While golf holes get facelifts on a regular basis, and more invasive surgery occasionally, it’s not every day that clubs as old as Kawartha GC retire holes and replace them with brand spanking new ones.
It’s been more than 30 years since its (friendly) rival across town did likewise, also involving a land sale to a local developer, also in the hopes of putting the club on a stronger financial footing. It’s a pretty good bet that this new routing will be the club’s last change of this scale, but I guess one never really knows.
The anticipation began on the 10th tee. And peaked as we walked down 11 and things came into view. After putting out, we walked down to the left to play the new, short par 3 12th that maxes out at around 125 yards from the blues to a middle pin.
This new par 3 is solid but not spectacular. But that’s OK on a course that has four other strong one-shotters, Twelve should give golfers of all abilities a nice breather after what can be a challenging start to the back nine. I wasn’t crazy about the long walk from the new green to the next tee, but perhaps the club will explore some options that could make that transition less awkward.
After playing the 16th, which is the old dogleg 14th reduced, and improved, to a straightaway par 4, you make the walk I’d been looking forward to, to the new 17th tee.
There in the distance was a generously wide fairway just egging you to take as much on as you can in the hopes of possibly getting home in two on this spectacular new par 5. The new turf was in fine shape, and as this was the only new hole with expansive fairways, the quality of the grow-in was evident.
Kudos to Jennifer Pendrith and her greens staff. Architect Ian Andrew told me it was one of the best grow-ins he’s ever seen. Players will quickly realize that this green is menacing to read. To quote Ian, “It’s a crown. It falls in every direction but backwards, which makes it really tricky. It’s what fit best once we nudged the green left for better visibility and more sunlight.”
With the new holes, par returns to 36-35-71. The new sequence and cadence of holes on the back nine felt really good. We all remarked that the 12-13-14 string of holes that is now two par 3s and a short 4 play fast, and before you know it you’re stepping on to the 15th with just four holes left. Will members find themselves shaving a few minutes off their round? That’s always a good thing.
So, is KGC a more difficult course today than it was before these changes? Does it really matter? My guess is for some, maybe most, it will be easier in relation to a couple. Two tough pars are gone with the loss of old 15 and 16. They’ve been replaced with what should be two easier pars with new 12 and 17.
But that logic goes out the window if you’re an extra short hitter, or if you’re long and crooked — there’s lots of deep, thick woods on the right side of 17 and some severe slopes on the left that bring high numbers into play. The changes made to 16 might claw back some of that ease, especially when a new back tee is added.
The story on Kawartha’s nip and tuck is not complete. That takes time. But the first look in the mirror will bring a smile to your face. Exciting times for sure.
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