Innisfail Hosts Men’s Amateur

This article was originally published in the 2016 edition of The Alberta Golfer Magazine. To view the full magazine, click here.

THERE HAVE BEEN A FEW CHANGES SINCE THE LAST TIME THE INNISFAIL GOLF CLUB HOSTED THE SUN LIFE FINANCIAL ALBERTA MEN’S AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP.

The Bill Robinson-designed course, which opened in 1924, added nine holes and a new club house since the Amateur’s last appearance there in 2002. A new nine was opened in 2006, giving the already beautiful layout 27 holes while a sparkling new club house opened earlier this year.

“Having 27 holes gives us a different look than the last time we hosted this event,” said Innisfail head professional Jim Boomer. “It was easy for Alberta Golf to make a decision on which 18 they would use when we only had 18 holes, but this year there are some interesting options.”

Despite having the full 27 holes available, Alberta Golf will stay with the same 18 hole rotation for each day of the 72-hole 2016 Sun Life Financial Alberta Men’s Amateur Championship, set for July 19-22.

Boomer feels the calibre of player in the field will go a long way in determining the layout. “There are so many good young players now in Alberta that have NCAA experience that I think we want the best layout given the high calibre of competition,” he said.

Playing from the tips the Aspen – Spruce layout comes in at slightly over 6,700 yards. “At first glance, the course looks short by today’s standards, but there are other factors that come into consideration,” said Boomer.

“The landing areas are often very tight, and the hills and undulations on the course limit the roll the players will get.”

“On many holes, players will be hitting irons or hybrids off the tee, so the course will play longer. But in Innisfail, it almost always comes down to the players’ short game and putting.”

Of course, there are the tight, tree-lined fairways to overcome, but the course’s calling card has always been the lightning fast, immaculately groomed and always tricky greens.

“The greens are always a big factor here,” said Boomer. “When we hosted in 2002, Ryan Yip won at even-par for the tournament, despite shooting 64 one day and 81 the next,” recalled Boomer. “We had some of our notorious Central Alberta weather come through a couple of days.”

Another defence for the course is the dense undergrowth lining many of the fairways.

“You don’t often miss a fairway and make only a bogey,” said Boomer. “If you’re consistently missing fairways, you may not be in contention for very long.”

Boomer was pleased to see the Aspen nine as part of the championship layout.

“There are so many different things that surprise you on that nine,” he said. “In a lot of cases it appears there’s a lot of room, but in the end the Aspen nine doesn’t play as roomy as it first appears and that nine also features generally larger greens.” Boomer adds, “When it comes to the greens on Aspen, we have the ability to put the pins in a lot of different, and difficult positions.”

Key holes on the Aspen nine are the 510-yard par-5 dogleg left second hole, featuring water along the left side up to the green, the 570-yard par-5 fourth with a blind tee shot, and the 183-yard par-3 fifth hole, all carry over water.

“We made some great changes to our Spruce nine as well, with the most significant being improving the greens on seven, eight and nine,” explained Boomer. “Previously, a competitor had a significant advantage if you had local course knowledge, but the improvements makes these greens fair for everyone.”

“IF YOU’RE CONSISTENTLY MISSING FAIRWAYS, YOU MAY NOT BE IN CONTENTION FOR VERY LONG.”
– JIM BOOMER

The latest and most impressive change to the facility is the spectacular new $1.9 million club house, which will be open by tournament time.

“We felt for some time the old club house was the least presentable aspect of the course,” said Boomer. “We have a great course, but the one thing we felt that wasn’t up to snuff was the club house.”

Construction began in the fall of 2015 and thanks to the great winter has progressed quickly.

“The decision was made to build something we will have for the next 30 years,” said Boomer. “We still have our tournament house, but now we have so many other options for food and beverage service and to host other smaller events,” said Boomer. “The main room can seat up to 120 people in a variety of configurations, including the outside deck.”

“This is something we really needed to complement a golf course of this calibre, and to serve the entire community” said Boomer. Some landscaping and viewing area enhancements are yet to come, but Boomer hopes the exposure the club will receive from hosting the 2016 Sun Life Financial Alberta Men’s Amateur will gain the attention of Golf Canada to consider Innisfail as a possible future site for a national championship.

“The Board of Directors would like us to be considered for something nationally when it’s Alberta’s turn,” Boomer said. The Innisfail layout would be a picture-perfect layout for any provincial or national event.

Innisfail Hosts Men’s Amateur

This article was originally published in the 2016 edition of The Alberta Golfer Magazine. To view the full magazine, click here.