We arrived at Bigwin Island
to visit the newly revitalized
Bigwin Island Golf Club. It’s
a stunning new Doug Carrick-designed
championship golf course that
has received much critical acclaim
since it re-launched in 2002.
The club was borne out of the
ruins of the old Bigwin Inn
resort. Bigwin was the big swinging
place to spend the summer back
in the 1920s and 30s. Built
on a grand scale, Bigwin was
very much a symbol of the elegance
and excess of this era in history.
It had also boasted a wonderfully
designed Stanley Thompson golf
course. Originally laid out
in 1922 as a 9-hole course -
it was expanded to 18 holes
within a few years. Unfortunately
things just weren’t the
same for Bigwin after the coming
of the Great Depression. The
original owners sold and the
resort changed hands a number
of times over the years, to
the point where it was finally
abandoned in 1970 after a number
years of mismanagement and neglect.
In
its time, the Bigwin Inn was
the grandest resort in all of
Eastern Canada and attracted
an unbelievable clientele. Names
like Eaton, Rockefeller, Weston
and Sifton were commonplace
at the Inn during its heyday.
Hollywood stars like Clark Gable
and Carole Lombard visited Bigwin,
as well as noted literary giants
Ernest Hemingway and H.G. Wells
as well as Prime Minister John
Diefenbaker. Guests would arrive
by Muskoka steamship to spend
the summer in style and elegance.
Tennis, shuffleboard, croquet
and badminton (and of course
golf) were popular activities
by day, while Bigwin’s
enormous 12,000 square foot
maple dance floor played host
to scores of waltzing ladies
and gentlemen by night.
Developer Alan Peters
purchased the land the land from the local Lake
of Bays Township in 1986. Originally intending to
subdivide and sell off the land to create an island
cottage paradise, his plans changed when he met
financier Jack Wadsworth. They decided to include
in their plans a high-end golf course on the island,
built right over top of the old layout. They soon
contracted noted golf course architect Doug Carrick
(Angus Glen, Greystone, King Valley) to layout the
new course and decided to resurrect the old Tudor-style
dining hall to serve as the new clubhouse.
A rising star in Canadian
golf course architecture, Carrick relished the opportunity
to revive this classic Stanley Thompson design.
“Doug Carrick’s passion for this project
right from the beginning was unbelievable,”
noted Francine Peters of Bigwin Island “he
really appreciated the history of the site and the
immense opportunities that lay in rebuilding a course
designed by his mentor - Stanley Thompson.”
He certainly has done a nice job of incorporating
his trademark flashed fairway bunkers while also
using much of the original routing from the original
course. All in all, the result was a fresh new course
design that not only accentuated the natural beauty
of the island but also incorporated much of the
look and feel of the old Thompson design.
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Our visit to Bigwin Island was on a placid Monday
morning in early summer. We
were told that there were
4 or 5 other groups of golfers
out on the course, but you
would have never known it.
The solitude of the day was
broken only by the occasional
worker or course marshall
driving by. We felt like we
had the entire island (and
golf course) to ourselves.
After hitting some practice
balls at the impressive new
range we set out on course.
The
first hole is a strong par
4 that doglegs right to an
elevated green that is protected
by a series of deep, steeply
sloped bunkers. The fairways
seemed quite firm, but unfortunately
the greens still had not fully
recovered from a recent aeration
session.
We were quite taken by
the third hole as well. It is a sweeping S-shaped
double dogleg par 5, that boasts a massive network
of strategically placed fairway bunkers. The hole
gradually winds its way uphill to an elevated green
that has a deceiving false front. Be sure to try
and hit the ball at least hole high on this one.
Another impressive hole
was the par 4 - 9th. From an elevated tee you encounter
a challenging risk-reward tee shot. There are a
series of deep fairway bunkers that cut across the
left side of the fairway, however a well-struck
tee shot should carry these bunkers and position
you for a short iron to the uphill green. The view
from the tee on this hole is great one.
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Before teeing
off at the par 4 - 11th
hole we encountered
a small herd of deer.
Amazingly they seemed
very unconcerned with
our presence. According
to the pro shop staff,
seeing wild animals
on the course is quite
common, with deer, moose
and even the occasional
bear swimming across
the lake (or walking
across the in the winter
season) to feed on the
island.
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The award for the best
hole on the course might be a toss-up, between the
par 4 - 6th hole and the finishing par 5 - 18th.
Both these holes are world class.
The 6th hole provides
a wonderful panoramic view of the Lake of Bays as
you tee off from a set of elevated tees down to
a manicured fairway more than a hundred feet below.
You would certainly be hard-pressed to find a more
picturesque golf hole anywhere in this province.
The beautiful 18th hole
provides yet another wonderful vista that overlooks
the magnificently rebuilt clubhouse from the tee
decks above. The hole wraps itself around the natural
contours of the land as it hugs the bay that separates
Bigwin Island from the island they call Little Bigwin.
The hole has a wide, well-manicured fairway that
doglegs right to a 2-tiered green, that sits neatly
adjacent the newly remodeled resort. With this great
a view and its sweeping layout, it is certainly
a wonderful finishing hole.
The Bigwin Island Golf
Club has no doubt done a wonderful job of putting
together a first-class golf experience. One that
most golfers will not soon forget. But, be sure
to visit this course soon, as it may be converted
into a private facility in the next few years once
all its memberships have been purchased. Or at least
be sure to take the water taxi across for a spot
of lunch in their posh new dining room.
Bigwin Island Golf
Club is about 3 hours from Toronto on Old Highway
117 in Norway Point, Ontario. Take Hwy 11 to Hwy
117 East and turn onto Old Hwy 117 after Baysville.
Green fees range from $135-195. Bigwin can be reached
at 800-840-4036 or visit www.bigwinisland.com.
