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Ten
Canadian
golf courses
well worth the travel
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A golf junket to Manitoba last year
was a personal milestone that meant I had finally played courses in
every province in Canada. Although I’ve also hit the links in
countries
around the world from Australia to Ireland, Scotland, Asia, South
Africa, Hawaii, and Mexico and throughout the United States, I can say
with certainty that far away fairways are no greener than those we have
here in our own back yard.
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The Ridge in BC follows the land’s natural contours,
and offers golfers stunning views of Lake Okanagen
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With
more than 2000 courses from coast to coast the inventory of exceptional
tracks is extensive and reducing the field to a single, must-play
course per province omits a plethora of worthy contenders. While my
picks are purely subjective, the 10 I have chosen include a few well
known names together with some that deserve more recognition than they
get and two that are new.
Atlantic Canada
No place in the Atlantic region is better known for golf than Prince
Edward Island where the renowned Thomas McBroom-designed Links at
Crowbush Cove is the standard-bearer among 32 island courses. The
18-hole championship layout that has kept Crowbush in Canada’s
top ten since it opened in 1994 measures 6,903 yards from the tips and
many of its holes offer spectacular views of the Atlantic Ocean and
North Shore dunes. golflinkspei.com
Nova Scotia’s famed Highlands Links
is clearly among Canada’s elite courses but for a change of pace
my
pick goes to Digby Pines. Canada’s legendary architect, Stanley
Thompson, created this layout as well as Highlands Links; consequently
they share many of the same imprints.
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Several holes on The
Fairmont Algonquin course
overlook the Bay of Fundy
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Located at
the north shore town
of Digby (famous for its world-renowned scallops), Digby Pines does not
receive the same attention as Highlands Links which is a shame because
it’s a gem of a course that winds through picturesque pine
forest,
criss-crosses a winding brook and incorporates abundant
undulations. www.digbypines.ca
My hands-down choice in New Brunswick is the Fairmont Algonquin course,
a top notch club at St. Andrews by-the-Sea, one of the most charming
seaside towns in Atlantic Canada. The former Donald Ross course was
completely redesigned in 2000 and its most striking feature is a
sequence of dramatic holes on the back nine that overlooks the Bay of
Fundy. www.fairmontgolf.com/algonquin
Newfoundland has fewer courses than the rest of Atlantic Canada yet it
boasts some fine layouts like the Terra Nova Golf Course on the edge of
Terra Nova National Park. This club’s exceptional Twin Rivers
course
criss-crosses rivers, rims the Atlantic Ocean and winds through thick
forest that is home to moose, bald eagles and deer. Play here offers a
top notch layout in a ruggedly beautiful setting. www.terranovagolf.com
Central Canada
There are oodles of high-end courses to choose from in Ontario’s
Muskoka Region but my pick goes to the Bigwin Island Golf Club in the
Lake of Bays.
A five-minute ferry ride from the mainland
opens the door
on a spectacular island course that features a classic design, sweeping
fairways lined with hardwood forest, 75 bunkers and awesome views of
the lake from many of its holes. This 7,166-yard championship course
designed by Doug Carrick is as good as it gets. www.bigwinisland.com
Quebec
likewise has a bumper crop of phenomenal courses but my
preference lies with La Bête (the Beast) a Laurentian Mountains
track
one of the two Gray Rocks courses (the courses still operate –
even
though the hotel is closed). Situated in the Mont Tremblant area, this
Graham Cooke-designed layout features plenty of elevation changes, a
slew of waste bunkers and water hazards.
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A stay at the historic
Fairmont Algonquin in
St Andrews-By-The-Sea is a memorable
experience that will enhance your time on the
golf course (or make up for a poor game!)
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It’s
tough, tricky and fair
all at the same time. www.golflabelleetlabete.com
The Prairies
My pick in Manitoba is the Links at Quarry Oaks, a Scottish style
course about 40 minutes west of Winnipeg. Measuring 7,009 yards, its
long, demanding layout is defined by a horde of waste bunkers the size
of football fields, plus 22 acres of lakes and an island green. www.quarryoaks.ca
Five years ago, shortly after its opening, I accidentally discovered
Saskatchewan’s Dakota Dunes, a truly special course about 30
minutes
south of Saskatoon. This 18-hole championship track is owned by the
Dakota First Nations and unfolds over a landscape anomaly of prairie
desert, natural sand dunes and indigenous grasses. The layout is
creative, challenging and overall, it’s a huge shot in the arm
for the
province’s golf scene. Adjacent to the course, a First Nations
casino
has also been opened. www.dakotadunes.ca
Western Canada
Every player’s golf life should absolutely include a round at
Alberta’s
Fairmont Banff Springs Golf Course in the heart of the Canadian
Rockies. In addition to a stellar layout designed by the incomparable
Stanley Thompson, this impeccable track embodies breathtaking views in
every direction. Over its lengthy history, the course has consistently
remained among Canada’s best and for a bit of additional colour
the
experience here often includes sharing the fairways with grazing
elk. www.fairmont.com/banffsprings/recreation/golf/
Picking a favourite course in British
Columbia amounts to about a
12-way tie among some fantastic courses; however, my pick is the brand
new Ridge course at the Predator Ridge Golf Club in the Okanagan
Valley.
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The Fairmont Banff
Springs course is situated
one of Canada’s most beautiful mountain valleys
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Located
near the town of Vernon, the much anticipated Ridge is
a 7,123-yard mountain course that opened in mid June and cost $10
million to build. Crafted by
prominent Canadian architect, Doug
Carrick, its layout follows the natural contours of the landscape and
features relatively generous fairways, breathtaking views of Lake
Okanagan, numerous rock outcroppings and dramatic elevation changes.
This is a sister course to the Les Furber-designed Predator track. www.predatorridge.com
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