| A Little Piece Of Scotland Right In Your Own Backyard |
Page 1 of 3  Kings Links By The Sea Offers Golfers A 'Little Bit Of Scotland' Right In Their Own Backyard - Image Courtesy Kings Links by Gayle Moss (www.golfgal.ca ) Back in 2004, I was introduced to my first true links course at a Muscular Dystrophy charity tournament – the Links at Boundary Bay. As a fairly new golfer used to the tree lined cathedral called UBC and bridal gardens of a Mayfair Lakes, I was a little taken aback by the stark barren landscape that faced me. I distinctly remember thinking as I stepped out of the car, “Where’s the golf course? Where’s the clubhouse?” But I was with friends and it was for charity and so I thought, “Okay, at least the course will be fairly easy - look no trees!” Oh my, did I have a lot to learn! Instead of cocky bravado, fear and foreboding should have been my order of the day. You’d think I would have gotten a hint of things to come when a dozen golf balls were handed out to every player on their first tee. Our threesome lost 33 balls that day – some right in the middle of the fairway!!! I thought as I drove home that evening, how Bobby Jones must have felt in 1921 when he stormed off the 11th hole of the Old Course in the third round of the British Open at St. Andrews. Links golf sucks! So that experience didn’t exactly endear me to Boundary Bay, but I’ve grown up a lot since then and, frankly, so has the golf course. Two years ago, the Newell family purchased Boundary Bay and renamed it “Kings Links by the Sea”. They made a lot of changes to the course along with many upgrades and I’d heard good things about it. I even recall a member of the club telling me how much “friendlier” the course was, but I was hesitant to try it again, given my first experience. It was only after I played Chambers Bay and fell in love with links golf that I decided it was time to give 'Kings Links' another try. What a different experience!  Sure, the clubhouse is still not fancy, but that shouldn’t dissuade you from Kings Links. The friendliness of the staff and the quality of the course make it worth the 30 minute drive from Vancouver. The grass tees at the range were a real treat and I particularly enjoyed the chipping and bunker practice area. The practice putting green near the clubhouse was very undulating, and very tricky. But if you could putt on that, you’d be well prepared to tackle the next 18. Standing on the first tee, what struck me was the 360 degree view and I started humming in my head The Who’s, “I can see for miles and miles…”. It really was breathtaking being able to see Mount Baker to the south and the skyline of Vancouver with a back drop of our mountains to the north. And as I looked down the first hole, I caught my breath yet again to see a man in a wheel chair belting his ball one-handed straight down the middle of the fairway. Amazing! No power chair for him – he rolled himself up and down those links like he’d been doing it all his life. Sometimes you’d see his wife in her power cart give him a tow, but many times, he was just out there playing golf and loving it. I knew right then, this was going to be a very special day. As I walked up to the 1st green on a warm but hazy day, the view of Mount Baker bookended by the two trees sidelining the green was stunning. I wish my camera could have caught that Kodak moment a bit better. CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE |
|||||
