History of Golf in the Crowsnest Pass

Panoramic View of Crowsnest Pass Golf Course 1931 – Blairmore – Gushul Photograph – Crowsnest Museum Collection

By Fred Bradley

Golf has been played in the Crowsnest Pass for over 100 years. One of the first accounts of golf in the Crowsnest Pass was in an article in the Blairmore Enterprise in August of 1916 mentioning a golf and tennis tournament in Hillcrest.

From 1916 to the late 1920’s golf was played at five sites in the Crowsnest Pass region. According to the May 1920 edition of Canadian Golfer magazine there were 14 golf courses in Alberta, four of which were in the Crowsnest Pass. There were golf links in Bellevue (Passburg), Blairmore, Coleman, Hillcrest Mines and Lundbreck. The local newspapers reported matches and tournaments being played between citizens of the various communities.

Bellevue (Passburg)

“Bellevue entertained Hillcrest to a golf game on Sunday last, when they trimmed the visitors to some 60 points. Some say the visitors were amateurs and may do better next time.”

Below is a photograph of golf at the flats at Passburg which most likely were the links used by the golfers of Bellevue.

Hillcrest

Hillcrest’s course was located on property owned by the Hillcrest Coal and Coke Company in the area where the present Crowsnest Pass Ball Complex is now located. The Hillcrest “golf links” were also used forpicnics and other large outdoor celebrations by the residents of that area over the years. There are several reports in the local newspapers of visits by golfers from other Pass communities having golf matches at the Hillcrest Course.

“ Mr. and Mrs. Raoul Green and Mr. and Mrs. L.P. Roberts attended the golf and tennis tournament in Hillcrest on Wednesday afternoon” (3)

Lundbreck

Lundbreck’s New Golf Course – “Lundbreck, the latest town in these parts to form a golf club, is making great arrangements to open their new course on Saturday, June 17th (1922) at 1:30 p.m.” “The course will be in fine shape for the golfers and it is reported to be one of the best courses, for its first year, that the south portion of the province has ever seen. It is expected that golfers from Pincher Creek to Lundbreck will attend and undoubtedly a large gathering of local enthusiasts will also help the new club get away to a good start.” (4)

Coleman

The first report of golf at Coleman is in the Coleman Bulletin of Sept 1, 1916 which refers to the Carbondale Country Golf Club. 

“The Carbondale Country Golf Club served tea to about thirty visitors from Blairmore, Hillcrest, and Bellevue on Saturday afternoon last, and a very pleasant time was spent on the links here. The members of the club and their guests spent the afternoon golfing and having a good time generally.

The Carbondale Country Golf Club, while it does not make much of a bid for publicity is in flourishing condition and quite a number of the townspeople regularly avail themselves of the opportunity afforded to participate in this splendid game.”(5) 

Golf tournaments started in Coleman in 1917. The second annual tournament in 1918 decided the Crow’s Nest Pass Championship. G. Kellock of Coleman was the men’s champion with a net of 34, which was the lowest score to that date on the Coleman course. The women’s champion was Mrs. F. Smith of Hillcrest.

From 1920 to 1928 the Coleman Golf Club maintained a course on lands east of Bushtown where the Michalsky ranch is now located. A Club House was built and opened on the site in 1922 to great fanfare.6

Blairmore

Construction on a course in Blairmore is reported as early as 1919. Although it is believed a course existed prior to this date. West Canadian Collieries Limited (WCC) provided land for the Blairmore Golf Course adjacent to its Greenhill Mine property and was instrumental in the construction and maintenance of the course. The currentCrowsnest Pass Golf and Country Club utilizes part of the lands where the original course was located. The coursehas undergone several reconstructions and re-configurations since first being built. The original course had oiled sand greens, rubber mats on wooden tee boxes and criss-crossing fairways.

The Blairmore Golf Club was formally organized at a meeting at the Town Hall on February 13, 1920. The following officers were elected: Honourary President, Jules Charbonnier; President, Raoul Green; Vice-President,

R.G. Foot; Secretary-Treasurer, J.R. Smith; Captain, J.M. Wilson; Committee – A.R. Granger, J.H. Farmer and G.A. Passmore; Green Rangers, L.P. Roberts and R.G. Foot. Ladies: Captain, Mrs. J.R. Smith; Treasurer, Mrs. J.H.Farmer; Committee – Mrs. R. Green, Mrs. J.E. Gillis, and Mrs. G.N. Elwin.

A club house was built in 19227 by West Canadian Collieries at the direction of Jules Charbonnier, the General Manager of WCC. This club house was located at the east end of the course, slightly south and west of the current #17 tee box and served the Crowsnest Pass Golf and Country Club up until 1955.

Crowsnest Pass Golf and Country Club

In 1928, the name of the Blairmore Golf and Country Club was changed to the Crow’s Nest Pass Golf and Country Club9 to reflect the broader Crowsnest communities as the Coleman Golf Club closed and ceased its operation that same year and Bellevue, Hillcrest and Lundbreck followed in subsequent years10. In the following years, the Crow’s Nest Pass Golf and Country Club became the main centre for golf in the Crowsnest Pass.

West Canadian Collieries maintained the course and received all the revenues generated by the club’s dues and locker rentals to offset the costs they incurred. It is interesting to note that WCC charged their miners 50 cents per pay period ($12.00 per year) for locker rentals while similar lockers were rented to golfers at the rate of $1.50 per season.

Increased coal production at the Greenhill Mine12 to support Canada’s war effort during the Second World War caused the removal of the steel pipes of the course’s underground watering system to be utilized for mining purposes. Another impact on the course of the war effort and increased coal production in succeeding years was that the expanding coal slack piles encroached on two of the lower holes on the golf course and eventually rendered them unplayable. After that, to play nine holes, two of the holes had to be played twice.

A new clubhouse was built in 1955. It is located at the west end of the course and is still in use today.

It was not until the mid 1960’s that the two closed holes were re-established along P. Burns (Blairmore) Creek to re-store the course to a full nine holes. And even at that the #2 hole crossed over the #1 hole. It should also be noted that the original course had the #1-hole crossover the #9 hole. These two crossover holescontinued until the rebuilding of the course in early 1980’s to accommodate the routing of Crowsnest Highway 3 around the Town of Blairmore.

The construction of Highway Three resulted in the replacement of four of the original holes and the renovation of the remaining holes. This rebuild resulted in the oiled sand greens being replaced with grass greens, new fairways, and the installation of an underground watering system.

The course had some interesting local rules that had to be followed because of the sand greens:

• Leave scraper behind greens after putting out

• Clean out cups well and replace flag

• Sweep sand TOWARD the cup to prevent sand build up on edges

• On sand greens the ball may be lifted and cleaned; the sand swept, and the ball replaced without penalty at the point from which it was lifted.

  And because of the powerline that crossed the course:

• If your drive hits the wires on #7, hit another ball. No Penalty.

The impact of the newly re-constructed nine-hole course resulted in increased membership and interest ingolf in the Crowsnest Pass and precipitated discussions in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s to expand the course to 18 holes.

After several years of construction, in 1998 the re-configured 18-hole Crowsnest Pass Golf and Country Club was officially opened. It has been recognized as one of the most picturesque and challenging courses in the province.

With a proposed new coal loadout facility and rail line for the Riversdale coal mine at Grassy Mountain, occupying portions of the course near Crowsnest Highway 3, the Crowsnest Pass Golf and Country Club is once again under re-construction with the assistance of a coal mining company. The re-configured course with many new scenic and inspiring holes will open in 2019, just over one hundred years after golf first started in the Crowsnest Pass. 

Crow’s Nest Pass Golf Association and Annual Tournaments

On Saturday, May 20, 1922, at a meeting at the Blairmore Golf Club House, the Crowsnest Pass Golf Association was formed to host annual tournaments for golfers from Southern Alberta and South East British Columbia13. Delegates at this first meeting were from Cranbrook, Fernie, Lethbridge, Pincher Creek, Fort Macleod, Blairmore and Coleman. The association later expanded to include Kimberly.

The first tournament was in Cranbrook in over the Labour Day Weekend and the second in 1923 was hosted by the Blairmore Golf Club. The quality of the course and generosity of the host Crowsnest Pass clubwere extolled in the minutes of that association14. Many annual meetings of the Crow’s Nest Pass Golf Association were held at the Greenhill Hotel in Blairmore. The Crowsnest Pass hosted the tournament in 1923, 1929, 1934, 1937, 1941, 1947, and 1955.

 The 37th annual Crow’s Nest Pass Golf Association tournament was held at the Lethbridge Golf and Country Club on June 19, 20 & 21, 1959. This appears to be the last of the tournaments held on a rotating basis as the interest to host the tournament declined among the member clubs. The Lethbridge club continued to host the annual tournament for many years after that.