Cardinal Golf Club - West Wing Course Review #1

Name: Cardinal Golf Club - West Wing Course
Location: Newmarket, Ontario (~45 minutes north of Toronto)
Type: Public with membership options
Holes: 18 (72 including all Cardinal courses)
Length and Par: 3235-6404 yards / 71
Tees: (Shortest to Longest): Tee Forward, Red, White, Blue
Website: http://www.cardinalgolfclub.com/west-wing/

"The maturity and playability of the West Wing course have made it a favourite among many of our golfers. It’s a perfect walking course guarded by many water hazards and large ash trees. While this course is very suitable for beginners, moving to the blue tees will offer some difficult par 3′s and 4s and some rewarding par 5′s." -www.cardinalgolfclub.com/ 

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Difficulty: << Based on play from Blue Tees

Overall Rating: 4.4 out of 5

The West Wing course is the second course at Cardinal Golf Club designed for affordable golf for all, the other being the East Wing course (see our review on that). Similar to East Wing, West Wing offers a variety of tees to accommodate golfers of all skill level and to ensure that you'll have the best round of golf possible. As part of Canada's largest golf facility, you receive access to Cardinal's large clubhouse filled with great dining facilities, a large proshop, as well as a large driving range and mini-putt course. Since my review of the East Wing course, the staff of Cardinal have remained friendly and the course as a whole still gives off that low-key relaxed country-club atmosphere, all of which give you good vibes before you tee off.

Water plays an important role and prominence on West Wing and is the source of difficulty for the entire course. It's common to both the front and back nine, with the front nine using water in some way on every hole. Many of the holes use water hazards cleverly in a variety of different ways. For example, one hole could have a pond running to the right of the fairway while another one could have a river running through it, separating green from fairway. It's worth noting that the severity of water on each hole depends on the tees you are playing from, which is a great way to make the course tougher for better players and easier for newer ones. The course is also very open, which in itself is a double-edged sword. The openness allows a mis-hit ball to be found without too much effort however on certain tees you get the impression that a bad tee shot could land in another fairway. The fact that the course is flat as well, is what I think makes it slightly easier to play compared to East Wing.

The scenery and layout of each hole is also very nice and well done, which seems to be a common feature to all Cardinal courses. The water features add to this scenery as well. Some of the most eye-pleasing holes of West Wing are #2, 4 (from the elevated tees), 8, 10, 12, and 18. The 18th hole is one of the best on the course in my opinion. The 250-512 yard par 5 starts off straight, with scattered trees on your right and a large lake on your left. About halfway in, the hole takes a 90 degree left turn and elevates and narrows slightly as you approach the green, with water still on your left and trees on your right. A large greenside bunker on the left provides protection to a small, undulating green. The hole is a test for golfers; it requires confidence for anyone who attempts to hit their tee shot over the lake and precision for anyone brave enough to go for the green in two. All in all it's a great finishing hole that can easily make or break your round.

Pace of play is not usually an issue, however if a tournament or event is being played on one of Cardinal's other courses (mainly East Wing) the course tends to become a little crammed, naturally. It's also worth talking about the course conditions a bit, which are generally in great condition. However, after rainfall, many of the hole's fairways tend to become soggy and "puddlely" and in some cases flooded, especially around the greens. This also occurs on the East Wing course, but with less severity. During morning rounds, there also tends to be a lot of cut grass left on the course by the maintenance crew.

The prices are reasonable, with green fees ranging from $34-$64 depending on the day of the week and time (as of 2015). Starting this year, the prices are slightly higher than those of East Wing (East and West Wing used to be the same price in 2014). Cardinal in general usually offers many specials throughout the golfing season so these prices may be even lower sometimes.

Overall, the West Wing course at Cardinal Golf Club is an great course for golfers of all skill levels and one that offers challenges without becoming too difficult. I'd recommend it to anyone who wants to see what it's like to play a course with water features.

Have you played West Wing? Comment below and let us know what you thought of it.


-Nick
Toronto Golf Reviews

The 18th green of West Wing at Cardinal Golf Club

Cardinal Golf Club - East Wing Course Review #1

Name: Cardinal Golf Club - East Wing Course
Location: Newmarket, Ontario (~45 minutes north of Toronto)
Type: Public with membership options
Holes: 18 (72 including all Cardinal courses)
Length and Par: 3187-6300 yards / 71
Tees: (Shortest to Longest): Tee Forward, Red, White, Blue
Website: https://cardinalgolfclub.com/rates-season-passes/

"The East Wing course is part of Cardinal’s original 9 holes, although the course has since been redesigned throughout the late 90’s by Kevin Homes. The East Wing is a par 71 and is suitable for all levels of play, providing golfers with an enjoyable variety of terrain changes on the front 9 and mature tree lined fairways where accuracy is a must on the back 9." -www.cardinalgolfclub.com/ 

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Difficulty: << Based on play from Blue Tees

Overall Rating: 4.9 out of 5

The East Wing Course at Cardinal Golf Club is one of the best all-around courses I've ever played at, accommodating golfers of all skill level, no matter how good or bad. As part of Canada's largest golf facility, you receive access to Cardinal's large clubhouse filled with great dining facilities, a large proshop, as well as a large driving range and mini-putt course. I also found that a low-key relaxed country-club atmosphere is present all over the clubhouse and courses as well as funny/friendly staff, which I find makes my round much more enjoyable.

Before talking about the course, it's worth mentioning how much the course can change depending on which tees you play from. You'll notice that on most holes, the easier tees are placed much further ahead and placed in a  way such that some of the difficulty of the hole is removed. For example, on some of the dogleg holes part of the dogleg will be removed depending the the tee you're playing on, thus making the hole easier as you play easier tees. This is what makes the East Wing course playable for all skill levels.

The East Wing course itself is made up of two distinct set of nines. The front nine primarily focuses on elevation changes, drastic in some cases, and is generally more open and not as grassy around the edges. Simply put, it's easier to find a lost ball on the front nine. The back nine is the complete opposite with most holes featuring tree-lined fairways, large water hazards, and tough rough/grassy areas. This difference between the two nines allows golfers to experience a variety of features of a golf course and hit a variety of shots, all while playing the same golf course. You won't find yourself hitting that same shots over and over; each shot requires thinking and is a good test of your skills, especially from the longer tees. This is not a course that you'll get bored playing time after time.

All of the holes are very scenic as well and laid out very nicely. However, due to the close proximity of some holes, you do get the feeling that a bad shot could end up in another hole's fairway. One hole of note and perhaps the best hole of the course is the 8th hole, a par 5 250-538 yards, that plays as the toughest hole of the course. The hole starts out wide and downhill with a small river at the bottom, then goes uphill, narrowing to a small opening in the trees which gives you a nice target to aim for on your tee shot. Your second shot is a blind shot through this opening; beyond it is a steep downhill, with about 70 yards of unplayable brush and another river running across the brush. At the bottom is a small fairway with a green that is protected by a large lake on the right side. This is one of the hardest holes I've played, but also one of the most fun, at the same time.

Course conditions were generally great most of the time. However I played my last round there before a rainstorm and noticed that some of the fairways on the back nine were flooded. The greens and white bunkers (which were renovated last year) however were dry; the greens actually played fast despite the rain. Pace of play is not usually an issue except probably for peak times such as weekends, as with any other course.

The best part of all is the value and pricing of the course. Prices vary anywhere from $50-$80 for a round and a power cart, depending on the time and day, walking green fees as low as $34. However, Cardinal constantly offers specials so at times the price can be even lower. Considering the quality and course you get to play, this is probably one of the best "bang for you buck" or best valued courses in the GTA.

Overall, I'd go out and say that The East Wing course is probably the best-valued 18-hole course in the GTA at the moment and the perfect course for any golfer of any skill level. I'd recommend it to everyone who swings the sticks.

Have you played East Wing? Comment below and let us know what you thought of it.


-Nick
Toronto Golf Reviews