After a recent visit to Kamloops in Canada, I decided to take exactly one day off before returning to Canada for more golf action. This time I was bringing friends. These are not just your normal friends, these friends have some serious golf firepower.
Josh Strukoff hydrates before pounding one deep.
Luke Elvy sends one right at the flag
Tisha Alyn - Golf Model, The Influencer among Influencers
Luke Elvy - CBS Golf Commentator, Australian accent, Chief Fun Haver
Patrick Koenig - Local Golf Idiot, Director of the fancy shirt department
Josh Strukoff - Golf is Mental blogger, Water Drinker, Golf Grinder
Koenig smiles as he sends one into the woods.
Tisha Alyn reacts to a near ace.
Our crew was set to take on 7 golf courses in just 4 days in the Kimberley and Cranbrook area of British Columbia. Like many people, I had not heard of the destination before so I was excited to explore some new golfing lands. The hits were going to come fast and we were going to make sure that they were furious.
The Kimberley tour kicked off at Kimberley Golf Club.
Kimberley Golf Club has been around since 1924 and is a local favorite for golfers. Green fees start at $45 and is easily one of the best values in the British Columbia Rocky Mountains.
A sign of the activities to come in Kimbereley and Cranbrook.
Just golf, trees, and mountains at Kimberley Golf Club.
After a rousing good morning at Kimberley Golf Club, it was time to head out to Trickle Creek Golf Resort. When I first saw Trickle Creek on the itinerary, I knew that there were going to be some great opportunities for captions. It turns out that the caption game with Trickle Creek was more difficult than anticipated. Perhaps I just like the word trickle.
One thing that I would not struggle with at Trickle Creek was my high kicks. With the wet rock and the small landing area, this is what I would consider a high risk kick. The good news is that I am now considered a professional high kicker and I train for this sort of stuff. Do not attempt at home.
The divot of the trip came on the front nine at Trickle Creek.
Trickle Creek Golf resort is located in Kimberley, British Columbia which has the highest elevation in the province at just above 4,000 feet above sea level. So our golfballs were flying far and sure. The Les Furber design offers golfers options and provides a lot of interesting and fun golf holes. The course is located right next to the North Star mountain and provides plenty of dramatic views.
With one successful day of golf in the books, it was time to lock and load for another day of 36 golf holes. We started out with the first Gary Player design in Canada, Wildstone Golf Course. We braced ourselves for some wild times at Wildstone. The highlight and lowlight came with another close call on the ace cam on hole #16. Just another tap in 2 for this ace hunter.
The 17th hole at Wildstone was one of our favorite holes of the trip.
Push-ups completed
During the first two days of competition we did not play for cash, we played for push-ups. Push-up bets are a great way to ramp up the fun and get jacked at the same time. As you can see below, Tish out push-upped us all. Since I was dominating the field with my stellar play, I had no push-up debts to settle. I decided to do a few anyways as I was feeling left out..
For the afternoon round, we found ourselves amongst the trees of Cranbrook Golf Club. Our group would attack those trees with only 3 clubs for the 3 hole, 3 club challenge. When deciding what clubs you will need for a 3 club challenge, it is important to look at the holes themselves. Is distance a concern? Can you putt with your 7 iron? All angles and scenarios must be considered. I decided to go with a 3 wood, 6 iron, and a 56 degree wedge.
With Tisha and Josh dropping out of the race early on, Luke and I emerged as the likely favorites to take home the 3 hole 3 club victory. I was draining putts with my 56 degree wedge and Luke was hitting his 7 iron like Jesus himself. On the 3rd hole, I had a 3 foot putt to take home the victory. The putt with my wedge never stood a chance, it sailed wide right and I found myself locked into a sudden death duel with Mr Luke Elvy. For the next two holes Luke and I would trade bogies in a showdown of thrilling mediocrity.
On the 3rd playoff hole of the the 3 hole, 3 club showdown, Luke faced a downhill 20 footer for the victory. Like a seasoned 3 club professional, Luke bladed his wedge into the back of the cup with tremendous ferocity and celebrated like an animal. Luke promptly thanked his parents, his sponsors, the fine city of Cranbrook and it’s citizens for believing in him.
“I have never won anything like this in my life”
The scene of my missed 3 foot putt for the victory
The scene of Luke’s birdie victory
The next course on the docket was Bootleg Gap Golf Club and it would quickly become one of the group’s favorites. Aside from the excellent name, the golf course is also wildly fun. The Les Furber design plays along the St Mary’s river and offers many impressive views of the nearby mountains.
In one of the dumbest bets in the history of sports betting history, Josh and I spotted Luke and Tish a 7 hole lead on the day’s match. Not 7 shots, 7 freaking holes. That’s right, we would have to win the first 7 holes just to get back to even. It was certainly not a wise wager but it was the inaugural playing of the 7-up Cup… and probably the last.
The 2nd hole at Bootleg Gap takes you right up to the hoodoo’s edge.
Even though the outcome was partially decided before a golf shot was even struck, we attempted the come back of all come backs. The result… an 8 & 7 victory for Luke & Tish. This situation called for some serious heckling of the winner’s press conference. This video was my favorite of the entire trip.
The signature par 3 12th at Bootleg Gap.
The 6th, 9th and 18th holes at Bootleg Gap.
The golf party kept rolling that afternoon at St Eugene. Another Les Furber design, St Eugene rolls from the open fields to the woods and along the St Mary’s River. Dramatic views of Fisher Peak are visible from just about everywhere on the golf course.
The 17th hole features a golf teepee behind the green.
The 8th green with the 9th hole playing along the St Marys River.
With a trip to the airport looming, we had just enough time for one more round of golf. The stage was set for the finale at Shadow Mountain and a showdown with the course’s signature 17th hole. Nicknamed ‘The Monster’ the 17th plays 606 yards from the back tees and features a 100 foot elevation drop from the tee box. I would pump one right into the trees en route to a disappointing bogey.
The view from behind the 17th
The 2nd hole at Shadow Mountain.
One of the finer things about the Kimberley Cranbrook area is the airport. With only an hour remaining before my flight, I was just finishing up on the 18th hole. Normally I would have missed my flight by a good margin, but with the Kimberley airport, I had some time to spare.
The final photo from a inspiring 4 days of photos.
Trickle Creek Time
Parking lot posers
Post bet burpees
Josh wins the award for trip MVP. This guy never stops the grind!
All of the golf that our Canadian super squad played on this trip was on public courses and would rank as some of the best value golf courses that I have played. When you consider the exchange on the US dollar, you have got yourself a serious golf deal. During our visit we stayed at the Northstar Mountain Village Resort and all 7 courses are within a 24 minute drive from the resort. When you start considering the hot tub in every condo, you have got a serious golf buddies trip idea.
If I only could figure out a way to Hot Tub Time Machine myself to my next destination.