Crowbush Cove Hole by Hole
Technically it’s The Links at Crowbush Cove, but search engines don’t like posts that start with an article so in this post it will just be Crowbush Cove. I must confess that this is a course that I have only come to appreciate over the last few years. The reason for the initial reluctance to recognize this as a great course is simple – it’s unbelievably hard. It has a slope rating of 146 which is not far off the highest possible slope rating of 155. The Ocean Course at Kiawah Island which has hosted the Ryder Cup in the famous ‘war by the shore’ and the PGA, has a slope rating of 155. I’ve played it twice and did not find it as difficult as Crowbush Cove. So when you tee it up at Crowbush Cove forget about your score and just enjoy the many ways that Tom McBroom made this course truly fiendish. Oh, and bring a shitload of balls.
Crowbush Cove opened in 1993 and was recognized by Golf Digest as the best new course in Canada for that year. Subsequently it has always been in SCORE Golf’s Top 100 courses, currently at #30, up seven places from 2022. What is also notable about it is the absolute value for money this course offers. The most you can pay is $150.00 during peak season, but if you include two of PEI’s other great courses Dundarave and Brudenell River as a package you get the rate down to $315.00 for all three. Better yet if you play in October when the weather is still pretty good you get them all for $225.00. There simply is no better value anywhere, anytime than this.
Ok, let’s play Crowbush Cove.
Crowbush Cove #1 – Sally Forth 348 Yard Par Four
From the tips Crowbush Cove can play as long as 6,903 yards, but I will be playing the white tees which are a quite reasonable 6,150 yards, that is until I get to some of the water carries. The carts here are state of the art and provide all the information you need to play each hole as long as you remember to use them properly. They can provide exact yardages to any of the hazards you might think of laying up to or trying to clear.
As you can see the course is in very good condition and there is not a lot of trouble off the first tee. The difficulty in the starting holes at Crowbush Cove comes on the approach shot. The green appears to be guarded by traps on all sides, but they are in fact dry bunkers which McBroom has made use of on a number of holes on the front nine. Assuming you avoid them, the trouble is not over. Almost every green that does not involve a carry over water is multi-tiered and simply treacherous. #1 is a saddleback and by no means the most difficult, but still involves problems with both speed and read. This morning the greens are fast, but not overly so. Later in the day they will be much faster. They are also among the best conditioned greens in Atlantic Canada.
The bottom line is that unless you can putt like Ben Crenshaw, you are going to have to accept that there will be three putts if not worse.
#2 Treasure Chest – 306 Yard Par Four
This short par four presents the first of many conundrums (aka challenges) at Crowbush Cove. It is a slight dogleg right and dares you to clear the right side bunkers for an easy wedge to the green. It’s not a hard proposition, but you can’t see the green from the tee and the tendency is to go further left than necessary. The approach is to one of the smallest greens on the course with more than average slope guarded by two bunkers on the left side. Despite being rated the easiest hole on the front nine and second easiest at Crowbush Cove I’ve never found it anything but challenging.
Crowbush Cove #3 – East Neuk 467 Yard Par Five
East Neuk is an area on the north side of the Firth of Forth in Scotland that has a number of fishing villages including Crail where I played the Balcomie Golf Course that dates back to 1786. It features Constantine’s Cave where the Scottish king was supposedly cornered and killed by Vikings in 877. Why this hole at Crowbush Cove has the same name I’m not sure, but it’s the first of the three very difficult par fives on the course.
Hurricane Fiona wreaked havoc at Crowbush Cove in 2022, destroying thousands of trees and completely changing the appearance of this hole which was once tree-lined on both sides. It is now completely wide open and the five traps on the right hand side are easier to avoid than before Fiona. The problem is a second set of four traps that almost completely straddle the fairway just about where the average golfer’s second shot might land. If you choose to lay up as I did, it’s a very daunting third shot to a small elevated green. That beats hitting your third from the bunkers, but not by much.
#4 Ship Shape – 334 Yard Par Four
On this tricky little par four the main menace is not the sand bunkers on both sides of the fairway, but the dry bunkers almost dead ahead. This is where I found my drive and trust me these are no treat to play out of. I do have to hand it to Tom McBroom on the number of different ways he has made golfers pull out their hair on this course.
Crowbush Cove #5 – Forerunner 567 Yard Par Four
From the tee this is a great looking hole and a forerunner of what is to come over the next four holes. It is brutally long for someone who is not a long hitter. Even if you do get out to 400 yards in two shots, which in reality not many average golfers can, you still have this long carry for your third. Just supposing you do clear the water, good luck trying to stop your ball on this very narrow green. I have seen golfers end up in that back bunker in three and then put their fourth shot in the water.
There is a narrow landing spot to the right for a third shot layup which is probably the smartest choice on this most difficult hole at Crowbush Cove. Six is not at all an unrespectable score on this hole where snowmen are more common than pars.
You can see from the flag in the photo above that the wind is blowing, but not anywhere near what it can be on a blustery day here. Still it will be an issue on the next few holes as we make our way to the seaside.
#6 Cattails – 156 Yard Par Three
If there’s a more aptly named hole in golf I’ve yet to see it. Yep, there’s nothing but cattails between you and the green. Club selection and judging the wind is the challenge on this hole. If you’ve put one in the drink on five and do it again on six, as I have done on previous rounds, it can really get in your head and from this point on Crowbush Cove becomes a true monster. On the other hand if you’ve been sensible on five and accepted that bogey and you do pick the right club here, you can appreciate that these are two really sensation golf holes.
And there’s more to come.
Crowbush Cove #7 – Breakers 331 Yard Par Four
Somehow I forgot to take a photo from the tee on #7 so had to use this photo I took on a day with much windier and cloudier conditions. The carry doesn’t look that bad and yardage wise it’s not, but the prevailing wind is usually in your face here and if it’s howling, well just pray. But also again appreciate that this a fine golf hole that in benign conditions is a joy to play.
Assuming you do not have a gale in your face your second shot should look about like this and for the first time in this round you might actually be thinking about a birdie.
#8 Pinnacle Dune – 161 Yard Par Three
Another great photo opportunity and another challenge. Once you round the bend from #7 the wind usually picks up considerably making this hole play way longer than the yardage. I had to hit a solid five wood today to reach the green. That little white figure you see on the far shoreline is a fake coyote used to keep the geese away from the green. He’s doing his job as I did not see any goose droppings on this or any other hole at Crowbush Cove. They are are real plague at some courses in Atlantic Canada which I will not name.
Crowbush Cove #9 – Shadows 324 Yard Part Four
Nine sand traps and some dry bunkers present a challenge off the tee on #9, but if you avoid them this can be another birdie opportunity. The fairway is quite generous and you should have a short iron in which will definitely improve your attitude after braving the waters on the last four holes.
This green is quite receptive compared to most at Crowbush Cove and I think is the best chance to put a circle on your card on the front nine.
#10 Nor-Wester – 407 Yard Par Four
The back nine at Crowbush Cove starts off with two brutal holes starting with this very long dogleg right. The wind can either be a great help (unlikely) or add an effective fifty yards to this hole. Avoiding the traps off the tee is not that difficult, but most golfers who play from the whites will require a wood or long iron to reach this in two.
Crowbush Cove #11 Sully’s Run – 548 Yard Par Five
This is one of the most controversial par 5s in the country and one of the reasons I initially disliked this course. As you can see it’s a beautiful looking hole and before you tee off you need to climb up to the Crow’s Nest where the black tees are located. This is one of the nicest views you will ever get on a golf course.
Now here’s the problem with #11. You can hit a great drive here, but no matter how good it is you have no hope of clearing the water on you second shot so you just need to hit a wedge as close to the water as you can. Then this what you are facing on your third shot.
This is the only par five I have ever played that goes driver, wedge and wood. It’s a complete reversal of the usual world order of golf. I’ve come to accept it and like #5 play it as a par 6. No matter what you think of Sully’s Run, it is the one hole at Crowbush Cove you will never forget.
#12 Wee Toonie – 153 Yard Par Three
After being savaged by 10 and 11 a bit of sanity returns with this most normal looking of par threes with a very large green that makes it the easiest hole at Crowbush Cove. Best chance for a birdie on the back nine.
Crowbush Cove #13 Southward Ho – 371 Yard Par Four
The only blind tee shot on a par four at Crowbush Cove forces one to stay left to avoid the bunkers, including one you can’t see from the tee that is directly behind those you can see. The problem is that coming into the green from the left side is much more problematic than from the right.
As you can see water is very much in play on the approach shot and there are traps at the back of the green and no room for error on the right. Behind the green there is an osprey nest and throughout much of the playing season you will see the parents raising their chick and later in the year teaching it how to fish. This is one of my favourite holes at Crowbush Cove.
#14 Seaward Bound – 481 Yard Par 5
This is the only par five at Crowbush Cove that you can expect to have a reasonably short iron into the green on the third shot. It plays uphill and there are no less than eleven traps to be avoided.
But if you hit a decent drive and a wood you should have something like this for the approach shot. This is the only par 5 on the course that I would consider a birdie opportunity and that’s a real rarity for most courses.
Crowbush Cove #15 White Sands – 350 Yard Par Four
The huge natural sand trap that runs down much of the right side of this hole is easily avoided as there is a lot more fairway to the left of it than appears from the tee box. The approach is to a green that is slightly elevated and surrounded on three sides by scrub shrubs that are impossible to play out of (if you can find your ball), so accuracy is the ket here.
#16 Heron Lookout – 349 Yard Par Four
This photo makes the tee shot look almost impossible and if the wind is up, well forget it. Today it’s moderate and a good drive will clear this final water challenge at Crowbush Cove. The good news is that this is a true links hole with the ocean all down the right side making it a truly beautiful hole. The approach shot needs to avoid three traps that guard the green which is one of the trickier ones on the course. However, if you survive the drive it is one of the few birdie opportunities on the back nine.
As you leave the #16 green keep a lookout for a bald eagle that is often sitting in a tree between here and #17 tee.
Crowbush Cove #17 Flying Jib – 97 Yard Par Three
After all the holes at Crowbush Cove that demand length off the tee #17 at only 97 yards seems a bit absurd. Yet it’s no joke. The wind is almost always at your back and will make staying on this green next to impossible. With the pin is up front like it is today you will be facing the prospect of a three putt. However, before you begin putting take a look at this view from the green and you won’t care if you three putt or not. Just WOW!
#18 Crow’s Nest – 400 Yard Par Four
This is a very nice finishing hole which plays less than it’s stated yardage because is almost always downwind. The problem is the ten sand traps and numerous dry bunkers on this hole. It will require precision on the approach shot as almost anything that misses the green anywhere but short will be in serious trouble. If you do reach the green, there is a huge hollow on the left side of the green that, depending where the pin is, can make this a very troublesome putt.
Okay, we’ve finished our round and we’ll head to the Crow’s Nest lounge for some of PEIs famous mussels washed down with one of the local brews, Centennial Stock Blonde Ale from Copper Bottom Brewing in Montague being my favourite. After that we’ll check into our room at the Rodd Crowbush Cove Golf & Beach Resort followed by a walk on the beach we were eyeing from the 17th green. Now that I’ve accepted that Crowbush Cove cannot be tamed by mere mortals, I’m enjoying my stay on PEI this year more than ever.