Hole By Hole

The First: The perfect opening hole. A confidence building fairway with the prevailing wind behind you, this par five undulates eastwards, gently downward to a green reachable in two for moderately big hitters. No real danger beyond a cleverly placed deep bunker 80 yards from the green, designed to catch the ambitious but unskilled! Par is a must here.

The Second: As you approach the tee you are confronted with a breathtaking panorama, encompassing Deer Lake and the surrounding hills. The green on this short par three, is well below you but be careful! The prevailing wind is still behind you but any misguided tee shot will be caught in the greenside bunkers that run from two to six o’clock. Par is expected here.

The Third: A shortish, slight dog leg par four with the same panoramic views of Deer Lake from the tee. The drive is significantly elevated, with an opportunity to cut a little off the dog leg by flying a pair of ball gobbling bunkers in the inner elbow. The landing area is flat and the approach to a reasonably flat green is quite short. Birdie opportunity here.

The Fourth: Par Four, long, played along the edge of the lake with a barrier of trees between. Birch lined fairways and a tight landing area make this tee shot challenging, coupled with a long second into a raised platform green. Again, the prevailing wind is helping but a picturesque and difficult hole. Par would be a very good score here.

The Fifth: Par three played across a small inlet in the lake. Again, prevailing wind assisted, which is needed as this hole plays (distance) off the back. You need to fly it the whole way, first over the lake and then the waste bunker (which is just an extension of the lakeshore beach!). A long tough tee shot into a gently undulating green. Par is an excellent score here.

The Sixth: Back into the wind. A gentle dogleg with bunkers in the elbow give you an opportunity to cut the corner to reduce the length of a very long second. The green is fairly flat and large, but it needs to be as most players will be using a long iron or fairway wood for their approach. Par is an excellent score here.

The Seventh: Again into the wind. Par five, long and gently uphill. The drive is fairly open but bunkers left and right will catch anyone erring too much, and once in them par will be difficult. The green is almost certainly unreachable in two and your landing area to the left is guarded by a deep bunker, but keep right and there is a lot of room feeding onto a broad plateau, from 170 yards out to the green. The hole is lined with a combination of mature pine and birch forest. Once on the green the view back down the hole is spectacular, taking in Deer Lake and the surrounding hills. Par is a good score into the wind.

The Eighth: Par four. A relatively short hole with dramatic contour change. Off the tee one plays across a significant swale, with bunkers short and left and mid length right. The landing area is generous for a well aimed tee shot. One’s approach is a mid to short iron to a significantly raised green with contour running sharply right to left. Left of the green are large bunkers, but there is room on the right to feed the ball in off the slope. This hole is a birdie opportunity if you exercise good judgment on this large green as the wind is blowing head on.

The Ninth: Par four. Close to the end of amen corner on the River Course! A flattish par four that is the most exposed to the westerly that blows up the valley. A raised tee enables you to survey your drive which requires a very accurate and well hit tee shot. The fairway is an ess with bunkers in the elbows and one needs to decide whether or not to take them on. If one does and one succeeds, the reward is a short iron approach into a deep but narrow green guarded by bunkers on the right. Catch the bunkers off the tee and par will require a deft pitch and single putt as one won’t be reaching the green in two. Again, par is a good score here.

The Tenth: Par four. Dramatic tee shot into the teeth of the wind played from a pulpit 180 ft above the fairway. The fairway is wide but once on it, one’s second is long played across and through a large swale. Bunkers, short and left of the green catch any ball struck less than perfectly. The green is highly contoured with a small and very raised platform back right that is very tough to get to if the greenkeeper has had a bad morning! No guarantees of two putts on this green. Ranked toughest on the back nine, this hole deserves its reputation. Par is an excellent score here.

The Eleventh: Par four. Again a pulpit tee with a glorious mountain backdrop played into a generous landing area. Bunkers short left need to be flown to ensure a short iron into the green. The wind prevails into and across the hole from the right. The approach is to a wide but very shallow green with emphasis on distance being the key. Any slight misjudgment will cause one to play one’s third from one of the bunkers both in front of and behind the green. A definite birdie opportunity.

The Twelfth: Par four. Tight driving hole across a small pond with bunkers lining the right side of the fairway. Again, a beautiful mountain backdrop. The approach is tricky as a granite edged stream meanders down the right edge and across the front of the green. The green is split level and large and distance judgment is critical here if one is to have any chance at birdie. Par is a good score, but played well this hole is birdieable, although any mistake is likely to lead to at least one and possibly two dropped shots.

The Thirteenth: Par five and the start of the scoring opportunities. Played from a raised tee through a swale to a platform landing area, the winds prevail right to left and slightly into the tee shot. Bunkers catch errant tee shots short left and long right with a small stream lining the right hand side of the hole against a backdrop of mature birch. The approach is sharply downhill into a large green framed behind by a lazy bend in the Humber River. Reachable in two, this is a definite birdie opportunity but miss the green left and everything feeds into the woods. Miss right and short and you’re in bunkers, but with the size of this green, good play is rewarded and birdies still obtainable.

The Fourteenth: Par three. A magical setting against the river bank, framed by birch, maple and spruce make this hole a visual delight. The wind prevails strongly from right to left into a clover shaped green with bunkers all around. Mid-iron in length, distance is often deceptive with swirling winds, which make this green easy to miss, with knuckles rapped for so doing. The bunkers are deep and foreboding and getting up and down is difficult. Par is a good score.

The Fifteenth: A short driveable par four, prevailing wind behind, designed to test character and mettle. Again sided by the river on the right, this very narrow fairway has a pond on the left and stream behind the green. The usual practice is to play a long iron off the tee over a small inlet in the river to a smallish but attainable landing area, followed by a short iron approach into a very narrow and very deep green. The brave (and often foolhardy or desperate) will drive the green but even the slightest miss-hit leads to a watery grave. The green is deceptive in its length and pinpoint short iron judgment is critical here. Birdies are on the cards for accuracy, with anything errant punished. The ultimate risk reward hole.

The Sixteenth: Par four. This long narrow hole prevails downwind. Framed by a large fescue quilted hillside down the left of the fairway and thick spruce forest on the right, accuracy and length off the tee are at a premium here. One’s approach is long to a raised bowl shaped green that feeds balls into the centre. Don’t miss short or right as this green is well guarded with bunkers! Par is a good score downwind and an excellent score into the wind.

The Seventeenth: Par three reminiscent of the 12th at Augusta National. A short, innocuous looking hole requiring only a short to mid iron. The very narrow green runs from short left to long right with deep bunkers in front of the green and shallow ones behind. Distance and direction are critical here made difficult by swirling winds that blow off the left and feed miss-hit shots into the traps below. Hit the green and birdies are possible, but miss and a bogey is highly likely. A match turning hole.

The Eighteenth: A delightful par five played against the backdrop of the clubhouse which towers 250 feet above. The landing area for one’s tee shot is generous short, with bunkers right and left to catch the ambitious but inaccurate longer hitters. With the prevailing wind behind one, the longer hitter has an opportunity to reach the green in two, challenging the large pond that lines the right hand side of the fairway and the front of this split level green. For the more conservative golfer, one’s second is tight with a steep fescued bank on the left and water on the right. Provided one has threaded the needle, however, the green opens up and a short iron could see one nestled close to the flag, provided one doesn’t let your approach drift right into the valley of sin that will make two putting very difficult. A definite birdie or double bogey hole, five is easily achievable for those not wanting to risk it all! A perfect finishing hole with a multiple of possible outcomes!