Good morning, Cookeville.

We told you last week that festival season was about to open. Well, it's here! The Tennessee Peach Festival takes over the fairgrounds this Saturday and Sunday, and the rest of the weekend filled in nicely around it: a free movie under the stars Friday, a car show Saturday morning, and markets stacked with the first peaches of the year. The weather is cooperating too, with sunshine Friday and Saturday and only a few storm chances creeping in Sunday afternoon. After a quiet week, this one earns its keep.

In today's Cookeville Scoop:

Let's get into it.

Bobby Nichols Scramble, on the courses Friday through Sunday. One of the region's most popular golf fundraisers is back this weekend, June 5-7, played across Golden Eagle Golf Club and White Plains Golf Course and sponsored by Pepsi and Michelob Ultra. Teams run $600 for two players, and spots vanish fast every year, so this is almost certainly full by now. We're flagging it for two reasons: it's a lot of what's happening out on the local greens this weekend, and it's one to circle early when registration opens next year. Details via UCBJ.

The Tiny Show opens Friday. A new small-works art exhibition opens Friday, June 5, and hangs through July 25, listed on the Visit Cookeville events calendar. Small art, big charm, and a cool indoor stop when the afternoon heat rolls in. visitcookevilletn.com/events.

Chill Billy's Lounge is open. If you're looking for somewhere new this weekend, Cookeville's newest craft cocktail and bar-food lounge comes from owners Toni and Bryon Mowrey. The pitch is "classic and craft," meaning the standards you'd expect alongside cocktails worth lingering over, with bar food a step up from the usual. A solid pick for a date night or a post-festival drink. Details via UCBJ.

The Putnam Room, now with a late Saturday and a slow Sunday. Two reasons to head for the Historic Square this weekend (319 E Spring Street). New this season is a Saturday late-night happy hour from 8 to 10 PM, perfect for a nightcap after the festival winds down. And Sunday brunch runs 11 AM to 3 PM, which is exactly the unhurried pace a Sunday deserves. The regular weekday happy hour (Tuesday through Friday, 3 to 5 PM) is still going too. theputnamroom.com.

Irrationale Kitchen+Taps, twice-daily happy hour. Irrationale runs happy hour from 2 to 4 PM and again from 8 PM to close, with $3 select drafts, $6 well spirits, $5 house wine, and half-price select appetizers. That late window is the move on a warm Thursday or Friday night when you want to land somewhere easy. irrationalekitchen.com.

It's peach o'clock, Cookeville!

The Tennessee Peach Festival takes over the Putnam County Fairgrounds (365 Fairground Street) this Saturday and Sunday, June 6 and 7, and it's the first big festival weekend of the summer. Picture more than 100 vendors, a row of food trucks, carnival rides, and live music, with peach everything in between, from peach treats to peach drinks to things you didn't know could be peach flavored. For the kids there's a dedicated kids' zone, a free petting zoo, and a free bounce house. Parking is free, and kids get in free, which makes this one of the easiest family yeses on the summer calendar.

It's run by Southern Market Events, the crew behind the fairgrounds festival lineup (they bring the Banana Festival back on June 27, but one festival at a time).

Here's the move: make a morning of it. Saturday in Cookeville is genuinely stacked. Cars and Coffee rolls into the Mid City District that morning, this month spotlighting Tennessee Valley Region SCCA racecars, and the Green Market sets up at Jig Head Brewing from 8 AM to noon. You could browse the market, walk the car show, and still get to the fairgrounds before lunch with a peach cobbler in hand.

One weather note worth your attention: Saturday looks mostly dry, but Sunday (festival day two) carries a few thunderstorm chances. If you're choosing a day, Saturday is the safer bet, and if Sunday's your only window, keep an eye on the radar.

Festival hours for 2026 hadn't been posted as of this writing (last year's ran 10 AM to 4 PM), so check the organizer's page before you head out. But you don't need the exact start time to know it's worth the trip. southernmarketevents.com.

Music Bingo and Open Mic at Roasted Hemp Co., Thursday night. Thursday, June 4 at Roasted Hemp Co. (1068 E 10th Street, Suite F). Music Bingo starts at 7 PM, and the Bomb Shelter Open Mic takes over at 9 PM. A free, low-key way to ease into the weekend, whether you're playing along or just there for the show. 21 and up. Free. roastedhempcookeville.com.

After Dark Movies in the Park, Friday at dusk. Friday, June 5 at the Dogwood Performance Pavilion in Dogwood Park, with the movie starting around dusk (about 8 PM). The free family movie series runs every Friday in June, so grab lawn chairs and blankets and settle in. Concessions are available. Friday's forecast is sunny and dry, which is just about perfect for it. Free. No registration, just show up. cookeville-tn.gov/events.

Cars and Coffee, Saturday morning. Saturday, June 6 in the Mid City District. The free monthly car gathering runs rain or shine, and this month puts Tennessee Valley Region SCCA racecars in the spotlight. Coffee, cool cars, and an easy pairing with a Peach Festival Saturday. Free. More on Cars and Coffee.

Cookeville Green Market, Saturday 8 AM to noon. Saturday, June 6 at Jig Head Brewing Company (310 Newman Drive). A year-round Saturday producer market with seasonal vegetables, cut flowers, local meats, honey, jams, and crafts. Worth a slow lap before the day heats up. Free to browse. cookevillegreenmarket.

Cookeville Farmers Market, any day this weekend. Open daily, 6 AM to 6 PM, at the covered market building on Mahler Avenue (201 Mahler Ave). Strawberries are at their peak and rolling into the first peaches of the year, alongside plant starts, herbs, baked goods, honey, and eggs. Saturday is the busiest, best-stocked day if you want the full spread. Free to browse. cookeville-tn.gov/farmers-market.

Summer reading at the Putnam County Library. The library's summer reading season is underway through July 31, with kids' activities and prizes, plus weekly preschool Story Time at 10 AM. A cool, free, indoor standby for the long summer ahead. Sign up at the Cookeville branch (50 E Broad Street). Free. pclibrary.org.

Know a family that would love a free day of peaches and carnival rides, or a friend who needs a Friday-night movie plan? Forward this their way. Have an event, opening, or story tip we missed? Reply straight to this email or tag us on social. We read every one.

Thanks for being here, Cookeville. This is the good stuff, the first real festival weekend of the summer, with sunshine to match. Go get a peach for us! And save room next Saturday, June 13, for Upper Cumberland Pride at Dogwood Park (11 AM to 5 PM, free), because the calendar isn't slowing down anytime soon. See you back here before the weekend. 🧡

-- The Cookeville Scoop Team