Vernon's Predator Ridge Resort Now Offers 36 Holes

BC Golf News is pleased to present the following feature, first published Friday in the Vernon Morning Star,

By Roger Knox
Vernon Morning Star

When he sets out to design a golf course, award- winning architect Doug Carrick tries to picture the golfer's perspective.

Carrick, from Toronto, will think how the course plays and about shots the golfers are going to have to hit. He envisions a track that is interesting and fun to play; playable for the average golfer to get around and not get frustrated, yet challenging as well for the good player.

For added challenges and kicks, Carrick, who plays between 15 and 30 rounds of golf a year, depending on how busy he is, is known for installing bunkers on courses to the point where people have called his love of sand traps "sick."

Carrick, whose only other course design in B.C. is the award-winning Greywolf at Panorama Resort near Invermere, has added all of the above to a new 18-hole course at Vernon's Predator Ridge Resort.

"It's really been a privilege for me to work on this course," said Carrick, who, along with Predator Ridge manager Rod Cochrane and golf course superintendent T.J. McNamara, gave invited media a tour of the new course Thursday. "I first got the call three years ago, and I was pleased to have the opportunity to work on this beautiful piece of property."

The project includes a complete renovation of the current nine holes of the Peregrine course, of which, Carrick said, "there was not one square inch that we didn't regrade or rebuild," along with the creation of nine new holes, meaning Predator will have two, 18-hole courses.

The new, unnamed course - though Cochrane calls it "The Carrick" - was finished in August, and should be ready for the first golfers in the summer of 2010. It joins the Osprey-Red Tail course, which had many golfers out enjoying a hot September Thursday round.

"We've softened some of the features of Peregrine, toned down some of the contours of the greens," said Carrick. "We've worked with the natural landscape and the natural features of the land."

While those who have golfed and visited Predator are aware it's known for its open meadows and incredible long views, Carrick has incorporated the new course with several new holes that add something not seen before at the resort: wooded valleys, spectacular views of Okanagan Lake and rugged, rocky terrain.

One of the new holes includes a huge piece of rock out near the middle of the fairway.

On nearly every hole, golfers can see the greens they're aiming for, as most holes contain elevated tee boxes.

That includes the amazing sixth hole, which, as Cochrane points out, had some features added after Carrick had finished his design.

"I got a phone call from Doug saying he made a mistake on this hole with the tee boxes," laughed Cochrane, who explained that Carrick had already put in the boxes designed for the hole, then went for a walk up a slope to the left of the boxes, and discovered an area where golfers could tee off through a very narrow valley onto the welcoming fairway.

Carrick got the okay to build the new tee boxes but left behind the originals, giving the sixth hole seven options for golfers to tee off from.

Most holes will have four or five tee boxes for golfers to play from.

Carrick widened fairways, left rocky terrain alone in spots, flattened and lowered some of Peregrine's ridiculously tricky greens, eliminated a creek, and put in "only" 44 bunkers for the new course.

"This course will offer two very different experiences for the golfer," said Carrick, who praised Predator's management staff and resort owners, Wesbild Holdings, for having a vision to make Predator one of, if not, the best golf communities in Canada.

Indeed, some planned real estate lots were removed in favour of the golfers.

Cochrane believes Carrick's new design has moved them closer to that goal.

"Doug has an eye for developing spectacular golf courses that combine the unique character of each site while maintaining the traditional values of the game," said Cochrane. "We think we have a special piece of property here and, with this new course designed by Doug, every hole has its own story."