"Stay and Play" at Royal Ashburn Golf Club in Durham Region
The Stay and Play option at Royal Ashburn Golf Club in Ontario has the makings of a perfect Ontario golf weekend.
As of late, I’ve come to terms with the fact that true adventure isn’t about taking a plane halfway across the world, it’s about embarking on something new with purpose.
Both Bri and I have spent a lot of time contemplating that very notion recently, and I think that’s ultimately what led us back to the golf course, and to the weekend we spent at Royal Ashburn Golf Club.
I grew up playing golf - though, up until recently, I think it’s fair to say that my golfing style most resembled none other than Happy Gilmore himself. If I connected, I could hit it 300 yards, but if I didn’t, it was likely that whoever I was golfing with would be treated to a cacophony of cursing. As for Bri, she tried out golf in her teenage years, but never quite got into it.
Despite being together for 11 years, we’d never played a round of golf together. With everything going on, I’d been playing more golf as of late (at places nearby like Mayfield Golf Club), and I think we both started to realize we were long overdue for a round!
And so, when we had the chance to “Stay & Play” at Royal Ashburn Golf Club, one of the top golf courses in Durham region, and one of most highly-regarded public courses in Canada , we jumped at the opportunity.
Packing up the car, and getting ready to go on this little Ontario staycation, we got that familiar rush that we used to get when heading to the airport. That’s when we understood what I mentioned prior - that adventures aren’t tethered to location, but rather to intention.
What Exactly is the “Stay & Play” at Royal Ashburn?
As you might have gathered, the “stay & play” offers golfers the chance to also be an overnight guest at the golf club. Just recently, Royal Ashburn built five modern onsite cabins, which can accommodate up to six people each. Bri and I took it upon ourselves to occupy one of these cabins as part of our own little Ontario couple’s getaway, but I’d imagine they’d be perfect for everything from corporate retreats to bachelor and bachelorette parties.
If you’re curious as to what these cabins consist of, they’ve got:
Two private bathrooms
Two private bedrooms, each with two double beds
A Kitchenette
A wetbar & mini fridge
A sizeable living room with an enormous satellite TV
Covered front porch overlooking the golf course
Locked and private storage for your clubs (which I thought was a nice touch)
So, your bases are covered in terms of the “staying,” and that actually has a hugely positive impact on the “playing.” While others on the course might have been stressing about what they’d have for dinner, and the drive home, we knew we’d take the golf cart straight to dinner at the restaurant, then take the short drive to our cabin, and that would be that.
Royal Ashburn Golf Club’s standard “Stay & Play” package consists of one night of accommodation with two 18 hole round of golf (including a power cart), and three meals from the onsite restaurant, Butler’s Pub & Grill.
A Brief History of Royal Ashburn Golf Club
If you learned anything from my previous article on Mayfield Golf Club, I’m guessing it’s that I have a deep appreciation for the backstory and history of a place. In today’s world, I firmly believe we’re far too comfortable scuttling along in the present, without taking a deep breath to consider how things came to be.
So let me bring you back to 1959 when two Canadian golf professionals, Wilson Paterson and Bill Ogle, had a hankering to build a world-class golf club. In short order, they bought up around 225 acres of some of the finest farmland in Durham Region, and got to work. Present day real estate prices might make that a touch more difficult these days.
Anyway, by 1962, they were in business with an 18 hole facility. Back then, It opened as Whitby Golf Club, then they made a surprising left turn when renaming themselves “Thunderbird Golf Club.” Finally, in 2000 at the dawn of a new millennium, they unveiled their current name, The Royal Ashburn Golf Club.
I quite like their current name, and it seems a lot of people quite like their current course, as it’s a perennial lock in conversations around the top 50 public golf courses in Canada, as well as conversations around the best golf course in Whitby, Ontario.
Without further adieu, let’s talk a little about the course.
Playing a Round at One of the Best Golf Courses in Durham Region
I’ve written before about the best golf courses in Ontario, but I’ll be upfront in saying that many of the courses that I listed in that article are cloaked in exclusivity. Literally, while researching some of the courses for that article and investigating just what their entry requirements were, I felt like I was in the Da Vinci Code trying to piece together cryptic clues.
My guess, generally speaking, is that even getting near some of the private courses there involves knowing the right people and having a bank account with a few more zeros than I see in mine. But that, in essence, is what makes Royal Ashburn so remarkable. You’re getting the world-class quality but its accessible to the public.
Noting the fact that this traditional style course has a length of 7104 yards, the first thing I’d recommend is that you play this with a cart. For golf enthusiasts, note that it’s a par 72, with a slope of 143, an 74.3 rating.
Interestingly, the golf course was not designed by a formal architect, but instead by Wilson Paterson himself. For over 50 years he designed, redesigned and remodelled the golf course to continually improve the playability and aesthetics of the course.
Throughout the years, the layout has remained the same, but the course has changed substantially with the addition of mounds, bunkers, ponds, reshaping greens and so forth.
Notable Holes at Royal Ashburn:
If you want a full breakdown of all of Royal Ashburn’s holes, head here. I’ll discuss some of my favourite holes to play below, but it’s intimate description and aerial footage you want, then that section of Royal Ashburn’s website has you covered.
Bri and I played the course twice through, once in the morning and once in the evening, so I feel like I became fairly well acquainted with the course.
Hole 1: It’s always nice when the first hole of a golf course is notable in some way. As someone with a fairly long drive, I loved that I could let loose from the elevated tee blocks to start my round. You’ve got some bunkers near the green, but it’s a not a hole that’ll deflate your confidence right out of the gate.
Hole 5: With 5 ponds and a creek, this is certainly not the easiest hole at Royal Ashburn, but it is awfully pretty. It’s holes like this that remind you that you need to bring some extra balls in your bag because you might just find the water, but, at the same time, if you can navigate all the hazards here, you can walk away with your head held high.
Hole 8: I liked this hole because of the set-up. You’ve got a wide open fairway for your drive, but then you’ve got to contend with a triple-tiered green with two bunkers on the left and a pond on the right at the end of the hole. I hope your short game is good, my friend.
Hole 10: Based on how I typically shoot my drives, I’m well suited for a dogleg right, so this hole played to my strength. It’s a difficult hole, there’s no doubt, but its mounds, trees, and bunkers present an enjoyable challenge, and not one that’s petty or frustrating, at least to me. I make that distinction because I’ve played courses before that are setup in a way that’s just plain annoying to navigate, whereas I appreciated this.
Hole 11: A dogleg left with a lot of character. I’ve included this hole because I love the second shot on this (assuming you have a decent tee-off) where you hit a short iron over the water towards the pin. If you pull the shot off, you’re sitting pretty, but if not, your ball will be swimming with the fish in the pond forevermore.
Hole 13: The creek that wraps around the entire green makes it a challenging par for sure, but also very picturesque and memorable. I knew even when I was teeing off that I’d be giving it a mention in my article.
Hole 16: Royal Ashburn openly admits that this is their “signature hole,” and that’s not altogether surprising. It’s a beautiful hole that favours a nice high flying shot off the tee with a healthy dose of accuracy. Whether you can pull it off, I'm not sure, but however you hit the ball be sure to take a breath and enjoy the views.
Fitting in a Golf Lesson Lesson
The typical Stay & Play package doesn’t come with a golf lesson, but we added one in to get an even better feel for what’s offered at one of the top public golf courses in Canada, and certainly one of the best golf courses at Durham region.
Our lesson was with the incredibly knowledgeable and personal, Justin Hawe. He’s a former professional golfer with a genuine knack for teaching the game of golf. Even after just one 45 minute lesson with him, Bri and I felt much better equipped to tackle the course.
He helped me slow down my backswing a fair bit, and reminded me to hold my finish at the end to combat my tendency to pick my head up right away.
It was kind of reminiscent of golf therapy. I’d spent a lot of time compounding on bad habits and deep in my own head, and then I had an hour with someone who could objectively help me re-examine my approach.
I know that it was also enormously helpful for Bri to have some things to remember each time she was hitting the ball, and even just become better acquainted with good form for swinging and all that. Golf, unlike a sport such as soccer, isn’t particularly intuitive, which is why lessons can help.
What Makes the Stay & Play One of the Best Golf Packages in Ontario?
When I’m going to move forward with a golf package in Ontario or look at Ontario golf resorts, I want to know that everything it taken care of, and that it’s going to be, above all, convenient.
From the moment we arrived, that’s how I felt.
We checked in, got our golf cart, and took a short drive to our cabin. The cabin itself, as I noted above was incredibly spacious and welcoming. We took a moment to get ready for our round, then drove over to the tee block in about a minute flat.
Not to mention, there were practice chipping greens steps away from our door so, if I wanted to, I could literally walk out the door and get to work.
During our first round at Royal Ashburn, we met two fantastic guys, Kyle and Jay. We enjoyed a few beers together with them throughout the round, and then sat down for some steak dinners (with shrimp, I might add) after the round. When we said our goodbyes, they headed off home, and I can’t tell you how wonderful it was for us to just get back in our golf cart and putter over to our “home” for the night.
I have no idea if Kyle and Jay will get a chance to read this, but if you’re reading this gentlemen, I want to personally thank you for making our time so much better. Also, I must give an obligatory shoutout to Sara, who was out on the course in her cart selling refreshments throughout the round - you’re the best, Sara! Golf, as it turns out, it one of the few ways we can still meet people responsibly these days.
Anyway, to me, the real joy of the Stay & Play package at Royal Ashburn Golf Club is that when you’re tired after your round, all you have to do is eat a great dinner that’s included, then head over to your cabin.
Bri and I stayed up late watching TV on the couch and making the most of our little Ontario staycation. We were just so thrilled to be able to celebrate an occasion, and to not be sleeping in our same old bed, in our same old apartment. It was a welcomed change of pace, and I know that feeling was something we could have really only experienced with the overnight option at Royal Ashburn, and not just with a daytime round.
It’s Durham Region Golf at Its Finest
Golf is a game that is challenging both mentally and physically, and it’s a sport that I continue to enjoy because of that very reason. But, to me, this is about more than golf.
The course is spectacular, there’s no question about that, but the reason that I believe Bri and I were taken by this whole experience was the chance it afforded us to take a moment of pause. On the course, you’re not checking your phone, and you’re not frantically trying to keep up with a world that never does actually slow down.
I always joke that saying you’re “out on the course,” is one of the last excuses me have for why we didn’t respond to someone within an eight minute window.
The reason I am comfortable calling this one of the best golf packages in Ontario is because this isn’t about paying for the food, or the golf, or the access to the driving range - it’s about putting aside money for a legitimate and much-needed escape that you probably deserve.
You’re paying for a couple of days to put your worries aside, and to not stress about who is cooking the next meal, or doing the dishes or the laundry. To spend uninterrupted time together with a shared focus and goal, and the chance to do get better at something together.
All I can say is that we came to Royal Ashburn with tight shoulders, and we left after the Stay & Play with big smiles. And that, my friends, is a trade I’ll make over and over again.
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I want to humbly thank York Durham Headwaters and Royal Ashburn Golf Club for hosting us as media. All opinions are completely my own. If you’ve played the course, please let me know below, or feel free to share any other thoughts around golf in Ontario! I personally respond to each and every comment.