Living in Canada

[Johnson]

How do you guys cope with living in Canada with the short summers that limit playing golf. I know things in Ontario are milder than out west. Anyone got any advice on where I can live or what I can do to increase the amount of golf I play despite the long cold winters?!?

[golfinseb]

Canada is the best country in the world for many reasons other than golf.

I moved to Vancouver to be able to play more golf (amongst other reasons), this year it hasn't panned out but in teh long run it's probably your best bet.

[guitarman]

How do you guys cope with living in Canada with the short summers that limit playing golf. I know things in Ontario are milder than out west. Anyone got any advice on where I can live or what I can do to increase the amount of golf I play despite the long cold winters?!?

I played my last round January 12. I hope to play atleast once in February. And hopefully more starting in March. I don't mind the cold so if there is a course open I'll play. If its atleast between 5 and 7 degrees celcius I'll be playing in a t-shirt.

[Golfbum]

How do you guys cope with living in Canada with the short summers that limit playing golf. I know things in Ontario are milder than out west. Anyone got any advice on where I can live or what I can do to increase the amount of golf I play despite the long cold winters?!?

:rofl: You must think we live in igloos for 3/4 of the year. Short summers? I was on the course last year during the last week in March and got off the course during the last week in November. Then there was a bonus week of weather and I played on Dec.20. Then there was another bonus week of weather and I played on Jan 1 and 7.

In 2004 and 2005 we played golf into the first week of December before the owners closed the course after some snow fell.

All in all I played 124 rounds between March 20 and November 30. I also missed 7 weeks of golf in May/June because I had a heart attack on May 14 which lead to a double by pass.

My total rounds for the past 5 years
128
135
165
148
124
----
700 rounds in 5 years. All of them played in this area of Ontario.
Not bad. Mind you I live in southwest Ontario, so the season is a bit longer here than in some other areas of Ontario.

If you want to increase the number of rounds you play you have to be willing to play in cooler weather. A few of the guys I play with think nothing of going out and playing when it is above 0C. We play in the 2-3 C range all the time if the course is still open. Dress properly and go play. Two of us teed off early one Sunday afternoon when it was -2C and played 18 with no problems.

I guess it depends on where you are moving from. Some people can not handle cooler weather when it comes to golf. Some of us can! :D

[goshawk]

I have to admit moving up here from Louisiana 9 years ago was a very tough decision to make. I'm glad I made it. I'm playing just as much golf here as I did in Louisiana. Most of the winter months down there (Jan-Feb) are far too wet to enjoy playing. If dressed properly, there's no reason why you can't enjoy playing in colder weather. And look what you get for living here.....the best country I've been to anywhere (and I've been stationed in/visited 18 of them).

[The Bun]

I have to admit moving up here from Louisiana 9 years ago was a very tough decision to make. I'm glad I made it. I'm playing just as much golf here as I did in Louisiana. Most of the winter months down there (Jan-Feb) are far too wet to enjoy playing. If dressed properly, there's no reason why you can't enjoy playing in colder weather. And look what you get for living here.....the best country I've been to anywhere (and I've been stationed in/visited 18 of them).

Cheers to Goshawk.....:beer::beer:.....You da man......I second that.

-Bun-

[swingpure]

Without a doubt, for all season golf in Canada, the west coast is the place to be, however you can get rained out a number of those days.

Here in Alberta we sometimes get started in March, but April is more likely start date. We get to golf until late October. When winter comes around October 22nd it usually stays. Last year we had an incredible winter being so warm, but this year we have been in full winter mode here since late October.

I used to live in the Toronto area for 26 years and have played many Ontario and GTA courses. Fall lasts for another month or so in the GTA then here.

In the US, in some of the Southern States it gets too hot to play during the day in the summer. There is good and bad everywhere, unless you live in Hawaii and golf is good all of the time. (Love Hawaii)

[GQuizzle]

There's no place like home... there's no place like home...

[simar]

even with our short season, i think many folks break the 120 rounds/year mark during the season. And for the off season, there is always some place warm to go for a vacation :)

[Johnson]

Let's say the season ends in late October. By that point your game is peaking or you are playing well. Then the season begins mid April. How long does it take to get back into form? If golf is about consistency and 5-6 months off will truely ruin any positive habits you have spent the season learning.

[simar]

for me, the season really begins at the end of april or beginning of may ends in early october. Getting back into form will depend on the time i have to hitup the driving range and stretch before a round... as far as scoring, i usually see better scores in late august.

[goshawk]

I've had some of my best rounds early in the season. Maybe it's because I spend so much time at Oasis and Metro Dome during the off-season, but I don't feel like I loose very much by April.

[Louie]

For the most part I love living in Canada but in the winter I would like to move somewhere warmer. O man I'm getting old.:)

[klink1983]

I hear the winters in Vancouver and on the island are not as harsh and even non existent compared to what we get here. I know the cost of living is more, but I am tempted to relocate there just because of the weather and of the likelyhood of golfing more.......just gotta win the lottery first:hyper:

[caddishack]

You have a point there Johnson. Sometimes it can take me a few months before I return to a normal game. I started making notes this year so hopefully I can review them come spring and sort of make sense of them. Myrtle Beach at the end of March usually results in about 10 shots over normal due to the volume of golf in such a short period and the fact that I have not really played for 4 or 5 months.

[skt07]

In terms of year-round golfing in Canada, absolutely nowhere beats Vancouver IF you don't mind golfing in the rain. And I don't mean just in the winter or fall. Vancouver can and will rain at all times of the year and often with little or no warning. When I lived there, I would bring my umbrella with me for every round regardless of the current weather, because too many rounds began in the bright sunshine and ended in pouring rain.

Of course, the truly hardcore golfer won't let a little rain stop them, so I absolutely recommend that the true golf nut move to Vancouver if they want to play year round.

Vancouver also has plenty of great courses (not as many as the GTA however), and I believe they all stay open throughout the year.

The only thing that kept me from playing as much golf in the winter as in the summer was the ski season (yet another reason to move to Vancouver).

[wayland]

Of course, the truly hardcore golfer won't let a little rain stop them, so I absolutely recommend that the true golf nut move to Vancouver if they want to play year round.

And that's just what our own golfinseb has done, moved to Vancouver in order to play more golf. Talk about the true Golfnut, this is the guy who said in one thread that he broke up with his girlfriend because she couldn't put up with all his golfing, and now he uproots to goto Vancouver in order to play year round.

[nearace]

man am i glad it turned cold my igloo started to melt.:rofl:

[cvcapital]

You can move to Barbados like I did and play twice a day if you want, considering a round here takes only a few hours since the courses are empty and carts are included with memberships and green fees. Temperature is about 30 degrees year round with little rain or humidity.

[guitarman]

You can move to Barbados like I did and play twice a day if you want, considering a round here takes only a few hours since the courses are empty and carts are included with memberships and green fees. Temperature is about 30 degrees year round with little rain or humidity.

http://www.boomnet.dk/ugfx/288/gallery/HomerSimpson.jpg_160_border_000000.jpeg

[owenmxz600]

http://www.boomnet.dk/ugfx/288/gallery/HomerSimpson.jpg_160_border_000000.jpeg

sweeet picture

[Bellyhungry]

Like Tiger and Lefty, I welcome the shorter season with a long break in between. My reason is entirely different than theirs - if we can play golf year round, I would have gone broke buying equipment and paying for green fees.

Added bonus: who can play golf when figure skating is on TV on weekends in the winter months? :p