Fire Rock Golf Club near London, Ontario

The remnants of human refuse can make for interesting golf courses. Fire Rock Golf Club in Komoka in southern Ontario was laid on top of an old sand and gravel pit; most of the mounds you see along the course were old gravel dumps. "One of the first elements that struck me at Fire Rock was the nature of the disturbed land - it had a really fascinating feel to it for us to explore," architect Tom McBroom said about the site.

It's true that you don't necessarily need pristine nature to build an interesting golf course. McBroom did it here by following the natural lay of the old pit in the Oxbow River Valley and leaving the natural savannah grasses and trees, mainly spruce and poplars. Small creeks flow through the layout, which shows off some moderate elevation changes, and there are plenty of "environmentally sensitive" areas - don't want to disturb that old gravel.