Spring Aerification Guide: When Your Favorite Seattle-Area Courses Are Punched and Playing Again

Ah, spring in the Pacific Northwest—when the birds are chirping, the fairways are waking up, and… your ball starts bouncing like it’s on gravel. Yep, it’s aerification season.

What Is Aerification, Anyway?

Also known as aeration, aerification is the annual process where golf courses punch tiny holes in the greens and pull out plugs of turf. It looks like a squirrel convention gone rogue, but it’s actually super important. Aerification relieves compaction, improves drainage, and helps the grass breathe so they stay healthy and playable all season long.

It’s not just busy work—it’s a must-do for long-term turf health. Most PNW courses aerify once or twice a year, typically in early spring and fall.

How Long Until It Plays Well Again?

After aerification, courses usually take 10 to 21 days to recover, depending on the weather, turf conditions, and how aggressive the treatment was. As a general rule of thumb:

• Moderately Playable: ~7–10 days after the aerification (still bumpy, but doable)

• Fully Healed: ~3 weeks after aerification (smooth rolls return)

  
  

It’s worth noting: some courses offer discounted rates during this time, so if you're not too picky about perfect putts, this could be a great value season.

Spring 2025 Aerification Dates – Greater Seattle Area

To serve as a guide, we’ve compiled as complete of a list as we could for the spring punching schedules from courses within about a 2-hour radius of Seattle, listed below. 

Golf Course	Aerification Date	Moderately Playable	Back to 100%
Avalon Golf Links	March 25–27	April 3	April 17
Battle Creek Golf Course	April 11	April 18	May 2
Bellevue GC	May 5-6	May 13	May 27
Jefferson Park	April 2	April 9	April 23
Camaloch Golf Course	April 22–23	April 30	May 14
Cedarcrest	April 7 - 8	April 15	April 29
Chambers Bay	May 6–9	May 16	May 30
Druids Glen Golf Course	March 4	March 11	March 25
Echo Falls	April 1	April 8	April 22
Gold Mountain Cascade	March 31	April 7	April 21
Gold Mountain Olympic	March 24	March 31	April 14
Harbour Pointe	March 3-4	March 11	March 25
Home Course	March 3–7	March 14	March 28
Indian Summer	April 7–9	April 16	April 30
Interbay	April 23	April 30	May 14
Jackson Park	April 13-14	April 21	May 5
Lake Padden	April 14-15	April 22	May 6
Lake Spanaway Golf Course	March 3–7	March 14	March 28
Legion Memorial	April 7-8	April 15	April 29
Lynnwood GC	March 24-25	April 1	April 15
Maplewood Golf Course	March 17	March 24	April 7
Mount Si Golf Course	No Spring Aerification	–	–
Newcastle (China Creek)	Week of March 17	March 24	April 7
Newcastle (Coal Creek)	Week of March 18	March 25	April 8
Nile Shrine Golf Course	March 26	April 2	April 16
Oakbrook Golf Club	No Spring Aerification	–	–
Ocean Shores	April 7-8	April 15	April 29
Port Ludlow Golf Course	March 30	April 6	April 20
Redmond Ridge	Week of March 16	March 23	April 6
Snohomish Golf Course	April 8	April 15	April 29
The Golf Club at Echo Falls	April 1	April 8	April 22
The Home Course	March 3–7	March 14	March 28
Trophy Lake	March 3-4	March 11	March 25
Twin Rivers Golf Course	April 22–23	April 30	May 14
Walter Hall	March 31-April 1	April 8	April 22
Washington National	March 10-11	March 18	April 1
West Seattle	April 8-9	April 16	April 30
White Horse	April 23–24	May 1	May 15
Willows Run Coyote Creek	March 31-April 1	April 8	April 22
Willows Run Eagles Talon	March 26-27	April 3	April 17

Final Thoughts

There’s never a perfect time for your home course to go under the knife, especially as the weather is starting to look truly promising. But aerification is like your annual doctor checkup for greens: short-term pain for long-term gain. Use this guide to dodge the rough patches, explore a new course, or just lower your expectations for a couple weeks and enjoy being outside.

If your favorite course isn’t listed yet, hang tight—we’re still gathering dates and will update this post as we get them. And please follow us on Instagram @northwestlinks for more updates, tips, and local golf info!