Where are the Cape Breton Highlands trip details?

[Mike Nuzzo]

I'm looking forward to the details from the Cape Breton Highlands trip.  Anyone back yet?
If I'm too impatient, I apologize.

[NAF]

*I believe Ran is still traveling and will be back this weekend
*There were only four of us up there and it was a fabulous time
*Sunday was the weather the US Open saw and it was only about 45 degrees..We played a Ryder Cup (Ran and I vs. Ben Dewar and Jeff Mingay).  Great fun with the Americans beating the Canadians after a testy 17th hole where barely anyone could hold on to a club.  We were all waterlogged except Ran who thought ahead!
*The property is stunning.   The routing a work of art.  Thompson used the highlands, a river valley, the waterside and the rolling terrain to create a truly natural golf course
*The movement in the fairways was amazing.  You don't seem to get a level lie anywhere and have to invent and improvise shots.  There were several bunkerless
holes or approach shots (#2 and #8 come to mind) where you can fly or bounce your approach in.  I found out it was best to play the ground game vs. aerial at these points but it took some time to see this.
*Some of the green complexes are amazing.  Great contour and ridges but the green speeds are kept to make them puttable.
*The hospitality by the people was awesome.  The course manager, pro and marketing director were lovely people who took great care of us.
*Cape Breton is prettier than Maine and a fraction of the cost.

I'll let Ran cover the details, lets just say I wish  more of you guys made the trek up there.  It was worth it and I am sure Ran's pictures will make you jealous.

[Ben Cowan-Dewar]

Noel covered some highlights, unfortunately for Noel the weather turned after he left.

In Tuesday's event Ran and I paired to take on the pro Joe Robinson and J Mingay.  Ended even, after Joe performed many small miracles on the final four.

I have pictures, but am still travelling, will post them Sunday.

[Mike Nuzzo]

Thanks.
Can't wait for the pics, obviously.

I almost asked the Mrs. if I could go.

That would have been funny, as we were otherwise
detained last week.

How long did it take to get there?

[NAF]

From NYC

1.5 hr flight to Halifax
45 minute flight to Sydney N.S.
1hr 40 minute amazing drive to Ingonish..

[Ran Morrissett]

Going up, we obviously knew that the scenery and holes would be stunning and sure enough, they were. Based on several other trips to Canada, we thought going up that the people would be as welcoming and inviting as any in the world, and sure enough, they were.

Thus, the three biggest surprises to me were:

1) the quality of the three shot holes. To put these four holes into perspective, GOLF's 500 Greatest Golf Holes book selected the 6th as one of the best par fives and yet, many of the locals consider it the weakest of the four as it is uncharacteristically flat as it plays along the shoreline.

2) the green contours are truly varied and excellent, and are as true to Thompson's original design as any set in Canada. The scenery tends to monopolize the conversation but this set of greens deserves to be better appreciated and recognized.

3) the opportunity to converse with Geoffrey Cornish was remarkable. He has instant recall of many specifics and is a detail minded person. One exchange went like this:

"Mr. Cornish, given that the 6th green is along the shore, why didn't you elevate it at least several feet to help with the from time-to-time flooding?"

"That's a very good question, I know, because I asked Stan that very thing 63 (!!!) years ago but he said no, and that was that."

Mr. Cornish is the last link (as far as I know) to AWT, The Toronto Terror, CB Macdonald, Donald Ross, etc. and we were lucky to get so much of his time.

Several of us will be heading back to Cape Breton Highland on a regular basis as the course is truly unique in all the world because of its irresistible combination of seaside and mountain golf holes - I hope others will join next time as well.

As Noel points out, it really isn't near the headache to get to that I thought it might be. Plus at approximately $60US per round, only Bethpage is cheaper amongst GOLF's current world top 100 courses.

Apparently, the first week of October is often ideal as the crowds have left but the leaves remain at their peak, thanks to the gulf stream.

Hole for hole, few courses can match CBH, especially its front nine which is bullet proof.

I hope to have a revised course profile up within two weeks complete with 25-30 photos.

Cheers,

[Ben Cowan-Dewar]

I just was looking at my pictures, and thought I should post this one.  It is a great summary of a nice couple of days.

[Oscar Brown]

WOW!

Nothing a laser and a scraper couldn't fix.

I'm just kidding, REALLY.

[Jeff Mingay]

Highlands Links is undoubtedly the best golf course in Canada. And definitely one of the world's best as well.

A great routing. Contour galore. Varied and interesting green complexes and putting surfaces. A seaside setting. And an ever-present ocean breeze. What more can a golfer ask for?

Plus Cape Breton hospitality, seafood and Alexander Keith's Pale Ale!

Look forward to the forthcoming revised course profile by "Len" Morrissett, expected shortly.

Hopefully I'll convince Joe Robinson, who's been the pro at Highlands Links for 31 years and also learned the game of golf caddying there, to field a few questions once the revised profile has been posted. Joe witnessed Highlands Links evolve over a 40 year period between about 1960 and today. His insights on Canada's best course are invaluable.

[John_D._Bernhardt]

Little did I realize that last september i was only a 6 hour drive and a 12 hour ferry ride and then the drive to the best course in Canada. It is a shame the mounties would not let me have the clubs. Please talk about the club and what led to it being built it in such a remote location.

[Jeff Mingay]

John,

Highlands Links was developed by the federal government of Canada, as part of the creation of Cape Breton Highlands National Park. The course is still owned by the federal government, and located within the boundaries of the National Park. It's operations are contracted to outsiders.

The course construction was a "create work" project of sorts, in the midst of the Great Depression. Kinda like Bethpage, I guess. More than 150 local fisherman, out of work at the time, were employed to construct the course. In fact, Geoff Cornish, who served as Thompson's construction superintendent over two summers during the late 1930s, told us government officials limited use of the single bulldozer on-site at Highlands Links. They wanted the employed men to do as much work as possible, not the bulldozer!

[John_D._Bernhardt]

thanks that is a great story.

[Mike Nuzzo]

Thanks for the pic and descriptions.
I'm looking forward your update Ran.

John -
When should we go?