I've been meaning to contact you, just to give you the 'thumbs up' on our holiday package in Kelowna. The Coast Capri was a great place to stay, close to everything. We encountered a bit of drizzle/rain the first two days, but nothing to hold us back from golfing. We were very happy with the courses we played; and their hospitality was wonderful...particularly Sunset Ranch - I'm just sorry we didn't plan that day to stay there to eat, they seemed to have been the most friendly, and accommodating. Trena Cole and Ladies
Posted by Trena Cole on Dec'30, 2009
Hi Ross!!
Thank you so much for setting this all up for us, we had a great time, great weather and all the courses were in really nice shape! Our favorite was Balfour but we enjoyed all of the courses as they were really different from each other.
Posted by Fran Stirton on Jul'19, 2010
Alan Hudak from Ontario, along with his 7 friends that have done an annual trip for 30 plus years, they visited the Okanagan in April 2009, and stayed at the Playa Del Sol Resort. They had a blast. Read Alan's review on Trip Advisor.
Posted by Alan Hudak on Dec'30, 2009
I wanted to thank you for helping pull together another excellent golf trip to Kelowna.
I have been \"chairman\" of our annual golf trip since its inception 8 years ago. This summer (2010) was our second trip to Kelowna, and the second time I relied on you to orchestrate the hotel bookings, tee times, and ground transportation.
Once again, I was impressed by your professionalism and attention to detail. Your course recommendations over the past couple years, including the Bear, the Quail, Predator Ridge, Gallagher\'s and Shannon Lake, have all been well received by the guys. In fact, this year was unanimously tagged as the \"best\" and \"most memorable\" of all the previous trips by my friends.
As it will fall on me to plan our 9th annual trip next year, I have no doubt that we will be returning to Kelowna for the third consecutive year...and I will be in touch early in 2011 to start putting that together with you again.
Thank you again - A. Keats
Posted by Alan Keats on Jul'26, 2010
Hey Ross. Thanks for putting together a great golf & stay package. Everything went perfectly. The Cove in Westbank was excellent, the tee times were all booked and the golf courses were expecting us. I would recommend your services to anyone planning a golf trip. Thanks again.
Posted by Rich and Wanda Robinson on Jun'29, 2010
Just a belated note to thank you for the wonderful job on booking our golf trip. Everyone had a great time. The hotel was very good to us as far as the meeting room went and we were able to use it both nights. The golf courses were great especially the Dunes which every one agreed they liked better. I am sure you will hear next year from the couples planning that trip. Again thanks and if you ever need to refer a satisfied customer we will all be glad to contribute.
Posted by Ellie Ohmnan on Dec'30, 2009
hey ross. just a note about our trip to Kamloops. it was awsome!!! all the courses were excellent. the weather was great and all the boys had a great time. thankyou very much for all your help. we are planning for next year. probably kelowna. will be in touch with details . thanks again!! m. firestone
Posted by Mike Firestone on Dec'30, 2009
I wanted to say thanks once again for setting up our golf trip this past weekend. It was awesome as always. A little rain on the Friday but the rest of the weekend turned out great. Thanks for the excellent service you and your company provide....it's outstanding!!!! When I did have any questions or anything else to do with the trip, your response was immediate and very professional.
Talk to you next year Scott - Lower Mainland BC
Posted by Scott on Dec'30, 2009
Hello Ross, I trust you are getting in some golf now and thought I would reply to your e-mail about testimonials. A 12 year old member of the Optimist Junior Linkster Tour Canada - www.jrlinkster.com recorded an amazing feat on Wednesday, June 16th at the Queen Elizabeth Park Par 3 Golf Course in Vancouver.
Patrick Tan of Vancouver, accompanied by his mother and with other witnesses in the group ahead, sunk his 52 degree wedge shot on the 65 yard Hole #3 for a Hole-in-One - Hoorah! (Patrick plays there regularly and had had five Hole-in-One\'s already in the past year!)
Then it gets interesting - as the play was slow that day and his group was waiting anyway, he hit a second ball with the same club and it too went into the hole - that\'s two balls in the hole. Then, amazingly, he put a third ball in play and again with the same club, put that ball in the hole too! They have a normally uninteresting picture of three balls in a hole - but all those balls were played from the tee and all 3 went in in one shot. He was too sheepish to play a fourth!
Patrick is an eight handicap golfer and plays all the local BCGA junior events. He is a member of the Quilchena GC in Richmond.
Posted by Patrick Tan On behalf of Harry White - Optimist Junior Linkster Tour Canada on Jul'5, 2010
Hi Ross,
Well here we are back in the UK after a super vacation in Canada. We would all like to pass on our thanks for making our holiday just perfect and organizing Predator Ridge at such short notice, it really rounded the holiday of great and saved us a big headache in trying to make our own arrangements. They guys enjoyed the 27 holes at Predator Ridge as much and if not more than Bear Mountain which is saying something. We hope when in Canada next you will still be around and active in BC Golf Guide to organize our golf. Thanks again for making Canada so memorable.
Kind regards
Loraine, Barry, Sandra and Ray - England
Posted by Loraine, Barry Sandra and Ray on Dec'30, 2009
Hi Ross,
I wanted to thank you for helping set up our golf trip last month. The accommodations at the Manteo were very good and the golf was fantastic. The round at Tower Ranch was the highlight. We look forward to returning to Kelowna or Kamloops (or Whistler?) next year. Booking through you was very easy and effective and we will go this route again. I will also recommend you to anyone else who is thinking golf. Thank you Rob Sim
Posted by Rob Sim on Dec'30, 2009
I wanted to take a moment and thank you for your services. We had a great trip and really enjoyed ourselves. The weather held well for us too. Everything was set up for us at the courses and the hotel. You're one-stop / one-call service is really appreciated. As to the courses. The greens on Bear and Quail were playable but definitely still impacted by the 3 week old punching. The greens at Black Mtn were immaculate and that course may soon surpass the others as the best course in Kelowna. It's our favorite so far in the area. Thank you again and we'll be in touch next spring
Posted by David Heitsman on Dec'30, 2009
The Dunes at Kamloops and Ross Marrington- BC Golf Guide have had a great business relationship since 2005. During this time I have seen BC Golf Guide grow as a company and has eventually turned in to one of our most popular booking avenues for our out of town guests. Having said that, this relationship has transpired due to a great personal relationship with the owner, Ross Marrington. Ross gets it. He attends our BCPGA trade shows and has built a personal relationship with the majority of the golf professionals in the interior of BC and beyond. His attention to detail on group size changes and communication with our staff is second to none, there are rarely any mistakes made on the entire booking/cancellation process. This relationship building has been imperative to business relations with myself and Ross and weve seen an increase in destination rounds due to continuing popularity of his company. Another attribute to BC Golf Guide is, Ross is the only Tour Operator owner that makes a conscious effort to bring his own personal group of 24-36 players to our club and others in the interior each year. This does not happen with other agencies and is a unique trait that Ross makes a conscious effort to bring extra revenue to the golf clubs he deals with, and we all appreciate it.
Sincerely,
Mike Porco, Former Director of Golf
The Dunes at Kamloops
Posted by Mike Porco on Dec'30, 2009
Ross,
Just wanted to thank you for putting the golf trip together.We just returned last night and all 4 of us had great time.
Predator Ridge was the hi-lite as the golf and the accommodations were 1st class.We already discussed coming back next year when the Ridge course opens.
I strongly recommend paying the extra $$ and staying at Predator Resort. The golf course was perfect for a low handicapper as well as high one.The practice facilities,the food,and the staff were as good as I've seen, even the unpredictable weather was only a minor
inconvenience and it gave us an excuse to check out the Fitness Ctr after the round,which was a bonus.
The Rise was an interesting course,with incredible views but I don't think I would play it again as there were too many blind shots and strange holes.The last 4 holes were my favorite, even though I incurred a couple of penalty strokes. I'd only recommend it to low handicappers and short straight hitters.The staff & treatment was excellent.
Kelowna Springs was ok and it was nice to play an easier course on the last day. Thanks again Rick & the guys
Posted by Rick Brown on May'19, 2010
Hi Ross,
Just arrived back from golf trip it was very good, courses were good, some winter kill on Salmon Arm and three temps but still good, Hyde Mountain had spectacular views and the only time we got any rain was on the 18th hole, other than that we didn't see any real rain. Canoe Creek and Talking rock were my favorites but all 5 were very good and none of us were disappointed. The Podollan Inn was good and the staff were very friendly and efficient. So all in all it was a very satisfying Shuswap golf trip.
Posted by Rick Verbeek on May'9, 2010
Just to let you know we had a fantastic time. In fact we couldn't have enjoyed it anymore, unbelievable golf, excellent accommodations, and most of all the weather was perfect. Any of our future golf trips Ross will be handled through you and you company. Black Mountain was a true joy to play although the greens were a little slow, but that was understandable being they are brand new, great course. Once again Ross, thank you for everything you did to make it a very special kelowna golf trip.
Sincerely Wayne
Posted by Wayne on Dec'30, 2009
A quick note to thank you once again for a wonderful golf weekend. Besides that minor glitch at Furry, everything went off like clock work. We were all in agreement that this was one of our better trips. We are back to Kananaskis next year and B.C. in 2011 when I look forward to working with you again.Your loyal customer,
Rick Albus - p.s. Having the Bears show up at the Chateau and Squamish was a nice touch.
Posted by Rick Albus on Dec'30, 2009
Thanks for arranging a great golf trip. Everything went completely smooth, no glitches with anything, including the weather. Of the 9 courses played, our favourite 3 had to be Tobiano, Predator Ridge and Tower Ranch with Gallaghers Canyon, Okanagan Quail and the Rise just behind them. Sun Rivers was mostly interesting but had a few contrived holes that were quite easy to lose a ball on even after a good shot down the middle. Black Mountain was interesting but felt a bit jammed into too small an area. The Dunes was fun but not as interesting as some of the mountain courses. Thanks again for the great arrangements, we'll certainly use you again for our next trip to the west.
Posted by Andy & Gloria Schwabe on Dec'30, 2009
Ross - I'm sorry it's taken a week to write this letter, but the week since we came home from holidays has been very busy as we expected it would. We both wanted to write to say what a fantastic golf holiday we had, and to thank you for setting it all up for us. We are already looking forward to doing something similar next year. We both think that we would do it a little earlier next year - maybe the last couple of weeks of Sept - the Okanagan was having unseasonably cold weather and there were 3 or 4 days where we had frost delays. However, we had sunshine most of the time, and only one day of rain. A minor hitch was a couple of days with no hot water or heat in our suite at Playa Del Sol. However the woman we dealt with - Leanne was extremely pleasant and was ready to move us if needed - fortunately the problem was fixed and we were able to stay in the suite. We were very pleased with the accommodations in Kamloops - the room at the Hampton was lovely. And the Playa Del Sol suite was gorgeous - we were upgraded to a 2 bedroom suite with a fabulous view and we were able to have all our meals in comfort in the suite. Our son came up for the Thanksgiving weekend and there was plenty of space for him. Possibly as a result of how nice this room was, we were a little disappointed when we first got to the Surfside Hotel. We were in the old part of he hotel, and although the room was very clean, it was very basic, there was no view, and very little soundproofing. However, after the first night we checked with the manager, and chose to pay extra to upgrade to a suite in the new part of the hotel with a stunning view over the lake and with a fireplace (which was very appreciated after a day of golfing in October!).
So as I said before, we are already excited about next year. We think that we would go for 2 weeks again, but would probably look at staying in only 2 places and would choose somewhere like the Playa or the suites at the Surfside with a kitchen. (Anne would like to try some other similar accommodations next time to allow us to experience different places). It is definitely worth it to us to spend a little more on the accommodations to get somewhere a little upscale. We absolutely loved the golf and the courses you helped us choose were great, but next year I think we would plan for 3 days of golf in a row and a day off in between so that we have time to travel around and do and see other things. So once again - thank you for a very memorable trip.
Posted by Keith and Anne on Dec'30, 2009
Hi Ross! Just wanted to let you know that you organized another great BC golf adventure for us! The Timberstone Lodge condo was awesome and the courses were great. Shadow Mountain is still a bit rough but that is to be expected since it has only been open for five weeks! St Eugenes was fabulous as always, Bootleg was great, and Trickle Creek is always a treat. Got wet on the back nine at Trickle but that is golf for you! The BC golf vouchers were recognized and all tee times went off smoothly. Thanks again for taking care of the details for us. Deena
Posted by Deena on Dec'30, 2009