In just over two weeks, Cullman Golf Course will be no more.

The course itself, however, isn’t actually going anywhere.

Only the name.

On April 15, Cullman Golf Course will officially become Cross Creek Golf Course, marking a move by Cullman City Parks and Recreation to distance the longtime local establishment from stigmas often associated with municipal courses.

Cullman Municipal Golf Course offered nine holes when it opened in 1954 and expanded to 18 in 1968. Municipal was eventually removed from the name around the turn of the century, but parks director Nathan Anderson said the perception still lingered.

He’s confident the switch to Cross Creek Golf Course will cure that.

“After speaking with several city-ran courses that are successful, they all agreed that municipal name, a name that would associate you with quote ‘muni,’ is limiting on out-of-town golf traffic,” Anderson said. “We know that golfers from our area are proud of our municipal courses. We just want to make sure that those that are not familiar with the quality of our course aren’t rejecting our course based off a name. We want them to play and make their decision when they’re on the course.”

According to city parks marketing director Waid Harbison, the reasoning behind settling on Cross Creek as the new name was simple.

The water running through the course used to be referred to internally quite literally as “the creek that crosses the golf course.” Shortened even further — cross creek.

Ta-da.

A few other names were discussed, but Harbison said Cross Creek stuck out from the start and “just kind of fit with what we were doing and the image we were going for.” The decision was made sometime around last September and announced publicly Thursday on social media.

The name change comes with a snazzy new logo, which is expected to be featured quite prominently when the course rolls out fresh business cards, flags, decals for carts, signage and a new website. Additional aspects of the rebranding project include landscaping improvements, a “few changes” to the course itself and some updates to the clubhouse.

The course’s available offerings were expanded Feb. 27 with the opening of the Steven DeBoer Golf Academy and accompanying indoor practice facility.

“I guess I only have 14 more days at Cullman Golf Course,” joked course pro and manager Ches Harris, a familiar fixture at the site for 19 years as of this month. “It’s definitely a change for me. It’s something we’ve talked about for awhile. Sometimes, we want to get away from that stereotype of being municipal. We’re very proud of what we have and want to reflect the quality of what we have.”

Anderson said the course is off to its best start in eight years — and second-best in a 12-year stretch — in terms of traffic and rounds of play.

Festivities commemorating the April 15 name swap will be revealed as the date approaches.