Doug Carrick Battlefield Course at the Legends on the Niagara Winner of numerous national golf course design awards Doug Carrick is among a handful of talented Canadian golf course designers who have completely transformed the national golf scene and, in particluar, the look of the Ontario golf landscape.

After graduating from the University of Toronto, he apprenticed under renowned Canadian course designer, C.E. "Robbie" Robinson. Robinson had also worked under the wing of the most imaginative and forceful of all Canadian designers, Stanley Thompson. Especially busy here in Ontario, recent award-winning designs include Bigwin Island Golf Course, Angus Glen Golf Course, Eagles Nest Golf Course, Ballantrae G&CC, Copper Creek Golf Course and the Muskoka Bay Club.

Design Style Carrick says his design philosophy centers on playability. "That's one of the most important aspects of what I take from one project to another. A second aspect would be strategy, in terms of making people think of how they are going to attack every hole, on every shot. I always try to provide a balance of shotmaking throughout the course, making sure that there's a good chance that most players will have to use every club in their bag. I try not to favour one type of shot, so that there's a mix of draws and fades, although that's something though to do. The other thing that's important to me is to avoid lay-up shots off the tee and blind shots."

Battlefield Course at the Legends on the Niagara

Site of the LPGA's 2004 Canadaian Women's Open, this Doug Carrick design is part of the Legends on the Niagara complex - destined to become Canada's premier public golf facility. The Battlefield course (pictured above) presents a sweeping vista across gently contoured countryside and is made up of an interesting blend of lakeside holes, links-style holes bordered by tall fescue, and a handful of secluded holes surrounded by mature Carolinian forest. .   ( Battlefield Golf Course Review )