Bigwin Island Golf Club

Overview: Bigwin Island Golf Club is a destination course in Muskoka where the island setting does most of the architectural talking. Doug Carrick’s 18 holes rise and fall across granite ridges, towering pines and rugged outcroppings, with views across Lake of Bays opening at regular intervals. The PGA of Canada lists a 7,166-yard championship reference, while the surrounding terrain creates the real sense of scale and challenge.

History: Bigwin Island was developed as a resort golf destination rather than an urban club, and Carrick’s routing was built around preserving the island’s natural movement. The course has since hosted the PGA Championship of Canada, bringing one of the country’s major professional events to a property reached by water and defined by its separation from the mainland.

Did You Know? The finish unfolds along the shoreline, with the final holes moving toward the water and clubhouse after the routing has spent much of the round threading through granite and forest. That change of setting gives Bigwin a memorable closing sequence, and it explains why the course feels like a journey across an island rather than a conventional Muskoka parkland loop.