Chicago Trip

One of the things that fascinates me about life is it's uncertainty.  You really never know when one little thing can change your life, or in my case, give you an opportunity to play the #1 course on your bucket list.  

That bucket list item was the genesis of my trip to Chicago in late September of 2021.  I built my trip around playing the amazing Chicago Golf Club and had a wonderful trip playing a great variety of courses from both the classic and modern design eras.

Chicago Golf Club

The trip began at a course that was a mandatory stop for me because of its current status.  Calumet Country Club, designed by Donald Ross, was supposed to be turned into a trucking depot by its new owner, but delays and fights with the city have resulted in the once private course now being open to the public.  With its fate unknown, I had to make a trip down to play it since I might not get another chance.

Calumet Country Club, Par three 2nd hole

Since I arrived in Chicago on a Monday and private courses are mostly closed on Mondays, this day would be devoted to public courses.  After Calumet, I headed to Lemont which is home of the very famous Cog Hill #4, but I wasn't in the town to play Cog Hill.  My destination was the Pete & P.B. Dye designed Ruffled Feathers Golf Club.  This course has the distinction of being the only Pete Dye designed course in the Chicago area.

Ruffled Feathers, Par four 7th hole

My last destination on day one was mandatory given where I was going on day two.  Downers Grove golf course in the city by the same name is home to the original Chicago Golf Club, the first eighteen hole golf course in America.  Nine holes have survived and I found it a delightful and surprisingly hilly walk.  I made eagle on the par five third hole with a dramatic second shot up a very steep hill using a three wood from 225 yards.  I hit it to two feet.  Those are my favorite kind of eagle putts!

Downers Grove, Par three 6th hole

Day two of the trip began at a popular site for big tournaments, Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove.  Owner Jerry Rich had major input in the design and the course has hosted the Solheim Cup and the NCAA Men's Championship, among other tournaments.  I love Mr. Rich's commitment to hosting tournaments for college and amateur golf.  It definitely provides a tournament-worthy challenge.

Rich Harvest Farms, Par three 14th hole

Next up on day two was the Tom Fazio designed Stonebridge Country Club in Aurora.  A real estate development course with some nice variety in the property.

Stonebridge, Par four 10th hole

The final course on day two was the reason for the trip and the #1 course on my bucket list for the past five years.  Chicago Golf Club in Wheaton was originally designed by Charles Blair MacDonald in 1894, and redesigned by his protégé, Seth Raynor in 1922.  The course is a must see for any student of golf architecture because it is absolute proof of what can be done on a small, relatively flat piece of property.  

Chicago, Par three 3rd hole, Biarritz

As a devoted fan of the architecture of MacDonald/Raynor/Banks courses, what really impressed me about Chicago is how good each of the template holes were.  Almost every hole can be seen at all the other designs by these three and yet Chicago has a near perfect example of every template.  Some might be the best, others top three, but they were all amazing.

Chicago, Par four 12th hole, Punchbowl.  This was my favorite hole on the course because of the perfection of the punchbowl element and the front left part non-punchbowl part of the green was also spectacular.

Day three of the trip took me to the Northern suburbs.  My day began in Lake Forest for a round on the Charles Alison designed Knollwood Club.  Larry and Roger Packard redesigned the course in the 1970's so there isn't a lot of the original design left, but the routing remains, and there are still a couple very good Alison par threes that survived.

Knollwood, Par four 13th hole

I stayed in Lake Forest for my next round at the Onwentsia Club.  This course began life in 1892 as a seven hole golf course and was expanded to eighteen holes by Henry J. Whigham, son in law of Charles Blair MacDonald, later on.  The front nine is on the interior of the property, and the back nine wraps around the front.

Onwentsia, Par three 9th hole

I made the drive down to the very busy Medinah Country Club for round number three.  I wasn't there to play the #3 course which has hosted many major championships, which I played many years ago.  Instead I was there to play the #1 course which was originally designed by Tom Bendelow, and was recently redesigned by Tom Doak.  He did a splendid job with the renovation.  The course has everything I love about Doak designs, including a wonderful short par four, pictured below.

Medinah #1, short par four 3rd hole

I stayed in the Northern suburbs to begin day four.  This time I was in Highland Park for a round at Bob O'Link Golf Club.  The original course was designed by Donald Ross, and Charles Alison redesigned the course seven years later.  The course feels like an Alison design with his trademark bunkering.

Bob O'Link, Par three 8th hole

Major championship host Kemper Lakes Golf Club was next on the agenda on day four.  Designed by long time Chicago area architects Ken Killian and Dick Nugent, the course is right next to the headquarters of Kemper Insurance, and incorporates several large lakes in its design.

Kemper Lakes, Par five third hole

Day four ended in Oak Brook with the twenty-seven hole Butterfield Country Club designed by Langford and Moreau and redesigned by Steve Smyers.  The course has great movement in the property and I was able to play all twenty seven holes.  I found the Red nine, which is not part of the championship White/Blue rotation, to be the most fun with several quirky holes.

Butterfield, Blue nine, Par four 2nd hole

The last day of the trip also began in Oak Brook, this time at the famously men's only Butler National Club.  The course was designed in the 1970's by Tom Fazio and his uncle George.  Tom has returned in recent years for various improvements throughout the course.  It has a reputation of being the hardest course in Illinois, and while I found the rough to be very penal if you missed the fairway, the greens were plenty large and held shots.  

Butler National, Par three 4th hole

I headed to Wheaton next for a round at Cantigny Golf Course.  The three nines at Cantigny- Hillside, Lakeside, and Woodside, were designed by Chicago architect Roger Packard.  I played the Hillside nine, and while shorter than the other two, Hillside had some very challenging holes.

Cantigny, Hillside nine, Par three 5th hole

I found myself in the very rare position of having nowhere to play after my nine on Hillside.  I had hoped I would be able to get off on one of the other nines, but it being a Friday, they were booked up.  With a couple more hours to kill before my flight, I pulled up Google Maps on my phone and looked for a course on the way back to the airport.  I settled on Lombard Golf Course, a fun little nine hole course with a very interesting finishing hole.  See below.

Lombard, the short, 255 yard, Par four 9th hole.  There is a very busy road to the left of the hole and to the right is the large fence pictured here that protects the 7th tee.  I questioned the logic of having the fence, and then I watched a guy in the group in front of me pop it up right on the other side of the fence.  You can see his golf cart in the picture.  A unique and interesting hole to finish out a great trip.

  FLAGS

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