Camano Island, Washington Man Takes on Task of Resurrecting Local Golf Course

SEDRO-WOOLLEY, WA, June 03, 2013

Paul Lavin picked up a golf club at the age of 10 and a year later realized he was ranked 2nd in Washington State for 11 and under. Next he went on to rank top 5 in Washington State for the "11 to 17" age group. At 18, he missed qualifying for the US Open by a 2 shots. Undeterred, Lavin then turned PGA golf pro from San Diego Golf Academy at 19. Transferring to Maui for five years he became Teaching Pro at Kapalua and has many interesting stories of celebrities he mentored.

Paul returned to Washington State as 1st Assistant Head Pro at Overlake in Bellevue, then Head Pro at Echo Falls in Woodinville, then onto Director of Golf of Harbor Homes on Whidbey Island, lastly becoming General Manager of Jefferson Park Golf Course in Seattle, the 3rd busiest golf course in all of Washington State.

He moved back to Camano Island, Silvana, Wa. where most of his family's ancestry can be traced to the it's founding days in the 1800's. His uncle Dan Nelson is renowned architect and owner of Designs Northwest in Stanwood, the featured homes designer on the HGTV channel.

Coming from a very driven family, Paul figured the next step would be to run and own his own golf course. The overgrown course was rampant with blackberry bushes, weeds, and knee-high grass. It was immediately apparent that Gateway was extremely neglected. With optimism and a vision, Paul began to bring the golf course back to its glory days where it would entertain over a hundred patrons a day. Coming up on its 3rd summer, drastic improvements have been made.

After 30+ years in golf Paul Lavin took on a small town golf course that had been shut down for over 2 years and since has taken many routes in maintaining that Gateway Golf Course be a family and pet-friendly course. Upon re-opening in 2010, he became a member of The 1st Tee Program that emphasizes unique life skills curriculum for children ages 5-18, teaching positive values such as honesty, integrity and perseverance through the game of golf. Just recently he finished coaching many weeks worth of time dedicated to inspiring a team of young kids the basics of golf. Starting out as a youth himself, he greatly believes in the inherent benefit of kids getting involved in golf.

When Paul Lavin isn't instructing the youth, he is improving the course with new greens, increasing the yardage to 650 yards, allowing a par 32 to become a par 36. It was then on to revamping an aptly named banquet room "Vista Blanca" for its snow covered mountain views which offers an affordable and uniquely charismatic venue for weddings, reunions, and social gatherings.

The Gateway Golf Course now offers a 14-stall covered driving range, power golf carts, monthly golf tournaments and leagues, Junior Camps, as well as a free 10-minute golf lesson from PGA Golf Pro, Paul, himself.

Gateway Golf Course is now open to the general public. It is not a private golf club. Paul has started featuring his course on local television networks, on televised commercials such as ESPN and other major stations, on in Living Social, an online site that allows purchase of tee times at a discounted price.

Golf enthusiasts from near & far will enjoy the Par 36 Gateway Golf Course located just off HWY 20 in scenic Sedro-Woolley.

For more information, or to book at Tee Time, visit http://gatewaygolfandrestaurant.com/ or call (360) 631-3295.