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| Nice views of the cityscape from everywhere at Riverside. |
Riverside is one of three municipal golf courses in Edmonton along with Victoria, which you have discovered in my last blog, and Rundle, a fun par 3 course but not in the cards at this time. As its name implies, Riverside is located by the North Saskatchewan River, however, contrary to what it claims on its website, the river never comes into play. You have to be lucky to even have a token view of the river walking down the eleventh or twelfth fairways. Maybe some sixty years ago, when the course was built and the forest had not yet grown in, and the fences were not there, a bad hook or a mean slice from a lefty might have found its way to the water. Look at the trees up here, they will grab your ball long before the water does and it might cost you a lot more.
But true to its claim, Riverside is a fair test of golf for players of all abilities. Even though it is not outrageously long at a mere 6,316 yards, it looms large on your mind. I will concede that the par 5's are short by any standard and might provide a fair amount of birdies for long hitters. There are, however, an equal amount of long par fours which at 400 to 459 will more than tax the average golfer. Not counting that, all but one of the five par 3's play over 180 yards (up to 225). The course is beautiful, in very good shape and calls on you to come and play with your best game if you want to score well. The fairways are wide and inviting but you do have to play target golf or thanks to some mean slopes, you may end up in the forest even with a half decent shot.
On this day I shot a 91, which happens to be dead on with my handicap factor. As usual, I was hoping to do better but it was not to be. My first hole was the worst and I sacrificed a few strokes to the tree gods. I did manage two pars on the front and two more on the back. Had 3 putts twice. Over all, a very average game but a most enjoyable one anyway. The weather was good and the company even better. Derek and Darryl (standing on the 200 yard par 3 17th) are both enthusiastic golfers, very friendly and interested in the old game. Derek is preparing for a summer in Ireland and Scotland, where his wife has family. As most of us would, he is contemplating a pilgrimage to the Old Course. ''Happy trails to you'' Derek, ''until we meet again''.
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| View of the 404 yard 16th hole. |
On this day I shot a 91, which happens to be dead on with my handicap factor. As usual, I was hoping to do better but it was not to be. My first hole was the worst and I sacrificed a few strokes to the tree gods. I did manage two pars on the front and two more on the back. Had 3 putts twice. Over all, a very average game but a most enjoyable one anyway. The weather was good and the company even better. Derek and Darryl (standing on the 200 yard par 3 17th) are both enthusiastic golfers, very friendly and interested in the old game. Derek is preparing for a summer in Ireland and Scotland, where his wife has family. As most of us would, he is contemplating a pilgrimage to the Old Course. ''Happy trails to you'' Derek, ''until we meet again''.
This is a nice course. The views certainly are one of the best features. The trees line nearly every hole; they are like walking down long natural corridors.
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