LATEST
NEWS

Sean Dudley
/ Categories: News

Doug Carrick leads development of new golf course at Friday Harbour

Golf course architect Doug Carrick is leading a project that will see the creation of an 18-hole course at the Friday Harbour Resort near Innisfil, Canada.

Located on western shores of Lake Simcoe in the province of Ontario, Friday Harbour will comprise 2,200 resort residential units and a 1,000-slip marina, as well as the new course, which is to be named The Nest at Friday Harbour Resort. Practice facilities will also be created. 

GCA caught up with Carrick to discuss his latest design.

“My first impression of the site was that it was relatively flat agricultural land and for the most part devoid of trees, except for a mature wooded area in the north-east corner of the site,” Carrick said. “I felt that these site conditions were well suited to the requirements of the project, as we had to accommodate two million cubic metres of earth, which was to be hauled away from the excavation site of the new 1,000 slip, 40-acre marina basin.”

Carrick explained that the course will feature dramatic undulations on the fairways. Elevation changes will also feature thanks to the earth transported from the marina basin.

The architect added that the course’s bunkers have been designed in the fashion of some of the sand belt courses in Australia. These feature closely mown bentgrass around the greenside bunkers and on the approaches to the fairway bunkers.

“The course layout is relatively compact, with short distances between greens and tees, which will help the speed of play and will make the course very walkable,” Carrick said. “The layout also returns the sixth green, ninth green, 15th green and 18th green in close proximity to the clubhouse. This will allow golfers to play a three-hole loop, a six-hole loop or a nine-hole loop either early in the morning or late in the evening.”

New practice facilities will be created to complement the course and will include a driving range. A short, nine-hole pitch and putt course will be incorporated within the range area, and target greens will double as greens and tees for this short course. Carrick says the range will be used for junior clinics or learn to play events when not in use as a driving range.

“The golf course will measure just over 7,000 yards from the championship tees and around 5,200 yards from the forward tees,” Carrick said. “No two holes will have the same yardage and the course has great variety, with four par threes that range from 135 yards to 240 yards. The par fours range from 310 yards to 480 yards, with two of the fours being drivable. The par fives range from 530 yards to 580 yards and are all reachable in two for the most skilled golfers.”

Construction work is now underway, and the course is scheduled to open in 2018.

“I hope that The Nest Golf Course will provide golfers with an enjoyable and rewarding golf experience,” Carrick added. “Each hole is designed to be visually inspiring and thought provoking to play, while providing the appropriate challenge for golfers of all skill levels.”

Previous Article Fry/Straka to design second course at Arcadia Bluffs
Next Article Issue 46 of Golf Course Architecture is out now
Print
8046 Rate this article:
No rating
Slideshow HTML
  • Nemu2

    The course is located on Big Bay Point, which lies on Lake Simcoe’s western shores

  • Nemu2

    More than two million cubic tons of earth will be used during the course’s construction and provide elevation changes

  • Nemu2

    The course is currently taking shape and is scheduled to get underway in 2018

Sean Dudley

Sean DudleySean Dudley

Other posts by Sean Dudley
Contact author

Contact author

x
The April 2025 issue of Golf Course Architecture is out now!
Magazine, News | Wed 16 Apr, 2025

The April 2025 issue of Golf Course Architecture is out now!

Includes reports from Maggie Hathaway and Apogee, interviews with Martin Ebert and Dave Axland and a feature on golf art

Spring 2025 issue of ASGCA’s By Design magazine is out now
Magazine, News | Fri 14 Mar, 2025

Spring 2025 issue of ASGCA’s By Design magazine is out now

New issue asks whether the golf boom has led to an increase in municipal golf investment

FEATURE
ARTICLES

Oakmont: An interview with Gil Hanse
USGA/Fred Vuich
Interview | Richard Humphreys

Oakmont: An interview with Gil Hanse

With the 2025 US Open arriving at Oakmont, Richard Humphreys spoke with the architect, who renovated the course in 2023, about what to expect

Martin Ebert: Design journey
Taku Miyamoto
Interview | Adam Lawrence

Martin Ebert: Design journey

With a portfolio that includes eight of the ten Open venues, Mackenzie & Ebert occupies an enviable position in the golf design industry. Adam Lawrence spoke with principal Martin Ebert to learn how they got there

South course at Apogee Club: New scenery for second act
Toby Ingleton
On site | Toby Ingleton

South course at Apogee Club: New scenery for second act

Toby Ingleton reports on a design debut for the partnership of Mike Davis and Tom Fazio II, in the new course hotspot of south Florida

The art of golf
theberkshire.co.uk, The R&A World Golf Museum and National Galleries of Scotland
Feature | Adam Lawrence

The art of golf

Adam Lawrence profiles some of the best illustrators of golf courses in the game’s history – both full-time artists and architects who draw or paint

A masterplan of masters’ plans
Cohasse CC
Report | Mark Wagner

A masterplan of masters’ plans

Mark Wagner writes about the Tim Lewis-led renovation of Cohasse, a course that includes the work of Donald Ross and the sons of Frederick Law Olmsted

Quail Hollow: An interview with Tom Fazio
PGA of America/ Gary W. Kellner
Interview | Richard Humphreys

Quail Hollow: An interview with Tom Fazio

The architect talks about how this year’s PGA Championship venue has evolved over the past 30 years

Bringing golf to Benin
Afrikafun Production Stephane Brabant
Report | Richard Humphreys

Bringing golf to Benin

Jeremy Pern and Gregori International are creating the first 18-hole course in the West African country, on an ‘almost perfect’ site that also includes a sacred grove and voodoo shrines

The future of vegetation management on Melbourne’s Sandbelt
Lukas Michel/CDP
Opinion | Mike Clayton

The future of vegetation management on Melbourne’s Sandbelt

Mike Clayton discusses Alister MacKenzie’s transformative impact on Australian golf and how clubs can avoid repeating previous mistakes by establishing a long-term plan focused on indigenous plants

Maggie Hathaway: A force for good
Stephen Barton – Second Collective
On site | Adam Lawrence

Maggie Hathaway: A force for good

The reconstruction of the nine-hole course in Los Angeles is the golf industry at its best, says Adam Lawrence

Designs for the big screen
Pizá Golf
Interview | Richard Humphreys

Designs for the big screen

Chad Goetz and Agustin Piza discuss their design decisions for the virtual holes that featured in the first season of TGL

The ties that bind
Crooked Stick
Opinion | Justin Olmstead

The ties that bind

Justin Olmstead of Profile Products talks about the relationships behind the renovation of Crooked Stick in Indiana

Gopher Watch Competition – April 2025
Gopher Watch, News | Wed 16 Apr, 2025

Gopher Watch Competition – April 2025

Which course has Sandy the gopher visited this month?

MOST
POPULAR

FEATURED
BUSINESSES