Whistler BC - Breathtaking
Dan Kilbank - OttawaGolf


If you are ever in Vancouver, take the opportunity to drive up hwy 99, the "Sea to Sky Highway". The drive alone is worth the time, as the scenery is absolutely stunning. The drive is about an hour and a half, so from Vancouver it can be a day trip.

Whistler is amid the Coast Mountains of British Columbia. It is renowned as the best ski resort in North America. With the coming 2010 winter games, this resort village will be built into the ultimate winter resort, second to none in the world. Additions will include the Whistler Nordic Centre, Which will include three permanent stadium areas for Cross Country, Biathlon and Ski Jumping, with spectator capacity of 12,000. Tracks for Luge and Bobsled will also be constructed.






Whistler in the summer has everything outdoor enthusiasts could want. The mountain is a Mecca for BMX cyclists. Chair lifts are converted to accommodate the bikes.
There are trails down the mountain for all levels of rider. For a "less-vertical" experience you can choose from a great variety of biking and walking tours, or trail riding on horseback. In the first half of the 20th century, Whistler was a world-renowned fly-fishing resort. The area has many rivers, lakes and streams that are abundant with trout in the spring and salmon in the fall. Now, a all manner of water sports, from canoeing and kayaking, to wind surfing, white-water rafting or jet boating are available for your enjoyment. It truly is a sportsman's playground.
Of course no trip to Whistler would be complete without a gondola ride to the summit. The mountain is snow capped year round. The view is breathtaking, and the "snowball fight in July" is a lot of fun. Bring a jacket, it is very windy and chilly at the top! The people you meet are from literally everywhere else. It seems there are no "locals". There are people with accents of all sorts, and here and there you can hear snippets of German, Japanese, Hungarian, and any other language you can imagine.

The most common question you hear in the Village is "where are you from?" It is an incredible cultural mix. The local workforce is primarily made up of young adults who came to Whistler, and did not go back to wherever they came from. Living here is all about the lifestyle of the extreme athlete. The mood is very upbeat. This must be where beer commercials get their inspiration.

The villages' multitude of compact, resort-sized, stores. are stocked with mostly affordable things, but some stores were for the very welled-heeled, selling high-end designer clothes or art. It's really neat to walk into a small Roots store one minute, out the door and into a Cow's or Eddie Bauer, or gem store or whatever in another. Quite a wide variety. Prices were on the high side, but it is a resort in a fairly remote location, so that was to be expected.

Chateau Whistler Golf Course
a Robert Trent Jones Jr. design

Neatly carved into the rugged terrain at the base of Blackcomb Mountain, Chateau Whistler is stunningly beautiful
In 1997 Golf magazine called it one of the “great golf resorts of the world” , for good reason. At 6,635 yards from the tips, it is not overly long, but this is a real mountain course, with a rise of some 400 feet in elevation as you go out on the front nine. The back plays a bit easier, as the course winds it's way back down the mountain. One may expect the elevation here to affect the flight of the ball, but the course itself is just over 2000' above sea level.
The day I played was a mix of weather. It was raining most of the day before, and the forecast was not very favourable. The day started off with mostly overcast skies, and every now and then the sun would pop out for 10 or 15 minutes. As the round progressed, the weather worsened. The rain came on the 6th hole. Nothing could dampen our spirits as we played on through the downpour which finally let up after the 13th hole. Thank goodness for Gortex! I was paired up with three nice guys from San Francisco, who had driven up the night before for the weekend. The had a round booked at Nichlaus North

that afternoon, Whistler GC and Big Sky the next day, and then back to SF. Nice weekend! They all played from the tips, and saw some interesting parts of the course! I was more conservative and played from the whites, and believe me, it was very challenging. I managed to shoot 92, and for this 'bogie golfer" I felt that was very good on such a course. The greens were very fast and conditions were superb. Many shots had forced carries, and the trouble was never far from the target area. Keeping it in play was critical.

Despite the rain, the views were incredible, as the shot here of 13 shows, the clouds hanging off the mountains added an almost eerie look to the scene.

I have played this course in MS Links many times, and on a several occasions through the day, holes looked familiar. That was pretty neat. Upon my return home I played it again on the computer, and I was very impressed with the rendering of the course in Links. I am sure that having been there will ensure this Links course has a permanent home on my hard drive.

When our round was complete, the staff at the club quickly gathered all our bags, taking each of our clubs one by one, and completely cleaning and drying them off. I thought the thorough drying was a nice service after a wet round. The staff were very friendly as we joked about being one of only a few groups of "die hards" that did not retreat when the rain was heavy.

Memorable holes
Hole # 3, is pictured here. It is dramatically uphill from the tee, and again from the fairway. This monster seems to rise forever. The deep ravine in front of the green is dangerous, but it is not as close to the green as it looks. Take one more club, and then one more.

Course conditions when we played were as dramatic as the views all around us. The greens were lightning fast, and rolled true for every putt. Fairways and rough were maintained in pristine shape throughout.


# 8 is the "Signature" par 3 pictured here. The deep pond on the left and cliff on the right leave no room for a miss to either side. # 14 (not pictured) is a classic risk reward hole. With a drop of about 30 feet from the tee to the fairway, the long hitter can launch it over the bunkers and get very close to the green. misses are not rewarded, and a safer option is available. The way this hole beckons you to pull the driver and go for it is what makes this hole special.

This is a view of number 13 green in the foreground and #6 green in the back. This layout has the course going all the way out and in, as in a classic links, but this is no links course!

The Gatineau Hills are nice, but if you want a real mountain golf experience, this is it! Best course I have ever played. Bar none. Do not pass up the chance to play this one. While the $195 green fee is pricey, the course is worth it.



Kudos To a Great Course
  • Golf Digest named Chateau Whistler Golf Club "Best New Canadian Golf Course" in 1993.
  • The readers of Golf Digest rated it "4 1/2 stars", a must play rating, in 1996 and 1997.
  • In 1997 Chateau Whistler Golf Club became a member of "Great Golf Resorts of the World"
  • In 1997 Golf Magazine named the club a "Gold Medal Resort" their highest award.
Getting to Whistler
  • Flights are easily arranged from Ottawa To Vancouver.
  • Whistler is a one and a half hour drive up Route 99 - The incredible "Sea to Sky Highway"
  • With the improvements to the highway, underway expect construction delays. They need to do a lot of blasting on this twisty mountain road, and brief road closures are inevitable.
  • Gasoline is not available in the Resort Village, so be sure to fill up in Squamish on the way up