cash flow to allow us to re-invest in the course and the clubhouse. It will allow the staff to take care of the course, complete projects in the clubhouse and fill the pro shop with merchandise we can all spend our book money on.
We had a consultant work with us a few years back and one of the things he said about Twin Lakes was that we were one of the best kept secrets around for country clubs, that’s a bad thing. We can’t afford to have that continue. We are not going to get people to join if they don’t know we’re here. Marketing and advertising are going to be the keys to our success and priorities for us this year. We need to get the word out. We are going to need to spend some money in these areas this year through social media ads and direct email, for example. We are also going to the Seattle Golf show in March to help kick off our campaign. We will need some volunteers to man our booth so stay tuned for that. Marketing for new members is very important and by doing that I think we will see additional benefits as we get our name out there. We will see an increase in wedding bookings and special events, which we were down last year.
Some investments in the course, in my opinion, need to happen sooner rather than later. I’ve been a member for 13 years and in that time little has been done to improve or maintain the traps on the course. They are an intricate part of any golf course. I know how frustrating it can be to have your ball in the trap and wonder before the shot what’s under the ball. That needs to change and it’s already begun. The maintenance on the traps has been put off due to the cost but with a full membership that would not have happened. The traps on 7 and 14 are already being worked on but there are many more that need work and new sand needs to be put in almost all of them. The greens suffered last year! Some of the causes were the weather and the ground crew struggling to get by with the assets they had available. This year we must find a way to give John and his crew what they need to make our greens the greens that the course has been famous for in the past. Improving the greens and the traps will go a long way to retaining our current members and attracting new ones.
There are a lot of positives we can take from last year and many good things have happened but just getting by and setting low expectations must change. The goal for the year is 105 new members. You are going to see and hear that a lot of that this year. So many good things will come from full membership. It will really make such a great change in what your experiences are at our club. My goal is to make that happen.
erikasbot@twinlakesgolf.net
Birthdays
Happy New Year to everyone!
The weather throughout December certainly didn’t give us much opportunity to golf this year. With only a couple of days available to enjoy your round of golf, it was nice to be able to see those that came out and wish them a happy holiday season as well as helping those with their last-minute gifts for their friends or loved ones from the golf shop. On those quiet days when the temperatures were a wee bit cold for most, your visits really helped brighten up our days last month.
Congratulations to the Winter Series #2 winning team of Andrew Pommer, Jared Heslop, John Ley, and Chris Hager. Thank you to those members participating in our “18 Holes of Gol-mas”. The weather somewhat treated us fairly as we got this scramble format with a “Naughty & Nice” theme.
Congratulations to the Winter Series #2 winning teams.
OVERALL LOW GROSS: 56 Ian Clark, Lucas Clark, Nate Lowry, Jason Ray
OVERALL LOW NET: 61 Andrew Pommer, Jared Heslop, John Ley, and Chris Hager
KRINGLE FLIGHT
LOW NET: 53 Larry Wolf, Grant Colgan, Ryan Hoover, Bryce Farr
2nd LOW NET: 54 Kelly McCann, Dano Bagnett, Billy Borjeson, Jeff Roman
3rd LOW NET: 55 Marv Osterhout, Jill McBroom, Russ Meyers, Diane Meyers
REINDEER FLIGHT
LOW NET: 53 Daniel Lucero, Shaun Garrison, Val Garrison, Kristie Rojas
2nd LOW NET: 54 Michael Gintz, Anne Gintz, Phil Olufson, Krista Olufson
3rd LOW NET: 55 Paul Ishii, Ken Wilson, Michael Douglas, Allan Smith
For the month of December, we had a few outstanding achievements:
Hole In Recognition: #16 Rick Schlehofer Dec 13
#16 Dan McNeil Dec 28
Double Eagle Recognition: #7 Grant Hulse Dec 27
Look who shot 69: Rich Price Dec 24
We ended our 2025 season with the annual “New Years Eve” golfing event. We had 64 players come out to help celebrate with us this year. The format was a “Bling Ball” along with the individual low net, gross and net skins, and KP’s for this memorable event. What would be NYE with a little bubbly to start out and help influence those birdies. Congratulations to the winnings team Full Tournament Results Here
Team Results – Net Bling Ball Shamble
1st – Dan Smith, Josh Kuske, Bryant Johansen & Roger Peters -23 $90/each
2nd – Rich Price, Rick Schlehofer, Dan McNeil & Tom Brainard -20 $70/each
3rd – Andrew Lettice, Grant Hulse, Hal Lettice & Jace Luinstra -19 $50/each
4th – Grant Colgan, Garyn Churchman, Michael Burchett & Ryan Hoover -18 $30/each
Individual Net – 3 Flights
1st Flight
1st – Dan McNeil via USGA Tie Break -6 $60
2nd – Dan Smith via USGA Tie Break -6 $50
3rd – Tom Brainard via USGA Tie Break -6 $40
4th – Josh Kuske -5 $30
5th – Greg Johnson via USGA Tie Break -3 $20
2nd Flight
1st – Roger Peters -7 $60
2nd – Garyn Churchman via USGA Tie Break -6 $50
3rd – Angela Lee via USGA Tie Break -6 $40
4th – Wes Sanford -4 $30
5th – Ramon Dzubay via USGA Tie Break -3 $20
3rd Flight
1st – Donna Luinstra -7 $60
2nd – Jace Luinstra -6 $50
3rd – Don Roswell via USGA Tie Break -6 $40
4th – Michael Burchett via USGA Tie break -4 $30
5th – Mike Hoefel -3 $20
KP Competitions – Group Drinks for Prize
#3 – Mike Hoefel 0’8”
#4 – Sharon Lorenzo 4’11”
#11 – Sharon Lorenzo 9’2”
#16 – Rick Schlehofer 14’6”
Skins – Gross & Net (You can win gross or net for a skin, not both)
Gross $40/each
Tom Brainard – Birdie on 4
Josh Kuske – Birdie on 6
Fred Rivers – Birdie on 13
Dan Smith – Birdie on 18
Net $40/each
Donna Luinstra – Albatross on 5
Bo Schlect – Albatross on 9
Randy Russell – Eagle on 10
Mike Hoefel – Eagle on 17
Brittney Rivers – Eagle on 18
The golf shop is looking forward to 2026 and another year of fun-filled golf at Twin Lakes filled with laughter, fun, camaraderie, and competition. Our 2026 membership calendar is completed, and we are once again looking forward to providing some new, exciting offerings and playing opportunities in the coming golf season.
Starting off this month is our Winter #3 event scheduled for Jan 10. The sign-up sheet is ready to go in the golf shop as well as the link on our membership page. Our Winter Series #4 is scheduled for Feb 14. Here is the link to sign up for this event.
All these events are open to guests. Carts are an additional fee. Sign-up sheets are posted in the golf shop, as well as linked on our Membership Calendar. In addition, You can email us directly to kwake@twinlakesgolf.net. Don’t forget to invite a few friends to join you. Members’ entry fee $35 and guest entry fee $65. Entries include breakfast, competition, and green fees. Golf Cart rentals are an additional fee of $20 per rider.
In addition, don’t forget about our annual Superbowl Scramble event for Feb 8. Here is the link for this event information regarding sign-ups and entry fees. Guests are invited to participate in this event as well.
For those of you that have private carts, we will have your 2026 cart stickers in the golf shop in February for you to pick up and place on your cart. A friendly reminder: Only those members with paid trail fees are allowed to use their cart on the golf course property.
For those members hosting your handicap with Twin Lakes, your November statement had this 2026 GHIN activation $41 fee on it. If you want to add/transfer your name to the 2026 Roster, CLICK HERE to notify the golf shop and we will get you added/transferred.
Lastly, we would also like to remind everyone once again that during the cold mornings to call the golf shop to make sure that the course, driving range, putting/chipping area are open for use. We still have an opportunity for frost delays during this month. Upon checking into the golf shop prior to starting off, the team will keep you informed of the course conditions and any/all cart restrictions as well as if it is a #1 or #10 tee start. We are doing our best to get the emails out to everyone in advance but still need your help in understanding that if you wake up below 33 – 34 degrees outside, we will have a delayed start.
Stay safe and warm – See you around the club!
Kathy, Ben, Brighton, Bruce, Leilah, Logan, Brandon, Isabel, Cole, Andrew
The Greens Committee did not meet in December. Watch for an update in February!
Festive Friday Night on December 19th played to a packed house, with members and their guests anxiously anticipating a parade of males and females modeling their best ugly sweater or festive attire to win the competition for top prize.
Three judges were challenged to select the winners, results shown below:
Andrew (male); Kristine (female); Cassie (most festive).
Immediately following the parade, host Erika Sheffield challenged contestants to 3 rounds of holiday trivia with questions on Holiday Movies, Holiday Songs, and 2025 Entertainment Platform themes. Examples below:
Movies: What was the name of the neighbor’s dog in a Christmas Story (that ate the turkey): Answer: The Bumpus Hounds (owned by the Bumpuses next door).
Songs: Which band released “Last Christmas”? Answer: Wham
2025 Online Platforms: Who produced the top podcast? Answer: Joe Rogan
“Usual Suspects”, a team familiar to trivia contestants by now, took home the 2025 winning trophy.
Happy New Year!
We capped off 2025 with the Annual Christmas Caroling Party. Thanks go out to Denise Harrell for leading us in song and thanks, too, to Pinky for setting up the room with festive touches and to Scott Dornan for dropping in with some delicious cookies. You all made it a really fun event. We have lucked out with the weather and have had many opportunities to get in some golf.
Word Of The Month: Apricity: the pleasant warmth of the sun on a cold winter day.
Several of us experienced this just a few days ago and I hope you did too!
Jenn Dzubay and Frankie Stephens hosted their Board and volunteers for an Appreciation Party. Thank you two for all of your work these past two years. We all appreciate you too.
Coming up on February 24th, the Annual Women’s Division Kickoff. You will receive your Women’s Division Calendar and be prepared with some cash to sign up for special competitions like the Birdie Club and Eccy’s. Details on the price of dinner and these “clubs” will be coming.
Second Word Of The Month: Hurkle Durkle: a delightful Scottish term (dating back to the 1800’s) that means to lounge or linger in bed long after you should have gotten up, enjoying the warmth and comfort before facing the day.
I wish you all a happy and prosperous new year with plenty of Apricity and Hurkle Durkle!
Meeting: Second Thursday – 5:30pm
Meeting: When Needed
Meeting: Third Wednesday – 5:30pm
Meeting: Every Other Month
Meeting: Third Thursday
Actively seeking and appointing committee members!
Meeting: Second Wednesday – 6:00 pm
Meeting: Third Tuesday—6:00 pm
Meeting: Wednesday – 6:00 pm
To help promote the game of golf by offering a challenging and beautiful course and other complementary facilities that are affordable, inclusive, and inviting. Provide a thriving comprehensive recreational and social venue offering its members, guests, and community partners exceptional experiences to play, relax and socialize in a tranquil and peaceful environment.