Glen Abbey’s Swinging Monk Turns 50 This Year
- 3 days ago
- 5 min read
Updated: 13 hours ago
By Grant Fraser
Fifty years ago, the landscape of golf in Canada changed forever.
The exact day was June 1,1976 when Glen Abbey officially opened its doors to become the new home of the Canadian Open. Located in the toney Town of Oakville, thirty minutes west of Toronto, Glen Abbey has left an indelible mark on Canadian golf and continues to do so with class and distinction to this day.
But first, some history.
It begins, fittingly, with the swinging monk – the venerable logo that has watched over Glen Abbey long before the first fairway was ever cut. In the 1950s, the property was a peaceful monastery, home to the Jesuit Fathers of Upper Canada. In 1963, a group of seven affluent Oakville residents founded Clearstream Development Ltd. and acquired the property with the sole intention of creating a private 18-hole golf course. For a time, the property even served as a ski resort as evidenced by remnants of a now defunct T-bar ski lift near the 11th hole.
In 1974 Great Northern Capital purchased the property, and the following year the Royal Canadian Golf Association (RCGA – now Golf Canada) moved its headquarters to the site and established the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame and Museum. The RCGA later bought Glen Abbey in 1983 for $3 million, forging a relationship that would shape Canadian golf for generations.
Then came the master’s touch. In 1976, the RCGA, under the leadership of Tournament Director Dick Grimm, made a bold, yet strategic decision to commission the services of a legendary golfer who had never designed a golf course. His name was Jack Nicklaus. Tasked with creating a permanent home for the Canadian Open, Nicklaus completely re-imagined every hole and, like all great artists, envisioned a layout designed specifically to enhance the spectator experience. His “spoke-and-wheel” concept focused on central viewing areas around the clubhouse, with holes fanning outward, enabling galleries to follow multiple groups at once.
“Because the golf course was to be used for tournament golf, I wanted to create an amphitheatre effect throughout the course. I saw the opportunity to use a central location for a clubhouse and then use gallery rings around the property. That was the theme I came up with,” says Nicklaus.
Glen Abbey was Jack Nicklaus’ first solo design, paving the way for the 300+ courses he would design and develop in 45 countries around the world throughout his illustrious career.
“Coming on the heels of my work at Muirfield Village Golf Club, which I believe was the first ‘stadium’ golf course when it opened in 1974, Glen Abbey was designed for the gallery and with the patrons in mind,” recalls Nicklaus.
The inaugural Canadian Open at Glen Abbey was contested in 1977, with the irrepressible Lee Trevino capturing the coveted crown – a feat he would repeat in 1979. The list of past Glen Abbey champions reads like a who’s who of the golfing world including Nick Price (1991, 1994), Tiger Woods (2000), Vijay Singh (2004), Jason Day (2015) and Dustin Johnson (2018), all former No. 1 ranked golfers in the world.
The obvious omission from this list is Mr. Nicklaus himself. Despite his familiarity and fondness for Glen Abbey, neither yielded a Canadian Open victory for the Golden Bear. Our national championship proved to be elusive for the game’s greatest golfer as he finished second an astonishing seven times.
“Trust me, I played in a number of these Canadian Opens and know. I never won a Canadian Open and finished runner-up seven times. My wife kept making me go back until I could get it right,” Nicklaus recounts with a smile.
While there are far too many great memories to recall over the 30 years Glen Abbey hosted the Canadian Open, two stand out above the rest. The first unfolded in September 2000, when Tiger Woods stood in the fairway bunker on the 18th hole and summoned a 216-yard, 6-iron for the ages. After deftly landing his ball on the back of the green, Woods comfortably two-putted from the fringe to birdie the final hole and secure a one-shot victory over Grant Waite. It was a moment for the history books, as Woods became the second golfer to capture the Triple Crown by winning the Canadian, U.S. and British Opens the same year, the gregarious Lee Trevino being the only other golfer to do so.
The second defining moment occurred in 2004 and remains a disappointment among Canadian golf fans to this day. After a long-fought battle, it was Vijay Singh who prevailed in a three-hole playoff against Canada’s cherished lefty, Mike Weir. Another epic finish alongside the banks of the 18th green.
In 1999, Glen Abbey was sold to ClubLink Corporation, Canada’s largest owner and operator of golf courses, for the then-staggering sum of $40 million. ClubLink continues to own and manage Glen Abbey and is regarded as one of the crown jewels in the company’s 40+ course repertoire.
Like all the great golf courses around the world, Glen Abbey continues to stand the test of time. From a design perspective, not much has changed over the last 50 years. Nicklaus’ original layout remains intact with a few exceptions including the redesign of the 11th and 17th greens. From the back tees, the course measures a robust 7,214 yards with a rating/slope of 75.3/144.
“Fifty years after it opened, Glen Abbey is still one of the more creative golf courses I’ve ever done. It put the spectator experience on par with the golf experience. I think it was and still is a wonderful golf course, and I can only say I’m very proud and honored to be a part of its history,” say Nicklaus.
While Glen Abbey is best known for hosting the world’s best golfers, the property has also been recognized for its environmental stewardship and cultural importance within its community. In 2004, Glen Abbey earned the prestigious Certified Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary designation, an honour bestowed to fewer than 5% of golf courses in Canada.
And in December 2017, the Town of Oakville astutely designated Glen Abbey as a Cultural Heritage Landscape under the Ontario Heritage Act. The act encompasses the beautiful Sixteen-Mile Creek valley, the area that cradles holes 11 through 15 and regarded as the most serene parcel of land on the property.
The last Canadian Open held at Glen Abbey was in 2018, and it may prove to be the last. Yet even if the PGA TOUR never returns, Glen Abbey remains one of this country’s most adored and best-known golf venues. Ask any golfer to name a “bucket-list” golf course in Canada, and Glen Abbey will undoubtedly be noted among a select few. No other course in this country can claim Glen Abbey’s Canadian Open pedigree and enduring legacy. Golfers are drawn to Glen Abbey because this is the place where they can walk the same storied fairways the likes of Trevino, Nicklaus, Price, and Woods did. With each passing year, the course’s unique aura continues to radiate, cementing its legendary lore in the annals of Canadian golf.
So, here’s a heartfelt Happy Birthday to a Canadian golf icon and personal favourite.
May Glen Abbey’s beloved monk continue swinging for another 50 years!
About the author: Grant Fraser is an award-winning golf writer and photographer. He has been a proud ClubLink and Glencairn Member for 12 years. In 2025, he was inducted into the Ontario Golf Hall of Fame.
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