Montreal & surrounding area Golf Courses

[gcaudia]

Hello, group of us heading out to Montreal this summer to play some golf as a large group. What golf courses should I apply to play at? Looking for the best 5-10. This includes private golf courses as well. I am aware of Royal Montreal, Laval sur le Lac and the Tremblant courses. Any advice on any courses within 45 min of Montreal? or list your top 5 including Private courses. Any help is appreciated thank you.

[alain3288]

Hi, 

welcome to Montreal , summer is great , hopefully COVID will be a bit behind. 
golf wise your first 2 are among the best . If you can have access to those you will enjoy. On the south shore , some good private or semi-private courses are Vallée du Richelieu ( champions tour ) ,Pinegrove ( Canadian open ) , Mount Bruno , kanawaki and Summerlea (36 holes ), other choices could be Country Club of Montreal , Whitlock and Belœil  as well as Falcon. On the north shore apart from Laval sur le lac some private courses you may try are Hillsdale, Blainvillier and Mirage, Les 4 domaines is a nice 36 public course. Not so many courses on the island but adding to Royal Montreal , Club ce golf de l’île de Montréal ( 36 holes ) , st-Raphael and Elm Ridge.

traffic will be a pain due to road construction so plan accordingly. If restaurants are open you will have a blast.

most certainly mtl Jeff will chime in to add to this post

hopefully your pro has some time to make phone calls to get you on our beautiful courses

alain

[MtlJeff]

Just noticed this now! ^^^ Those are great suggestions. I'm just curious how you would get on some of these courses OP, some of the private ones are tougher to get on then others especially if you are a large group....Unless you are a CPGA pro or something in which case maybe you can get on

 

The only course in Tremblant that is private is le Maitre. Le Diable is a very grand course and my favorite of the public ones. Le Geant and La Bete are both similar, hilly courses

 

The suggestions Alain made really nail most of them. For public courses i do really like 4 domaines in mid summer. Play course #2 which has the white sand. 

 

On island the only one that was maybe missed is Beaconsfield. A very nice track in the heart of the West Island, it is private . 

 

Public my favorite are Ile De Montreal, 4 domaines , Falcon and Le Versant which wasn't mentioned above, which is 45 holes. If you play Versant play the "Des Seigneurs" course

 

Private,... Royal, Pinegrove is beautiful, Laval sur le lac as you know. Really of the ones not mentioned in the OP, Pinegrove is the nicest IMO

 

If you play Whitlock and see someone with Cobra Forged Tec's in Lefty....it's MtlJeff

[BallerNate]

Awesome list @alain3288 & @MtlJeff...I might have to make a golfing trip to Montreal sometime this Summer too!

 

Once the COVID situation stabilizes a bit and they start getting the vaccine out to the majority of people here, I’ll make a trip.

[AltaGuy]

Royal is royal. If you can, do it. Mount Bruno is another private course that is supposed to be amazing.

 

Out by Jeff, I can't recommend Whitlock (private) and Falcon enough - Falcon is my second favourite of the public courses in the greater Montreal area.

 

I really don't like 4Domaines these days - the conditions have been abysmal the past few years. 

 

My favourite public course nearby is Champetre - just a great track all-around.

 

And my final two recommendations - rather than going north to Tremblant, I'd go east to the townships - both Royal and Chateau Bromont are great courses and very beautiful.

 

Have fun!

[alain3288]

Thanks to mtl Jeff and Altaguy, the picture is complete . Beaconsfield is my favourite course , just don’t know why I forgot . 

have fun and get in touch if you come. I’m a member of a middle of the road course on the south shore ,  not a tough course but usually good playing conditions , i may get you on depending on when you want to play

[ParParAgain]

On 4/19/2021 at 12:56 PM, AltaGuy said:

Royal is royal. If you can, do it. Mount Bruno is another private course that is supposed to be amazing.

 

Out by Jeff, I can't recommend Whitlock (private) and Falcon enough - Falcon is my second favourite of the public courses in the greater Montreal area.

 

I really don't like 4Domaines these days - the conditions have been abysmal the past few years. 

 

My favourite public course nearby is Champetre - just a great track all-around.

 

And my final two recommendations - rather than going north to Tremblant, I'd go east to the townships - both Royal and Chateau Bromont are great courses and very beautiful.

 

Have fun!

 

I agree about The Falcon GC.  It is great.  It is public.   It is located in the Town of Hudson, to the west of the island of Montreal.   I am a member of a private course in the greater Montreal area and I have played all of the best private golf courses in the area;  The Falcon is even better.   (It was intended to be a private golf course but, like so many, it went into receivership a few years after it opened and before the clubhouse had been built).  

 

I am not surprised that AltaGuy also really likes Le Champetre GC.   It was designed and built by the same golf architect who created The Falcon.   IIRC, the Falcon opened around 1999 and Le Champetre about 3 of 4 years later. 

 

Those were the boom times for the development of golf, prompted in no small part by Tiger's win at the Masters in 1997

[MtlJeff]

On 4/19/2021 at 12:56 PM, AltaGuy said:

Royal is royal. If you can, do it. Mount Bruno is another private course that is supposed to be amazing.

 

Out by Jeff, I can't recommend Whitlock (private) and Falcon enough - Falcon is my second favourite of the public courses in the greater Montreal area.

 

I really don't like 4Domaines these days - the conditions have been abysmal the past few years. 

 

My favourite public course nearby is Champetre - just a great track all-around.

 

And my final two recommendations - rather than going north to Tremblant, I'd go east to the townships - both Royal and Chateau Bromont are great courses and very beautiful.

 

Have fun!

 

Le Champetre is a nice one, as @ParParAgain mentions it's quite similar to the falcon in overall vibe. It's a long track where you can really go for it on drives because you won't lose a ball there really. I think it stretches to 7100yds or something. It's north of Montreal maybe like 20-25 minutes into some of the back roads. It's semi-private so you can get on there. I played that course in an interclub maybe like 10 years ago

 

If you're out that way --I don't know what the story is with Le Diamant these days either. It used to be Green Valley, and then i heard went somewhat semi-private too where non-members could get on. It's a very fun course to play, nice looking, reachable par 5s etc...

 

 

[MtlJeff]

That's too bad to hear about 4 domaines, truthfully i haven't played it in mid-summer in probably 4-5 years. It always used to be in great shape.

 

Maybe them opening up so early every year now is ruining the course. It feels like they are trying to be the International 2000 of the Montreal area.

[jvincent]

@MtlJeff Which of the Ile de Montreal courses do you prefer?

 

I'm working on another covert op for the weekend which would deposit me at my Mom's place for the weekend.

[MtlJeff]

22 minutes ago, jvincent said:

@MtlJeff Which of the Ile de Montreal courses do you prefer?

 

I'm working on another covert op for the weekend which would deposit me at my Mom's place for the weekend.

 

Ireland no question, not even close. The Ireland course is famous here.

 

I haven't played it in a few years, but if it's in good shape it's a fun links experience. It can be real beast too from the back tees. 

 

I'd play it a lot more but me being from West of the city, getting there is a massive pain in the a** with Montreal's highways and construction. I basically have to drive across the entire city and Montreal in the summer is just a big construction zone

Edited May 17, 2021 by MtlJeff

[jvincent]

20 minutes ago, MtlJeff said:

 

Ireland no question, not even close. The Ireland course is famous here.

 

I haven't played it in a few years, but if it's in good shape it's a fun links experience. It can be real beast too from the back tees. 

 

I'd play it a lot more but me being from West of the city, getting there is a massive pain in the a** with Montreal's highways and construction. I basically have to drive across the entire city and Montreal in the summer is just a big construction zone

 

Cool, thanks. I'll see how my plans work out and try and get on if I can.

 

Montreal a construction nightmare? Never!

[KBong]

 

 

I'd play it a lot more but me being from West of the city, getting there is a massive pain in the a** with Montreal's highways and construction. I basically have to drive across the entire city and Montreal in the summer is just a big construction zone

I was in Montreal in 2009.....seems like road/highway construction is the "NORM".....lol.

[KBong]

 

@MtlJeff Which of the Ile de Montreal courses do you prefer?

 

I'm working on another covert op for the weekend which would deposit me at my Mom's place for the weekend.

Get me a smoked meat sandwich (extra fat) at Schwartz's.....and extra dill pickle and a Cherry Coke.

 

IMO....Schwartz's is a tourist trap who don't cater to the Anglophone's....there are many other good deli's

[MtlJeff]

6 hours ago, KBong said:

Get me a smoked meat sandwich (extra fat) at Schwartz's.....and extra dill pickle and a Cherry Coke.

 

IMO....Schwartz's is a tourist trap who don't cater to the Anglophone's....there are many other good deli's

 

Smoked Meat Pete's off island is quite good. My favorite place was called "Abie's" but the one in Dollard closed a few years back

[CharlesK802]

On 4/17/2021 at 3:56 PM, MtlJeff said:

@MtlJeff how is Summerlea? 

 

 

Just noticed this now! ^^^ Those are great suggestions. I'm just curious how you would get on some of these courses OP, some of the private ones are tougher to get on then others especially if you are a large group....Unless you are a CPGA pro or something in which case maybe you can get on

 

The only course in Tremblant that is private is le Maitre. Le Diable is a very grand course and my favorite of the public ones. Le Geant and La Bete are both similar, hilly courses

 

The suggestions Alain made really nail most of them. For public courses i do really like 4 domaines in mid summer. Play course #2 which has the white sand. 

 

On island the only one that was maybe missed is Beaconsfield. A very nice track in the heart of the West Island, it is private . 

 

Public my favorite are Ile De Montreal, 4 domaines , Falcon and Le Versant which wasn't mentioned above, which is 45 holes. If you play Versant play the "Des Seigneurs" course

 

Private,... Royal, Pinegrove is beautiful, Laval sur le lac as you know. Really of the ones not mentioned in the OP, Pinegrove is the nicest IMO

 

If you play Whitlock and see someone with Cobra Forged Tec's in Lefty....it's MtlJeff

[CharlesK802]

@MtlJeff @alain3288 what are you thoughts on Summerlea? 
 

which 18 is better?

 

we are going up in September and have the opportunity to play here so I’m debating if we should jump on it or try for somewhere else. 
 

any info is much appreciated!

 

thank you!

charles 

[MtlJeff]

10 minutes ago, CharlesK802 said:

@MtlJeff @alain3288 what are you thoughts on Summerlea? 
 

which 18 is better?

 

we are going up in September and have the opportunity to play here so I’m debating if we should jump on it or try for somewhere else. 
 

any info is much appreciated!

 

thank you!

charles 

 

Hi Charles

 

Do you have a friend who is a member there? I'm not 100% up to date on how they are managing things now, if both Dorion and Cascades are still fully private or if Cascades is semi. I gather most members prefer Dorion but i've only played there a few times to be honest. 

 

If you are a guest of a member i'd say west of the city it's definitely a great track , and nicer than any of the public courses you would play (like Saint Raphael or Atlantide , The falcon is nice but the greens are slow etc). So if you can get on i'd definitely say yes play there, if you're looking in this general area (west of the city).

 

It depends what your situation is, if you are looking to get on a private track or public one. There are very nice private tracks west of the city (Royal, Beaconsfield, Whitlock) other than Summerlea. I would rank all of those higher. 

[CharlesK802]

On 4/5/2024 at 2:21 PM, MtlJeff said:

@MtlJeff We have the option to play there through a private course reciprocal.  That was when I noticed that Summerlea was a 36 hole course so I wasnt sure which of the 2 was better?  I'm sure both are nice though? 

 

On 4/5/2024 at 2:21 PM, MtlJeff said:

Hi Charles

 

Do you have a friend who is a member there? I'm not 100% up to date on how they are managing things now, if both Dorion and Cascades are still fully private or if Cascades is semi. I gather most members prefer Dorion but i've only played there a few times to be honest. 

 

If you are a guest of a member i'd say west of the city it's definitely a great track , and nicer than any of the public courses you would play (like Saint Raphael or Atlantide , The falcon is nice but the greens are slow etc). So if you can get on i'd definitely say yes play there, if you're looking in this general area (west of the city).

 

It depends what your situation is, if you are looking to get on a private track or public one. There are very nice private tracks west of the city (Royal, Beaconsfield, Whitlock) other than Summerlea. I would rank all of those higher. 

 

[CharlesK802]

On 4/19/2021 at 12:56 PM, AltaGuy said:

Royal is royal. If you can, do it. Mount Bruno is another private course that is supposed to be amazing.

 

Out by Jeff, I can't recommend Whitlock (private) and Falcon enough - Falcon is my second favourite of the public courses in the greater Montreal area.

 

I really don't like 4Domaines these days - the conditions have been abysmal the past few years. 

 

My favourite public course nearby is Champetre - just a great track all-around.

 

And my final two recommendations - rather than going north to Tremblant, I'd go east to the townships - both Royal and Chateau Bromont are great courses and very beautiful.

 

Have fun!

@AltaGuy

@MtlJeff @alain3288 Hi Guys, last question - how would you rank Ile De Montreal (Ireland), Chateau Bromont and Royal Bromont.  I will be up there mid May and all are relatively the same travel time for our trip.  Thanks so much! 

[MtlJeff]

5 hours ago, CharlesK802 said:

@AltaGuy

@MtlJeff @alain3288 Hi Guys, last question - how would you rank Ile De Montreal (Ireland), Chateau Bromont and Royal Bromont.  I will be up there mid May and all are relatively the same travel time for our trip.  Thanks so much! 

 

I've never played the Bromont Courses to be honest. 

 

Ile De Montreal Ireland is a very nice track. It's a cool layout that tries to replicate the links style courses, it has double greens, uneven fairway lies, interesting bunkers etc....it's a lot of fun

 

One thing i would say is depending on where you are staying, it can be a real pain to drive there. It's a bit past the city and most people stay either West or North of MTL. So getting there means driving through Montreal on the met (highway) which can be a disaster traffic wise. If you play there i would try to get a time at non-peak hours

[CharlesK802]

4 hours ago, MtlJeff said:

 

I've never played the Bromont Courses to be honest. 

 

Ile De Montreal Ireland is a very nice track. It's a cool layout that tries to replicate the links style courses, it has double greens, uneven fairway lies, interesting bunkers etc....it's a lot of fun

 

One thing i would say is depending on where you are staying, it can be a real pain to drive there. It's a bit past the city and most people stay either West or North of MTL. So getting there means driving through Montreal on the met (highway) which can be a disaster traffic wise. If you play there i would try to get a time at non-peak hours

Thank you @MtlJeff we are staying at Hilton Garden Inn near Centre Bell.  We will be there on Sunday for a concert in the evening, traveling from Burlington VT, so we were going to shoot up in the morning - hoping for a 10-1030 tee time.   Looks like it has us crossing the bridge in Boucherville.  Good to know about traffic.  Is traffic usually bad on Sunday mornings?  

[MtlJeff]

9 minutes ago, CharlesK802 said:

Thank you @MtlJeff we are staying at Hilton Garden Inn near Centre Bell.  We will be there on Sunday for a concert in the evening, traveling from Burlington VT, so we were going to shoot up in the morning - hoping for a 10-1030 tee time.   Looks like it has us crossing the bridge in Boucherville.  Good to know about traffic.  Is traffic usually bad on Sunday mornings?  

 

Sunday is probably your best bet, so i'd worry a bit less about it then. The MET is brutal on weekdays during traffic hours but weekends are a bit better and Sunday even best. You also are coming at it from a bit different direction

[alain3288]

Hi Charles, 

Since your hotel is downtown I would not  suggest playing Île de Montréal ( Ireland) even if it is is very good course as MTL Jeff said. Given the bridge repair ( Louis Hippolyte Lafontaine tunnel ) and the fact it is at the east end of the island you may want to play Royal Bromont on your way back near Highway 10. IT is a fun course usually with very good conditions 

[caniac6]

Watching the President’s Cup, I’m wondering how much longer the golf season is in Montreal?

[unskinnybop99]

17 hours ago, caniac6 said:

Watching the President’s Cup, I’m wondering how much longer the golf season is in Montreal?

Golf is starting to wrap up after the Canadian Thanksgiving (2nd Monday in October). Of course, this is all weather dependent. The weather is usually superb in September but by mid-October it can get quite cold.