Spallumcheen is the site of this week’s Royale Cup

Dennis Begin explores Spallumcheen

From August 20-22 Spall, as it is known locally, will host the 2013 Royale Cup Canadian Women’s Senior Championship. This 54 hole tournament is sponsored by Golf Canada, which is also responsible for other national championships such as the RBC Canadian Open and CN Junior Golf Programs. The spirit of 150 Vernon volunteers and golfers will project Spallumcheen onto the national golf stage. The course is located on Highway 97, about 12 kilometres northwest of Vernon.

History

The land on which the golf course is located was once the property of Cornelius O’Keefe, and the historic O’Keefe Ranch is just across the highway. The O’Keefe Ranch was established in 1867 and became the local post office, stagecoach depot and entrance to the northern Okanagan. A small stream, Deep Creek, meanders through the property, and the land was first used for pasture and growing vegetables. The Interior Salish people called the land spil-a-mi-shine, meaning flat meadows, a suitably descriptive name.

Bill Simms could be called the father of Spallumcheen Golf Course. This Vernon teacher in 1969 bought an option on 102 acres for $105,000 from the O’Keefe family and, along with a dozen investors, started work on the course. John Tate and Cyril Foster joined Simms as the first golf architects. Spall opened in April 1972 with nine holes and a clubhouse, and in the following year expanded to 18 holes. 

The course continues to evolve. Land was leased from the Okanagan Indian Band, which today is part of the nine-hole executive course. Land for holes 3 through 5 and 14 through 16 was added to the course by 1993.

The golf course 

Simms describes the course as “a blue collar golf course as compared to the competition,” and added “I feel very proud of what we created and my 38 years of involvement with the course.”  

By 1987, Spall became the first 27-hole golf course in the province and one of the fastest growing courses in terms of memberships.              

Golf architect Les Furber in 1991 redesigned this public course as it appears today. Spall is a traditional course, with tree-lined fairways and six holes running parallel. It is not completely flat but is more of a rolling terrain, making this a very walkable course. Water comes into play on 11 holes, with 60 bunkers scattered throughout the course. 

It is a beautiful course with soft fairways, undulating greens, large willow trees, colourful flower beds and plenty of water, all set against a background of sagebrush hills. In early 2013, the golf club purchased eight hectares (20 acres) north of Hole 5 for future consideration.

Playing a round at Spallumcheen

Playing the first six holes well requires some local knowledge. On Hole 1, hit short of the green and let the ball run onto the green. Keep your drive right on Hole 2 so you can go for the green. Hole 4 is a challenging hole due to the very deep bunkers to the right of the narrow, elevated green. Hole 5 has out-of-bounds to the left and Deep Creek in front of the green and along one side. 
The number one handicap hole is No. 6, 358 yards with a narrow fairway, willow trees draped over the fairway and a large pond on the left side. The longest par four is No. 9, at 437 yards with water to the right of the green. Survive the first six holes and you will likely score well. 

The back nine begins with a risk-and-reward hole on No. 10, a nice way to start the back nine. Hole 13 is the second handicap hole, a par four at 412 yards with Deep Creek to the left. The course really gets interesting at Hole 14, with its many bunkers and waste area. Hole 16 is target golf, being only 338 yards, but it is necessary to hit your drive to the corner, followed by a short iron over water onto the green. This green doubles with Hole 13. Hole 17 is a short par three and almost all water. The final hole is a good finishing hole, par 5, 567 yards, with trees lining the fairway and, of course, a pond on the left guarding the green.      

My only criticism of the course, in a perfect world, is that the 10th hole should be the first hole. Love the 10th, being a risk/reward hole. The hole is a slight dogleg right, with the green not visible from the tee. Aim at a house across the valley and blast away over the pond. That is fun!

Spallumcheen is a complete golfing facility with pro shop, driving range, putting greens, clubhouse, patio, refreshment carts and marshals. With 80,000 rounds played per year, all 27 holes are well used by members, tournaments and tourists looking for a game. It will be interesting to see how the senior ladies in the Royale Cup handle the course.

Par 71, 6,423 yards, CR 70.2, Slope 118 (back tees)