Northview Golf and Country Club

It is not often possible to play a golf course which has hosted a PGA tour event.

I've had the privilege to play a couple of golf courses which have hosted PGA tour event, including Dove Mountain near Tucson, Arizona, and Northview in Surrey, B.C. The quality of the latter truly makes it worthy of being called a championship course.

Owners Marilyn and Chick Stewart set out in the early 1990s to build the finest 36-hole public golf course in the province and succeeded with The Canal and The Ridge Courses. They succeeded in part because they hired Arnold Palmer, a golfing legend, to design both courses.

It is the Ridge Course, opened in 1994, that hosted a PGA event for seven years, initially called the Greater Vancouver Open (1996-98) and then the Air Canada Championship (1999-2002). Some of the best golfers in the world have played here, including Payne Stewart, Luke Donald, Graeme McDowell, Matt Kuchar, Adam Scott and Mike Weir.

Mike Weir’s eagle

Northview is synonymous with Canadian golfer Mike Weir. It was here on September 5, 1999, that 40,000 people witnessed Weir win his first PGA event, which was also the first time a Canadian had won a PGA tour event in Canada in 45 years. Canadians around the 18th green spontaneously sang O Canada. Weir said, "I’m just in shock... this was an unbelievable day.” What made it unbelievable was the 14th hole, where he holed out from 159 yards with an 8-iron for an eagle two. The tournament was won. 

The plaque on the tee box commemorates Weir's eagle, which has become a defining moment in Canadian golf history. Weir has gone on to win eight PGA events, including the Masters in 2003, but his win at Northview is etched in time. Anyone who plays The Ridge has to stop and take a photo of that plaque and try to duplicate Mike’s miraculous shot—including me.

Life after the PGA tour

Twelve years after the PGA Tour left, Chris Hoy, Northview's Director of Golf, still gets questions about the return of the tour and Weir’s win. It is as if time has stood still and maybe it has. Life, however, has continued on for Northview. Hoy and his staff have expanded practice facilities, created the Academy of Golf Instruction and added the Titleist Regional Fitting Centre. The LABsters is a coaching program for elite junior golfers which features an orange box that measures club head speed, trajectory, distance and a multitude of swing factors.

The PGA Tour returned to the West Coast in 2005 and 2011, when the Canadian Open was held at Shaughnessy Golf and Country Club in Vancouver. There is a possibility that the PGA tour could return to Northview, depending on the value of the Canadian dollar, corporate sponsorship, a suitable week and the participation of the PGA’s better golfers. As Hoy said, "We've been ready since they left."

Playing the Ridge

When Palmer designed Northview, it had to have three qualities: rolling terrain, elevation changes and go-for-broke, risk-and-reward holes. The Ridge has all these qualities. A natural ridge extends from the second through to the 17th fairway, winding in and out of the trees. Water seems to be everywhere, but only comes into play on seven holes. The 90 individual bunkers are more of a problem. Greens are not that large, and have some undulation with average speed. Palmer believes that good golfers have to be able to use all the clubs in their bags. The Ridge from the back Palmer tees is 6,900 yards, with a slope of 138, making it a challenging layout.

Front nine

The first hole is a good opening hole, allowing the golfer to get off to a good start. It is holes No. 2 and No. 3 that are the problem. Both holes are extremely tight, with sloping fairways and well bunkered greens. Bogeys are a good score. Hole No. 4 is a short par 5, with a blind shot over a ridge to the green. Hole No. 7 is a good risk and reward hole on the second shot, or lay up before Stewart Creek. The last risk and reward hole is No. 8, being a short par 4 of 350 yards over water—or playing it safe down the left side. The two par 3s are not that long, are open in front and require accurate shots for par.

Back nine

The first three holes are relatively easy and not that long. The heart of the back nine are holes 13 through 17, due to the elevation changes, bunkers, water hazards and being open to the wind. There is plenty of water on the back nine, but it only comes into play on holes 11, 13, 14, 17 and 18. It is the final or Signature Hole, a semi-island green, that golfers look forward to. It is a great par 5 finishing hole, giving the golfer a go for broke over water or playing it safe to the left.

Whether the PGA tour returns to Northview or not, both courses are enjoyable to play as well as busy. With 62,000 rounds played on average per year, the two courses are the fourth busiest in the province. Northview has excellent facilities, from the driving range and practice area to its CPGA instructors. Now into its 20th year, Northview has matured and will only continue to improve in the foreseeable future.