The city of Niagara Falls is commonly thought of as Canada’s capital of tacky. Fortunately, the new Grand Niagara course goes a long way to redressing the balance. Opened in summer 2005 and located just 10 minutes from the world’s most famous waterworks, the course is sublime. Created by architect Rees Jones, a Yale and Harvard grad who has designed more than 100 courses and tweaked seven U.S. Open and three Ryder Cup venues, Grand Niagara has been masterfully designed. Formed from a flat piece of farmland, the course does not have memorable natural topography, but Jones has created numerous water hazards and giant bunkers, hemmed in with either forest or fescue. As a result, golfers have two or three options for how to play each hole. The other big plus here is conditioning: the greens and fairways are in such good shape that even in its first year Grand Niagara looked like a venerable country club layout. The Canadian owners of the course have grand plans for the 770-acre property, and intend to build a full-fledged five-star resort with a 300-room hotel, a winery, a recreation complex and 300 time-share units, alongside a number of permanent homes. A second course, designed by Greg Norman, is scheduled to open in 2010.