Ontario
Napanee Golf and Country Club, established in 1897, is located in Napanee, Ontario, and presents a unique 9-hole layout that plays as a full 18 holes across 70 undulating acres. The course is designed to offer a genuine 18-hole experience through the use of forward and back tee boxes, split fairways, and ten distinct greens that alter hole lengths, landing zones, and approach angles for the front and back nines. The total yardage for the 18-hole configuration is 5,877 yards with a par of 70. The terrain features gently rolling fairways, significant elevation changes, and mature stands of pine, maple, and oak trees that frame the playing areas. The course is known for its difficulty, particularly for low-handicap golfers, who must navigate fast, well-maintained greens and tricky lies created by the undulating fairways. The front nine begins with the first hole, a 305-yard par 4 that is considered the flattest and easiest on the course, featuring a generous landing zone but mature trees and a bunker wrapping the rear of the green. The second hole, a 181-yard par 3, requires a tee shot across a deep creek valley to an elevated, multi-tiered green with a pronounced right-to-left slope, where missing left finds a deep bunker and missing right finds the woods. The third and fourth holes are both 365-yard par 4s with undulating fairways and mature trees; the third hole borders railway lands and out-of-bounds markers on the right, while the fourth hole features a green that slopes back to front and left to right. The fifth hole is the longest on the course at 510 yards, a par 5 that begins with a long uphill tee shot aimed left of a storm-damaged tree. The green is the largest on the course, sloping back to front and guarded by a sand bunker wrapping the left side and a grass bunker to the front right. The sixth hole is a 295-yard par 4 dogleg right, where the oval-shaped, camel-backed green is fast and guarded by pine and cedar trees. The seventh hole, a 154-yard par 3, is more difficult than it appears due to a peaked green with a middle ridge; the back half falls steeply away to the right, and tee shots flying the green run into a creek bed. The back nine utilizes different tee positions to create varied challenges. The tenth hole is a 305-yard par 4 that replays the first hole from a different vantage point, 35 yards to the left. The eleventh hole, a 200-yard par 3 played from an elevated tee, crosses a deep creek valley to an elevated, multi-tiered green with a pronounced right-to-left slope. The twelfth hole is a 404-yard par 4, longer than its front-nine counterpart, where tee shots hugging the right side flirt with out-of-bounds railway lands. The remaining holes continue the theme of strategic placement and elevation changes, with the ninth hole being a 364-yard par 4 that requires a blind approach to a lightning-fast green atop an escarpment. Napanee Golf and Country Club has a notable tournament history, most famously associated with Sam Snead, who played two rounds here in August 1959. Snead shot a record-setting 63 in his second round, a score that stood for over fifty-five years. The current course record is held by Josh Whalen, who shot a 62 on September 29, 2017. A copy of Snead’s scorecard is displayed in the pro shop. The course is situated at 201 County Rd. 8, Napanee, ON, and is recognized as one of Canada’s most challenging 9-hole golf courses.
