Fort McMurray Golf Club Will Offer Stern Test To Canada’s Best Mid-Am Players
- Details
- Category: Inside Golf
- Published: 2021-08-19
By GORD MONTGOMERY, Inside Golf
FORT McMURRAY, Alberta — The late summer hunt for birdies in northern Alberta may see some unexpected, and perhaps unnerving, spectators. But then again, that’s part of playing the game in Fort McMurray where wildlife encounters include run-ins with birdies and eagles. But, there are bigger creatures around such as bears and foxes, who are always looking for a free meal.
That though is just a normal part of living, and playing, in this community. As such golfers teeing it up in the 2021 Canadian Mid-Amateur Championship at the great Fort McMurray Golf & Country Club will likely have more than ground-hugging wildlife on their minds, like going low which is where those birds of a feather come together.
One thing players challenging this track can take heart in is that it won’t play like it did when it hosted professionals at the PGA TOUR Canada’s Syncrude Boreal Open for a couple of years. Acutally, it could play harder.
The club’s general manager, Dave Callum, explained that since the devastating fire that roared in and around this northern Alberta community in 2016, the toughness aspect of his 27-hole layout has changed.
“I wasn’t here in the Boreal Open days but the biggest change from then is we lost tens of thousands of trees that burned down. The golf course now is a little different. You don’t have those overhanging limbs as much but I think that actually helped the golf course itself get into better shape. It actually gets a little more sunshine and a little more wind goes through.”
As if the fire devastation wasn’t enough, the course also suffered flood damage in 2020, again changing the complexion of the course.
“A lot of areas along the riverbank that were tree lined aren’t there anymore. So the wind whistles through some of those holes, bringing some different challenges,” Callum pointed out. “The Big River nine, which will be the front nine of the event, has a bunch of brand new bunkers, reshaping of things,” along with half a dozen new greens that were added in the recent past.
The combination of the Big River and Black Bear nines which will be used exclusively for the event and they are long, and yes, tough. The slope rating of the pair, off the back tees, is 139, playing to a par of 72 (36-36) over 7,100-plus yards.
A New Clubhouse At The Fort McMurray G&CC Awaits Players At The End Of Their Appointed Rounds During The Canadian Mid-Am Championship, To Be Held From August 24 to 27.
As if that isn’t enough difficulty for players to deal with, there’s also this tidbit that Callum tossed in: “It’s not by today’s standards the longest golf course, but if you miss it (fairways) here, you’re in trouble. There are no shots out of the bush,” that closely border the landing areas. “After the fire, the bush has come back so strong, there’s no shot. You’ll be reloading. They’ll find it a stern test. They’ll likely be hitting a lot of long irons into the greens and off the tee rather than driver, so they don’t bite off more than they can chew.”
When players from across the country arrive in Fort McMurray, they’ll find a proud community that’s excited to host this national competition.
“For us, hosting this isn’t just about putting a feather in our cap. It’s a chance to show Canada how we’ve bounced back from two devastating events here. Fort McMurray, in some peoples’ eyes has a stigma about it, which is so untrue. This is an unbelievable community,” the club’s GM proclaimed.
“The most important thing about hosting is this isn’t just about our golf course. This is about golf and about our community. It’s such a strong community and resilient. It’s just an amazing place.This is going to show the country what a great community we have here.”
The fact the membership is willing to share their course with the best players of this calibre in the country, and pitch in to help out where needed, is another tick in the community spirit box. Callum said it’s not a difficult thing for his members to turn these 18 holes over for a week, noting, “They have the Fox Tail nine to use,” which means while tee times may be a touch harder to come by for the week, they are still available and the excitement is building over this next major tournament.
In the end what this event will do is once again show Fort McMurray as a congenial host. “I know there was a feeling of loss when we lost the Mackenzie Tour event, so I think we’ll show we can still host these top-notch events. It’s a stern test of golf that I think will impress people.”
Oh, one other thing. In closing, Callum mentioned that in late August when this tournament happens, black bears are frequent visitors along the course’s surrounding areas. And, they’re often joined by foxes, “who will steal your sandwich right off your cart,” so players will find some wildlife here other than those hoped-for birds and eagles.
The Golf Canada Canadian Mid-Am Championship runs from August 24-27.