Hecla is well worth the trip

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 05/07/2023 (818 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

I had the good fortune, again, to enjoy some golf during the summer solstice. I started playing a soggy round, thanks to some much- needed overnight rains, at Marvellous Meadows Golf Course (reviewed here last season). As I was packing up, I got a call from a wonderful friend inviting me to join his group and play the back nine with them. When I found out where they were, I did not hesitate. Driving north along the eastern shoreline of Lake Winnipeg’s southern basin, I soon found myself at the narrows of the great spirit lake. Most folks will simply know it as Hecla Golf Course, which is part of the Lakeview Hecla Resort.

Some courses around the province add the words ‘country club’, or ‘resort’, to their names to add a little gravitas to their moniker. Well, there is no pretense here. The course is right beside one of this province’s premier resort hotels and the other members of my party had enjoyed a stay-and-play package offered by the resort.

Adding to the grandeur of the place is the fact that Hecla is also a provincial park with loads of areas to explore. Coming by boat? No problem. Follow the lighthouse tower to Gull Harbour and take the short stroll to the clubhouse. This course is a full 18-hole course but I met with my party at the turn, just in time for lunch. The outdoor grill was serving up hotdogs that were actually a version of farmer sausage.

Starting my round on hole 10, I got a taste of a park feature, and a lake view, all in the same hole. Along the fairway there is a split in strata, and you can see the sedimentary rocks that are talked about elsewhere in the park. You also get to see Lake Winnipeg, from a distance, behind the green. As you get closer to the green, one of the resort’s hotel wings comes into view. It’s quite a busy hole, and a tricky one to play. Just before the green there is a depressed water hazard running across the fairway. After 10, you get a par 3, but the water hazard is much wider, and the elevated green forces you to club up. Both these holes have sand traps around their greens and this is a continuing feature of all the greens here.

Hole 12 is beautiful and unique. The beauty is aided by Lake Winnipeg running along the left side of the fairway (it is out of bounds, by the way). The uniqueness comes from this hole having two greens — one goes low and lies along the lake, the other runs high and dry. Wherever the flag is placed that morning is the way you play it. Hole 13 also runs along the lake; a slight dog-leg to the left, with some purposely placed fairway traps on either side of the bend. Hole 14 is a par 5 and rounds out the lateral lake holes, but it has a thick tree line on the left cutting off the lake view. Reaching the green does give you one last look at the lake and Black Island. Hole 15 takes you back into the parkland flora, a par 4 with no less than five sand traps to tease you.

Another neat feature of the course is each hole’s sign is actually a carving of the hole into a huge boulder placed at each tee box. Looking at the one for hole 16, I realized every hole had an Icelandic name. This one was Skogarsandur, a place in Iceland, but it is also a type of black sand created by both volcanic activity and a heavy influence of glacial runoff. Next time I play this course, I will need to pay more attention; my beautiful wife, and thus my two beautiful children, all have Icelandic blood.

Hole 17 is my personal pick for the signature hole at Hecla. It is both intimidating and inviting at the same time. The water hazard starts cutting across the fairway in front of the tee box, then widens and becomes the majority of the right-side fairway. Large boulders dot the hazard, and I am grateful for that. My drive was heading for the water, but it hit one of the rocks. The very lucky ricochet landed me back onto the short cut. The challenge doesn’t let up as you get closer to the hole. Sand traps surround the green in particularly annoying locations. Coming home on 18, you may feel this hole is much easier than 17. However, it is a subtle dog-leg to the right, and at the turn, just about where most people will place their drives, there are five fairway sand traps on either side waiting to spoil your trip back to the clubhouse. Two more traps await you in front of the final green.

If you are going up, I recommend planning some time to use the adult side of the spa facilities, including pool-side bar service, at the nearby resort. Better yet, stay the night and use the indoor/outdoor mineral pool to your heart’s content. Call 204-279-2041 for tee times. Full details at: lakeviewhotels.com/golf-hecla