This 'magical' Sask. golf course just made an elite national list

One of Saskatchewan’s oldest golf courses is being recognized nationally for the first time as one of the best courses in the country.

The Waskesiu Golf Course in Prince Albert National Park came in at the 83 spot on the top 100 list of courses by Score Golf.

The annual ranking started in 1988. The Stanley Thompson-designed Waskesiu course has never been on this list according to 13-year general manager Tyler Baker.

“It’s something that we’re very excited and proud to be on. It’s something that we’ve kind of looked forward to for a number of years. We’ve always thought that we had something here, and people always told us it was a beautiful golf course. Now to be recognized is a bonus,” Baker told CTV News.

With 2300 courses being evaluated across the country, Baker said the fact that Waskesiu broke into the top 100 is significant. A team of evaluators comes to the course and ranks it on a number of factors.

“They look at enjoyment of playing the golf course, the condition of the golf course, the setting of the golf course, the difficulty and it all combines into one. We rated very well,” Baker says.

The Score Golf evaluators have visited Waskesiu in the past, but this time they saw something different.

“For some reason, they were very excited. I don’t know if they brought a new crew, or if there was something that made them a little more aware of what they were playing,” he said.

• Get the CTV News app for Sask. breaking news alerts and top stories 

Long-time course member, Marg Ravis has been coming to the course for about 50 years. “There’s something magical up here,” Ravis says. She feels this recognition has been a long time coming.

“It’s about time it was recognized. This is one of the premier golf courses in Saskatchewan,” Ravis said.

Besides the natural tree-lined fairways completely separating all of the 18 holes, no houses or traffic noise, the course boasts frequent wildlife visits according to one of its younger members, Javier Salazar, who has been golfing here since he was three years old. The 13-year-old golfer has seen bears while golfing and a lot of elk.

An elk looks on as a golfer attempts a putt at Waskesiu Golf Course. (Courtesy Waskesiu Golf Course)

“When you’re on the tee box the elk will be standing there 50 yards in front of you. So you’ll have to hope you don’t hit them or just wait until they move,” Salazar says.

He brings friends from Alberta or Saskatoon who are impressed with the course, he gets to play most days in the summer.

“They think it’s beautiful. They just love to see all the wildlife and the forest,” he says.

The only other Saskatchewan course to make the top one hundred this year was Riverside in Saskatoon, coming in at number 64. The course has appeared on the list previously.