The Fairmont Banff Springs Resort

Golf Course Road,

Banff, Alberta T0L 0C0

  • Office

    +1 (403) 762 6801
  • Pro shop

    +1 (403) 762 6801
  • Fax

    +1 (403) 762 5755
  • Golf pro

    Steve Young (Director of Golf)
  • Academy

    Banff Springs Golf Academy

About the course

  • The Course:

    18 holes. Tree-lined parkland. Relatively flat terrain, with one or two slopes to climb - no effort to walk.

  • Surroundings:

    Forest, riverside and high mountains.

  • Designer:

    Thompson course: original 9-hole design by Scottish designer Bill Thomson (1911); expanded to 18 holes by Donald Ross (1924); redesigned to today's layout by Stanley Thompson (1928).
    Tunnel-nine: designed by William G. "Bill" Robinson, and younger brother John F. Robinson (1989).

Back
tees
Club
tees
Front
tees
Yards
6938
6389
4478
Par
71
71
71
SSS or slope
72.9
70.0
65.6

At the same location:

Above distances are for the Thompson course. Also at Banff Springs is the nine-hole Tunnel Course (par-36; 3287 yds from back tees; designed by Geoffrey Cornish and Bill Robinson; opened in 1989). Although slightly easier going than the 18-hole Thompson course, this too is a wonderfully crafted and immensely scenic layout.

Location

Latitude:

51.173371

Longitude:

-115.537827

How to get there:

3 km SE of centre of Banff.

The Fairmont Banff Springs Resort (Stanley Thompson course)

5-PLUS: In the world’s elite - has few peers; one of our top-rated 5s!

Est. 1928

The Fairmont Banff Springs Golf Course: renowned for its panoramic beauty, this captivating and challenging layout is stunningly set in the heart of the Canadian Rockies. Played in two nine-hole loops (with a third nine, the Tunnel course, also available), the opening holes set the scene for this spectacular Stanley Thompson design.

One of the course's many highlights comes early in proceedings. The stunning par-3 4th (Devil's Cauldron) is a world renowned hole. From an elevated tee you need to carry over an eerily tranquil, crystal clear pond to reach the heavily bunker-defended green; a huge dark grey cliff frames the rightside of the hole.

The back-nine runs alongside the Bow River, under the snow-capped peaks of Sulphur Mountain and Mt Rundle. Here the visual splendour of the natural mountain and woodland scenery is joined by the towering grandeur of the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel, one of Canada's most iconic buildings.

The par-4 12th, long par-3 13th and par-4 14th all play towards the hotel, which is perched above the course, providing a spectacular backdrop to each hole. The long par-4 15th requires you to climb to a wonderfully elevated tee, located alongside the hotel's Waldhaus Restaurant; this excellent par-4 is the only interruption to a back-nine laid out on otherwise relatively flat terrain.

With good width fairways, large and sloping greens, and fabulous bunkering throughout, Banff Springs is rightly regarded as one of Canada's very best layouts. Add to this its stunning location and fabulous mountain scenery, and it's easy to see why Banff Springs is regularly included among the world's top places to play (and stay).

Stay&Play at Banff Springs: luxury onsite accommodation available, see Where2Stay section below.

List of courses: Calgary / Banff / Jasper

Visitors

Who can play and when?

Visitors welcome on weekdays and weekends.

Must book in advance. Golf season is May thru mid-Oct.

Green fees

Visitor fee, 18-holes in high season (June thru' Sept): CA$269; variable rates apply dependent on date and time of day. Golf cart included.

Contact club for full details, discounts, packages, etc. [Last updated: 2023].

Other information

Non-metal spike facility. Walking permitted at all times.

Practice facilities

Excellent

Did you know?

Legendary Canadian golf course designer Stanley Thompson routinely has six of his layouts listed among the very best golf courses in Canada. The six are: Jasper Park Lodge (1925), Banff Springs (1928), St George's (1928), Westmount G&CC (1931), Capilano (1937) and Cape Breton Highlands (1939).

Banff Springs offers a special Heritage Golf Experience, allowing you to play the course as it would have been played in the 1930s, with hickory clubs, replica balls and course markers set to historical length.

Banff Springs is an Audubon International Cooperative Sanctuary course.

Published ranking

Thompson course:
Canada's 7th best course (SCOREGolf, 2022) and 4th best public access course (SCOREGolf, 2023).
World's 71st best public access course (Golf World, 2023).

Where2Stay

  • The Fairmont Banff Springs Resort5-star

    405 Spray Ave, Banff, Alberta T1L 1J4

    +1 (403) 762 2211

    Visit website

    Few hotels in the world rival the majesty and grandeur of The Fairmont Banff Springs resort. Styled after a Scottish baronial castle, The Fairmont Banff Springs hotel, a National Historical Site, is located in the heart of Banff National Park; a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The construction of the hotel in 1888 marked the birthplace of tourism in the Canadian Rockies. With such a unique setting the Fairmont Banff Springs offers stunning vistas, world renowned skiing within minutes, championship golf courses, exceptional cuisine and the award winning Willow Stream spa.

    • Golf at this hotel:

      Banff Springs

    • Golf within 10 km:

      No

    • Golf within 30 km:

      Canmore; Silvertip; Stewart Creek.

  • The Banff Aspen Lodge3.5 star

    401 Banff Ave, Banff, Alberta T1L 1A9

    +1 (403) 762 4401

    Visit website

    The Banff Aspen Lodge hotel offers comfortable accommodation in the centre of Banff. With spacious guestrooms, singles, couples and families can choose the room that suits their needs; most rooms feature private balconies and views of the Canadian Rockies. The Banff Aspen Lodge is just a three-minute stroll to the fine shopping, dining, museums and galleries of Banff.

    • Golf at this hotel:

      No

    • Golf within 10 km:

      Banff Springs

    • Golf within 30 km:

      Canmore

Find a course

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Tournaments

Ryder Cup: Rome plays host to the first ever Ryder Cup to be staged in Italy, with the USA defending golf’s greatest team trophy at Marco Simone Golf & Country Club (Sept 29-Oct 1).

Solheim Cup: also in September, also in southern Europe, the 18th Solheim Cup will be contested at Finca Cortesin on the Costa del Sol, with Europe defending after their surprise win in Toledo, Inverness Club (Ohio) in 2021 (Sept 22-24). 

Who's Who

Céline Boutier: with many successes as both an amateur and professional golfer, Boutier added a major championship title to her impressive résumé at this year’s Evian Championship.

Alex Cejka: buffeted by rain and high winds, especially on the high-scoring final day, Čejka prevailed over Pádraig Harrington in a playoff at Royal Porthcawl, to scoop the Senior Open Championship title.

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Marco Simone Golf & Country Club: With a clubhouse that might befit a Roman Emperor, and a golf course to match, you can be sure of a memorable outing at Rome's most talked about golf facility.

Jim Fazio's original layout was much changed to create a modern Ryder Cup course ... now one of the Eternal City's (and Italy's) most revered.

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Stay&Play at Prince's: excellent onsite Lodge accommodation available

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