The National Golf Club of Canada is a

golf club A golf club is a club used to hit a golf ball in a game of golf. Each club is composed of a shaft with a grip and a club head. Woods are mainly used for long-distance fairway or tee shots; irons, the most versatile class, are used for a variety ...

Woodbridge, Ontario Woodbridge is a very large suburban community in Vaughan, Ontario, Canada, along the city's border with Toronto. It occupies the city's entire southwest quadrant, west of Highway 400, east of Highway 50, north of Steeles Avenue, and generally s ...

. It has frequently been called the best golf course in Canada, and has been called one of the best golf courses in the world. The club has also been criticized for its men-only membership policy.

Course

The club was founded by Harvey Kalef, Gil Blechman and Irv Hennick. The golf course was designed by

George Fazio George Fazio (November 12, 1912 – June 6, 1986) was an American professional golfer and a golf course architect. Life and career Fazio, born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was a respected player in the mid-twentieth century and competed in seven ...

and

Tom Fazio Tom or TOM may refer to: * Tom (given name), a diminutive of Thomas or Tomás or an independent Aramaic given name (and a list of people with the name) Characters * Tom Anderson, a character in ''Beavis and Butt-Head'' * Tom Beck, a character ...

. Construction began on May 15, 1973 and the course officially opened in 1975. The club's first professional was

Ken Venturi Kenneth Paul Venturi (May 15, 1931May 17, 2013) was an American professional golfer and golf broadcaster. In a career shortened by injuries, he won 14 events on the PGA Tour including a major, the U.S. Open in 1964. Shortly before his death in 20 ...

, a retired professional golfer and later a commentator for

CBS Sports CBS Sports is the sports division of the American television network CBS. Its headquarters are in the CBS Building on W 52nd Street in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, with programs produced out of Studio 43 at the CBS Broadcast Center on W ...

. The course is notoriously difficult, and has been called the toughest in Canada. It is also highly acclaimed - the course has been called the best in Canada by a number of reviewers. It also has received acclaim from international publications, where it was ranked among the world's best.

Membership

Club membership is famously open to men only. The policy came under scrutiny after

Augusta National Golf Club Augusta National Golf Club, sometimes referred to as Augusta or the National, is a golf club in Augusta, Georgia, United States. Unlike most private clubs which operate as non-profits, Augusta National is a for-profit corporation, and it does n ...

abandoned its men-only policy in 2012. The club faced calls to open its membership up to women.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:National Golf Club of Canada Golf clubs and courses in Ontario Sports venues completed in 1975 Sport in Vaughan 1975 establishments in Ontario