Branching out in the Interlake

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 20/06/2023 (1151 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

There are quite a few golf offerings in the Interlake — Teulon and Inwood have challenging 18-hole courses, Marvellous Meadows and Lundar have easier nine-hole tracks, and there’s a new course opening up in the area this July. Many other golf courses are located in the region, of course, and one of those is nestled right in the middle of Manitoba’s ‘Great Lakes.’ Take a drive north of Winnipeg, up Highway 17, and you’ll find Fisher Branch Golf and Country Club.

My first impression of the course was that it is friendly to those who like to walk their rounds, as there is very little elevation change. My second impression was that the course is very junior/beginner friendly. My final impression was that this is a great place to grab a bite, as the restaurant in the clubhouse serves Chinese food. The aforementioned clubhouse has a decent seating capacity for a function and there is a wedding garden just off the first tee.

The green fees are reasonable, and the cart fleet is all-electric. The course is in great shape, and the greens are large and healthy. The first half of the golf course features planted spruce trees separated by second-cut grass. The last half of the course is cut through parkland-style mixed woods. This layout lends itself to finding your ball easily to start, but increasingly difficult later.

Hole one is a slight dogleg to the right, and the turn is placed just about where an average hitter would drive. It does have a sort-of sand trap just before the green. Hole 2 is nice and open with no real obstacles. Hole 3 is a long par 5, and the green is guarded by three rather frustratingly placed spruce trees. The ladies’ tee on this hole is in an odd place. It lies right against the treed right edge of the fairway, and has a large spruce right in front of it. Sorry, red-marker hitters.

Hole 4 has two more sort-of sand traps with significant raised banks just before the green. I say sort-of because when I played, they appeared to be growing in with grasses and natural vegetation. If your ball does end up in either trap, I’m not sure how one would play it. Hole 5 is a long par 3, but there are no tricks present on this fairway.

Hole 6 begins a trend of narrowing fairways right through to hole 9. Holes 7 and 8 are both doglegs, but 7 is the more frustrating. A normal hitter might not wish to use the driver off the tee, and after the turn, there are five annoyingly placed tall trees, forcing a very strategic second shot. The backing of the eighth green is an adjoining full-service campground. Hole 9 is a short par 3, which features the narrowest fairway on the course. Spruce encroachments on the left, and a winding cart path on the right, mean a straight tee shot is required, making the closing hole the most challenging of the course.

I played this course on a Saturday afternoon, with beautiful weather, and I practically had it to myself. If you need a place to practice your game, this might be a good choice this summer. Booking a tee time can be done by calling 204-372-6855.