Golfers complain to management and leave online reviews slamming course conditions
One of Canada’s top golf courses has hit a rough patch this year.
Marcel McKeough, president of the Cape Breton Highlands Golf Club Society, said he and many of the group’s members are worried about the potential impact of negative reviews on the Cape Breton Highlands Links and the community.
Several bad Google reviews are posted online, with golfers complaining about the condition of the course and service from staff at the clubhouse.
The reviews are even worse on Trip Advisor: “Awful,” “Pretty awful,” “Very very disappointed” and “Manage your expectations. It’s not what you’ve been led to expect.”
“One of my members sent me a note saying, ‘You should look at these,'” McKeough said. “They’re pretty stern, there’s no question.”
The climate is different around Cape Breton Island, he said, and the weather in Ingonish can be radically different than Sydney’s on any given day.
That may play a part in the condition of the course.
But society members have also commented on what seems to be a lack of maintenance equipment and lack of staff compared to previous years, McKeough said.
The greens seem dried out, the irrigation equipment doesn’t seem to be working properly, the fairways aren’t mowed often enough and staff are not looking after the sand traps, he said.
“The greens are in bad shape and they’re slow to rebound, which I don’t know if that’s a maintenance issue or if that’s an issue that’s the cause of Mother Nature,” McKeough said.
