Ron Toigo’s new Tsawwassen Springs fills a niche

Tsawwassen Springs Golf Course

Ron Toigo, a longtime resident of Tsawwassen, B.C., realized his community had an aging population with little to offer age-55-plus empty nesters. What the South Delta area needed was a planned residential community with a new golf course. After years of public hearings and addressing environmental concerns, the golf course opened in August 2012. Coming onboard as investors were hockey coach Pat Quinn, music promoter Bruce Allen and singer Michael Buble.

Toigo, owner of the Vancouver Giants of the Western Hockey League as well as White Spot restaurants, wanted to create a new kind of residential community: self-contained and resembling a golf resort setting. The 296 condos and 194 detached homes at Tsawwassen Springs are the nucleus of the development. A planned 32,000-square-foot clubhouse will include a pro shop, spa, fitness centre, restaurant and pub, as well as banquet facilities for up to 500 people. In addition, a 4,200-square-foot commercial space will include a cafe, delicatessen and grocery store. There will also be tennis courts, biking trails, an outdoor skating rink, an organic community garden and a path to the beach. The price tag for the entire development is in the $400 million range, and it should be completed by the end of 2017.

Creating something new

The golf course architect was Ted Locke, who was responsible for Redwoods in Langley and North Bellingham in Washington State. A new course would emerge from the old Tsawwassen course as Locke took his design from the famous Torrey Pines near San Diego. The old Tsawwassen was usually a mud bowl by December, so the new Tsawwassen had to address a drainage problem. The solution was nine miles of drainage pipes, contoured fairways built on 14 inches of sand, a creek that meanders throughout the course and ten ponds designed to collect rainwater. The result is a course that boasts that its tees, greens and fairways are the driest in the Lower Mainland.

The old course was an executive course, being a par 65 at 4,406 yards long. The new Tsawwassen has a longer layout at par 70 and 5,439 yards from the back tees. That yardage may sound short and easy, but the course is far from a breeze.

Locke described Tsawwassen as “a hybrid course between an executive layout and a full-length championship course.” There are six par 3s, four par 5s and eight par 4s, with the longest par 4 only 339 yards. The shortest hole is 127 yards and the longest hole is 492 yards.  The longest par 3s are 227 and 228 yards, which is PGA length. The number one handicap hole is No. 5, par 5, 475 yards, with a pond running the entire length of the hole.

Playing the Springs

A driver can be used on most holes, but an iron is recommended on hole No. 7 (271 yards) and hole No. 10 (288 yards). The ponds, the soft sand bunkers, the small greens and the narrow fairways require good course management. To quote Locke: “there’s a little bit of length, a little bit of tradition and a little bit of target golf.” If your intent is to grip it and rip it, then enjoy the hazards.

Having played the old Tsawwassen course many times, I found the new layout interesting. The first ten holes were built over the original 18 holes.  For example, Hole 2 used to be Hole 5, while Hole 6 used to be Hole 7.  The remaining eight new holes are situated in the area extending north to the highway and are more of a links style. Holes 14 through 18 are narrow, open to the wind and the heart of the back nine. Hole 14, at only 334 yards, can quickly turn into a nightmare if you do not keep the ball left. Hole 16, 484 yards, calls for a long tee shot and a possible blind second shot over a ditch, mole and bunker. The 18th hole is the signature hole, with a peninsula or island-style green surrounded by water on three sides. It is a nice finishing hole.

Tsawwassen Springs is a very classy course, doing all the little things right. That includes cart paths, yardage markers, bathrooms, garbage and recycling containers, signs, benches, carts and the driving range.  Remember, this is a public course with many private-course-style amenities. My only criticism, and it is minor, is that red flags are not used on the greens and the white fairway makers are 125 yards, not the traditional 150 yards.

The word Tsawwassen means looking towards the sea, and the BC Ferry terminal is only a few miles away from this golf course. As for those previously-mentioned environmental concerns, the entire project is certified by the Audubon Society as both sustainable and environmentally friendly.

Ron Toigo has undertaken a massive project, wanting to carve out a niche in the Lower Mainland golf market. His project is off to a great start.