We golfed Drummond Island Golf Club late summer and had a blast. The best thing about the course? It is part of the Island’s airport. You have to cross the runway twice to play the 9 holes.
Here’s an interesting little history nugget about the course layout. Originally, hole 9 was actually hole 4, and golfers crossed the runway right next to the green. The holes on the far side of the runway were numbered differently back then—what is now hole 8 used to be hole 9, and the crossing happened at the end of that green instead.
Seems simple enough… until the FAA stepped in.
They told the course that having two separate runway crossings was a no-go, and one of them had to be eliminated. The problem? No matter which crossing they kept, golfers would end up having to drive back down fairways—into potential incoming shots—just to get to the next hole or the clubhouse. Not ideal, unless you enjoy living dangerously.
So the course made the only logical choice: they renumbered everything to keep just one crossing and maintain a safe, continuous routing. That’s how we ended up with today’s layout—one single runway crossing and a set of holes that make much more sense from both a golf and aviation standpoint.
Read about our round and the fun we had and the challenges we faced in our December issue of Golf Up North Newsletter. Make sure you don’t miss an issue by clicking on Golf Up North Newsletter and subscribing to our monthly newsletter.
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