The Club at Bond Head - South Course

[Bryan Izatt]

The Club at Bond Head, located in the village of Bond Head north of Toronto, is one of my home courses.  It was built in 2005 as a private club but soon fell on hard times and was subsequently open to the public and then leased to Clublink, our local corporate golf club conglomerate that offers one membership with reciprocal rights to more than 40 courses in Ontario and Quebec. It is currently run as a hybrid membership and high end public facility.

The course was originally conceived as an homage to international links courses and was seeded with fescue grasses everywhere except the greens.  A sister course, the North Course, was built a couple of years later as a parkland course with bent grass on all tees, fairways and greens.

Both courses were designed and built in a bold style by Jason Straka of Hurdzan Fry.  The property for the South Course was a mix of farmland and old growth forest and encompassed a large hill and lowlands on either side. 

The course was intended to be a "championship" track and from the tips, at just under 7500 yards with a rating of 76.4 and a Slope of 144, it has certainly resisted scoring by professionals.  It has served as a Monday qualifier course for the Canadian Open on a number of occasions and the lowest qualifying score has been 67.  At the same time it is widely used for corporate tournaments from the white tees and member play from blue tees and is quite playable although still difficult to score on.

The description I'll provide of the course is generally from the Blue tees at 6400 yards with a rating of 71.5 and a slope of 131 against a par of 72.  The course presents an interesting mix with four short par 4's along with two medium length par 4's and four long par 4's; two short par 5's to go with two long brutes of a par 5; and, 3 long par 3's against one short par 3.

The routing changes direction frequently on both nines but plays mostly east-west.  The wind generally blows from western hemisphere.

The Hurdzan Fry promotional plan is below and shows the routing.  The detail of the design on the ground, especially the bunkering and greens is not exactly to this plan.  The first picture shows the overall property and the following two show the front nine and the back nine.








The actual aerial view of the course as built is as follows:






The clubhouse is in the grand modern style and provides nice views from the terrace.






Pictures, hole by hole, to follow.

[Gary Slatter]

clubhouse looks like it wasborn to be Clublink!

[Bryan Izatt]

Gary,

Indeed it does, although it wasn't born to Clublink.  Reminiscent of King's Riding and Greystone at least.

[Mark Saltzman]

Lots of good stuff at BHS. 

Interesting to note the change between the promo plan and the actual.

Looking forward to the discussion.

[Bryan Izatt]

The first hole is a short par 4 of 291 yards from the blue tees.  It is drivable for long hitters, but who wants to try that on the opening tee shot of  around. It is reminiscent of the first hole at The Old Course with a very wide fairway that's hard to miss and a stream meandering across the front of the green.  The hole has three fairway bunkers that are somewhat extraneous, but a green that is bunkerless.  What looks like an easy starter can be complicated by a downhill lie in the fairway or misjudging the carry over the stream or the difficulty of some pin positions.  Drives up the left side leave a shorter wedge shot in, while drives to the right toward the bunker leave a longer second, but a better angle to some pin positions on the green.

From the tee, it looks benign.




From the left side looking at the green.  You'd really have to foozle the drive to have to play from here, but the picture shows the closely mown areas around the green and the undulating nature of the green from side to side.




From the centre of the fairway in the landing zone.




From the right side of the green.  It does run off to the right and particularly to the front on the right side.




From behind the green looking back.  The hole is actually a very small dogleg to the left given that the fairway is offset a little to the right.

[Mark Saltzman]

I've always thought 1 was among the least interesting holes on the golf course. Almost no one can try for the green, and there is no obvious advantage to be anywhere but the centre of the fairway -- 3W/SW next hole.  Yes, the green has some wild contouring, but it's not enough for the hole to hold my interest.

[Bryan Izatt]

The second plays as a long par 4 at 381 yards from the blue tees.  The second shot is substantially uphill requiring one or two more clubs.

The tee shot has cape hole characteristics.  Hugging the left side requires carrying the longer part of the stream/wetlands and a couple of bunkers and brings the OB left into consideration but rewards with a shorter second straight up the green.  A safer drive out to the right makes for a much longer second shot and brings the front right greenside bunker much more into play.  The hole often plays into the wind.  

From the tips, at 433 yards, the drive carry is daunting and the hole plays very long with the hill and wind.

From the tee.  The fairway bunker right more of a target bunker, as it is out of reach for all but the longest hitters and only if they are playing up a tee or two.




Zoomed in from the white tee.




From the right side of the fairway.  Notice the pot bunker challenging this shot.  Also note the serious false front protecting anf front pin positions.  Second shots need to carry ten yards into the green to avoid rolling back off the front of the green.




From the left rough, a shorter more open shot to the green but confronted by the false front.




The front right pot bunker.  Note the movement in the green




From the left side of the green.  There is a large bowl on the left middle of the green that will funnel any shots tugged to the left side of the green right off the green.  The pin position pictured is precarious short and left.




Looking back down the hole, the elevation change is more clear.

[Bryan Izatt]

Mark,

Yes, #1 can be a bland hole (except for the green) if played properly.  It's surprising how many people mess it up - a lot of people dump it in the stream.  Many who walk off with a par are disappointed they couldn't birdie the hole.  Many who think it an easy par, three putt for a bogey.  It's certainly nowhere near the best hole on the course but it always holds my interest.

[Bryan Izatt]

The third hole is a longish par 3 at 190 yards from the blues (or 253 from the tips) to a pushed up green guarded front left and right by deep bunkers.  There are closely mown runoff areas to the left and back.  It is possible to run a shot up the gap betwen the bunkers to a front pin position.  The green is fairly benign with a small ridge from left to right.  Judging the speed of putts if you are on the wrong side of the ridge can be challenging on this very large green.




Zoomed in from the tee.




Looking over the front right bunker, the slope on the green from the ridge to the front is obvious.




The closely mown area behind the green.  Flyers to the back of the green, or worse on the back slope, can end up far from the green in thick fescue rough.

[Bryan Izatt]

The fourth hole is a par 4 of 377 yards that plays much longer as it directly ascends a large hill.  The green is more than 50 feet higher than the tee.  The fairway is narrower than most on the course and although the corridor is wide the trees on either side can come into play on an errant drive.

The green surface is blind from the driver landing zone and is protected on the left by a pair of bunkers and on the right by a severe false front.  Anything past the green will most likely be on a closely mown area but above the green surface resulting in a treacherous downhill recovery to a green running away.

The green itself is severely contoured and it is easy to putt off the green on the front right or on the left side.  Getting to the green in regulation is only half the battle.

From the tee the challenge of the hole is all in front of you.




Zoomed in from the tee.




Second shot from the middle of the fairway.




From the right rough just short of the green.




From right of the green.




The bunkers front left of the green.




Looking back down the hole.  From this angle, anything to the right of this pin will run off the green.

[Bryan Izatt]

The fifth hole is short par 3 on the course at only 124 yards from the blue tees.  Being on top of the hill and exposed to the prevailing wind, it often plays a bit longer, but still short.

The green is wide and shallow.  The left side is high and has some subtle ridges and slopes and runs away at the back, so it is effectively shallower than it appears.  The right side of the green is a diagonal valley about 4 feet down a diagonal ridge from the left side of the green.  Being on the right side of the green is crucial to avoiding a 3-putt, although 3-putts are possible even if you are on the same side as the pin.  The left side of the green is open and the right side is protected by a bunker.

The tee shot.




The bunker protecting the right front.




The green from the left side.  The picture has flattened out the contours.




The valley on the right side of the green.

[Bryan Izatt]

The sixth hole is a downhill short par 4 of 304 yards (on the scorecard) that is drivable by many if playing from the appropriate tee.  The green is about 75 feet below the tee.  The hole generally plays into the wind.  The scorecard yardage is for a two shot dogleg right around a nest of bunkers.  A direct shot to the green is about 270 yards to the middle.

As originally conceived and built the hole had a whole lot of bunkers on the direct line to the green.  Within two years a number of the bunkers had been filled in presumably to save on maintenance.



There are a number of options to consider on the tee.  To lay up left in the fairway; to go long left in the fairway; to lay up in the rough going directly at the green; and to try to drive the green.  For the left options you are left with a wedge shot or chip across the green with the pond immediately in the background and in your mind.  The value of the direct layup shot in the rough depends on the kind of lie you get, but does open up the green and takes the water out of play.  Going for the green brings the water immediately right into play.  Any wayward shot that gets in any of the fairway bunkers leaves a very awkward 70 to 120 yard bunker shot to the green.

Most everyone expects to par or even birdie this hole, but it is easy to run up a score.  A fun hole with some teeth.

From the tee.  You can see forever on a clear day.




Zoomed in from the tee




From the rough on a direct line to the green




From short right of the green.




From front left of the green.




From back left of the green




Looking back to the tee.  Note the sharp bank from the green down to the pond and the drop off behind the green.

[Bryan Izatt]

The seventh hole is one of two very long par 5's on the course.  Although listed on the card at 563 yards from the blue tees, 99% of the time the blue tees are planted one tee further back at 595 yards.  And, this is a straight-away hole; there are no corners to cut.

There is a carry over a pond off the tee, but it is not an issue for most. 

The most noticeable feature of the hole are the centre-line bunkers.  The architect was not satisfied with one, rather there were 4 when the hole was built, plus 3 more on the edges of the fairway and 3 more around the green.  The fairway bunker filed is somewhat reminiscent of the 12th at TOC, but on a much lengthier scale.  Navigating the bunker field required some thought on each shot.  It is an different way to make the second shot on a par 5 challenging and thought provoking.  After a couple of years two of the centre-line bunkers were removed to create a more fair test.  It still provides a thought provoking challenge, but there is more margin for error.




The tee shot.  This was the first time in three years playing the course that the tees were on the 563 yard deck.




Zoomed in from the tee.




From the first centre-line bunker.  This is 280 yards from the usual blue tees; only an issue for long hitters.




The third shot from about 120 yards.  The second centre-line bunker is just past this point.




The green is protected on the left by a pair of cavernous 10 foot deep bunkers.  Not good places.




The green is open in front and the ball can be run up for the super-long hitters who are trying to get home in two.  However, there is a severe false front that runs 10 to 15 yards into the green.  The green as seen from the left front corner.  There is more movement is this very large green than is evident in the picture.




Looking back from behind the green you can see that the back of the green runs away, rejecting long or hot running shots to back pin positions.



A par on this hole is really good.  You must have a strategy and then execute it.  Missing any one shot usually means bogey or worse.

[Wayne_Kozun]

How is the course doing these days in terms of attracting play?  I have only played it once - it is simply too far from the city given all of the other choices that you have in T.O. why go that far unless you live well north of the city.

[Bryan Izatt]

Wayne,

It's doing well at attracting play.  There are more than 500 Clublink members and there is public play, although it is kind of pricey given the location.  They also do well with corporate events which are good money makers.  So, financially I think they are doing OK.  That said, on days when there are double corporate shotguns getting a tee time, especially in the afternoon is not that difficult.

I live in the city near the 401.  It takes me 45 minutes to get there.  I go there because I like the courses.  When I'm bored and don't want to drive that far, there are the other Clublink courses.

[Bryan Izatt]

The eighth hole is a long par 4, at 419 from the blues (499 from the tips), that usually plays into the wind and is the #1 SI hole on the course.  It could well be described as an easy bogey, hard par hole.  It is a subtle hole, with relatively little elevation change, fairway bunkers on either side of the driving area that pinch the fairway, and a green that's slightly perched, but full of tricky but subtle undulations.

Strategically, the best line of the tee is to carry the left fairway bunkers to provide an open look at the green. Drives up the right side require a carry over the one green-side bunker to right pin positions.  The secondary fescue rough is to be avoided, but the playing corridor is plenty wide.

From the tee, the hole looks benign with only the fairway bunkers to worry about.




The second shot from the right edge of the fairway near the right fairway bunker.  It's about 210 yards from here.




The second shot from the centre of the fairway and zoomed in on the green.  The green ties in nicely with the surrounds.




From short right of the green.




Looking back from behind the green.  Some closely mown areas behind the green.  The undulations in the fairway are more evident looking back.

[Bryan Izatt]

The ninth is a fun hole that can bite you big time.  It is a short par 5 at 491 yards from the blue tees and generally plays down wind.  It's tempting not to expect to birdie the hole, or even eagle it.

Off the tee the fairway is generous, inviting you to give it a rip.  The preferred line is down the left.  It may leave a longer second, but it opens up the green for those trying to get hole in two.  The right side provides a shorter second, but the green is hidden by a forest.

Missing left in the bunkers won't kill you, but getting in the fescue pretty much eliminates the birdie possibility.  The same applies to the right fescue rough.  The right hand bunkers can be carried by most, but leaves a difficult angle for the second shot.

From the tee the three pot bunkers up the left centre of the fairway is a good target and is out of the range of all off the tee.  The green is just behind the grove of trees on the right side in the distance




From left centre of the fairway the green is mostly visible.  The cavernous bunker guards the left front of the green; more on that later.




Zoomed in on the green.  Even from this angle the trees on the right are intruding.




From about 80 yards in the centre of the fairway.  Big bunker left; smaller one right and further back that doesn't come into play as much as the front left one does.  The green is elevated about 1o feet above the fairway making a run-up second shot more difficult.  The front half of the green is a turtle back that runs off to the left and to the right.  The effective landing area for front pins is only perhaps 10 yards wide at most.  A fringe of rough will stop tricklers to the left from running into the bunker.  The right side is closely mown and the ball will trickle off into fairly gnarly rough.  Front half pins are a ticklish problem regardless of whether you're trying to get on in two, or playing a recovery from either the bunker left or the rough right.  Many people go back and forth between the two.  The only good leave on the second shot is short on the slope up to the green.

The back third of the green widens out and provides a more generous landing area, but few people club enough to get to the back of the green.




The left bunker with the green sloping down towards it.




The closely mown right side of the green.




From behind the green looking back.  There are less precipitous closely mown surrounds around the back third of the green




It may be short for a par 5, but it sure isn't easy for most of us.

[Bryan Izatt]

The 10th hole is another short, but not drivable par 4 at 364 yards from the blue tees.  The tees step down the side of a hill and provide wonderful views of the hole and the surrounding county-side. 

The fairway is configured as a dogleg right around fescue rough and a pair of bunkers.  Long hitters can carry the bunkers to the second part of the fairway and be left with a wedge shot in.  The front of the green is protected by two large bunkers.  The green-side bunker left is pretty much extraneous.

From the elevated tee the layout is clear.




Zoomed in from the tee.




From in front of the fairway bunkers.




From the centre of the fairway at about 110 yards.  Note that there is a nice backboard on the right 2/3's of the green.  It can be fun to play the approach shot off the backboard and have it come back to the pin.  The front left of the green is open, but has a false front.




The green from the left side.




From just short of the front green-side bunker.




Looking back over the green to the tees up on the hill behind the two trees.

[Bryan Izatt]

The 11th hole is another short and even drivable par 4 at 337 yards from the blue tees.  The card yardage is a little misleading since fairway for the hole is configured as a dogleg right around an echelon of bunkers and the yardage is measured around the dogleg.  But, in reality the green is just sitting out there in a straight line that measures about 280 to the front edge.  The hole is also downhill a bit and usually has a helping wind.  In truth the green is probably just out of reach for most, playing from the appropriate tees.

From the tee, the hole is laid out in front of you.  Options off the tee are to chew off as much of the bunkers as you think you can while not going too far through the fairway.  The fairway descends after the bunkers to an area 8 to 10 feet below the green.  You can be left with a short flip shot over a large and deep bunker to a green that runs away.  The alternate strategy is to go at the green. If you can carry the last bunker or be just right of it, you can be on the fairway upslope to the green or the first cut of rough.  This angle opens up the green for a 30 to 70 yard chip shot.  Loosing your drive a little right into the longer fescue rough could be a lost ball ir a difficult lie.

The view from the tee down to the hole and the rest of the back nine spread out before you.




Second shot from the right rough by the last bunker.




The green is bisected by a pronounced ridge running left to right. The front half runs down to th efront and significantly to the right.  The back half of the green runs into a valley running left to right and down to the right.  If you're on the wrong half of the green, it can be a difficult 2 putt.  From just short of the right front corner of the green the ridge obscures the back portion of the green.




The look from just short of the left hand green-side bunker.




Looking up the green from the front edge.




Over the green and the back right of the green have a severe dropoff to lost ball territory.  Being long going for a back pin can sometimes lead to  disaster.  Looking back to the green from just over the back.

[Bryan Izatt]

The 12th hole is the second very long par 5 on the course at 595 yards from the blue tees (a gargantuan 669 yards from the tips).  The hole is shaped like a boomerang to the left with waste areas and fescue and a hillside on the inside of the boomerang.  There is very little that can be cutoff from challenging the waste areas on the inside of the boomerang and the risks are severe.

From the tee the hole sweeps away, so far away that it is difficult to pick out the green in the distance.  It is on the left edge of the first picture, just to the right of the far bunker.  There is a wetland area to be carried off the tee, but it is not a serious issue for most players.  More daunting are the waste bunkers left and right of the landing area and a deep rough swale just beyond the right waste areas, not to mention the OOB further to the right.  The drive needs to be ripped - there is a long way to the hole.




Zoomed in on the first part of the fairway.  Despite the hazards the fairway is fairly generous at 50 yards wide.




The landing area for the second shot is blind although it is possible to see the top of the flag in the distance.  This view is from the left side of the fairway.  Following a line to the flag brings all kinds of trouble into play.  The shot need s to be played out to the right.




This view is from the right side of the fairway and the line of the fairway is more obvious but still blind.  The hole plays longer from this side.




You do not want to be in these two waste areas on the inside of the boomerang.  Carrying both is a long shot if you try to challenge them.




A look at the third shot to the green from the left side of the fairway.  The bunker left collects a lot of shots and the pot bunker right is deceptively short of the green.




From closer in near the centre of the fairway.




A view from right of the green.  A nice closely mown area that slope significantly down to the green which has a raised back left portion, a run off to the back right and a pretty good front to back and right to left slope on the front of the green.  Hard to describe the green and it is difficult to read as it is positioned on the side of a large but gentle hill.




The left hand green-side waste bunker.  The slopes toward the rear of the green are more obvious from here.




Looking back at the green you can see the closely mown runoff and the perils of being long.





Getting out of here with a par is a good day.

[Bryan Izatt]

The 13th is a shortish par 4 at 347 yards from the blue tees, yet it is designated as the SI hole 4.  The fairway is 50 yards wide.  There is only one fairway bunker and the green-side bunker only affects left side pin positions, so why does it cause so much trouble to be an SI 4 hole?

From the tee, the question is whether you can carry the waste area (215 yards from the blues) that intrudes from the right. For most, carrying it should be possible, absent a north wind, from the right tees.  If you have doubts then the tendency is to try to skirt it to the left.  The left side of the fairway has a precipitous drop off of 8 to 10 feet to very heavy fescue rough.  During the growing season lost balls are not uncommon.  The left side of the fairway also runs out if you are too long or tug it just a bit left.  For those trying to carry the bunker, a push or slice can leave you in dense fescue rough on a hill side.  But, the fairway is 50 yards so it shouldn't be a problem, right?

From the tee it looks, and is, somewhat downhill and the fairway looks invitingly wide past the waste area.




From the centre of the fairway past the waste area you are left with a short iron to the green.  The is a depression of fescue rough intruding from the left that gobbles up balls that are short.  From this angle it is possible to see the green contouring.  The left half of the green slopes down to the left.  The right half of the green has a diagonal ridge from left to right with the green running away to the back behind it and to the front in front of it. The pin in the picture is on the top of the ridge, where it often is.  It's hard to get near the pin even with a wedge in hand.  Putting is complicated by all of the conflicting movements and the overall slope of the green from right to left.




Zoomed in a little closer on the green.




Looking across the green from the left.  There is green that can't be seen behind the flag and to the right.




Looking back over the green to the tee.  It is more evident that it's uphill back to the tee.  The drop off from the left side of the fairway is evident on the right side of the picture.  The fescue rough is mowed down in the fall as shown in the picture.  During the prime playing season it is not.

[Bryan Izatt]

The 14th is another straight away long par 4 at 419 yards from the blue tees (a mind numbing 491 yards from the tips) that also ramps uphill about 30 feet from tee to green.

From the tee you are presented with another 50 yard wide fairway with a centre-line bunker in what appears to be the driving area.  I'm guessing that the architect was messing with our heads with that bunker as it turns out to be only 160 yards from the blue tees, so it is more of a foozle bunker.  There is also a waste area on the left side that catches a few shot since the preferred line off the tee is up the left side.  There is also an extraneous bunker right at about 160 yards that rarely comes into play.




From the left rough the green is opened up for a second shot, although it would be very difficult to get it out of this junk.  The left edge of the fairway provides the best angle although it only opens up the left front of the green.  The green is a little oblique to the fairway.  Any tee shots up the middle or on the right side have to deal with an uphill shot where the green surface is blind and there is a large waste area blocking the front.




Having used one centreline foozle bunker on the hole, the architect couldn't resist using a second one about 60 yards short of the front of the green.  It catches foozled second shots, although it doesn't get a lot of action in my experience.




Even up close on the right side the green surface is obscured behind the fronting waste area.




The green is huge at 50 yards long and has what I would describe as substantial waves.  There are also different slopes in different parts of the green to add to the confusion.  The green is on the side of a long hill, so there is an underlying tilt to the green as well.  A 2 putt here is well done.




Looking back over the green to the tee. The closely mown surrounds on the left side of the green are visible.

[Bryan Izatt]

The 15th is a tough long par 3 at 193 yards from the blue tees (242 yards from the tips).  It often plays into a wind or in a crosswind which makes it more difficult.  Although the fairway flows into the green, the sides and back of the green fall off precipitously.  The green is about 20 yards wide, so not real narrow, but narrow enough at 193 yards.  The left side is a deep waste bunker while the right side and the back are closely shaved runoffs.  The recovery from the shave run-off can be played in many ways, although many do poorly with whatever method they choose.  I find it easier to recover from the bunker.  The green has some interesting undulations toward the rear while the front is subtly benign.

View from the tee.




Zoomed in from the tee.




The drop-offs as seen from the right front side of the green.




Looking over the bunker on the left side of the green.




From behind the green, although very very few people ever hit it over the green.

[Bryan Izatt]

The 16th is a breather hole as a par 5 at 460 yards (even at 517 yards from the tips).  It's a nice change of pace and allows for a birdie opportunity coming down the stretch.  The hole plays as a hard dogleg to the right with the inside of the leg being a stream and wetland area.  Any balls in the wetlands are in a lateral hazard.  Not too strangely the best line for the drive is up the right side - just don't push it or fade it.  Long hitters can carry a bit of the corner from the blue tees, but it is a 270 yard carry to be safe, so it does require some thought before attempting it.

From the tee there are waste bunkers left and right at the corner of the leg.  The is also a bunker straight away that serves as a useful target to play a fade off of.




From the corner of the leg the green is about 200 to 220 yards away with the wetland hard up against the fairway all the way to the green.  If you're going for the green you have to protect against losing it right.  There's a large waste bunker front left of the green to catch those that play it away from the wetlands.  And finally there's a small pot in the front middle of the green that makes it difficult to run a second shot in.  The green is 45 yards deep so consideration has to be given to the location of the pin when selecting a club to play the second or even the third shot.




From the left side looking over the waste bunker to a pin tucked behind the front pot bunker.  The front of the green is relatively benign while the rear half has more undulation and a significant bowl on the left side.



 

[Bryan Izatt]

The 17th is a longish par 3 at 180 yards from the blue tees.  It plays across a rough valley to a green with a ridge running across the green from left to right with the back of the green maybe six feet below the front.  The green is protected by a bunker left and a nest of bunkers down the slope to the right and a sharp drop off behind.

From the tee the carry looks daunting and the back portion of the green looks inaccessible.




Zoomed in on the green from the tee.




The green as seen from off the left side.




The bunkers right and the back portion of the green.




From down in the bottom bunker right the green surface is blind.




From the back right corner of the green there is a sharp rise up to the front.