Colorado golfers have been hitting the links all winter, now wonder about the summer forecast

There's been no need to go to the desert this winter to play golf. Colorado's incredibly warm and dry winter means golf courses in the Denver metro area are open for business. 

"We play once a week, so there really is no winter, said local golfer Robert Maceil. "We've played once a week since back in November."

Rounds are up 158% from this time last year. While that's good for business, one look at the front range and you know the driest winter since 1872 has an ominous forecast. 

"It's been a lot of fun, but there's this overarching feeling of the environment," local golfer Price Seliger said. "There's kind of a guilty, dreadful feeling about the whole, honestly." 

At Walnut Creek, the course was only closed for 20 days this winter, well below their average of 60 days. 

"Obviously, I don't think anybody would say it's not bad to have that extra revenue," Westminster Manager of golf, parks and open spaces Lance Johnson said. "The extra play does have extra wear and tear on the golf course."

Currently, the city of Westminster is under drought watch, but decisions this winter, like reducing tee times by 50% has the turf pros far from panicking.

"Dead grass and bringing it back is what we do," Johnson said. "Drought is what we do. We work with Mother Nature every day of the year, so a little less moisture just means better planning and better practices when it comes to managing your turf."

Passersby might wonder how the course looks so green while they're facing impending water restrictions. 

"We do this for a living, so this is what we do, we manage turf," Johnson stated. "We do a lot more things than homeowners do to their yard. We follow the same restrictions homeowners do. So we're not immune to that. We are very good water managers and have been for decades, so when you get conditions like this, that's when that management shows up. We have a few more tricks than homeowners have in their in our bag to take care of their yard."

So the best case scenario this summer is...

"If conditions stay the way they are, you'll see golf courses that will be very playable," Johnson said. "You'll see tee, greens and fairways in regular conditions." 

And the worst case...

"If we went to stage 2 restrictions, we'd be mandated to water only tees and greens," said Johnson. "But I don't think we'll get to that point this year." 

So while Johnson, who's in the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame, knows all the tricks and planning don't make golf courses immune from droughts. 

"We can't control what Mother Nature does. If we get into this winter again and it's the same winter we had this year, yeah, next year will be very difficult."