By John CompaniottePRINCE EDWARD ISLAND

As early as 1909 golf began on Prince Edward Island, Canada at aplace called Belvedere in Charlottetown, its capital city. ere was onlylimited interest in golf over the next 80 years, however. As late as 1993,an islander could almost count on one hand the number of playinggrounds that existed within the province’s craggy shorelines. But in thepast twenty-five years the island has created excellent courses and thehospitality resources to support visitors looking for a good round ofgolf. Long days and no humidity make for ideal golfing conditionsthroughout the prime golfing season.

PEI is the only province of Canada to have no land boundary. eisland has several informal names: "Garden of the Gulf" referring tothe pastoral scenery and lush agricultural lands throughout the province;and, "Birthplace of Confederation" or "Cradle of Confederation", re-ferring to the Charlottetown Conference in 1864, although PEI did notjoin Confederation until 1873, when it became the seventh Canadianprovince.

Crowbush #5 and resort

e first significant contemporary course development was animmediate hit with golfers. e omas McBroom-designed Linksat Crowbush Cove, located on the north shore of the island, openedin 1993. is is a seaside links-type course, similar to seaside coursesin Scotland and Ireland, with no less than eight holes playing near

the sea or dunes. “I remember going toPrince Edward Island when there wereonly a few courses on it to speak of,”Bryan Sullivan, a former touring pro-fessional from North Carolina whocompeted on the Canadian Tour backin the 1980s, recalled. “It was like goingback in time.”

An advance toward convenient travelwas made in 1997, with the opening ofthe Confederation Bridge in 1997. An

8-mile crossing, it is the longest bridge in the world over waters thatare ice-covered in winter, connecting PEI with New Brunswick andultimately the rest of Canadaand the Northeast United States.Previously, the only way to geton or off PEI other than byplane was via one of two ferries.

Now, with such easy automo-tive access from the mainland,fine restaurants, elegant hotelsand all types of businesses andindustries flourish in its primary

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aerial of Crowbush Cove

Fox Meadow #7

As a bonus, from the course it is possible to see thefamed Green Gables house and discover many of its maincharacter’s (Anne Shirley) imaginative settings. Lucy

Maud Montgomery drew in-spiration from the land duringthe late Victorian Era for thesetting of her classic novelAnne of Green Gables (1908).Today, many of the same qual-ities that Montgomery andothers found in the island areenjoyed by tourists who visityear-round. It is truly a fic-tional creation that only aplace like PEI can magicallybring to life.

The course that established PEI as a worthy golf des-tination is ideally located 20 minutes from downtownCharlottetown. Crowbush Cove still maintains its pres-ence in the top ten designs in Canada. Previously acoastal campground by the same name, this dramatic

course on the island that is truly steeped in history. De-signed in 1939 by world-renowned Canadian architectStanley ompson, who was born in Toronto, it was re-juvenated by one of today’sleading designers, omasMcBroom, in 2007. ecourse is tree-lined and a clas-sic parkland layout. e coursemeasures 7,000 yards from theback tees so it provides asmuch challenge as any golfercan handle. e course fea-tures gently rolling greensguarded by deep bunkers, sixwater holes, an ever changingbreeze, with the dunes of PEI'sfamous north shore serving as a backdrop. omas McB-room, whose designs have achieved innumerable awardsand accolades, has blended his own unique perspectivewith ompson's original concept to ensure Green Gablesmeets the highest standards of golfing expectations.

Crowbush Cove’s success, along with the timely open-ing of the Confederation Bridge, helped spark the devel-opment of several other instant classics, includingDundarave on the eastern side of the island; EaglesGlenn, Glasgow Hills and Anderson’s Creek in the pop-

ular Cavendish region on thenorth shore; and Fox Meadowon the outskirts of Charlotte-town in the south central por-tion of the island. ese wouldjoin a group of pre-existingvenues, including the vintage1971 Mill River in the west,the 1939 classic Green Gablesin the north, and the 1969scenic Brudenell in the east.is blending of traditional18-holers, which also includes

Stanhope and Glen Afton, and modern designs — addClyde River and Countryview to the mix — in the 1990sand early 2000s, in essence, is what truly put PEI golf onthe global golf map.

Green Gables, in the Cavendish Region, is the one

cities of Charlottetown and Summerside, not to mentionthe 27 golf courses featuring 405 holes of wide-ranginggolf that dot the island.

“Until Crowbush Cove came along, there were onlyseven golf courses on PEI,” said Terry Hamilton, the gen-eral manager at the Links atCrowbush Cove. “When itopened for play, it becameone of the few places inCanada you could golf righton the ocean.”

Crowbush Cove wouldsoon thereafter host a televised“Skins Game” with then re-cent British Open championsMark O’Meara and John Dalyalong with former Masterschampion Fred Couples andeventual Masters champion Mike Weir in attendance.

“e event was held in absolutely perfect weather andit was broadcast across the country,” Hamilton added.“Crowbush Cove, and soon golf on PEI for that matter,really became famous after that.”

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Dundarave 8

Green Gables B

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Brudenell 11th

Brudenell 9 Fairway

Thomas McBroom layout overlooksthe Gulf of St. Lawrence and someof the best fishing grounds in world.This blended parkland and links-style design has been described as an“unbelievable combination of natureand imagination.”

Another of the more classic designson PEI, Brudenel River Golf Coursein the Eastern Region is named afterthe river it showcases. is unique1969 Robbie Robinson design offerssix par 3s, 4s and 5s. It is accentuatedby numerous gardens, lakes andponds and dazzles with its pearlywhite bunkers that contrast with thenative red soil.

A modern challenge crafted bythe team of Dr. Michael Hurdzanand Dana Fry, Dundarave GolfCourse is also in the Eastern Region.Built in 1999, this venue plays rightnext to its sister course BrudenelRiver, yet couldn’t be more different.A red sandstone dominated creation,the course features some of the mostmemorable bunker patterns in all ofgolf. As the host to the 2006 Leg-ends of Golf featuring Jack Nicklausand Tom Watson, Dundarave pro-vides a memorable experience forany golfer.

Another Robbie Robinson design,

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Eagles Glenn #4

Mill River Golf Course in the Western Region,overlooks the scenic Mill River. As home to a for-mer Golf Channel “Big Break,” Mill River featureswide rolling fairways that wind their way throughmature forest. Its No. 7 hole, a par four, offers dualfairways because “a river runs through it” and isworth the price of admission alone.

Abundant harvests from land and sea make the Is-land a natural place to explore culinary delights. ecool salt waters around the province bear flavor-filledfish and shellfish — including mussels, oysters andlobster. Local family farms produce the famous P.E.I.potato, a range of other vegetables, dairy productsand tasty, tender beef. ese ingredients have helpedcreate a vibrant restaurant scene — with local chefsshowcasing the rich flavors of the Island.

More information at GolfPEI.ca, Reservations@golf-pei.ca, or 1-866-GOLF-PEI (465-3734).

Mill River 7th split fairway