Rivermead (2024)

In 1867, Canada gained independence from Britain, merging New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Canada East (Quebec), and Canada (Ontario) into its own country. In 1870, Manitoba joined the Confederation, British Columbia out west joined a year later, and Prince Edward Island joined in 1873.

Even though Canada had gained its independence, it was (and still is) heavily influenced by British culture. By 1900, there was a strong sense of British identity, and largely, the culture in Canada mirrored that of England in the east, whereas the west began to explore the prairies or the “New Frontier.”  They might have gained independence from the British Rule, but everything they did—from cultural practices, to social classes, to the languages they spoke and more—was Britain in the New World, without much difference from the ways of the old world.

As a result, the early years of golf in Canada were intertwined to that of trends in the British Isles. Following the Industrial Revolution and into the mid-to-late 1800s, recreation began to grow in Britain, with sports clubs and associations gaining popularity, “Factory Acts” that reduced working hours let citizens enjoy extracurricular activities, and more that allowed labourers to enjoy after-work activities; around the same time, recreation and sport grew in Canada as well. Notably, this meant golf would find a home in Canada earlier than most other nations: the first five (!) established golf clubs in North America are all Canadian, with Royal Montreal (1873). Royal Quebec (1874), Toronto Golf Club (1876), Brantford (1879), and Niagara-on-the-Lake (1881) all opening in a relatively short timeline in eastern Canada.

To no surprise, Canada’s close-ties to the British Empire continued well into the 1900s, and the golf scene notably benefitted. Many of the architects coming from the British Isles were coming to the United States for new opportunities, but Canada’s ties to the British Isles had a certain appeal, too, and Eastern Canada’s proximity to the eastern seaboard and big centres like New York, Boston, and Philadelphia greatly benefitted cities like Montreal, Toronto, and Ottawa in the early years. In fact, it was not uncommon for architects to leave Southampton, England and arrive in Montreal, heading to Toronto or New York after working in Montreal. Many of the notable architects of the Golden Age—including A.W. Tillinghast, Willie Park Jr., Stanley Thompson, Donald Ross, Tom Bendelow, C.H. Alison, Walter Travis, and more—played a part in shaping Canada’s golf scene during the 1900s-1930s, and while not all British, there was certainly an influence from the old world.

Perhaps most notably in Canada’s history is the introduction of Harry Colt, who came over from England via ship, leaving Southampton en route to Toronto and Detroit in 1911. That included laying out the new golf course for the Toronto Golf Club on the shores of Etobicoke Creek, just west of downtown and where the club resides to this day. Colt also worked at Hamilton, Royal Montreal, Royal Ottawa, and Bowness. However, the Toronto Golf Club was particularly influential in Canadian golf, serving as the benchmark against which new and existing golf courses were measured.

Around that time, a handful of major players in the early years of golf in Canada were in and around the club. That included Harry Colt, but also Stanley Thompson, who caddied at the club into the early 1910s before going to fight in World War One. George Cumming, nicknamed the “Dean of Canadian Professional Golfers,” began his five-decade tenure as the club’s Head Professional in 1900, and would eventually go on to partner in the design firm Thompson, Cumming, and Thompson upon WWI’s completion (that’s Nicol Thompson, George Cumming, and Stanley Thompson). Prior to Toronto Golf Club’s move from the east end to its current location, Charles Murray, a young golf professional who would go on to be the Head Golf Professional at the Royal Montreal Golf Club, worked under George Cumming before leaving in 1902 for the Toronto Hunt Club. His brother Albert, who would go on to be Quebec’s finest golf architect, also worked under Cumming, leaving in 1903 to head to Montreal.

From behind on the par 5, Seventeenth at Rivermead.

Rivermead’s layout dates back to 1911 when Charles Murray opened nine holes on the current property. At the time, Murray was the head professional at the Royal Montreal Golf Club, and a respected player in his own right, winning the Canadian Open that year next door at the Royal Ottawa Golf Club. In 1915, George Cumming, pre-dating his partnership with Stanley Thompson and Nicol Thompson (who was part of the site selection process for Hamilton Golf & Country Club, where Harry Colt would design the layout also), expanded Rivermead’s layout to eighteen holes.

Rivermead’s reputation in the world of Canadian golf is firmly cemented with the Rivermead Cup awarded to the low-Canadian in the Canadian Open each year, but as with most golf courses in the country, attention to detail began to slip post-World War Two, and Rivermead began to sank into the background of any discussion on golf courses in Canada. It didn’t help that nearby Royal Ottawa had notable architects like Tom Bendelow (1903), Harry Colt (1913), and Willie Park Jr. (1920) to their name, and the club’s Royal status (desginated in 1912) elevated it.

In the 1980s, Ken Skodacek and Ken Venturi renovate the golf course, and any sign of classic influences at Rivermead ceased to exist other than the green complexes, which remained the oldest part of the golf course other than the routing. Skodacek and Venturi’s renovation largely concentrated on bunkering, with their big, squiggly bunkers forcing themselves onto the landscape. It wasn’t until Jeff Mingay, noted Canadian architect with restoration credits like Victoria (BC), Beaconsfield (QC), and more to his name, came in to fix the work and bring back a classic feel to Rivermead, and in 2024, the work wrapped up. In total, seven greens were expanded, a new, grassed-down bunker style more in line with old photos of George Cummings preferred style on all eighteen holes, some thoughtful tree removal to open up coridoors whilst keeping it a parkland experience, and better mow lines.

Holes to Note

Third hole, 365 yards; Rivermead’s thoughtful renovation is a shining example of a doing a little to end up doing a lot. For example, the green surfaces did not dramatically change, and the routing had no substantial differences or changes from the previous version (which didn’t have any routing changes from Murray/Cummings golf course). This is no Oakland Hills, Inverness Club, or Cal Club: architect Jeff Mingay’s mandate was to work without the parameters of the current site whilst improving the layout greatly.

Rivermead sits on the Quebec site of the Ottawa River that divides Ottawa (on the other side of the river) from Gatineau.

What a difficult task! Prior to Jeff Mingay getting his hands on the golf course, Ken Skodacek and Ken Venturi had largely wiped out any historic, classic features from the golf course. They renovated the layout in the 1980s when they were working at Eagle Creek—an abomination, presenting nearly everything that’s wrong with golf architecture from that era in a single serving—and incorporated some of their less inconspicuous features into the gentle layout, transforming a quaint layout into somewhat of a Frankenstein’d layout between modern and classic. It brought Rivermead closer to Eagle Creek, whereas Rivermead ought to hope to be as far away from Eagle Creek as possible.

Even so, since the 1980s and certainly since Rivermead first-opened in the 1910s, golf has evolved and the ball continues to fly further. The original architecture duo here of Charles Murray and George Cumming, while fundamental to the early days of Canadian golf, reasonably don’t have enough source material for a true restoration to the original Rivermead, and Skodacek and Venturi made that feasible improbable with a handful of added wetlands, ponds, and other costly things to remove. Instead, Mingay’s work is more of a renovation, keeping in mind the club’s pedigree and historical relevance.

After the opening two holes gently introduce golfers to Rivermead’s layout, the routing crosses Rivermead Road, arriving at the third tee. Now, with the road up the entire right side of the hole, safety ought to be a concern of the golf course—especially with most golfers hitting the golf ball left-to-right. So, Mingay bunkered the right side heavily to enforce the idea to play left—and away from the road—with an open vista in the left rough to reinforce the safety in playing up the left.

With the road to the right, the string of bunkers up the right pushes golfers to the left, where it’s not uncommon to find the hummocks or chocolate drops to help facilitate an awkward lie coming in on this short four-shot hole.

Fourth hole, 305 yards; A charming reachable par 4 for longer hitters, the view from the tee is splattered with bunkers up the left and right. The direct line is unobstructed and provides just enough of temptation for most for the green on their first time around.

Where the Fourth at Rivermead separates itself from its contemporaries in the country is the increased awareness to the risk in going for the green in two. For one, the additional fairway up the right seems to suggest there is more playing room than the left. There’s no doubt about that, but playing over the right fairway bunker grants the second shot a difficult, touchy shot working down the slope, with the green feeding from the high right side to the low-left. So, rather than the fairway, playing short of the greenside bunker provides the best chance at an easy up-and-down. The bunker scheme is demonstrated below from a drone view, with each bunker serving a purpose for someone’s preferred layup!

Fifth hole, 470 yards; The opening four holes provide a suitable introduction that doesn’t beat you up, though challenges you; provides enough scoring opportunities, but is engaging all the same. After that, the Fifth welcomes everyone to the meat of the golf course, with a big, beefy par 4 playing to one of the more severe greens on the golf course.

With a single bunker in the landing area for the longest hitters up the left, the Fifth is all about positioning: playing to the left-side fairway grants the above view, playing up the neck of the green and away from the single tree fronting the right side of the green. The ideal line is from as close to the bunker up the left as possible, whereas the right side provides a far safer line for a tee ball, but more difficult approach shot, now having to negotiate with the tree.

Tenth hole, 185 yards; If you were to sketch the Tenth hole on paper, one might assume this is a run-of-the-mill par 3. For one, its angled green, from the front-right to the back-left and its pairing with the front-left bunker, and its two bunkers on the far outside right corner with its short grass run-up area, seems to suggest elements of a pseudo-redan, with the slope working towards the left side of the hole. After all, this hole is benched into the hillside, with the higher side up the right.

In reality, the Tenth is a perplexing mental test, with everything setting up for a right-handed draw, although the green works at an angle that missing right becomes more and more a reality when the pin is further back. This little nook where the hole resides tilts right against the general slope of the property, and rather than a traditional redan with the green tilting the same way the green is angled, the bunker short-left is on the high side of the hole, with the surface tilting away from it to the right.

A view of the Tenth short of the fairway.

There’s no denying this isn’t the most complex or groundbreaking par 3, though its orientation confounds with repeat plays: getting the ball close often relies on the first bounce, which means the optimal line of play is just left of the flag—or more over the bunker and taking on more risk.

Eleventh hole, 490 yards; With the current golf ball and driver offering, this par 5 is more of a par 4 by length. From the tee, a single bunker awaits the weak slice, while one up the left in the distance is a good aiming line.

Even though its short yardage suggests an easier hole, the Eleventh’s green complex, small, and narrowing as it approaches the back, more than makes up for it, with balls struggling to find the surface in two given the limited surface area. Even more demanding, the three bunkers up the right, varying in size, await the weaker shot, while aggressive swings up the left may see balls tossed to the side and into another bunker up the left.

Fifteenth hole, 330 yards; Drive-and-pitch holes are of the Golden Age vintage, with classic architects generally feeling that, if it is reachable in one (even with driver), it’s a par 3. See, the 4th at Jasper Park Lodge, 16th at Cypress Point, 6th at West Sussex, and more as long par 3’s where, upon opening, driver was likely the club of choice for nearly all players. With the ball going further, what constitutes a “drive-and-pitch” is continuing to lengthen or stretch out. Even at 330 yards, one could argue this is a drivable par 4, with just 310 or so to the front edge. That said, most don’t have 300+ yards in their bag, and as a result, the fifteenth hole is a superb drive-and-pitch hole.

For nearly all golfers, the decision of either playing over the central bunker or short awaits. For those going over it, a rather straightforward pitch into the gentle, low-lying green complex awaits, though a sizable tee shot and the fear of leaving it in the small, but decidedly difficult bunker looms. Short of the bunker sees two fairway bunkers awaiting wayward shots left and right, and not to mention a longer second shot, though an easier tee shot.

A view from above of the Fifteenth as it narrows towards the green.

We, as golf architecture enthusiasts, get tied up with the world’s best golf courses, but the study of golf architecture is all-encompassing and worthy of exploration beyond the renovations that make all the headlines. Very few peoply truly get the opportunity to see and explore the world’s finest golf courses, and those who do should strive to bring great golf architecture to their communities.Rivermead’s recent renovation is a superb example of transporting sporty architecture to a tired, older facility not seen in an architecturally sigificant lens in a generation. Now, Jeff Mingay’s work brings a new light to the facility, with a budget-friendly, savvy renovation proving a renovation doesn’t have to be $35,000,000 to dramatically improve the product.

For that, Rivermead is a project to look to for community, local, and clubs with a budget-concious renovation in mind on how to overhaul a golf course with cost and a wide palette of members in mind whilst being architecturally interesting. Mingay’s work has shades of classic architecture and it pushes the envolope for Quebec standards—with the occasional centreline bunker added, collection areas, expanded greens, and trees coming out (all things we see worldwide, but the province lags behind the trends) but its the type of no-frills, sophistication one could play every day and one a superintenant would happily mantain every day. Not every renovation can be Cal Club’s dramatic overhaul, and nor should it be: Rivermead is a perfect example of something more clubs should be looking to, for it delivers a wonderful playing experience on a sporty, strategy layout.

The Fourteenth at Rivermead.