Developed by the Windmill Golf Group, the course at Mickelson National Golf Club finally opened for play in the summer of 2020, thirteen years after the project first got off the ground. Originally earmarked as a Johnny Miller and Stephen Ames co-production called the Copithorne Club, the course plan then became the responsibility of the Phil Mickelson Design team in 2014.
Construction began the following year, with holes occupying what was formerly flat farmland with little movement in the terrain, requiring a serious level of grading in order to create a degree of contouring. It’s anticipated the Canadian Open might one day be held here, which would be a great boost for Calgary as it’s never hosted a PGA Tour event.
The course is part of a community development called Harmony which, at its completion, will span all of 1,750 acres, embracing close to four thousand houses. Opened as a public facility, the course is intended to become private in the years to come as the membership grows.
The par four 10th has attracted early plaudits, featuring a split fairway that’s separated by a large bunker, and the short par four 16th has been identified as a standout hole, with a significant drop of around ninety feet from tee to green.
There’s also a rather unique part of the course called ‘the abyss’, where three par three holes – the 3rd, 8th and 17th – come together in a horseshoe-shaped arrangement which was designed to look like a natural sand area containing a massive waste bunker.
