b'Hitting from the Rough(and happily so)Beloved by the community, Lava Links is a wild rideby Logan Groeneveld-MeijerNels Borg, a member of Soap Lakes Chamber of Commerce who has been playing the course almost since I ts not hard for the uninitiated to spot the differencesits inception, knows just that. Hes the honorary club pro of between Lava Links Golf Course in Soap Lake, Wash., and most other 9-hole facilities across the U.S. Lava Links, taking over the care of the course from its original Among them? The general absence of the color green. founders, DeVaun Black and Burr Beckwith.Thats just one thing. Built on nine acres of volcanic basalt,Borg said the idea of Lava Links stemmed from Black and Lava Links putting greens are made of a dark, ash-coloredBeckwiths simple desire to make some use of the rugged sand, and instead referred to as grays. The vegetation isvolcanic land, which is unable to be used for much else.mostly thick Sagebrush, theres very little (if any) grass andThe two of them set the whole thing up; they went in with the layout of the course was cleared by way of a tractor-pulledtractors and railroad ties and dragged all this stuff out, Borg railroad tie over two decades ago. said of the courses formation. They put in sand greens and Greens fees? Leave your wallet in your pocket, because the6-inch PVC pipe for holes, and they called it the Lava Links.course is completely free for the town of about 1,600 to enjoy.Beckwith himself credits Black, a former mayor of the town, Theres no bag drop, pro shop or even a clubhouse, but there iswith the idea to reshape the land in the early 2000s.a sign advising the use of only a 9-iron and putter.Its an amalgamation of features that, for over two decades, has made up for in fun what it may lack in glamour.The greens at Lava Links are called grays, and are all sand.Above: Nels Borg is now the main caretaker of Lava Links22 PACIFIC NORTHWEST GOLFER|JUN 2025'