Here comes Sandy Kurceba’s
Falcon West
By Scott Taylor
Sandy Kurceba has a plan. After 11
years at Falcon Lake Golf Course,
Kurceba found himself a golf
professional without a home.
The Government of Manitoba has
decided to sell “Manitoba’s Jewel of the
Wilderness,” at Whiteshell Provincial
Park and Kurceba, the Director of
Golfhad to find a new home.
“So my cousin Kenny McCreedy, the
owner and builder of Fantasy Lake sat
down with me and had a chat about
leasing the course,” said Kurceba,
who is not just a golf professional; but
a former PGA Tour player, a teacher
and coach, perhaps the best trick shot
artist anywhere in the world and also a
highly-regarded golf course operator.
“As of April 1, I became the lessee at
Fantasy Lake and the plan is simple.
I’m flipping the nines, so the 18th is
now the island green like No. 17 at TPC
Sawgrass and we’ll soon be going to
work on the golf course itself.”
“While many Manitobans might
not have played Fantasy Lake, most
Manitobans have seen it, on the
highway just east of Winnipeg. We are
re-branding it. It will now be called
Falcon West. We’re going to bring up
the grooming of the course, change
some of the greens – I mean like
the third green is crowned to such a
degree, seniors don’t like to walk up to
12 / sportslife
putt. We’ll change that and I’m going
to move all five rocks at 14, the ones
you can see from the highway.”
It will also be the new home of
SKGolf International, the company
that this former hockey star and
20-year member of the Australian,
New Zealand and Canadian
professional tours, heads up. It’s a
company that boasts a trick shot
artist, a showman, a former golf
teacher of the year, event planner
and promoter – and even inventor –
of the game and it’s all one guy. Look
for yourself at www.skgolf.net.
So why Falcon West?
“When golfers get out on that Tr [