NEW EARL GREY LAYOUT EARNING RAVE REVIEWS
About $20 million spent on upgrades to southwest course,
To lose the most picturesque slice of your property and strengthen your golf course as a result?
That’s a big ask, sort of like removing your favourite club from the bag and still shooting your best score.
At Earl Grey Golf Club, a private hangout tucked away in Calgary’s southwest community of Lakeview, they seem to have pulled it off.
“Since we reopened the 18 holes, there’s been a lot of fantastic feedback from the members. They just love the new holes. They love the golf course,” said Richard Stringer, the longtime head professional at Earl Grey, home to both a championship length layout and a family friendly shortie known as the Lakeview Nine.
“And we just opened our new clubhouse, and the accolades have been absolutely amazing. Folks are just over-the-moon happy with what turned out.
“Just the overall project, we’re really happy with.”
They should be.
Earl Grey is perched on the northwest side of Glenmore Reservoir. The renovations were forced by an expansion of the city trail system, with a 1.85-km stretch of bike path now running between the club and the cliffs.
With Vancouver-based course designer Wayne Carleton overseeing the work, the changes to the full-length offering include seven new greens and six new fairways. (There are also two new dance-floors on Lakeview Nine.)
The sixth assignment no longer hugs the escarpment, but its 334yard replacement — with several sand traps between the tee boxes and a tricky green — is arguably the best of the new tests.
Although not as close to the water, the 164-yard seventh would still get my vote as the best Par 3 on the property.
On the back nine, No. 11 was stretched to become a Par 5. At 571 yards from the tips, this will be no pushover for even the biggest boppers. Carleton & Co. were also careful to replicate the character of the original green, meaning a three-putt is a definite possibility if you find yourself on the wrong side of a large swale.
“Every new hole, I think, has its perks,” Stringer said. “There’s more character in some of the holes, turning a few from straight holes into doglegs and creating more shot-value and that sort of thing.
“And we find a lot of good, positive comments about the bike path, too. That was probably one of the more fearful points of the project. How is the interaction with the path going to go? How is that going to look? Are we going to lose our views? But I’ve had a lot of positive comments that the views are still good, there are some even enhanced views, even that the fence looks great.
“The interaction between the path and the course, from a traffic perspective and a user perspective, is pretty positive, so that’s all good, as well.”
The work at Earl Grey also included a full bunker renovation and replacement of the irrigation system.
When you add the construction of the new clubhouse, there have been about $20 million in changes and upgrades.
Now beefed up to nearly 7,200 yards from the back tees, the main course reopened in chunks, with all 18 holes back in action just in time for the club championships on August long weekend.
Members must be starting to figure out the nuances of the new greens.
Guests might never guess what has changed and what was original.
“That’s a good compliment,” said Carleton, whose resume includes the design of Shadow Mountain in Cranbrook and Dakota Dunes near Saskatoon. “The goal was to blend with what they had but also try to make it better where we could, and I think we’ve accomplished that.
“Hearing that the members are satisfied and the feedback has been positive, that means we’ve done our job.”
Only adding to what has been an exciting summer, the divotdigging regulars at Earl Grey are now settling into their new clubhouse.
Among its many cool perks, the beauty of a building features an outdoor kitchen for patio parties, state-of-the-art hitting bays and a putting lab in the pro shop and separate locker-rooms for juniors.
On opening night in late August, the 32,000-square-foot facility — certain to host a few good shakers as Earl Grey marks its centennial season in 2019 — was jam-packed.
“The atmosphere that night was truly astonishing,” Stringer said, beaming. “There has really been a sense of enthusiasm and passion for the club. A lot of members are bringing their friends, whether they’re members at other clubs or whether they’re not members anywhere, to enjoy our facility — to enjoy the course and then the clubhouse after the fact.
“There’s a lot of interest, which is really cool.”
The goal was to blend with what they had but also try to make it better where we could, and I think we’ve accomplished that.