Capilano Golf and Country Club...

[Bob Jenkins]

Last night I pulled out my copy of "Capilano G&CC - The Making of a Legend" by Andrew McCredie. It is excellent with many fine photos of the course and was published in 2004. Almost all photos of the course show members and it is interesting to note that there is not one of the members where they are riding a cart!

Ian mentioned that the drop from top to bottom is 380 feet and there have been postings here on more than one thread about how the routing can take you so far down and then back up yet still be quite walkable and playable. Mr. McCredie's book has descriptions of each hole along with the photos and also mentioned the elevation change from tee to green on each hole. He does not mention up or down but I my recollection is pretty clear on most. There are a few with a small elevation change and I have guessed as to whether they are up or down but the overall elevation changes should be pretty close.

They are listed as follows:

#1 - 123 ft down
#2 -  21  ft down
#3 -  26  ft up
#4  - 14 ft up (I would have thought it was more, especially to the upper tier of the green but then the tee is slightly elevated)
#5  - 89 ft down
#6  - 91 ft down
#7  - 31 ft up  (I would have thought it was less - the climb comes in the approach as there is a valley in the middle of the fairway)
#8  - 2 ft up (I think)
#9  - 42 ft up (This is more than I would have guessed. 181 yards from the tips - there is a walk up from the 8th green which I     would  estimate at around 20 feet up)

#10 - 54 ft up
#11 - 22 ft down (then a climb of a similar amount back up to the 12th tee)
#12 - 41 ft up
#13 - 70 ft up (this one surprised me. The approach is over a ravine with a narrow green built into a hillside but the elevation change from tee to green does not seem to be anything like this much)
#14 - 25 ft down  -  (This is a drop shot par 3 with a significant climb up to the tee of about 30 feet)
#15 - 15 ft up
#16 - 3 ft down (from a slightly elevated tee (245 yard par 3 from the tips)
#17 - 29 ft down (from an elevated tee which is about 20 ft above 16 green)
#18 - 26 ft up (it feels like more - the first tee sits about 20 above the 18th green)

The drops on the front nine, coming at 1, 2, 5 and 6 add up to 334 feet and with a drop down to the 7th tee from the 6th green, it will be over 350 anyway, so the changes are significant.

It iseems pretty amazing to have elevation changes in this amount on a very walkable golf course.

[Bill_McBride]

Bob, interesting that the back side parallel par 4's, #15 and 17, one is downhill (#17)and the other uphill (#15).  They are fairly similar lengthy par 4's and I remember them both playing somewhat downhill.  So I'm curious about #15 playing uphill.

[Bob Jenkins]

Bill,

15 from the tee does play downhill but not much at all and then it is back up to the green which sits in a corner of the property. It has been a couple of years since I last played over there but I recalled the tee and green not having much elevation change at all. I am going to go over there this coming week and will have another look.

The tee on 17 is up two small sets of stairs from the 16th green and there is actually a steel railing on both of those sets of stairs, so without the elevated tee, there would be very little elevation change.