The Top 40 Golf Courses in British Columbia

40. Lakepoint

Fort St. John

1,164KM from Kelowna

Architect:

Norman Woods

Year Built:

1974

Photo credit: Golf Ontario

Golf has been played since here 1958, but it was not until 1974 that Stanley Thompson associate Norman Woods would renovate the original nine and expand the club to eighteen holes, arriving at the layout we see and play today.

The golf course is mainly routed through the thick boreal forest near the Alaskan Highway, which proves to be a difficult climate in which to play golf, but nevertheless, a worthy addition to the list.

Those who venture this far into Northern BC will be treated with long views of Charlie Lake on numerous holes, but the rolling topography lays way for fun, creative golf in a tranquil setting in a rather unexpected region for golf.

39. University

Vancouver

8.5KM from city centre

Architect:

A.V. Macan, Les Furber

Year Built:

1929

Photo credit: courtesy

Arthur Vernon Macan dominated the Pacific Northwest, being responsible for Royal Colwood, Victoria, Shaughnessy, and Kelowna, all of which are included in our Top 100. On the public side, the same is true. At University—one of two golf courses in Canada on a college campus—Macan draws from Royal Colwood and Shaughnessy, playing among the towering pines with heavily undulated greens.

The par 4, 1st, is a noble start, high atop the fairway plunging down, while the 2nd, a devilish par 3, the 3rd, featuring a heavily tilted fairway and matching green, and the 4th, with a tight tee shot through the mighty Douglas Firs, provide a striking start to the golf course. On the back, the par 5, 10th, par 4, 14th, and par 3, 16th, are ample enough to make this one of the more enjoyable public golf experiences in Vancouver.

38. Okanagan

Kelowna

16KM from city centre

Course:

Bear

Architect:

Steve Nicklaus & Bill O’Leary

Year Built:

1999

Photo credit: courtesy

A very difficult region to stand out, with numerous excellent public option within a two-hour radius from Kelowna airport. Perhaps one that is overlooked is Okanagan Golf Club’s Bear course, quite literally across Highway 97 on the hillside above YLW airport.

Steve Nicklaus’ golf course plays through sandy, rolling terrain on the front nine, which produces the best moments. The fall-away green at the 2nd, the dramatic tee shot at the 3rd, and the short 4th is a brilliant early stretch, and an early highlight. The ending to both nines provide a contrasting perspective: on the front, the reachable par 5’s at the 7th & 9th sandwich a driveable par 4, but on the back nine, the gruelling 16th & 17th set the stage for the long, gambling par 5, 18th playing down and back up the clubhouse.

37. Crown Isle

Courtenay

225KM from Victoria

Architect:

Graham Cooke, Wayne Carleton, & Ted Locke

Year Built:

1993

Photo credit: Experience Comox Valley

A staple in the Canadian Tour’s schedule, and in recent years, the lone Canadian Q-School stop, Crown Isle is a popular Canadian course, and worthy of its status among tour players and great club golfers alike.

The stunning views of Beaufort Mountain creep in behind the pine trees, and with an abundance of water, Crown Isle is as beautiful as is it difficult, though there’s more than what meets the eye here. The par 5’s at the 5th and 15th are full of strategy and trouble, though perhaps a little too reliant on water for our panel’s liking. Like many of the holes, the par 4, 18th is dominated by water, making for a stern closing hole, but the 9th—the finishing hole to the other side of the golf course—relies on trees to cleverly, and rather uniquely, provide a distinct challenge to golfers.

36. Fraserview

Vancouver

8KM from city centre

Architect:

HL MacPherson, Thomas McBroom

Year Built:

1935

Photo credit: courtesy

Fraserview is one of the few municipal golf courses to make our Top 100 Public list, and rightful ranks among British Columbia’s Top 40 following a facelift from Thomas McBroom in the late 1990s.

Primarily on a fairly consistently tilted hillside sloping down towards the (you guessed it) Fraser River feeding in from the Pacific Ocean, HL MacPherson’s routing utilizes the hillside in a way that provides the utmost variety: on the 3rd, the golfer tumbles down into the valley, getting multiple interesting holes into the side hill. All this excitement sets up the dramatic 18th, a Hail Mary over a natural barranca to the green cut on the other side.

35. Shadow Mountain

Cranbrook

541KM from Kelowna

Architect:

Graham Cooke & Wayne Carleton

Year Built:

2009

Photo credit: Golf Ontario

Routed through a sandy property at the base of the Rocky Mountains, Graham Cooke & Wayne Carleton took advantage of the property’s assets, tapping into Pine Valley’s general aesthetic and concept to provide a public experience that is is arguably above the rest in the area.

Direct homages to Pine Valley include the par 3, 8th playing over a massive bunker complex and paying tribute to the famed one-shot hole at Pine Valley’s 5th; the Great Hazard on the par 5, 5th; the 7th calling back to the risk-reward tee shot at PV’s 6th; and the general bunker style—although we admit it is a bit of a stretch to directly compare the 80th best public golf course in Canada to the best golf course in the world.

34. Gallagher’s Canyon

Kelowna

14KM from city centre

Course:

Canyons

Architect:

Bill Robinson

Year Built:

1980

Photo credit: courtesy

High above the valley and the City of Kelowna, Gallagher’s Canyon side-winds its way through the tall pines and rolling terrain of British Columbia’s interior.

Fans of both the drivable par 4 and the short par 3 will be pleased to find they come quickly, with the 2nd and 3rd, respectively, introducing the golfer following a brutish opening hole on what some argue is Bill Robinson’s best eighteen hole design. The 6th, pictured above, is a beautiful risk-reward par 5, while on the 10th green side bunkering seems to call back to Stanley Thompson. On the inward nine, the par 4, 15th over some of the best rolling land in Kelowna is an excellent par 4, and the short two-shot 18th avoids the cliché of an uphill, long closing hole.

33. Wildstone

Cranbrook

534KM from Kelowna

Architect:

Jeff Lawrence for Gary Player Design

Year Built:

2011

Photo credit: TripAdvisor

A surprising amount of A-list talent came together to help Gary Player Design build Wildstone, including Jeff Lawrence, Trev Dormer, and Rob Collins, and the details show. The bunkering is among the most interesting in a golf-rich area for public golf, and perhaps in the province.

The talent that came together might be a surprise, but the results are not given the résumés of the crew: Dormer has been a part of Coore & Crenshaw’s shaping team for a while, Rob Collins is one half of the design team behind Sweetens Cove and Landmand, and Jeff Lawrence was one of Tom Fazio’s key guys before coming to Gary Player Design.

Those who visit will find solace in the beauty and superb green at the 4th, and the 17th, with the 1st/12th shared bunker complex being a real beauty.

32. Eagle Ranch

Invermere

463KM from Kelowna

Architect:

Bill Robinson

Year Built:

2000

Primarily working its way through a gently rolling property set atop a bench between the Rocky Mountains to the east and the Columbia River to the west, Bill Robinson’s effort is commendable, navigating the limestone gully’s and thick forest.

There are a number of odd decisions that will surely stick in golfers’ memories: the par 4, 9th is demanding, with its forced carry layup, while the par 4, 10th features a row of trees dividing the fairway in two, as well as the head-scratching 18th. The three holes separated at the southernmost part of the property almost feel like an interlude between the excellent par 3, 11th, roller coaster 12th and the signature par 3, 16th tucked into the hillside, while the short par 4, 7th is an excellent drive & pitch hole.

31. Salmon Arm

Salmon Arm

103KM from Kelowna

Course:

Champions

Architect:

Les Furber

Year Built:

1994

Photo credit: courtesy

The Shuswap is one of the more underrated areas in British Columbia for a vacation or for golf, and that is particularly because of Salmon Arm, a rather impressive Les Furber golf course over some very dynamic ground. In fact, the ground is evidently on the 1st, a brilliant reverse canted fairway on a dogleg left two-shot hole. The rolling fairways on the long par 5, 4th and the short 15th are exacting and Golden Age-esque, while the controversial dogleg holes from Furber pop up often on the 3rd, 8th, 10th, and 13th.

Depending on your tastes, the par 5, 11th is either love-it-or-hate-it moment, but there is no denying the beauty of the par 3, 17th, a stunning penultimate hole with some of Furber’s most attractive bunkering.

30. Whistler

Whistler

124KM from Vancouver

Architect:

Ed Seay for Arnold Palmer Design

Year Built:

1983

Photo credit: Tourism Whistler

For some reason, Whistler is often seen as the “little sibling” to Big Sky, Nicklaus North, and Chateau Whistler, but that should not be the case: for some on our panel, this is one of, if not the best in the region, and a testament to the work Ed Seay and Arnold Palmer put in on this property.

Like the other Whistler golf courses, stunning views of Canada’s best ski region await, and truthfully, they surround the golf course. The architecture stands just as tall, with natural streams and some marshland providing a captivating canvas. First-time users will be keen to identify the finishing stretch as the highlight, but return visitors will find the subtlety of the par 3, 5th, the difficult 11th, and the charming opening hole to provide a wonderful golf course from start to finish.

29. Nicklaus North

Whistler

127KM from Vancouver

Architect:

Jack Nicklaus

Year Built:

1996

Photo credit: Your Golf Travel

The popular town of Whistler, British Columbia is best-known for Whistler-Blackcomb, a world-renowned ski hill & resort, as well as host of the 2010 Winter Olympics. Nicklaus North is one of the handful of golf courses to help popularize it as a notable place to play golf in the summer, however, and upon a visitor’s first round, they understand why.

Most of the golf course winds itself through the marsh, with the towering Pacific Mountains looking high above the flat valley in which Jack Nicklaus’ routing takes us through.

The double green at the 3rd and the 12th is interesting and worthy of consideration, as well as some of the bunkering shapes and artistic flair, but the golf course really builds to the closing three holes. The 16th and 18th are longer par 4’s playing over Fitzsimmons Creek, while the par 3, 17th plays flush against Green Lake.

28. Storey Creek

Campbell River

257KM from Victoria

Architect:

Les Furber

Year Built:

1995

Photo credit: courtesy

Routed through the tall, mature Douglar Firs of Vancouver Island’s stunning Salmon Capital, Storey Creek is often put alongside Fairview Mountain and Predator Ridge’s Predator course as Les Furber’s best effort, at least among our panel. For good reason, too.

The 4th hole is a particularly spirited par 5, with a slight bend off the tee shot to the left, with a hazard eating into the fairway and landing zone in the spirit of A.W. Tillinghast’s “Great Hazard,” or Alister Mackenzie’s philosophy about there always being a route to the hole, but the most direct route is more troublesome. Rather inspired is the 13th green, featuring its clover shape tucked into the landscape and the trees, the 16th green sits beyond a natural ravine, and the dogleg right 18th asks the golfer to cut off as much as they can chew to attempt to get home in two, oer at the very least close enough to make it a three-shot hole.

27. Fairview Mountain

Oliver

107KM from Kelowna

Architect:

Les Furber

Year Built:

1995

Photo credit: courtesy

A rather subdued Les Furber layout over the rolling, vineyard ridden hills of Oliver south of Kelowna, Fairview Mountain is an enjoyable, thrilling ride. The routing primarily finds itself tucked into the hillside of one of the beautiful Okanagan mountains, which lends way for dramatic plunges and climbs.

Generally, a Les Furber design is flamboyant and dramatic, relying on his own hand to make thongs exciting. On the other hand, Fairview Mountain is restrained, which lets the landscape talk. The result is a layout with holes like the par 4, 6th, doglegging right around a valley that doesn’t feel forced, but rather found – likewise for par 3, 4th, the 9th & 10th, and the dramatic par 4, 18th tumbling down into the landscape below in a thrilling fashion.

26. Seymour

North Vancouver

18KM from Vancouver

Architect:

Ernie Naggus, Ted Locke

Year Built:

1953

Photo credit: Golfpass

Like No. 1 Capilano, Seymour’s routing works its way up and down the North Shore mountains overlooking the Lower Mainland and the Burrard Inlet. As a result, the golf course is a rather hilly, yet pleasant walk among the thick pines and beautiful PNW greenery.

Interestingly, also like Capilano, the golf course begins sledding down the mountainside with a short par 5. From here, the golf courses separate to form their own identity: Seymour rather aggressively heaves into the slopes to provide short, yet challenging golf in a way only the Pacific Northwest can. It is no wonder this has quickly become a favourite venue for high-level championships hosted in Vancouver in recent years.

25. Copper Point

Invermere

463KM from Kelowna

Course:

Point

Architect:

Gary Browning & Wade Horrocks

Year Built:

1995

Photo credit: courtesy

Sound in architecture principals in a great setting like Invermere, British Columbia on the east side of the Rocky Mountains is a deadly combo, as made evident by the Point course at the popular Copper Point Resort.

A strong set of par 5’s is the backbone of Gary Browning & Wade Horrocks routing. Notably, the par 5, 3rd tumbling into the valley (above), and the par 5, 9th moving up, over, and back up are best-in-class for British Columbia. Nevertheless, the rest of the holes provide enough interest to make Copper Point a charmer: the par 4, 13th, playing against the ravine on the right before crossing it is an excellent par 4, as well as the Redan-inspired 2nd & 12th are both enjoyable.

Our panel specifically identified Copper Point’s strength as its ability to provide challenge in spots, while letting off the gas in others: the balance struck to accommodate a riveting golf course for low handicappers and an enjoyable one for high-handicappers is a true accomplishment.

24. Radium

Radium Hot Springs

450KM from Kelowna

Course:

Springs

Architect:

Les Furber

Year Built:

1988

Photo credit: TravelAdvisor

The Western side of the Canadian Rocky Mountains has produced numerous golf courses worth mentioning on a list like this, but one of the originals is Radium Resort’s Springs course, a beautiful Les Furber design near the famed Columbia River that takes full advantage of its setting with stunning, long views of the mountains.

The golf course primarily plays on the cliffs overlooking the river and the surrounding valley below, tucked into the town. Furber’s bunkering is random and sporadic, with various shapes, sizes, and styles to help direct golfers through the routing. Towering pines and stunning cliffside holes, like the par 3, 17th, continue to thrill golfers who visit this stunning region.

23. Richmond

Richmond

19KM from Vancouver

Architect:

A.V. Macan, Les Furber

Year Built:

1958

With quite literally zero feet of elevation change to work with, A.V. Macan had his work cut out on Richmond, located south of downtown Vancouver close to the south prong of the Fraser River.

His solution? Upside down bowl greens akin to Pinehurst No. 2, which dramatically transform the bland, feature-less property into a borderline must-see in the Lower Mainland. Each green is unique and not like the rest, with various difficulties, internal contours, and surrounds to help differentiate. It is a little bland tee-to-green (as expected), but Macan’s greens steal the show.

22. Kings Links

Delta

27KM from Vancouver

Architect:

Robert Muir Graves, Bob Ahoy, Kenny Lamb

Year Built:

2002

Golf on a property as bland and vanilla as King Links should not turn out as good as it had here, but that is a testament to the work put in by Robert Muir Graves, Bob Ahoy, and shaper Kenny Lamb, who took on the majority of the work on-site.

With a lack of natural features to work with, the team heavily relied on crowned, pushed up greens in a way that draws clear inspiration from Donald Ross’ Pinehurst No. 2. Similarly, unique shapes and winged greens provide dynamic pin locations in a way that William Flynn uses, although further complicated by the best-in-class green surroundings.

The par 5, 11th, inspired by Hogan’s Alley at Carnoustie along the northern perimeter fence, is worth the trip here alone.

21. Predator Ridge

Vernon

45KM from Kelowna

Course:

Predator

Architect:

Les Furber, Doug Carrick

Year Built:

1991

Photo credit: courtesy

The land between Kelowna and proper Vernon is quite hilly and rocky, yet the Predator course manages to find a small parcel of land that seems suitable for golf. In fact, Predator Ridge’s Predator course sticks out amongst the other British Columbian golf courses because of its distinct identity. Gone are the towering evergreens and cart-only golf, traded in for wispy golden brown natural grasses and a (mostly) walkable golf course (it gets difficult at times, but do-able). We will not call it faux-links, but there is something idyllic about standing on 10 green and taking in the surroundings of the natural grasses and the surrounding holes.

Among the collection of Les Furber’s best golf holes, the short par 3, 13th, without a bunker, has some wicked contour that makes for some devilish pins, and the par 3, 17th tucked into the hillside is inspiring. Doug Carrick’s work in recent years has softened some of the extreme features found on the opening four holes to make for a better experience.

20. Gorge Vale

Victoria

3.5KM from city centre

Architect:

A.V. Macan, Les Furber

Year Built:

1927

Photo credit: Jeff Mingay

Somewhere in between the flatter golf courses down closer to the ocean and the hilly properties up the mountain, Gorge Vale is a strong routing from A.V. Macan, which takes full advantage of the land movement of the site.

Macan’s routing is a true shotmakers playground, where the small and undulating greens working around the hillsides make the golfer play a wide array of shots. Also sprinkled in, a plethora of half-par holes provide a unique pacing, and a round of golf made for betting at this player club.

Perhaps the most identifying feature of Gorge Vale comes on the 423 yard par 4, 12th, where the Veterans Cemetery (God’s Acre) National flanks the right side of the hole.

19. Bear Mountain

Langford

19KM from Victoria

Course:

Mountain

Architect:

Jack Nicklaus

Year Built:

2003

Photo credit: Marriott Hotels

The original of the two golf courses at Bear Mountain, the Mountain golf course lost the fight with housing developments, which eventually led to a re-route and the 19th betting hole being included in the proper routing (now the 14th hole, pictured above).

As opposed to the Valley course, which goes for the more rugged, blown out bunker style, the Mountain is slightly more polished, instead electing for the grass face style bunkers. As such, some of the “stadium” aspects of the TPC Network are used here, such as the island green par 3, 10th and the difficult uphill finishing hole.

The uphill par 5, 13th and par 3, 16th round out a very impressive finishing six holes among the “best in class” of the Golden Bear’s catalogue.

18. Bear Mountain

Langford

19KM from Victoria

Course:

Valley

Architect:

Steve Nicklaus for Nicklaus Design

Year Built:

2009

Photo credit: The Golfing Canuck

Sites as hilly and rocky as Bear Mountain’s valley course shouldn’t produce such great golf, and yet, Steve Nicklaus’ creative problem solving provides an exhilarating loop outside of Victoria.

The use of rocky outcroppings is sparsely used in British Columbia (outside of maybe the Ridge at Predator Ridge), and draws more inspiration from the Canadian Shield of Northern Ontario. Pairing with the elevation change of a mountain golf course and you get a rocky roller coaster of a golf course—in the most fun way possible.

The golf course climaxes on the long “S” shaped par 5, 15th hole, which climbs slightly back up against a pond left, but the par 3’s are particularly noteworthy throughout.

17. Point Grey

Vancouver

8KM from city centre

Architect:

Duncan Sutherland, Riley Johns

Year Built:

1924

Photo credit: Par Six Golf

Like nearby Marine Drive and Shaughnessy, Point Grey is set in the boujee neighbourhood of Point Grey on the shores of the Fraser River, but the interactions with the actual river are limited, coming only into the golfers view on the short par 4, 4th, and again briefly at the 7th tee/6th & 15th green.

Instead, the golf course primarily plays inland, where it deals with some of the more subdued terrain. The obvious highlights come when the routing takes the golfer back into the hillside where the clubhouse sits. The 11th and 18th play back into the hillside, while the 1st and 12th tumble down.

In recent years, Riley Johns, whose résumé includes working for Tom Doak and Bill Coore, renovated the 8th-10th to make way for a new driving range. This led to a more creative style of golf, and one in which we hope to see translate to the rest of the golf course.

16. Vancouver

Coquitlam

29KM from Vancouver

Architect:

Mike Gardner & Alex Duthie, Ted Locke

Year Built:

1911

Upcoming Work From:

Gary Browning

Photo credit: The Golfing Canuck

One would think that “Vancouver Golf Club” would be situated in the actual city limits of Vancouver, but that is not the case here. Instead, founding members elected to set up camp in Coquitlam, some 24 kilometres from the city centre. As such, the course benefitted with a hillier property, and one could argue better golf.

The dramatic property is evident on the opening stretch, where the 1st-3rd tumbles down the mountainside. As does the monster 6th, which reveals one of the best city views in the country. The 18th reveals the same view, a laborious par 4 working its way back down to the clubhouse with the Lower Mainland in the background.

Sure, the back nines routing, which primarily works its way east/west, gets a bit redundant at times, but those who play Vancouver will fall in love with more than its idyllic setting.

15. Chateau Whistler

Whistler

125KM from Vancouver

Architect:

Robert Trent Jones Jr.

Year Built:

1993

Photo credit: Golfpass

Perhaps more than any other golf course on this list, Chateau Whistler’s bracing start—highlighted by the ridiculous par 4, 3rd climbing up the mountainside—provides the most difficult opening four hole stretch on the top 100. Yet it’s once Robert Trent Jones Jr. transports us to the top of the mountain that we see the benefits. That is not to say there is no difficult golf to be found coming home. The par 3, 8th with a massive rock outcropping right and water left is incredibly demanding, but the par 5’s on either side provide an interesting juxtaposition: the 7th slides downhill, while the short 9th climbs abruptly. The inward stretch of golf is much more user-friendly working its way down the hillside back towards Whistler Village, but we are partial to the one-shot holes, which offer two distinctive looks at downhill par 3’s.

14. Talking Rock

Chase

157KM from Kelowna

Architect:

Graham Cooke & Wayne Carleton

Year Built:

2007

Photo credit: courtesy

A routing from Les Furber and a golf course from Graham Cooke and Wayne Carleton is not only a unique collaboration, it is the only original project they both worked on. And yet, Talking Rock provides such a fun joyride through the mountains of the Interior, we almost wish there was more opportunity for future projects.

The golf course itself has fallen victim to more intensive marketing schemes of other golf courses of nearby resort towns of Kelowna and Kamloops to the point where Talking Rock flies way under the radar. Similarly, the town of Chase is like the golf course: subdued, yet pleasant; almost hidden to anyone who has not been, but a favourite among those who have.

The closing four holes provide one of the most rambunctious third acts of any golf course our panel has seen… in the most exciting way possible.

13. Marine Drive

Vancouver

8KM from city centre

Architect:

A.V. Macan, Jim Urbina

Year Built:

1922

Upcoming Work From:

Rod Whitman

In an ideal world, an architect has ample room to choose the best piece of ground to lay a routing on top of, but at Marine Drive, A.V. Macan only had 92 acres sandwiched between the hillside above the clubhouse, and the Fraser River. And yet, Marine Drive is a perfect example of ideal not always being more fascinating, at least when dissecting an architect’s strengths.

In truth, Marine Drive is a testament to Macan’s ability to fit golf in on a small site. Aside from the small acreage suitable to build on, the routing itself has some distinct features to stand out: four of the five the par 3’s play into the corners of the property (the 16th does not), and the finishing six holes dance down and out of the hillside, cultivating with the downhill dogleg left tee shot with the clubhouse looming in the background.

The surrounds, fall offs, and rolls of the greens at Marine Drive only add a cherry of one of Canada’s great golf courses.

12. Big Sky

Pemberton

158KM from Vancouver

Architect:

Bob Cupp & John Fought

Year Built:

1993

Photo credit: Whistler Wired

As opposed to other British Columbian courses, most commonly dancing up in the mountains on rather hilly terrain, Big Sky sits at the base of Mount Currie through the marshy flatland below. As a result, comparisons to the Low Country in South Carolina or Florida are apt, though sitting in the base of a beautiful mountain range certainly provides a pretty spectacular setting.

Given how flat the property is, the talented duo of Bob Cupp and John Fought relied on green complexes to shine. For example, the 5th, a short par 3, is a devilish little one shot hole on the banks of the Green River with rolled edges surrounding the green. The 8th has a wonderful kicker slope over the bunker short, while the 16th repels balls off the left (with water right). Isn’t it impressive what two great architects can do with a flat site?

11. Tower Ranch

Kelowna

14KM from city centre

Architect:

Thomas McBroom

Year Built:

2008

Many of the modern golf courses in the Okanagan Valley are draped over the hillside high above the flatter valley bottoms, but the majority are poorly executed and unsuitable for golf. That may have applied to Tower Ranch had Thomas McBroom not found flatter portions of the mountainous terrain to route golf holes on.

The peculiar choice to route the initial three holes directly down the slope is unique, but the routing benefits from it by allowing golfers to ease into the round. Most of the middle portion of the golf course climbs uphill, best highlighted by the long par 4, 6th and short uphill 11th, which then sets up the drama coming home.

The two tee shots on the 13th and 15th play across a canyon are dramatic, but we tend to be partial to the par 3, 12th with an attractive bunkering scheme, and the par 5, 17th side-winding its way to an infinity green. The par 4, 18th playing around a bunker reminiscent of the Himalayas bunker at St. Enodoc, is a great way to end a thrilling round of golf.

10. Kelowna

Kelowna

3KM from city centre

Architect:

A.V. Macan, Graham Cooke & Wayne Carleton, Jeff Mingay

Year Built:

1920

A melting pot of architects coming together is not always a winning combination, and realistically, Kelowna was a bit of a mess until Jeff Mingay’s work. Years of trying to blend the Les Furber, Graham Cooke/Wayne Carleton, and the original A.V. Macan, and the results speak for themselves: Kelowna is a major player.

Part of the benefit of playing in the bottom of the valley is more subtle terrain in comparison, but there is more than enough interest in the land here to give way to interesting golf. Holes like the 5th and 8th narrow in landing areas that make it difficult to find the fairway, whereas the 16th or even 1st play to generous landing zones. Some greens are perched high above the surroundings, like the 7th and 15th, while others, such as the 11th and 13th, sit on grade. The variety in shots is the ethos of the golf course.

We would be doing Kelowna a disservice if we did not mention the epic 444 yard par 4, 10th, among the best long par 4’s in the province.

9. Royal Colwood

Colwood

15KM from Victoria

Architect:

A.V. Macan

Year Built:

1913

While Toronto Golf Club was eastern Canada’s first golf course that really explored elements of strategy and heroism, Royal Colwood was the western counterpart. Macan’s journey through the gentle rolling and rocky terrain became the beacon for western golf, and a true testament to his architecture as it still stands up today.

Perhaps the most identifying feature of Colwood is the majestic Douglas Fir trees towering over the golf holes. In some sense, this is the poster child for the Pacific Northwest, with the 12th, playing over a ridge through a chute of trees, as its mascot.

The true highlight of Colwood is watching Macan’s routing interact with slopes to maximize interest. The 6th and 18th in particular are two of the best holes not only in the province, but the country.

8. Tobiano

Kamloops

223KM from Kelowna

Architect:

Thomas McBroom

Year Built:

2006

It is said Thomas McBroom found 200 possible ways to route Tobiano, which trots its way around land that makes you feel like you’re playing golf on Mars and not the Interior British Columbia. If that’s true, we’re happy to see holes like the 6th and 14th make it, both of which stand tall amongst McBroom’s best par 4’s.

Much of the golf course interacts with the unpredictable, desert-ish topography. For example, the 6th, playing to an island green on a plateau high above the sagebrush and fescue, is not only terrifying, but downright mean in the wind. Holes like the par 5, 13th play around a canyon take full advantage of the surroundings, but provide a stark warning: bring your game for Tobiano.

7. Predator Ridge

Vernon

45KM from Kelowna

Course:

Ridge

Architect:

Doug Carrick

Year Built:

2009

When Doug Carrick got the job for “Ridge,” there were already 27 holes from Les Furber on property that people liked (18 of the holes now comprise No. 119 Predator course). The property was far more dramatic, but parts of the original golf course had to be sacrificed. Today, those holes are the 1st, 2nd, 15th-18th, while everything else is a new property.

There are elements of the Ridge that are as dramatic as No. 26 Greywolf, such as the par 3, 5th or par 4, 6th playing over a massive rock outcropping. The 9th, playing through numerous rock outcroppings, would not be out of place in Muskoka.

Like most places in this tier of courses, the macro is obvious impressive, but the micro-features are what really make the golf course memorable. The set of greens here, and in particular, the surrounding run-offs, kicker slopes and tie-ins, are among Carrick’s career best.

6. James Island

Sydney

30KM from Victoria

Architect:

Jack Nicklaus

Year Built:

1997

Until recently, James Island was the private golf course of billionaire Craig McCaw off the coast of Sydney, British Columbia near Vancouver Island. Discovery Land, responsible for successful USA ventures like Estancia, Gozzer Ranch, and Silo Ridge, purchased this Jack Nicklaus golf course, and the future has never looked brighter.

The golf course weirdly works its way directly to the ocean for the par 3, 2nd, par 5, 3rd, and par 4, 5th before working back inland. The ocean disappears until the backdrop of the par 4, 18th, but the 7th, 8th, and the par 5, 16th, unusually utilizing a lake as a centralized hazard for the layup.

5. Shaughnessy

Vancouver

10KM from city centre

Architect:

A.V. Macan, Les Furber

Year Built:

1961

If the term “players course” ever had such a proper ambassador, we have yet to find it in this country. It makes sense that following the 2011 Canadian Open, Shaughmessy was included in the PGA Tour’s favourite golf courses on the circuit.

What makes Shaughnessy most impressive, however, is the playability merging with a golf course suitable for the best in the world. All eighteen greens allow some sort of run up shot, and oftentimes preferred on holes such as the 3rd and 17th.

While the property is not overly dramatic, Macan’s routing is able to transport the golfer between dry creek bends, small valley’s, and out to the Fraser River to take full advantage of the site’s elements. Pairing that with some of Macan’s smartest green contours, and Shaughnessy has a winner on their hands.

4. Greywolf

Panorama

485KM from Kelowna

Architect:

Doug Carrick

Year Built:

2000

We get it, mountain golf is extremely hit-or-miss. Thankfully, Greywolf is the genre’s absolute best. Doug Carrick’s decision to route the opening three holes directly uphill benefits the pacing down the road as most of the golf course, minus the 14th and 18th, plays downhill.

Most assume Greywolf is a one trick pony, and in some respects, you could argue that is true. It’s more of a compliment to the par 3, 6th, aptly titled “Cliffhanger,” which rivals only the 4th at Banff Springs and the 16th at Cabot Cliffs. But the supporting cast is not to be messed with here. The uphill par 5, 3rd is an impressive three-shot hole up the mountain, while the downhill par 5, 5th might be a better hole than the following hole. The back nine keeps up the momentum with a good finishing stretch, minus the anti-climatic par 4 closing hole.

3. Victoria

Oak Bay

6KM from Victoria

Architect:

A.V. Macan, Jeff Mingay

Year Built:

1906

As he did at Marine Drive across the Strait of Georgia in Vancouver, A.V. Macan continues to defy common architecture laws about the size of property suitable for golf. At Victoria, the property is sandwiched between the quaint town of Oak Bay and the Pacific Ocean—spiritually mimicking the links courses on the British Isles—while Beach Drive runs through the middle, is anything but “normal.”

The highlight of the round is the stretch of golf to the south of the road starting at the 3rd, highlighted by back-to-back oceanside par 3’s and the short par 4’s at the 5th and 7th, but Jeff Mingay’s brilliant restoration has made the inland holes live up to the oceanside hype.

2. Sagebrush

Quilchena

146KM from Kelowna

Architect:

Rod Whitman, Richard Zokol & Armen Suny

Year Built:

2007

Photo credit:

After being closed since 2014, Sagebrush made a triumphant return to the golf scene in the summer of 2021. The golf is way too good here to be grown over, with individuality at every turn. The two greens at the 7th and 16th are the biggest outside of Old Macdonald (Bandon), and the shared fairway at the 11th and 14th is a whopping 150 yards wide.

Aside from the memento highlights, there are some all-world golf holes scattered around these rocky hillsides. The up and over 2nd, with the Nicola Lake in the background is exhilarating, the 5th, where you can putt from the fairway is unique, and the bunker-less 8th is a roller coaster. The short 12th is said to be inspired by Pine Valley, and the shelf par 4, 15th is quirky and fun.

As an added interest, Sagebrush is a bit of a “who’s who” in the Canadian architecture scene, with Jeff Mingay, Keith Cutten, Riley Johns, and Trev Dormer all providing a hand at one point or another to the original trio of architects.

1. Capilano

West Vancouver

13KM from Vancouver

Architect:

Stanley Thompson, Doug Carrick

Year Built:

1937

Capilano’s routing is so highly regarded that even Robert Trent Jones Sr., Thompson’s protégé at the time, tried to claim credit for the details in the dirt. While not true, he had it right: Capilano is one of golf’s great routings, tumbling down the West Vancouver mountainside.

The golf course begins tumbling down the hillside towards downtown Vancouver for the first six holes, featuring views of the city skyline, Vancouver Harbour, and the Lion’s Gate Bridge. After a brief refrain, the journey begins back up to the clubhouse at the 9th before ending in the bowl around the clubhouse for the final five.

What is particularly interesting is, unlike Thompson’s par 3 calling card, the par 4’s standout. The side shelf 2nd is sporty; the narrowing 7th green is terrifying, and the bunker-less par 4, 13th, climbing back to the clubhouse playing over a gorge, might be the best of them all. Amongst many other praises, Capilano’s finishing five holes are often cited as the best finishing stretch in Canada.