Great Public Golf in Greater Chicago
For public golf prominence, the Windy City soars high In a city famous for the Bulls, da Bears, the Blackhawks, and the Cubbies (apologies to the White Sox faithful), it’s understandable how golf could take a backseat for rabid sporting interest in Chicago. Don’t be misled, however. The Second City boasts a rich golf tradition: […]
Top 10 Courses: Illinois
Here’s our list of the top 10 courses in the Prairie State. 1. CHICAGO GOLF CLUB, Wheaton C.B. Macdonald’s turn-of-the-century homage to the Old Course at St. Andrews, reworked by his protégé Seth Raynor in 1923, boasts superb executions of their famed template holes. 2. SHOREACRES, Lake Bluff A network of snaking ravines and creeks […]
American Dream Courses: Midwest (East)
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The eastern half of the Midwest is our sixth region having navigated about two-thirds of the country in our “American Dream Courses” series. We’ve identified dozens of interesting, affordable, welcoming golf courses, but may have hit peak “Dream Golf” here in Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and Michigan…especially Michigan. Because there are so many excellent courses […]
Chicago has the Most All-Male Golf Clubs
It’s no longer Scotland, it’s a city right here in the U.S.A.
Butterfield Country Club
There are a lot of great clubs in the Chicago area that Bears legend and golf fanatic Mike Ditka could belong to. So where does he play most of his golf these days? Butterfield Country Club, 20 miles west of the Loop. When I visited the club recently, Ditka was there, too, making a nearly […]
Chicago Loves Golf
You’ve gotta be devoted, and a little bit crazy, to play golf in Chicago. But then you’ll
be rewarded by some of the country’s best courses, public and private
A Family Legacy at Cog Hill Golf & Country Club
After a recent renovation of the Dubsdread course, owner Frank Jemsek is one step closer to fulfilling his father’s dream of bringing the U.S. Open to Cog Hill
Eagle Ridge Resort and Spa, Illinois
In the collective American mind, a principal characteristic of the Midwest is flatness. Regions of Michigan and Minnesota to the north or the Ozarks to the south form exceptions, but most of the Midwest is strictly on the level. For golfers, this conjures up Midwestern resort courses dependent on water hazards for definition and bulldozers […]
Rich Harvest Farms, Illinois
Whereas a lot of wealthy individuals have built golf clubs, very few of them have actually designed the courses. But Jerry Rich, inspired by the late architect Dick Wilson, bought 1,820 acres of farmland 50 miles west of Chicago and with the guidance of course architect Greg Martin, built 18 of the most demanding holes—playing […]
Olympia Fields Country Club, Illinois
Golf bag slung over my shoulder, I hail a cab from in front of a Chicago hotel, ride seven blocks to Randolph Station and board a southbound Metra train, which rolls out of the Loop at 7:48 on a Saturday morning. The Sears Tower and John Hancock Building receding into the skyline behind us […]
