Last Friday kicked off a Masters-themed First Friday in downtown Milledgeville. The monthly event took inspiration from the renowned Augusta golf tournament to create something that everyone in the community could participate in.
This led to a nine-hole minigolf course being created in the downtown area. The course spanned between local shops, vendors, and restaurants, giving golfers a chance to stop by their favorite location in between holes and grab special Masters-themed drinks.
Appropriately named “Masters in Milly,” the event was sponsored by Milledgeville Hyundai and downtown golf store Caddy’s Corner. The golf store was the start and end spot for the minigolf course. Golfers could also enter in a raffle for a free slot in Caddy’s golf simulator.
The store features golf supplies and a room dedicated to a fullsized golf simulator. After opening in October, it is looking for ways to spread the word on their services. Caddy’s Corner co-owner Brett Tanner talked about his experience during the event as it was the first time the store had sponsored First Friday.
“This week’s First Friday is just Masters-themed, so they had the putt-putt and live music. Then, since it was golf-related, you know, it made sense for us to sponsor it. We just kind of want to get some more word out there. We haven’t really been heavy on the advertisement. It’s been mostly social media and word of mouth,” Tanner said.
Main Street Director Jennifer Stasney was in charge of this month’s First Friday. She talked about the community response and her experience planning the event.
“Everybody is having such a great time we even ran out of clubs,” Stasney said. “We’re waiting for people to come in and give them back just to give out the clubs again.
“So Caddy’s Corner was just the perfect start and the perfect end for the course. I feel like they were actually just talking about how perfect the little setup is right there with the DJ and everything else.”
Golfers consisted of families with younger children and smaller groups of college students. The crowds were also encouraged to come in golf attire for the occasion, with several embracing the opportunity..
Stasney also teased what Main Street has planned for May’s First Friday. For America’s 250th birthday the theme for May will be Americana. Stasney said there will be live music and vendors but chose to keep the name of the bands a secret for now.