By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

It has been well documented that the Covid-19 pandemic created a golf boom of sorts and perhaps no course has reaped the benefits more than Sandpiper, the stunningly scenic and serene layout on the shores of the Harrison River.

Located about 30 minutes east of Mission in the tiny community of Harrison Mills, Sandpiper has weathered some tough times since opening in 1998. But Covid and the vision of new ownership have changed things.

“In the first year of the pandemic, our golf course had the largest increase in rounds played per capita in the nation,” says Sandpiper general manager Ted Swaine. “The reason for that is that we were one of the few that had the room.”

Tee times at courses closer to Vancouver were increasingly tough to find and golfers, including the many new golfers that Covid helped bring to the game, were willing to make the trip to Sandpiper. “What happened during the pandemic is that demand was so overwhelming that at most courses if you weren’t up early to book your tee time for the five-day lead, you were not getting a time,” Swaine says.

“It was just a force of nature. We had the room, a lot of courses didn’t. We were struggling to do 20,000 or 21,000 thousand rounds and went to doing 42,000 or 43,000 rounds during the pandemic.”

Like most golfers who visit Sandpiper for the first time, these new visitors fell in love with the place. There’s just something about Sandpiper’s setting — its epic views, its Rowena’s Inn that looks like something out of the Great Gatsby era, its 18 on-site cottages and its playable layout — that draw people back.

“That is what really captures people,” says Swaine, who has been at Sandpiper since the beginning. “You roll in the gate and you are staring right down at the beautiful turquoise water of the Harrison River and beautiful mountains like Cheam Mountain and Mount Woodside.

"I am just looking out there right now and you have got the tugs hauling logs and the river is just flat out there. It is a beautiful, calm serene setting. I think people get here and they feel like they have unplugged, which is very rare in today’s world where we are all walking around with computers in our pockets.”

From May 15-18, Sandpiper plays host to the B.C. Men’s and Women’s Mid-Amateur/Mid-Master Championships, the first event of British Columbia Golf’s 2023 championship schedule. One of the biggest challenges competitors will face is ignoring those great views and focusing on the golf.

At 6,500 yards from the back tees, Sandpiper is not long. But it presents plenty of challenges, not the least of which are the towering trees that line many of its fairways. “You don’t need to whack driver everywhere,” Swaine says. “The golf course is not that long. You need to be strategic, you need to think your way around this golf course.

“My opinion is you really take advantage of the par 5s. They are not ridiculously long. . .There are certain sections of the golf course where you just have to be okay with par. I always say if you get through No. 3 and you are even-par or better you are good. Then you have a few scoring holes after those first three.”

Sandpiper has a tough finishing stretch with the par 3 16th and the par 4 17th and 18th holes. The 17th hole runs alongside a private airstrip. “If you are even-par on 16, 17 and 18, you have finished well,” Swaine says.

Swaine expects scores will be low at the Mid-Amateur and he’s okay with that. At a Vancouver Golf Tour 54-hole event at Sandpiper in late April, the winning score was 17-under. “I don’t want to see the players upset after their rounds,” Swaine says. “I want to see some good scores. I think it’s good for the game.”

Some of the Mid-Am players will be experiencing more than the golf course at Sandpiper, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this summer. Seven new upscale cottages were recently opened, bringing the total to 18, and all are filled by players for tournament week.

Sandpiper is marketing itself as more than just a golf course. The new cottages provide opportunities for more stay-and-play packages. In the fall, the course is a popular spot for eagles who return to the area. And the Harrison River provides opportunities for some great fishing and other outdoor activities.

“Our business model has to be like the Whistler’s and the Tobiano’s,” Swaine says. “We are a destination. The new owners (Vancouver-based Keltic Canada Development) have given us that ability. With our new cabins, we now have the capacity for stay-and-play.

"We will do over 80 weddings this year, which is a huge part of our business as well. We are somewhere where people can do a few things. We have to look at golf as just another amenity here. We keep adding other things for them to do.”

Click HERE to learn more about Sandpiper GC & Rowena's Inn

CHIP SHOTS: Nonie Marler of Vancouver will defend her Mid-Amateur title at Sandpiper, while Shelly Stouffer of Nanoose Bay will defend her Mid-Master championship. Vancouver’s Patrick Weeks, who won last year’s Men’s Mid-Amateur and Mid-Master titles, is not defending his titles.