No Face Masks In Indoor Driving Range Stalls? Violation Exposed With Police Escort

The state of Michigan announced this week that 22 businesses were cited by its agencies for COVID-19 violations, with two seeing their liquor licenses suspended.

One of the establishments cited was Birdies Indoor Golf & Bar in Oxford. At  5:45 p.m. Friday Jan. 29 a Michigan Liquor Control Commission investigator entered the premises accompanied by a police escort from the Oakland County Sheriff's Department. This was not this operation's first visit by a state inspector. On Jan. 8, the investigator witnessed numerous violations including individuals hitting golf balls in its indoor driving range stalls - without wearing a facemask.

The Jan. 29 investigation occurred on the last business day before the Feb. 1 expiration of a state health department lockdown order that went into effect on Nov. 18, which banned indoor service at restaurants and bars.

The report filed by the government agent after the inspection at Birdies Indoor Golf & Bar described its offenses, including this: “Toward the rear of the establishment there is a recreation section containing multiple stalls where patrons can play indoor golf. Five patrons were playing golf without masks and some were consuming alcoholic beverages.”

When Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced the first statewide coronavirus lockdowns in March, she said: “This is going to be hard, but we’re going to get through this, and we’re going to get through it together.”