Midwestern Golf

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TPC Deere Run in Silvis Brings Tour Dreams to Life

TPC stands for “Tournament Players Club.” The TPC network spans North America, and includes some courses in the Caribbean, Latin America, and Asia. Over half of them are private, many more are exclusive resort courses, and a handful have hosted PGA Tour events.

TPC Deere Run in Silvis, Illinois, is the long-time venue of the John Deere Classic, traditional PGA Tour stop the week before The Open (British). It is unique among TPC courses not only because it is a regular Tour host that is fully open to the public, but also because it is easily the most affordable of all TPC courses.

And when I say “affordable,” I mean it. Rates at Deere Run top out at $119 – that’s peak time, inclusive of cart and unlimited use of practice facilities. But savvy and flexible players who are non-local residents can find rates as low as $59. Local residents never have to pay more than $69, and they can play for as little as $49.

Let me repeat that for the readers who just joined us: You can play the self-same course where the pros play every year for less than $60.

The tournament that is today The John Deere Classic was born in 1971 as The Quad Cities Open, at a local private course. The ensuing years as a Tour event were tenuous, to say the least, but after Tiger Woods turned pro and made a splash at the 1996 playing, Illinois native D.A. Weibring negotiated with John Deere and the Tour to design and build a TPC on the banks of the Rock River. When TPC Deere Run opened in 2000, the 7,213-yard par-71 layout was ranked as the 8^th Best New Public Golf Course by “Golf Digest.” And it’s been hosting the Tour event ever since.

Playing TPC Deere Run

If you watch the pros on TV, they can make it look like a pushover. Paul Goydos carded a 59 here in 2010—and didn’t win, because several other players went ultra-low, too.

But don’t let the super-humans on Tour fool you: TPC Deere Run is all the course amateur players will ever want. Conditions are impeccable, and the variety of holes is outstanding: Long and short par 3s, 4s, and 5s. Some open fairways, some tight fairways. Over 70 bunkers, and plenty of water. Opportunities for both greatness and disaster.

The variety of holes will allow you to hit – or try to hit – a full array of shots off the tees, though most par 4s on the front set up best for fades. There are seven sets of tees, including two sets of blended tees to allow players of all skill level and all lengths to find a fit for their games, from 5,179 yards up to 7,213 yards. Generous landing areas provide opportunities to approach greens from multiple angles, only a few of which are truly optimal.

The 561-yard 2nd is one of the favorites of anyone whose played here before. From the elevated tees, the vista is expansive. The Rock River flows serenely in the distance beyond the huge fairway, which bends gently to the right on the second shot. The green is protected by a small desert’s worth of sand, and a small barn behind it harks back to the agricultural roots of the area and the sponsor of the tournament played here.

*The tee shot on the par-5 2nd at TPC Deere Run is a beauty, and all about position and length.*

*The green on the 2nd hole is a Midwestern classic.*

At the 454-yard 4th, you realize that you are in for a day of one gorgeous golf hole after another. The sentinel oak in the center of the fairway makes the tee shot thrilling, and form the fairway, it feels like the river lurks just beyond the putting surface.

The green at the par-4 4th looks from the fairway like it’s ready to fall into the river.

The 158-yard 16th is one of the prettiest short par 3s in the entire Midwest. The green is cut into the bluff overlooking the river. A rock wall runs in front of the green, and the bluff drops away precipitously to the left, making the entire left side a very penal hazard. When the tournament bleachers are still up behind the green, this is a hole that gives anyone the chance to hit a good shot and feel like a pro.

*The 158-yard 16th: Can you say, “Aim right?”*

The 17^th and 18^th are two fun closers – the stuff that memories are made of. The 557-yard 17^th is a reachable par 5 that plays out of a chute of trees to a wide-open fairway and green complex that allows for run-up fairway woods. The 463-yard 18^th has seen its share of drama during the tournament, and amateurs can feel some degree of the same exhilaration by carving in a slight draw to the front of the green and watching their ball trundle back toward the pin. Over-cook it, though, and you’ll find the pond that borders the entire left side of the green; fade it instead, and a tricky pitch or sand save will be required, á la Jordan Spieth’s first PGA win.

*The par-5 17th is reachable with two good shots.*

*Experience the thrill of hitting it stiff on a PGA Tour closing hole.*

The word on TPC Deere Run

The front side of the TPC at Deere Run is tighter than the back, with nearly every hole framed by trees on all sides. The back nine is more open, with some room along the fairways, but there are many more fairway bunkers in play on the back. There is not an awkward tee shot on the entire course; all the trouble is laid out clearly before you on the tees and approaches (with the exception of the approach on No. 4).

The greens are ideal – receptive but fast – and many are basically pear-shaped, with narrow fronts that make for some devilish pin positions. Despite some tiers and undulations, though, putts within seven feet are generally flat. Most greens are also surrounded by closely shaved run-off areas that will test all the short shots in your bag.

The clubhouse is a grand fieldstone structure, and houses a first-class restaurant and bar, with a lovely shaded patio overlooking the 18^th green. The pro shop is consistently rated one of the best in the country, so take some time to browse. The walls are filled with memorabilia from the PGA Tour event that has been played in one form or another in the Quad Cities area since 1971. It is well worth coming early and staying late not only to avail yourself of the luxury of a TPC, but also to bathe in golf history. After all, how often do you get to play where the best in the world play?

*The 14th at TPC Deere Run is a short, lovely, and vexing par 4.*

(Photos by Andrew Hollingworth & Kiel Christianson)

Featured

Wilson D7 Irons set pace in “players distance” category

There are a number of iron categories: “tour,” “player,” “game improvement,” “super game improvement.” Then of course there is the distinction between “forged” and “cast” irons.

Another new category has gained steam and fans over the last few years: the “players distance” iron. The target audience for this category is low double-digit handicappers, and maybe even high single-digit players, who find themselves losing distance either on off-center hits or with – ahem – advancing age.

One of the real class acts in this category is the Wilson D7 Iron. The D7s are packed with technology, including progressive “power holes” and progressively thin, very “hot” faces. Best of all, they maintain a more sleek, traditional profile than many irons that straddle the “game improvement” line.

The D7s come in both forged and cast versions. The former, new for 2020, list for $1000 (GW-5), and the latter for a very reasonable $600). It has been many seasons since I switched to forged irons, so I thought I’d take the “working man” version out for a test to see what all the engineering and materials advances over the past decade or so have done to improve feel and performance of more budget-friendly clubs.

Playing the Wilson D7 Irons

I played a set of the Wilson D7s with stock KBS regular flex shafts. I was concerned about that shaft choice, as I normally play stiff shafts. But I have noticed no increase in tendency to hook (which I do at times) or slice (which I almost never do with my irons). The tips of these KBS seem somewhat stiff, so perhaps that’s the reason. To be honest, though, sometimes I wonder whether the differences in stiffness in steel iron shafts is even a thing.

So how did they perform? Let’s cut straight to the chase: I put them in my bag for what I thought would be one test round. Seven rounds later—including a semi-final win in my course’s Match-Play Tournament and my low round of the year just yesterday (75)—they’re still in the bag.

Compared to my usual forged irons (by a major and universally respected iron maker), the Wilson D7s bring several benefits. Tops among these, is their incredible forgiveness. I have mishit a dozen or more shots – fat, thin, toe, high on the face – and on well over half of those misbegotten swings, the ball has ended up on the green (or near it, anyway).

Along with forgiveness, these irons are long. This is expected, given that the lofts are jacked up, averaging 1.5-clubs stronger than “traditional.” In fact, the lofts are even stronger in the D7s than those in the Wilson Launch Pad Irons, which are in the super game-improvement category. This ratcheting up of lofts doesn’t make it harder to get the ball in the air, though, as the center of gravity is as low and as far back as can be managed without sacrificing a somewhat more “players iron” look.

Length isn’t always a plus, though. I was pretty dialed in on my yardages with my old irons. Well, to be honest I was last year. This year, I was feeling like I needed to step on some swings to get them to their “normal” yardages. I blamed lack of practice. I blamed swing changes. I blamed COVID-19. But frankly, it’s probably because (a) I’m getting old, and (b) I wasn’t striking the ball very consistently. The D7s allow me to pull my “usual” club for the “typical” yardage. If I really stripe a shot, it may go long, but aside from on greens that are very hard, this isn’t usually much of a penalty.

The only drawback to the D7 design, as far as I can tell, is their rounded sole (where you’ll find the progressive power holes, configured specifically for each iron). The leading edge of the face is protected from digging in by this sole, which adds a small bit of extra bounce angle to the clubs. Like the Launch Pads, I’m sure the D7s incorporate this design in order to help players avoid fat shots. And, when the turf is soft, it is a useful feature, indeed. But when the turf is baked out, and your swing is a little too shallow, the club tends to deflect off the ground and up into the ball, resulting in thin shots. In dry conditions, you really need to focus on descending into the ball; however, doing so will deloft the face even more and likely add yards. The rounded soles also require some practice with punch shots—a typical strength of mine, thanks to lots of practice—which don’t come out quite as clean as with irons whose leading edges are sharper.

Long story short: “players distance” irons might require some adjustment because they do, in fact, give you extra distance.

Finally, let’s talk about feel. I can’t compare the standard D7s to the Forged D7s, as I haven’t tested the latter. But to be honest, the standard D7s feel plenty soft to me. I can draw and fade them well enough, and I can feel quite clearly when I pure a shot, compared to off-center strikes.

Scorecard

The Wilson D7 Irons are ideal for players who are seeking to maintain distance without sacrificing feel or looks. They’re stable and powerful – so much so that you may find your best shots going a little too far until you recalibrate. Golfers who play well-manicured, softer courses will find the sole design particularly forgiving.

If you’re looking to buy, see below!

Discount Code: WilsonGolf15-8

A few rules to mention:

The codes give 15% off all full-priced Golf Items, including Custom. However, outlet items are excluded.
All codes expire 12/31/20

Featured

Wilson Launch Pad Irons elevate the ball and your game

Golf is a lot harder than it looks on TV. Upon hearing of my affection for the game, a friend of mine told me that he had gone to a driving range just one time. I asked him why only once. He said, “I hit a large bucket of balls. Didn’t get one in the air. It just seemed like way too much work.”

It was several decades ago that this friend of mine had tried his hand at golf. Try as I might, I couldn’t convince him to give it another go, with more modern, more forgiving equipment. It was just too late for him.

But it’s not too late for your buddy, or you, for that matter. There is a whole new generation of golf clubs – often called “super game-improvement” clubs – whose sole purpose is to help high-handicapper recreational golfers enjoy themselves more. To help them get the ball in the air.

This is the sole purpose of the new generation of the Wilson Launch Pad Irons ($700 steel shafts; $800 graphite shafts), and their sole is their purpose. Let me clarify.

The irons’ moniker refers to the Launch Pad sole, featured throughout the set, from 4i to PW (and other wedges, which you can buy separately to match). The sole of the club is wide, wider in longer irons and narrower in shorter irons, which keeps turf interaction to a minimum. The idea is for the sole design to reduce chunked shots, while the hollow composite heads allow for a thinner, “hotter” face and move the center of gravity away from the face, which will get the ball in the air faster and with more “pop.” Along with the wide soles, the bounce angle serves to “float” the leading edge above the turf, which, according to Wilson, reduces chunked shots by 73% among testers.

Playing the Wilson Launch Pad Irons

All of this sounds great in theory, but how do they play?

Two of the more common mishits by occasional or high-handicappers are the chunk and the blade. After several range sessions with the Launch Pad Irons, it is very clear how they protect against the chunk: those wide soles and leading-edge bounce mimic hitting regular clubs off a mat. If you hit a little behind the ball, the club tends to “bounce” up off the turf, especially if the ground is firm. If you’re hitting off carpet-like bent grass, you can still chunk the occasional shot, but you almost have to try to do it.

Conversely, if you tend to blade shots – hitting them so thin that they don’t get into the air – you’ll still need to work on your swing to impart a descending—or at least level—blow with the Launch Pad Irons. However, even a more “sweeping” swing produces much higher, much longer trajectories than standard clubs.

My son, a high school player who hits the ball a mile high with his regular clubs, found the short irons in the Launch Pad set to be TOO helpful: shots just skied into the stratosphere. But once he worked into the 6i-4i range, he admitted his surprise at the consistency of the Launch Pads, in terms of both trajectory and dispersal. This made me think that for a lot of players, a blended set of more traditional shorter irons and Launch Pad mid- to long-irons would be worth considering.

As for me, I noticed an immediate increase in the height of my shots: about 5 feet higher across the set compared to my normal irons. As for distance, the Launch Pads may have increased center-struck shots just a bit, but any gain was negligible. Off-center shots were improved by several yards, though—noticeably longer.

Are the Wilson Launch Pad Irons all rainbows and unicorn farts? Not exactly, but no club is. The extra “pop” you experience in distance comes with a literal “pop” in sound. It’s sort of a hollow pop, which takes a little getting used to. The sound matches the heads in a way, whose somewhat rotund profile also takes a short while to grow accustomed to.

And if you do struggle with bladed shots, they won’t fix that flaw; however, you’ll be able to work on swinging exactly the same with your PW as you do with a fairway wood – a shallow, sweeping swing will still get the ball in the air.

One final note: it is true that “game-improvement” irons tend to decrease lofts so recreational golfers will think they’re getting more distance. The Launch Pad Iron lofts are a touch stronger than “normal,” but only by 3-4 degrees (i.e., a club stronger). So your 4i is 21 degrees, which is a typical 3i loft. That’s less than many competitor sets, and even less than many “regular” iron sets these days.

And a final, FINAL note: The stock steel KBS 80 shafts are excellent. I normally play stiff shafts, but requested to test regular shafts, as they seemed to fit the overall goals and design of the Launch Pad heads better. To be completely honest, I have noticed no adverse effects from the change in stiffness – I don’t hook the KBS shafts (in the Launch Pads or the new D7s, which I’ve also reviewed), or find them hard to control, even on full-bore swings.

Scorecard

Altogether, if you’re looking for irons to help you enjoy the game, and work less on hitting the “perfect” shot, the Wilson Launch Pad Irons are a solid bet.

If you’re looking to buy, see below!

Discount Code: WilsonGolf15-8

A few rules to mention:

The codes give 15% off all full-priced Golf Items, including Custom. However, outlet items are excluded.
All codes expire 12/31/20

Featured

Cleveland Golf CBX Full-Face wedges are forgiving and consistent

Some amateur golfers are just afraid certain clubs. High on the list for most amateurs is the lob wedge. Visions of chunked and bladed shots skitter across the gyri and hide in the sulci of their brains as they address those delicate touch shots over bunkers to tucked pins. And then, well, sometimes that’s exactly what happens.

My son, a high-school junior who plays on his school’s golf team, was a victim of those waking nightmares last year. He was missing greens and having to hit mini-flops to try to get close to save par or bogey. But he just didn’t have a club he felt good about: the sand wedge had too much oomph—and bounce—but the lob wedge he was using (one of my old ones) was digging into the turf.

Enter Cleveland Golf and their legendary wedge designers. I ordered a new 60-degree CBX Full-Face wedge ($150) for my son, and when it arrived, I regaled him with the design features that I thought would engender some confidence in him and fit his short game.

First, as the name implies, the Rotex and laser-milled Tour Zip Grooves on these wedges go all the way across the face—all the way to the edge of the toe. This is a brilliant feature, as it ensures spin even on toe-hits (which my son tends to do). These keep the ball from knuckling out of the rough if contact is widely off-center.

The second feature is the half-cavity design, which moves the center of gravity a bit more toward the toe and also provides rock-solid stability no matter the contact.

The third is the high-toe face, which stretches the toe-end of the club higher than normal, in case the club slides a bit too far under the ball. Even if this happens, you can still make decent contact.

Finally, the range of bounces can fit anyone’s game. On my son’s, we went with a 10-degree bounce, which is around 2 degrees more than most lob wedges. This bounce keeps him from digging into the turf and works well for bunker shots, but still allows him to get the club under the ball on those flop shots.

The skinny on the Cleveland Full-Face Wedges

So how did all this engineering work out for my son? After just one round, the quote that sums it up is, “I really like this lob wedge!”

Almost immediately, confidence grew in the quality of the contact he was making, and he was able to swing more freely, even on those more delicate shots. No more fear.

And the joy of telling my son, “Nice up and down!” is, as they say, priceless.

Featured

Sun Mountain 4.5 LS 14-Way Stand Bag

I don’t carry my clubs too often anymore—maybe just for a quick evening 9. I walk most of the time, though, using a push cart. So I’ve been looking for a golf bag that is light but spacious enough for me to stow all my extraneous gear—cigar holder, range finder, lots of extra souvenir ball markers and divot repair tools, rain jacket, beverage or two, etc. The Sun Mountain line-up of golf bags is pretty fertile hunting ground for just such a golf bag.

The new 4.5 LS 14-Way Stand Bag ($230) weights just 4.5 lbs. and has 14 full-length club silos, as the name implies. There are 9 spacious pockets and, best of all, the fiberglass legs are amazingly sturdy. The bottom is cart-friendly as well, including pushcart-friendly. There are elastic cords to keep the legs in place when not using them. This bag allows me to carry 9, walk 18, or hop on a cart for a luxurious round now and then.

The best features of the 4.5 LS is the legs: wide feet, sturdy graphite fiber, and a springy retraction action. If something is going to go wrong with a stand bag, it’s the legs. These feel rock-solid, and the springy retraction ensures you don’t have a floppy leg hanging down to catch on your own leg as you’re putting it on your shoulder or your car trunk as you’re loading or unloading it.

Another critical feature of a stand bag is accessible, well-placed pockets. You want to be able to reach some pockets while the bag is still on your shoulders. You also want to make sure that storage space isn’t sacrificed in pursuit of lightness. The bag has, happily, plenty of room for all the necessities and some extras. I can get a rain suit to the big side bag, loads of balls and tees, various cigar paraphernalia, and valuables in a felt-lined, water-resistant pocket. At first, I was skeptical of the efficacy of the cooler sleeve – as opposed to a cooler pocket (with a zipper) – but the open-top sleeve is quite capable of keeping most drinks cool for most of a side even on 90-degree days with 90-degree humidity.

The Skinny on the Sun Mountain 4.5 LS 14-Way Stand Bag

This is a workhorse of a golf bag. It’s suitable for all forms of on-course locomotion, and constructed well enough to last for many, many years. The straps are nicely padded and perfectly positioned, the handles are well positioned and rock-solid. The silos keep club grips from getting jammed up, and those legs won’t collapse on you. In short, however you like to get around the course, this bag will work like a charm.

Featured

Get in the zone with the 2020 Cobra King SpeedZone Xtreme Driver

Press releases for Cobra’s SpeedZone drivers, new for 2020, tout six different performance “zones” which they claim are based on design features of the world’s best sports cars. I’m not totally sure what that is supposed to mean, but these zones are listed as Power Zone, Strength Zone, Light Zone, Low CG Zone, Aero Zone, and Stability Zone.

That is, indeed, quite a lot of zones. Conspicuously lacking is the namesake “Speed Zone.” But never mind that now. As they say, “the proof is in the pounding.” (Well, no one has said that before now. If you like it, it’s mine. If you don’t, forget you read it here.)

Playing the Cobra King SpeedZone Xtreme Driver

Golf Magazine’s Clubtest 2020 spotlighted the tour-model King SpeedZone ($450) and the SpeedZone Xtreme ($449), focusing on one specific aspect in which both of them performed better than the competition: ball speed. Specifically, when tested with the swing robot, off-center strikes retained more ball speed than any other driver, displaying nearly no decrement on to-hits compared to center strikes.

When I took the King SpeedZone Xtreme—which is the model geared toward average golfers—out to the practice tee, the feel was what stood out to me first. In particular, the feel was incredibly solid and the sound was remarkable consistent. One thing I really liked about my current driver (at the time) was how well I could tell where I’d struck the ball with it – toe, heel, low, high, center all felt and sounded (and behaved) very distinctly. The King SpeedZone, on the other hand, felt practically the same no matter where I made contact with the ball, and the sound barely fluctuated, either.

So, the question is: do you consider this a good or bad trait? At first, I wasn’t sure. My contact is pretty inconsistent, so the feedback I get from sound and feel help me figure out what my swing flaw du jour is. The SpeedZone Xtreme is SO solid, the differences in sound, feel, and distance are extremely subtle. During my first couple of rounds with it, this sort of threw me off a little.

After playing it six rounds though, I have learned the minute differences between a slight toe-hit and a slightly thin strike. And when I do find the sweetspot, it feels like a perfect hammer strike driving a nail in with one swing. I cannot recall any driver I’ve tested (close to 100) that has felt more rock-solid heel to toe, crown to sole.

What does this solid feel get you, distance-wise? My best swings are rewarded with distances as long or slightly longer than any driver I’ve tested. Honestly though, improvement in overall distance on “good swings” is not dramatic. This said, however, distance on off-center contact—which, much to my chagrin, is a large percentage of my swings—is considerably improved. Where before I’d occasionally toe-hook my driver 200 yards, now even those ugly shots consistently end up 20 yards farther than before. My less tragically awful “bad” swings produce even better results.

The SpeedZone Xtreme has just one extra tungsten weight (compared to two in the SpeedZone), deep in the sole, and it comes in 9.0, 10.5, and 12.0 degree base lofts, with each of these lofts adjustable +/- 1.5 degrees and in draw, fade, or standard bias. My 10.5 degree standard loft really launches the ball high, even when I tee it down a bit. The 458-cc clubhead sets up beautifully behind the ball, without any hint of feeling “oversized” (which it isn’t, but some drivers just look bulkier than others; this one’s sleek). Finally, the stock 60g HZRDOUS Smoke shaft is a powerful, consistent, low-spin engine driving the power.

Cobra King SpeedZone Xtreme Driver: The verdict

I thought I had found a driver last year that would be in my bag for many seasons to come. Well, I was wrong. The King SpeedZone Xtreme is my new go-to, especially on those days when I’m not sure what kind of contact the next swing will deliver (which is, frankly, most days). It’s nice to know that even poor contact will not be penalized as much, and mistakes off the tee will generally be minimized.

Extra Features

The 2020 King SpeedZone Drivers (along with all King SpeedZone irons, fairway woods, and hybrids) include COBRA CONNECT™ Powered by Arccos, the award-winning smart golf system that helps players of all skill levels make smarter, data-driven decisions. Electronically enabled sensors are embedded into the grip, automatically recording the distance and accuracy of every shot so golfers can track performance round-to-round and use analysis to improve practice sessions. Golfers also have access to Arccos Caddie, which utilizes Artificial Intelligence to make better on-course decisions for lower scores.

Featured

“The Old Man and the Green” – Father’s Day Golf Gifts for Dad’s Eternal Pursuit of Perfection

When I was a boy, my dad was always busy working. So busy that he didn’t have time for golf – had never even set foot on a course until he was well into his 70s, when he rode along in the cart with my daughter and me once. He said he really enjoyed that, and it was one of my best later memories of him.

When I was a teenager, one of my strongest memories of Dad was of him growing uncharacteristically sad once and saying how much he envied me for having so much of my life yet in front of me. “There’s so much I still want to do,” he said softly, looking out the car window, “and so little time left.”

Point is, us guys are always chasing something, be it an allegorical giant fish or a literal hole-in-one. We golfers catch our bliss, if perhaps only fleetingly, chasing a little white ball around a verdant pasture for a few hours, spending time with friends or family, pursuing fictional perfection. Really, we’d do about anything just to get back to “even.”

Here are a few gift ideas for the Old Man in your life as he heads out onto the roiling greens and casts his eyes down the fairway in eternal hope.

Good Walk Coffee

Good Walk Coffee is a new coffee company that is specially blended and named for golfers. Does Dad need a tasty, rich pick-me-up to get him out for that first tee time? Try Good Walk’s Dew Sweeper French Roast ($18). If you’re like me, and happy to take a tee time slightly later in the morning, Breakfast Ball Columbia Medium Roast ($15) is ideal. Good walk has other blends, as well as 3-month subscriptions and a nice little shop of swag (hats, tees, ball markers, clubhead covers), all of which is great for decking Dad out in style and taste.

Volvik Marvel and Bridgestone Tour B Golf Balls

One of my favorite activities with my son, besides golf, is seeing superhero movies together. For dads who are fans of the Marvel Universe, Volvik has followed up last year’s wildly popular offering of Marvel Avengers balls with a 5-hero pack, featuring Thor, Black Panther, Captain America, Iron Man, and the Hulk ($22/set). These matte-finish balls are engineered with Volvik’s new oversized high-energy core and are incredibly soft around the green. The colors also really pop against the sky and turf. And he’ll never get confused about which ball is his.

For more traditional dads, Bridgestone’s Tour B line for 2020 ($45/doz.) has been redesigned with the company’s proprietary REACTIV cover to maximize both feel and distance. The Tour B X is played by the likes of Matt Kuchar and Lexi Thompson. The Tour B RX and Tour B RXS are designed for players with swing speeds under 105 mph, which tends to be most amateur dads. You simply won’t find better all-around performance in a golf ball.

Tattoo Golf

Now that Dad is awake and has new golf balls, let’s get him dressed. It’s still chilly in some places, and the absolute best full-zip golf jacket I have ever worn is the new Tattoo Golf Men’s Clubhouse Full-Zip Jacket in black and gray ($70), complete with Tattoo’s distinctive dimpled golf-ball-skull and cross-irons logo. I’ve worn mine for several rounds now, and I have never had a golf jacket that maintained the exact level of comfortable warmth and breathed so well. The price is right, too! Seriously, I cannot overstate how good this jacket is. If Dad would rather have a new pair of shorts, Tattoo has a new line out for 2020 that will ensure Dad looks good no matter how his game is.

Royal Albartross, ASICS, and ECCO Golf Shoes

Next, shoes – because shoes make the man!

ASICS DUAL-COURSE Duo BOA

The growing juggernaut Srixon/Cleveland Golf/XXIO has recently announced a partnership with athletic shoe manufacturer ASICS and the joint development of their flagship golf shoes, the GEL-COURSE Duo BOA ($180) and GEL-COURSE Glide ($130). Both models look and feel like ASICS gym shoes. The BOA features its namesake lacing system, which consists of wire laces that tighten and loosen with a dial on the side of the shoe, and also have softspikes. The Glides are spikeless with traditional laces. Both models are also waterproof. I took my pair of Duos out of the box to walk 18 holes with my son. Conditions were extremely soggy, but my feet stayed dry. Equally impressive, my feet experienced no fatigue or hotspots despite it being only my second round walking of the season. The arch support and padding are what you’d expect from the best athletic shoes. The BOA lacing system seemed to work a little loose during the first 4 holes, but a quick turn of the dial re-tightened them. And after those first holes, they stayed snug throughout the remainder of the round.

ECCO BIOM COOL PRO

Although all golf shoes are becoming more comfortable, ECCO still holds the Number One spot in “Most Comfortable Right Out of the Box.” ECCO doesn’t make the lightest golf shoes, nor the cheapest, but sliding on a pair of ECCOs is one of the great pleasures of the game. The new BIOM COOL PRO shoe ($230) is no exception: it has a wrap-around Gore-Tex design that actively ventilates your feet as you walk. The yak-leather outer is amazingly soft, and the sole features little tunnels running all the way through which make them lighter and “springier” than any previous ECCO model I’ve ever tried (and that’s a lot of them). I wore my BIOM COOL PROS during a hot but beautiful round in the Bahamas in January (before the world shut down) and several times since (walking all the way), and I cannot believe how cool and dry my feet stayed.

Royal Albartross

When the name Royal Albartross appeared in my inbox, I had to admit that I’d never heard of it before. Wow, was I missing out! Royal Albartross is a premium golf and lifestyle brand from London that offers handmade golf shoes, belts, and bags. And when they say “handmade,” they mean it. Their products are constructed of the finest Italian leathers and stitched together by craftsmen in Italy and Portugal. The results are exquisite. When I got my peasant paws on a pair of Cutler Greys ($230), I literally ran around my house and showed my wife and two kids how gorgeous they are—they even came with their own cloth shoe bag! With leather outsole, insole, and trim, The Cutler represents a brilliant blend of fashion sneaker and spikeless golf shoe fit for the fairways and grill rooms of even the poshest private club. I have taken to wearing them on walks around my neighborhood during this time of social distancing, because they honestly make me feel better about myself. I will wait to wear them on the course until the vernal pools dry up and, I hope, fellow golfers can get close enough to admire the workmanship. In the meantime, I’ve got my eyes on the Saxon Claret model ($259), new for 2020—absolutely beautiful. I guess I’m a shoe person now.

Dune Jewelry Divot Repair Tool

Time to get a little sentimental. Do you and Dad have a favorite course? Or maybe a special beach? Dune Jewelry has an ever-expanding “bank”of sands from around the world, including golf course bunker sand, that they use to fill all manner of gorgeous women’s jewelry. The Hamptons Rope collection, a co-collaboration between Ann Liguori and Dune’s founder Holly Daniels Christensen, make great Father’s Day gifts. Dune even has some treasures just for golfers. The new Divot Repair Tool ($30) is both sleek and functional. Fill it with sand from St. Andrews Beach to commemorate a trip to The Birthplace of Golf. Or with sand from Hawai’i to remember a wedding or honeymoon. Or even send in your own from the beach at a family cabin. There are ball markers ($30) and wine stoppers ($40) too, which are all also very cool. Speaking of weddings in Hawai’i, I have a ball marker with sand from the beach where I got married over 25 years ago. Reminds me to keep things in perspective on both good and bad days.

Sun Mountain 4.5 LS 14-Way Stand Bag

Lots of states are limiting playing groups to twosomes. And some are not allowing carts. What better time for Dad to start getting more exercise and walking 9 or 18 holes? The Sun Mountain line-up of golf bags is tough to beat. You can find something for pretty much any golfer’s needs. My new 4.5 LS 14-Way Stand Bag ($230) weights just 4.5 lbs. and has 14 full-length club silos, as the name implies. There are 9 spacious pockets and, best of all, the fiberglass legs are amazingly sturdy. The bottom is cart-friendly as well, including pushcart-friendly. There are elastic cords to keep the legs in place when not using them. I love carrying 9 for exercise and walking 18 with a pushcart. This bag allows me to do both without undue burden on my back or shoulders.

Arnold Palmer Framed USPS Stamp

What better way to tell day that he’s “The King” in your eyes than with the Arnold Palmer Framed Stamp ($40)? The USPS introduced Arnold Palmer stamps this year, and this framed artwork features an enlarged version of the stamp along with an insert of one of the actual stamps. It also includes day-of-issue information. I’ve got mine hanging in my office to remind me to “Swing my swing.”

Flying Dog Night Putting Pale Ale

This year is the 40^th anniversary of the release of “Caddyshack,” a movie that taught us how integral wise cracks, obscene amounts of cash, and a cart full of C4 are to golf. Also integral to the game is a nice, cold adult beverage. Flying Dog, America’s most disobedient brewery, has introduced Night Putting Pale Ale in honor of this monumental anniversary. Night Putting is a medium-hopped ale with a 5.5% alcohol content. It’s crisp and light and easy to drink by itself or with a hot dog at the turn. Dad will thank you after every delicious sip.

Mr. Wizard by Jeff Wallach

For rainy days—or as a companion to Night Putting Pale Ale on a quite evening at home—how about a great golf read for Dad? Golf fiction can be hit or miss, but the debut novel by veteran golf and travel writer Jeff Wallach is a definite hit. It interweaves a story of two brothers trying to unravel their genetic history, deal with their wild mother, and figure out who they are along the way. Lots of twists and turns along a rich golf backdrop (Open Books, $18, paperback).

I hope by the time it’s Father’s Day, we’re finding ourselves and our nation to be safer and progressively more widely opened. After all, there’s a lot of golf to play in this world, and precious little time. My golf rounds with my own kids are one of the few things keeping me sane over the past months. I wish nothing less than that sort of joy for every one of my fellow fathers out there as we chase the sun, trying to stay as close to even as we can.

Be well, play good golf, and keep in touch.

Featured

Mother’s Day golf gifts fit for the Queen of the Pandemic

We’ve been stuck inside for a while. And for the good of everyone, we should largely remain inside for some time to come. But golf is one of the few social activities that lends itself to social distancing. Stand apart at the tees, hit your tee shots, walk after them, see you at the green. Maintain distance putting. Simple.

Now that courses are opening up in a majority of states, Mom deserves some time away from you—some time with her friends on a nice walk under the late-spring sunshine. And she deserves a little thank you from you for holding the realm together during this pandemic.

Here’s a list of our favorite golf gifts for Mom this Mother’s Day.

Good Walk Coffee

There’s a foursome of ladies at my home course that usually get the first tee time of the day on weekends. They always walk. We call them The Borg, after the inexorable, unstoppable alien foe on “Star Trek: Next Generation.” Heaven help you if you’re in front of them, because if you dawdle to look for a lost ball, they will catch you, and you will be assimilated.

These fast-walking, straight-hitting, never-stopping women always have their coffee travel mugs with them. Good Walk Coffee is a new coffee company that seems to be specially made for golfers like The Borg. You want that tasty, rich pick-me-up to get you out for that first tee time? Try Good Walk’s Dew Sweeper French Roast ($18). If you’re like me, and happy to take a tee time safely behind The Borg, Breakfast Ball Columbia Medium Roast ($15) is ideal. Good walk has other blends, as well as 3-month subscriptions and a nice little shop of swag (hats, tees, ball markers, clubhead covers), all of which is great for decking mom out in style and taste.

Volvik and Bridgestone Golf Balls

Is Mom a fan of the Marvel Universe? Maybe she just likes seeing some of the actors all heated up? In any case, Volvik has followed up last year’s wildly popular offering of Marvel Avengers balls with a 5-hero pack, featuring Thor, Black Panther, Captain America, Iron Man, and the Hulk ($22/set). These matte-finish balls are engineered with Volvik’s new oversized high-energy core and are incredibly soft around the green. The colors also really pop against the sky and turf.

For more traditional Moms, Bridgestone’s Tour B line for 2020 ($45/doz.) has been redesigned with the company’s proprietary REACTIV cover to maximize both feel and distance. The Tour B X is played by the likes of Matt Kuchar and Lexi Thompson. The Tour B RX and Tour B RXS are designed for players with swing speeds under 105 mph, which tends to be most moms AND dads. You simply won’t find better all-around performance in a golf ball.

TecTecTec ULT-X Rangefinder

Rangefinders have really grown on me over the years. I used to love the thrill of the guess, but now I enjoy verifying the yardage with laser precision. One of the more advanced rangefinders on the market is the ULT-X by TecTecTec ($250). It’s lightweight, uber-precise, and has an elevation mode that is easy to turn on and off. Doing so is accomplished by pulling the lens housing out or pushing it in. When the elevation mode is engaged, a bright yellow band is revealed, so players like my son, who play in tournaments in which measuring elevation is not allowed, will be less likely to forget to turn it off. I’ve also recently found that another handy use of the ULT-X is keeping an eye on other golfers around the course to maintain social distancing. You can ID friends from 100+ yards away and wave – that’ll have to do for now.

Royal Albartross Golf Shoes

So I received a pair of Royal Albartross golf shoes earlier this year, and I literally ran around the house showing everyone. I mean, they are hand-made in Italy of the finest leather – seriously the nicest shoes I own of any kind. Now, I don’t want to play into stereotypes, but if I get this excited about Royal Albartross golf shoes, Mom is going to go crazy.

Royal Albartross of London has three new styles for this Mother’s Day. The Amalfi ($299) is a laced sneaker with perforated upper leather. The soft, breathable leather lining and the lightweight Apex sole is designed for multi-directional traction. Available in white, black and navy, the Amalfi is handmade in Portugal.

The Chelsea ($199) is a slip-on loafer with tassel fringe available in tri-color patterns with white and black base colors. The ergonomic insole is designed to provide support and breathability, and is extremely resistant to lateral slipping.

The Sahara ($299) features a snake print, leather upper with gold/rose eyelets. Its ultra-cushioned insole unit and lightweight VIBRAM® Pro Golf out-sole provide excellent stability.

Swiftwick Golf Socks

Mom’s going to need some socks under those posh shoes. The best golf socks on the market are by Swiftwick, and my favorites (which also come in women’s sizes) are the new Maxus Zero-Tab golf socks ($12), but the ASPIRE and FLITE XT (pictured) are pretty sweet, too. Swiftwick’s offerings are all compression socks that wick moisture, improve circulation, and promise no blisters.

AHEAD’s Kate Lord Line for 2020

Well, shoot. Now that Mom’s going to need a couple of new golf outfits to wear with her posh kicks and comfy socks. AHEAD’s Kate Lord Line introduced a number of new styles for 2020 at the PGA Show in Orlando. “Our Kate Lord styling is perfect for the customer who wants great, easy-to-wear pieces for both on and off the course,” said Scott Stone, National Sales Manager, Golf. Colors include Iris, Limelight, and Poppy, and styles include sleeveless and sleeved polos, skorts, quarter-zips, and shorts. It’s pretty easy to mix-n-match an entire month’s worth of outfits on their website.

Dune Jewelry by Ann Liguori

I’ve written about Dune Jewelry before, and it’s still the most innovative line of keepsake jewelry I know of. Dune has a massive and ever-increasing Sandbank from which they draw sand and stone and crushed shell from beaches, lakes, and other landforms all over the world and incorporate into their fine jewelry. This year, there’s also a Dune Golf Collection, which includes ball markers and divot repair tools also filled with sand. You can search their giant repository for locations or send in your own sample (you know, that little vile you snuck out of Augusta National that one year?) and have it used in Dune’s stunning creations. In the past, I’ve gotten a ball marker for me and a necklace for my wife (The Hamptons Rope Collection) with sand from the beach where we were married. This year, I’m getting her the new Luxe Marquis earrings ($180) filled with sand from Japan, where we used to live. Seriously, there is nothing more meaningful than giving her not only beautiful jewelry, but jewelry filled with a little piece of a place that the two of you have shared.

Mr. Wizard by Jeff Wallach

Golf fiction can be hit or miss, but the debut novel by veteran golf and travel writer looks intriguing. It interweaves a story of two brothers trying to unravel their genetic history, deal with their wild mother, and figure out who they are along the way. Lots of twists and turns along a rich golf backdrop (Open Books, $18, paperback).

They you have it. Gifts to pamper the Queen of the Pandemic from the time she wakes up until the time she goes to sleep. This is the least you can do for her.

Cragun’s Resort builds for future with transformative upgrades

There is very little that is sadder in the world of hospitality than a legacy family resort being bought out by vulture capitalists who proceed to strip its bones for profit as it decays. Happily – very happily – this is not the fate of the iconic Cragun’s Resort on Gull Lake. The recent sale of the property by Dutch Cragun to a consortium with local ties has all the hallmarks of a win-win-win-win deal for Dutch, the new owners, the community in which it is situated, and both regular and new guests.

Dutch Cragun graduated from the University of Minnesota in 1955. As he was packing his bags to leave campus with “no idea of what I was going to do next,” he called his father to ask if he could make a living running the family’s small fishing resort on the shores of Gull Lake. His dad, Merrill Cragun, who first founded the resort around 1940, said, “Hell no.” Nevertheless, Dutch headed north and began a legendary process of renovation, acquisition, development, and expansion.

As the years passed, Dutch and his wife Irma, purchased two neighboring resorts and accrued over 1,000 acres of land. He not only loved fishing and watersports, though. Dutch was also a golf fan who expanded the resort’s recreational offerings with the opening of Cragun’s first golf course in 1998. Not long before selling the resort in 2025, Dutch cemented the resort’s reputation as a premier Midwestern golf resort with an extensive redesign of the original 27 holes and the construction of a new 18-hole championship course, both projects being led by fellow Minnesotan and former PGA Tour player Tom Lehman.

A final daunting carry over wetlands on Hole 18 of the Lehman Course

Today, a visionary group of new owners carries Dutch’s vision forward as they undertake transformational renovations to the rest of the resort.

Golf at Cragun’s Resort

In 1997, Dutch solicited bids on a championship golf course from two of the biggest names in golf course design at the time: Robert Trent Jones, Jr., and Rees Jones. The two famously combative brothers were set for a showdown on Gull Lake when Rees pulled out and RTJ, Jr. traveled all the way from Siberia to survey the property.

In 1998, Cragun’s Legacy Course opened. In 2000, Jones added a third nine. In 2020, Dutch wanted to expand further. He asked three course architects to submit plans. Former (British) Open Champion Tom Lehman came to town to watch his son compete in the Minnesota State Amateur. The then-86-year-old Dutch approached his fellow University of Minnesota grad and asked if his firm might be interested in submitting a plan. Within two months, Lehman’s firm had a plan, and after two days of talking, Lehman was “all in” – not just for the new course, but also for a radical redesign of the original 27 holes.

In 2023, The Lehman 18 and The Dutch 18—the Dutch White and Dutch Blue Nines—were put fully into play. In 2025, a dramatic facelift of the final 9, The Dutch Red, was completed—and just like that, the “Dutch 18” became the “Dutch 27.”

Despite deriving from the same designer, the Lehman 18 and Dutch 27 display some distinct dissimilarities. While the Lehman 18 features abundant bunkering, the bunkers are sharp-lipped with riveted walls. Although sand bunkers are still plentiful on the Dutch 27, they are shaggier and more natural-looking, with fescue “eyebrows” that are often more penal than the sand itself.

The bunkers on the Lehman 18 feature sharp edges and riveted walls.

The edges of the bunkers on the Dutch 27 course are more penal than the sand, with dense fescue “eyebrows.”

A second difference is the routing philosophy. The Lehman weaves through residential lots (mostly still undeveloped, as of this writing), with some very long golf-cart drives between greens and the next tees. In contrast, the three 9s of the Dutch 27 cluster more in the center of the resort property and are all quite walkable.

Several similarities can also be observed. Lush bentgrass carpets all 45 holes tee to green (even in the midst of the current drought, which is quite remarkable). The greens all play very fast, and are vexingly difficult to read. (Seriously, how many edges did I burn??) Finally, all courses feature a few – if not more than a few – forced carries over wetlands and ravines, along with dense underbrush lining most holes and sucking up stray golf balls. If there is an Achilles Heel to the layouts, it is the occasions where shots that are just a couple yards offline can hit the wrong side of mounding and shoot off into the brambles and marshes, never to be seen again. So it is critical to pick the appropriate tees and maintain precise control over your shots, or, at least, bring plenty of balls along.

The 10th green on the Lehman 18 — finding the right sections with your approach is one key to scoring.

The Red-White combination of the Dutch 27 will host the CRMC Championship again in late August 2026, a prestigious PGA TOUR Americas event. According to Eric Martin, Head Golf Professional at Cragun’s, “We’re working to host a Korn Ferry Tour event, eventually.” One tee box for the tournament actually plays from the patio of the clubhouse. The tournament was awarded the PGA TOUR Americas Tournament of the Year award in 2025, recognizing the premier quality and hospitality of the resort, golf course, and surrounding community.

The patio of The Legacy Grill overlooks the 9th holes of the Dutch White and Dutch Red (pictured here) courses.

Tee box for the CRMC Championship, up on The Legacy Grill patio

Facilities and activities at Cragun’s

Because Dutch – with the aid of Tom Lehman – had focused on the upgrade and expansion of the golf courses, the new owners, led by Jamie Tatge, were freed to focus on improving the accommodations and amenities. The list of these improvements, which are still ongoing, is long. Some are relatively “little” things, like the flipping of the reception area, addition of a coffee bar (The Grind on Gull) to the reception lobby, 10 new pontoon boats, and four new jet-skis. The pontoons, available for hourly rental, are luxurious and great for fishing or just cruising the 10-mile-long Gull Lake, with room for 10-12 people.

Others, however, are larger in scale and transformative in nature. One floor down from the reception, guests find an entirely new dining experience. One side is a spacious breakfast dining room. On the other side, you’ll find the new Lakehouse Bar + Kitchen. Both areas look out over Gull Lake through a wall of windows. The menu at the Lakehouse has been elevated dramatically, offering both fine dining and more pub-style fare. Meeting rooms and swimming pools are also on the schedule for continued updating.

Steak Churrasco at The Lakehouse Bar + Kitchen

On the south end of the resort, 8 new beachfront cabins have been erected to replace 12 smaller cabins that used to line the shore, some of which were close to 100 years old. These cabins are luxurious, with room for up to 18 people. More south beach cabins are on the way in the coming months, along with more extensive landscaping.

One of the 8 new luxury cabins on the South Beach

Eventually, the resort’s fine dining restaurant, Irma’s Kitchen, will also get an overhaul. Although much of this renovation is still in the development stage, some locals I spoke with said they hope the establishment retains Irma’s name, as Dutch’s late wife was a legend in her own right at the resort. “Irma kept Dutch in line,” recalled one local who used to work for the couple at the resort in the 1980s.

Cragun’s Resort: The verdict

Jamie Tatge, architect of the deal with Dutch Cragun, related the following story about the negotiations in Lake and Company magazine: “When striking the deal with Dutch, he asked my intent with the resort. I told him it was to enhance the physical property and set it up for the next 100 years of operation.”

The golf courses at Cragun’s may be called The Legacy Courses, but it is not just the golf that qualifies as a legacy – the entire resort stands as Dutch and Irma’s legacy, and an enduring gift to the Brainerd Lakes community and the vacationers who visit every year. The kids of kids of kids who grew up summering on Gull Lake are now bringing their kids, playing golf, boating, swimming, fishing, eating, and basking in the up-north experience that Dutch imagined for the small fishing resort his father tried to keep him away from. Now, under new ownership, Cragun’s is poised to welcome the next five generations to this quintessential Minnesota playground.

I might not have carded any birdies, but I did land a couple bass.

Sand Valley’s Mammoth Dunes delivers mammoth fun

The term “resort course” is often used to describe certain golf courses. But I’m willing to wager that most casual golfers don’t know what the label denotes, aside from “a golf course at a resort.” There’s only part of it.

Resort courses – good resort courses – share certain features: wide fairways, visible hazards, minimal forced carries, contouring that tends to keep balls in play or at least findable, greens that are not overly difficult to read. The common thread across all these characteristics is that a good resort course should be able to be played and ENJOYED by golfers of all levels the first time out. Resort guests usually don’t have extensive local knowledge – they’re just visiting.

The Mammoth Dunes practice green overlooks the course, heightening the anticipation for your round.

Sand Valley Golf Resort’s Mammoth Dunes, which opened in 2018 to universal acclaim, is a prototypical example of a “resort course.” Golf course architect David McLay Kidd went all-in on the motto “working for the golfer” in designing the layout, which follows a natural V-shaped ridgeline running through the 400+ acre course footprint.

McLay Kidd, who designed the inaugural Pacific Dunes course at the Keiser family’s Bandon Dunes, had a bit of an epiphany in the late 2000s He realized that the courses he was building were becoming too difficult for recreational golfers. On a 2009 visit to Bandon, he heard from caddies that the average score on Pacific Dunes was 100, which is not particularly enjoyable for guests who have spent thousands of dollars on a golf vacation.

So, when Mike Keiser, Jr. asked McLay Kidd to design Sand Valley’s second course, he vowed to ensure that players would enjoy their round. Golf is supposed to be fun, after all.

The approach on the long par-4 9th Hole. Just look at the width of that fairway!

Playing Mammoth Dunes

The first thing I asked Sand Valley golf professional David McLish about Mammoth Dunes was whether they had actually uncovered any mammoth fossils while constructing the course. “We didn’t,” he admitted, “but we discussed, briefly, putting a few fossils around the clubhouse to build the myth.” Rather, the course moniker comes from the sheer size of the layout: the fairways, greens, and acreage of the course are all, well, mammoth in scale.

Let’s put this in perspective. One caddie recounted how a guest teed off on the first hole of Mammoth Dunes and missed the fairway by quite a lot. “A 100-yard wide fairway, and I can’t hit it,” the player lamented. The caddie responded, “To be honest, it’s 130 yards.”

First-time visitors will be awed immediately by the enormity of the fairways. That 130-yard wide, 419-yard long 1^st Hole is not an outlier. In fact, the majority of fairways on Mammoth Dunes are around 100 yards wide. Greens, likewise, are massive, but not crazily contoured. As a result, approach shots landing away from the pins can leave 80-foot putts that are, paradoxically, not overly hard to read, if not putt. Take the short par-4 6^th as an example. The green here is shaped like a concave boomerang, where approaches on the proper line funnel toward the pin. Approaches unlucky enough to find the wrong end of the boomerang, however, might not leave any line at all to the hole.

Measuring 7,063 yards from the tips, Mammoth Dunes, like the original Sand Valley course, has six sets of tees (forward tees: 4,064 yards), and four sets of combo tees. The Orange-Sand combo (6,346 yards) is a solid choice for low double-digit or high single-digit handicappers. Although staff will tell you Mammoth Dunes has “no forced carries,” there are a few, especially off the 2^nd tee, where even from the Sand tees, the preferred angle on the right side demands a 180-yard carry to the fairway over – you guessed it! – a vast expanse of sand.

A decent carry is required from the tee of Hole 2, despite what everyone tells you.

Par is an atypical 73, thanks to three par 5s on the back nine. The 558-yard 18^th is one of those that will either ice the cake of a great round or leave a bitter taste in your mouth. The huge green, perched on a hillside below the clubhouse, is fronted by a wide bunker that is also some 15 feet deep. I had two chances on two different days to stick my third shot close and finish with a birdie, but instead thinned both approaches into the bunker and had to scramble to get up and down for bogeys.

Mammoth Dunes’ 18th green — and closing glory! — lie just beyond that gaping bunker…

But I am getting ahead of myself. All the par 5s – indeed, all the holes here – are memorable. It is extremely rare for a course’s par 5s to be ranked as the hardest holes. Here, the #1, #2, #3, #4, and #6 handicap holes are the five par 5s. (The 457-yard, uphill par-4 5^th Hole is ranked fifth hardest, for very good reason.) What makes the par 5s so difficult when the fairways are so generous? The word that keeps appearing in my notebook is “snaking” – all of them slither their way through, between, and around swaths of sand bunkering and waste areas. (FYI, all sand at Sand Valley plays as waste area – so no worries about grounding your club or removing obstacles.)

Par-5 7th Hole — another uphill approach, and more sand to navigate

The tee shot at the long, difficult par-4 5th Hole also feels like a decent forced carry.

The par 3s, on the other hand, rank as the #15, #16, #17, and #18 handicap holes. Now, these are all absolutely lovely holes, beautifully framed by sand and hillsides. The fact that they are all birdie opportunities is a huge “resort course” bonus. I will say, however, that 146-yard 13^th Hole, with its tee shot that must carry a deep ravine and sandy pit of despair, does not in any way feel like an easy hole, despite its diminutive length. (Until you make a 60-foot birdie putt, ahem.)

Perhaps it is at the par-4 14^th hole where McLay Kidd’s focus on enjoyability really shines. This 323-yard hole brings the winning design of Golf Digest’s Armchair Architect contest to life. Brian Silvernail was the winning amateur architect, and the hole he created is pure fun. The green sits well below the tees and only the middle to back portions are visible. The ideal drive will crest the hill on the right side of the fairway with a slight draw and run down to the putting surface, invisible for much of its journey, until – if you’re lucky – you see it trundle across the putting surface. Too far right is a hazard, too far left are bunkers. Take the right line, and you can focus on draining the eagle putt.

Hole 14 tee — an immensely fun hole! See that green way down there? That’s only about 2/3 of it. Keep your drive to the right, and run it down the hill — you never know what will happen!

Mammoth Dunes: The verdict

Our caddie for four days, Remington (who, I must say, was a real pistol – bah-dum-tssshhhh!), told us during our first round on Mammoth Dunes that it is the favorite of just about every guest at Sand Valley. We were very glad we had two rounds booked on it, because it was our unanimous favorite, too. All four of us carded improved scores the second time playing it, including my own personal low round of the season so far. This result is simply unheard of on most unfamiliar courses, even if they are “resort” courses. But when the fairways are so wide that you don’t lose any balls, and the greens are perfectly conditioned, not overly fast, and straightforward to read, it is possible – if you just avoid the omnipresent sand.

Since its opening, Mammoth Dunes has been consistently ranked in the top 30 public courses in the U.S. Is it the longest? No. Is it the hardest? No. Is it the most fun? Maybe! McLay Kidd succeeded in delivering a visually exciting, architecturally inspiring, immensely memorable course that serves as the centerpiece for what might just be the Midwest’s premier golf resort.

The Mammoth Grill Patio is the ideal spot to hydrate and recall all your best shots of the round.

Sedge Valley is Sand Valley’s shortest 18, but not its easiest

In this age of 460cc drivers and 300-yard drives, length is king. In the U.S., most recreational players immediately check the yardage of the back tees on the scorecard to determine a course’s difficulty or even its appeal. This is an amateur mistake, however. Distance and difficulty are certainly correlated, but correlation doesn’t imply causation. If you’ve ever played through the English or Scottish countryside, you’ll have discovered numerous courses with sub-70 pars – courses that are as far from push-overs as bangers and mash are from health-food.

Sand Valley Golf Resort’s Sedge Valley is golf course architect Tom Doak’s homage to English heathland courses. At just 5,808 yards from the tips and a par of 68, the uninitiated might overlook playing it, or automatically head straight to those back tees. As the starters, caddies, and proshop attendant will tell you, this is a mistake. The unanimous consensus is that Sedge Valley plays about 500 yards longer than the scorecard says from all three tees, and the wise play for first-timers is to consider the middle tees, or some middle-back or front-middle combination.

What contributes to the length and difficulty (68.7 rating, 130 slope from the tips)? Elevation changes account for some of the added yardage and difficulty; slopes are more abrupt here than on the other 18-holes courses at Sand Valley (though it is still perfectly walkable). In addition, Tom Doak’s signature visual illusions make it difficult to judge lines and pull the correct clubs. Toss in plentiful trees, omnipresent deep sand bunkers, the occasional blind shot, and green contouring that was described to me as “unreal” in the proshop, and you have a recipe for an immensely enjoyable round, but not one where you’re likely to shoot a career score your first time out.

Playing Sedge Valley

The opening two holes on Sedge Valley are quite gentle, a pleasant prelude before crashing headlong into the #1 handicap hole, the 455-yard, par-4 3^rd. Not only does the 3^rd Hole measure long, it plays longer, all uphill, with a blind second (or third) shot over a rise that completely blocks your view of the green and flag. There is a target hung in the trees behind the green, though, to indicate the line. Trust it, and get a good yardage from a sprinkler head, yardage book, or caddie. It’s always fun to crest a blind green and find your ball on the dancefloor.

The diove and approach on the forgiving Hole 1 at Sedge Valley still must navigate the ever-present bunkering.

Holes 4-8 are all downhill, two par 3s and a drivable par 4. The par-3 8th is one of the standouts on the course, measuring 226 yards from the tips. If you’re into side bets, lay down some wagers on who will hit this green – it’s not easy.

The 288-yard 6th is technically drivable, but it plays 20+ yards longer than that, especially if the wind is up.

Taking the long walk from the back tees of the 226-yard par-3 8th Hole down to the green. Do you see a ball down there?

There it is! (And it’s mine, and I made the birdie putt!)

On the back side, the greens fulfill the description of “unreal.” On holes 11 & 12, the putting surfaces are simply wild, with contouring so extreme there are a few spots that are impossible to even putt from if the pin is in certain locations. I have not four-putted in many years, but I did on Hole 11, turning a birdie opportunity into a smooth triple-bogey.

The closing stretch from 15-18 is one of the most enjoyable strings of holes on the entire resort. The 15^th is a par 3 that is long from the back tees (185 yds), but mercifully ~40 yds shorter from the middle tees. The 16^th and 17^th holes are also some 70 yards shorter from the middles than the tips, but the 16^th plays from the middle in the back-middle combo, while the 17^th plays from the back. So those who opt for the combo tees don’t get let off the hook completely.

The par-3 15th Hole at Sedge Valley can play 50 yards shorter from the middle tees than from the back tees (shown here).

The 18^th is a short (317 yds) par 4 with a mostly blind approach, especially if you’re on the left side of the fairway. The green – another wild one – is shaped like a giant quotation mark or comma, with two distinct bowls in the upper left quadrant and lower right. If you can land your ball in or near the correct portion, it should funnel toward the hole, offering a welcome birdie opportunity to close.

The 18th Hole offers a birdie opportunity, as well as an inviting view of The Galley restaurant and Tennis Center.

Sedge Valley: The verdict

Length isn’t everything, and Tom Doak knows this. The collective opinion in my group was that Sedge Valley was more fun to play than Coore & Crenshaw’s Sand Valley, as the mix of punishing and potentially rewarding holes is more balanced. Club selections and sightlines were challenging, but the continuously rising and falling landscape and the flow and beauty of the holes were all pleasing to the eye.

There is no heather or gorse, as one might find in a true English heathland course, but there is plenty of fescue and – of course! – sand, and more trees framing holes than on Sand Valley or Mammoth Dunes. Fairway widths were similar to Sand Valley, but even when there is plenty of short grass (as on the drivable par 4 12^th), there are countless humps and swales, ensuring that most lies are not flat.

In short, if I were a member at Sand Valley, I would most likely choose Sedge Valley as my regular course. It felt less crowded than the other two 18-hole courses (we felt like we had the links to ourselves), places a premium on accuracy and strategy, and, above all, is just fun to play. All qualities that are rarely ascribed to a course that tips out nearly 200 yards below 6,000.

Sand Valley anchors the growing Sand Valley Golf Resort

Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw have made a handsome career for themselves designing golf courses following a “Minimalist” philosophy. Hand these two artists a topographically interesting and well-drained canvas, and they will deliver a masterpiece. Sand Hills Golf Club in Nebraska, Streamsong Red in Florida, and both Bandon Trails and The Sheep Ranch at Bandon Dunes are prime examples of canonical Coore & Crenshaw designs.

At Sand Valley Golf Resort, 90 minutes north of Madison, Wisconsin, the Keiser family – of the Bandon Dunes Keisers – handed the minimalist magicians a geological palette that perfectly suited their aesthetic: acre upon acre of seemingly endless sand and rolling dunes blanketed in fescue. Central Wisconsin was gifted these features by a massive glacial lake that formed at the end of the last Ice Age and subsequently drained, leaving behind its sandy bed.

Today Sand Valley Golf Resort encompasses some 12,000 acres of ideal inland linksland and six golf courses (so far). The first of these was Sand Valley, namesake of the resort itself, and one of Coore & Crenshaw’s best to date.

Playing Sand Valley

When I first arrived at Sand Valley, I was introduced to PGA Professional Jacob McLish, who provided me with some background on the course and some comparisons to the others on the property. “Sand Valley is the most challenging of all six courses,” he said. “There are more elevation changes and forced carries, especially from the championship tees. When we hold state or national tournaments, they’re played on Sand Valley or on a combination of The Lido [the resort’s newest, semi-private course] and Sand Valley.” Notably, Sand Valley has been chosen to host four upcoming USGA amateur championships, so the venue is certainly building its reputation.

Sand Valley Hole 6: One of the literally countless swaths of sand on Sand Valley. If your ball goes in there, hope it stays in the sand, rather than onto one of those little grassy islands.

Like all courses at the resort, Sand Valley is walking only (unless one has a medical exemption), and it, again like the other courses, is perfectly walkable, despite some impressive elevation changes. Caddies are encouraged ($100 + gratuity) but not required. Players can avail themselves of complimentary pullcarts or bring their own. For the uninitiated, however, caddies are extremely helpful in identifying lines off the tee, especially here, where fairways and greens have a lot of movement to them, and balls landing in unfortunate locations are prone to trundle off into sand or other trouble.

Oh, and the sand – it’s not just a marketing gimmick. I asked one of the caddie masters how many bunkers were on the course, and he just laughed at me. Once I stepped foot onto the links, I realized why: The sand is EVERYWHERE. Fortunately, all sand is played as waste area, so there’s no penalty for grounding your club. Unfortunately, the sand is really quite deep – like, over the tops of your shoes deep – and very fine. So learning how to hit out of it is a challenge. I have never left so many balls in bunkers in my life.

Sand Valley’s 1^st and 10^th tees are perched on a hillside below Craig’s Porch, which serves as starting area and halfway house. (The $1 tacos should not be missed.) Here, as at the resort’s two other 18-hole courses, tee times are spaced 10 minutes apart, with a 10-minute “starter time” built in once per hour. This ensures comfortable spacing between each wave of five groups. And, as the caddie master explained, all caddies carry GPS trackers so pace of play can be monitored and addressed quickly, containing most slowdowns within the five groups.

The course has six sets of tees, and four sets of combo tees, allowing golfers of all skill levels to find a comfortable yardage between 3,871 and 6,959 yards. Because of the elevation changes and the usually swirling winds, all the courses tend to play longer than the scorecard suggests. The par of 72 here is composed of a par-35 frontside and a par-37 backside, reminiscent of Streamsong Red, where the front is also significantly shorter than the back.

The front side starts off relatively benignly with a short par 4. The second shot here is key, as the elevated green has a severe false front that can deliver short approaches back to a player’s feet. The starter rather gleefully described an earlier group, whose long-hitter was just 30 yards short of the green off the tee but then proceeded to take three subsequent shots to get his ball to stay on the putting surface. The long par-3 3^rd (216 yards from the tips) will get every player’s attention, though, with a severe right-to-left slope that requires exacting precision off the tee.

Depending on the wind direction, and the tees chosen, all 5 par 5s are reachable with good drives. The 10^th and 12^th holes in particular offer the best eagle opportunities, but all the long holes are birdie opportunities. The par 3s are very memorable, including the 171-yard 5^th, that plays downhill some 40 feet. The 197-yard 14^th, however, might be the prettiest short hole here.

The fescue greens are immaculate, firm, and relatively speedy. Because of the fescue turf, the grain figures prominently in estimating both pace and break. This said, none of the greens felt particularly difficult to read – here or on any of the other courses I played. Moreso than many places where caddies are recommended, I found my reads and theirs to be identical nearly every time. The fescue fairways are simultaneously somewhat hairy yet also present players with very tight lies.

Sand Valley’s par-5 18th feels like it is more bunker than grass, including around the green, where bunkers are positioned both short and long.

Sand Valley: The verdict

Coore & Crenshaw definitely have a “signature” minimalist style, and at Sand Valley, it is displayed prominently. The hallmark sand is everywhere; bunkers are wide, deep, and penal. There are also plenty of pot bunkers, along with bunkers with densely scrubby little pock-marked hummocks in them. Woe to the golfer whose ball ends up on one of these instead of in the sand! (Woe to me, in particular.) These sandy pits of despair cost me easily 8 strokes when I played. So the best advice is to avoid them.

Sand Valley presents a stern challenge compared to Mammoth Dunes, which is more of a resort course (with player-friendly banking and fairways wider than a football field). But it is certainly not unfair; most of the trouble is in full view out in front of you. Like any links course, however – seaside or inland – balls roll out and find unexpected trouble. Similarly, the fairways and greens resonate with that satisfying hollow sound when you thump them with your club – a sound that only many feet of sand underfoot can create. All Coore & Crenshaw had to do was scrape off the topsoil a bit to reveal the natural golf course beneath.

Wisconsin’s Sand Valley Golf Resort: “Best Golf Resort in the Midwest?”

Some say Sand Valley Golf Resort’s history dates to 2016, when its eponymous course, Sand Valley, opened for preview play. Others might say it began in 1999, when legendary golf developer Mike Keiser unveiled Bandon Dunes in Oregon, spurring a golf resort development boom in remote, topographically ideal locations with a “Field of Dreams” philosophy: Build it, and they (golfers) will come. Yet others will say Sand Valley began some 18,000 years ago, when an enormous proglacial lake referred to as Glacial Lake Wisconsin filled up to a depth of 160 feet with water from retreating glaciers. When the ice dam blocking one end of the lake eventually melted, draining the lake in a catastrophic flood, a vast sandy plain was left behind complete with dramatic, shifting dunes that settled into place only once scrub brush and fescue took root.

Thanks to the template of Bandon Dunes and the vision of Mike Keiser, Jr., today Sand Valley Golf Resort encompasses some 12,000 acres about 100 miles north of Madison, in Rome, Wisconsin. 20,000+ years in the making, the resort and its six golf courses (and counting) take full advantage of the geological history, making it unique among Midwestern golf destinations.

Miss one of the gigantic fairways, and you’ll end up marching across an equally enormous sand bunker, feeling a bit like Lawrence of Arabia. “Sand Valley” isn’t just a clever name.

The Resort

Keep in mind that Sand Valley Resort, like the dunes upon which it is built, is ever-shifting, ever-growing. So details provided here are bound to change. In fact, driving onto the resort grounds late-July, 2026, you see an enormous expanse of green and building marked “Sand Valley Practice Center.” Scheduled to open in August, 2026, this practice area will have 30-50 hitting bays and stretch out to 400 yards. The area will replace the previous practice range, which was repurposed as the resort’s newest course, The Commons.

This said, the resort today boasts some 118 rooms in lodges, cottages, and entire estate homes, all with a rustic-chic aesthetic—weathered wooden exteriors, simple yet elegant interiors (e.g., 300 thread-count sheets, down comforters, spa-quality bathroom amenities). Rates range from $265-$2,800 per night and allow for full use of all recreational facilities, including limited tee times on The Lido, which is otherwise private. Day guests staying at one of the myriad off-site lodging options (AirBB, VRBO, local motels, etc.) don’t have access to all facilities, including The Lido.

The back patio of the Mammoth Grill exemplifies the rustic chic vibe of the entire Sand Valley Resort.

Resort guests do have access to numerous non-golf activities free of charge. There are several lakes on the sprawling property suitable for fishing, swimming, paddleboarding, and kayaking. Guests are welcome to bring their own equipment or use the resort’s on a first-come, first-serve basis. If your tastes run to the drier side, biking, sandboarding, hiking, yoga, lawn games, tennis (court and grass), and birding are options. Again, these are all free for guests. Day guests can hike and bike the trails (on their own bikes) and are charged for tennis court time.

The semi-all-inclusive nature of the resort is also evident in the multiple dining options. One of the absolutely most-appreciated perks – for guests and day guests – is the free bottles of ice-cold water you’ll find in large insulated wooden cases throughout the property. You’ll need many bottles walking 18 holes in summer heat. Other genuine treats are the $1 hot dogs and brats on the golf courses, tacos at Craig’s Porch overlooking Sand Valley’s 1^st tee, and hand-pies at the Sedge Valley comfort station. Believe me, 2-3 tacos (pulled pork or chicken) for lunch at Craig’s Porch and a free bottle of water is the best cheap lunch I’ve had in years.

Craig’s Porch, overlooking the Sand Valley 1st and 10th tees. Be sure to try the tacos! (Courtesy of Sand Valley)

Beyond $1 tacos, multiple dining options exist. Aldo’s in the Mammoth Dunes clubhouse is the resort’s farm-to-table fine-dining option. (The pork shank is amazing.) The Gallery offers a relaxed Italian-themed atmosphere adjacent the Sedge Valley course. Bill’s BBQ at The Sandbox par-3 course is extremely family-friendly. And the Mammoth Grill, at the Mammoth Dunes clubhouse, is ideal for breakfast or lunch pre- or post-round. Prices overall are considerably lower than many golf resorts I’ve been to, with entrees topping out at Aldo’s in the $60 range. The reasonable cocktail, wine, and beer prices are especially appreciated, with the signature Sand Valley Transfusion running just $10 resort-wide (canned version: $7).

The Gallery, next to the Sedge Valley proshop (courtesy of Sand Valley)

The Golf

If you are an avid golfer, you probably just skimmed to this point. So, let’s get to the golf.

Sand Valley Golf Resort currently features six golf courses. They are Sand Valley (Bill Coore & Ben Crenshaw, 2017), Mammoth Dunes (David McLay Kidd, 2018), Sedge Valley (Tom Doak, 2024), The Sandbox (Coore & Crenshaw, 2018), The Lido (Tom Doak, 2023), and The Commons (Jim Craig, 2026). During my visit, I heard tell of a new 18-hole course just starting to take shape west of Sand Valley and estimated to open around 2028 or 2029. With 12,000 acres of perfect golf topography at their disposal, the potential is nearly unlimited.

All six courses take full advantage of the namesake sandy soil and rolling natural dunes. Two of my companions who had visited Keiser’s visionary golf resort in Oregon described the courses and resort as “a lot like Bandon, but without the ocean views.” Indeed, McLay Kidd, Doak, and Coore & Crenshaw all designed courses at Bandon – Why mess with a winning recipe? Also like Bandon, all courses are walking only, and caddies are recommended ($100 + gratuity) but not required. Complimentary pullcarts are available, and guests are welcome to bring their own pushcarts or carry their own bags.

The original Sand Valley (6,959 yards, par 72) is the most challenging; this is where most official competitions (State Amateurs, etc.) are held. And, again, the course is aptly named – sand is everywhere, and it’s deep, requiring concerted practice to learn how to hit out.

The Lido (7,339 yards, par 72) will be paired with Sand Valley for the four upcoming USGA Championships to be hosted here. The Lido is a painstakingly accurate reproduction of C. B. MacDonald’s Long Island course by the same name, which was commandeered by the US Military during WWII and lost to history. When the original plans were discovered many decades later, course architect Tom Doak and developer Mike Keiser, Jr. knew just the place to recreate the almost mythical links.

Mammoth Dunes (7,063 yards, par 73) gets its name from the “mammoth” scale of the fairways, greens, dunes, and bunkers. This is the most player-friendly course, with fairways as wide as 150 yards on some holes.

Sedge Valley (5,808 yards, par 68) is modeled after classic English heathland courses. Caddies tell you, “Everyone thinks Sedge is easier because of its short length, but it’s not. It’s tough.” The elevation changes here are more abrupt than on the other courses, and the undulation in some greens is “unreal.”

The Sandbox is a 17-hole short course with holes ranging from 40 to 140 yards. Although all courses have up to 10 teeing options, here is where true golfing fun for the whole family can be had.

The Commons (3,417 yards, par 45) is another layout suitable for players from beginners to club champions. It’s a 12-hole design, reminiscent of Scottish communal golf, consisting of one par 5, seven par 4s, and four par 3s.

I don’t know if a caddie has ever lost a player in a bunker at Sand Valley, but it’s not impossible.

Sand Valley Golf Resort: The verdict

Nowhere is golf a “cheap” sport, especially not at golf resorts boasting courses designed by the biggest names in the business. Rates at Sand Valley for the 18-hole layouts range from $235 in shoulder seasons (April 28-May 20; Oct. 5-18) to $325 during peak season, for guests and day guests. Commons green fees range from $110-$150, and The Sandbox from $65-$85. This said, the reasonable food and drink, along with the complimentary off-course activities for guests and outstanding customer service, put Sand Valley within reach for most traveling golfers. It’s ideal for buddy trips and family trips, and it’s unquestionably worthy of “bucket-list” designation. Is it the “Best Golf Resort in the Midwest?” That’s open for debate, but it’s certainly one of the largest and fastest-growing.

Sand Valley is ideally suited for buddy trips.

As I walked past lodging check-in, I overheard a receptionist ask an arriving guest, “Have you been here before?” The man said, “I’ve never been to Wisconsin before!” Later, I asked the receptionist if this is common. “Oh, yes,” she said. “I’ve checked in guests from India, England, Japan – all over. I don’t think any of them would visit an ancient, dry lakebed in the middle of Wisconsin otherwise.”

Build it, and…well, you know the rest.

Step back into golf history at Belvedere Golf Club

A couple years before the famed Dr. Alister MacKenzie first visited northern Michigan to begin designing legendary Crystal Downs Golf Club north of Frankfort, another Scottish golf course architect arrived in nearby Charlevoix to take over the Chicago Club’s course there. His name was William “Willie” Watson. Watson had come to the US from Scotland in 1898 and began designing golf courses, first in Minnesota, then in California, where he and his growing family settled down. In all, he designed around 100 courses from Virginia to California. In 1925, he was contracted to build a golf course for the popular Belvedere Club in Charlevoix. Over 100 years later, the green complexes at Belvedere Golf Club are the last remaining original Watson greens in America.

The 1st green at Belvedere GC. You can see the edge of the false front above the bunker and imagine your nearly perfect approach trundling down the hill back into the bunker. (I didn’t have to imagine.)

Among the ranks of Golden Age golf course architects, Watson’s name is not as widely known as MacKenzie’s or Donald Ross’s, but even Ross consulted Watson on design principles. And several of the courses Watson built, including the Olympic Club’s two layouts near San Francisco, Interlachen Golf Club in Minnesota, and Brentwood Country Club in Los Angeles, stand today as iconic layouts.

Belvedere GC Head Professional Dennis “Marty” Joy II is a font of information and history, both about Watson and the course itself. “Forty-six major winners have visited Belvedere,” said Joy as he shared some of his vast knowledge during my recent visit. “That’s second only to Oakland Hills, where they’ve held a bunch of US Opens. Tom Watson is an honorary member, and he shows up every couple of years for a round. Jack Nicklaus was here a few years ago to play his son.”

Joy then walked me around the proshop in the Belvedere clubhouse, half-golf shop, half-museum. Dozens and dozens of photos of said major winners line the walls, many autographed, including the first true professional golfer, Walter Hagen. In 1929, Hagen called Belvedere GC, “The best 18-hole resort course in the United States.”

Whether or not you’ve heard of Watson, if you are an avid golfer, Belvedere Golf Club is a must-play example of classic course architecture principles that stand up by every measure to today’s equipment and players. From your first step into the proshop to your last step off the 18^th green, you are immersed in golf history and Watson’s architectural genius.

Playing Belvedere Golf Club

“This is a second-shot golf course,” explained Joy as I asked for tips before my round. “The fairways are wide, but the greens” – Watson’s brilliant, vexing, links-inspired greens – “are tough. There are lots of false-fronts, and closely mown run-offs on nearly all of them. If you don’t land in the right spots, you won’t stay on.”

Indeed, the fairways are extremely generous, though there are a number of strategically positioned fairway bunkers and swaths of knee-high fescue that can easily swallow tee shots that wander too far astray (for example, the steep ball-magnet of a hillside to the right of the elevated 1^st tee). There are also a few hidden hazards off the tee that can ambush first-time visitors. And, just as Joy warned, I experienced the vagaries of the greens on easily half the holes, where I thought approaches or pitches were safe, saw my ball trickle (or scamper) off false fronts or sides, or funnel far away from where they were intended to stop.

The elevated tee on Hole 1 at Belvedere GC requires some precision right away. The fescue on the hillside to the right is THICK!

Belvedere GC, Hole 2 tee — classic Michigan Golf!

Watson was ahead of his time in both green design and routing. The putting surfaces are the epitome of “potato chip greens” with radical contouring on some, and table-top edges that run off into tight chipping areas or bunkers. The surfaces are pristine, however, which is remarkable considering that after 100 years, the turf is a bit mongrel, with hints of bent, bluegrass, and even poa. Even the run-off areas are pure, as attested by my one birdie of the day, which was a putt from several yards short of the green on the long par-3 4^th. Considering the area was buried under four feet of snow in early April and then inundated with over four inches of rain in late April, the greenkeeping staff have done an amazing job providing players with impeccable greens. “They’ll keep getting faster all summer,” said Joy, rather ominously.

Putting from the fringes of the greens is often a good play. Made this at the par-3 4th Hole for my one birdie of the day.

In terms of routing, Watson varied directions, elevations, and yardages masterfully, establishing a template for modern layouts. This is especially true of the final three holes, where the 16^th is a shortish par 4 (by today’s standards), but with a severely elevated green that forces big hitters to carry their drives over 320 yards if they want to try to drive it. The 17^th is a mid-length par 3, and the 18^th is a long and very difficult par 4 with one of the most diabolical greens on the entire course. The collective combination offers some birdie chances before forcing players to flex their muscles and close with 3-4 precise shots.

From behind, the 18th green looks benign. It is not, however.

From behind the 5th green, you get a feel for the pristine surroundings throughout the course. Not a house in sight!

One particularly memorable feature is a creek that cuts across numerous fairways on the front side (Holes 2, 3, 5, 6) but which is mostly blind off the tee. Another, on the back side, is a collection of elevation changes, such as on the par-4 12^th, where the fairway cants steeply left to right before plunging some 30 feet down to a flat stretch of fairway in front of the green. Then there’s the short par-5 15^th, where the fairway is split in half by a 25-foot drop off that can be carried by big hitters. A lay-up off the tee is highly recommended for most, though.

The 12th fairway is a roller coaster down to the green.

The single small sign warning you of the steep drop-off in the 15th fairway.

Like all the great classic courses, Belvedere was designed for walking, and it remains perfectly walkable today. In fact, driving a cart proved to be somewhat confusing as I tried to figure out which way to head to the next tees after several holes. The sort of wild, unmarked, cartpath-less vibe with greens and tees relatively close together reminded me of a lot of courses in Scotland. Frankly, it would have been less confusing to walk in terms of figuring out where I should be going next.

Belvedere offers six sets of tee boxes to accommodate players of all skill levels, ranging from 4,675 yards up to a respectable 6,905 yards. Some of the most forward tees are placed in the fairways but nevertheless maintain some of the strategic angles of the back tees. This flexibility on yardages makes Belvedere a natural – and, as it turns out, extremely popular – venue for the National Hickory Open. In this event, players tee it up with 1935-era hickory-shafted clubs. Belvedere hosted in 2019, when the field was the largest ever, and will host again in 2028.

The 9th fairway runs along the ridge above the first fairway.

Belvedere Golf Club: The verdict

I admit that I believe Michigan golf to be the best in the nation. Ideal agronomy and topography, long summer days that stretch playing time past 9pm, sandy soil, the sheer number of courses, and the astonishing history of golf in the state all contribute to my bias. Belvedere is the prototypical example of everything that makes Michigan golf so great. The immaculately conditioned course is completely isolated, with no houses to be seen from any hole. I walked into the proshop and was greeted by Dean Martin crooning softly over the speakers, a bag full of hickory-shafted clubs, and photos of all those Hall of Famers who have played here over the past century. Joy showed me a copy of the original Watson blueprints for the course and pointed out several original bunkers (large bunkers!) that have disappeared over time. Joy says that they will be restored to match the originals during the coming year or two.

No pomp or fanfare — just 100+ years of the highest quality golf.

Green fees are rather steep at $150 during peak season ($180 with cart). But Belvedere is a course where $8-$10 per hole is actually fair for the experience. Honestly, I fell in love with the course stepping onto the first tee. If I lived or summered in the area, I would become a member in a heartbeat.

If you go

Northern Michigan is a summertime paradise, with golf and watersports taking top billing. There is also a vibrant winery, brewery, and distillery scene in the Charlevoix-Petoskey area. Highly recommended stops for some local libations include Boyne Valley Vineyards and Gypsy Distillery. The bandstand by the harbor in Charlevoix hosts live music throughout the summer. And for a taste of literary history, visit or reserve a room at the Hotel Perry in Petoskey, where Ernest Hemingway frequently stayed during visits to northern Michigan, and where he wrote his first long work, the controversial and often overlooked novella The Torrents of Spring (1926).

Boyne Valley Vineyards, where I even found a very nice dry red wine (somewhat rare for these parts).

Temecula Creek Inn: Three Distinct Nines + Wine

I’ve been writing about golf courses and resorts for nearly 30 years. It was this March on my way to my room at the Temecula Creek Inn in Temecula, California, when I experienced a first: A team from the Coroner’s Office loading a cadaver into their van right in front of my room. I took a photo but won’t post it here.

After that initial shock, I resolved to settle in and enjoy a couple days at a golf resort I first visited in 2007. At that time, the nearby Pechanga Casino Resort was constructing The Journey at Pechanga, the resort’s own high-end course, which opened in 2008 and was ranked #4 on GOLF Magazine’s 2009 “Best New Courses You Can Play” list. Since that time, the Pechanga Nation purchased Temecula Creek Inn and embarked on a $10 million+ renovation of the resort, focusing on the rooms and dining areas. The resort’s three nines – The Oaks, The Creek, and Stone House – also got a little sprucing up. A little.

According to the staff in the proshop, the main updates to the courses are some new or redesigned tee boxes and updated USGA ratings. To be honest, I didn’t notice any real differences from 2007. The three nines are all quite distinct in feel. The Oaks is dotted with small water hazards, several blind landing areas, and rough that is thick but not deep. The Creek is flatter, also with plenty of water, and more out in front of you. The greens are faster, but overall, The Creek plays a few strokes easier than The Oaks. Stone House is the jewel in the resort crown, but, unfortunately, I was not able to play it this visit. According to the staff, though, little had changed there over the past nearly 20 years.

Multiple attempts to contact the Director of Golf and Head Professional were unsuccessful, so I was unable to arrange an interview with management. I was therefore limited to conversations with the proshop staff – very polite and patient young folks – and my own recollections of the Stone House nine.

Playing Temecula Creek Inn (Oak & Creek)

Temecula is the southern-most wine region in California, and the wine list at the resort’s restaurant and bar include numerous local offerings. Being SoCal, prices of everything – from rooms to victuals – are inflated by Midwestern standards, but nothing outrageous or unexpected.

Green fees is the one aspect where SoCal pricing is not commensurate with quality. 18-hole rates ranged from $120-$130 during my stay (slightly discounted for the group I was with), which isn’t bad for the area, if conditions and services are solid. Unfortunately, multiple grassless, sand-covered, uneven tee boxes on both the Oaks and Creek nines, and some poorly maintained green complexes did not warrant those rates. In SoCal, at $75, these faults could have been overlooked. In the Champaign, Illinois, area, by comparison, it would be hard to charge more than $40 for 18 holes with these conditions.

Further disappointment lay in the on-course services. The drink cart appeared no more than 2x per 18 holes, usually within the first handful of holes. Naturally there was no water on the course for players, so rounds got pretty dry towards the end. Worse yet, play was glacially slow, especially on the weekend. After my second round, I stopped into the proshop to mention that our round had lasted nearly 6 hours and asked if they ever sent marshals out to keep players moving. I was told that they don’t actually have any marshals on staff. This is a major problem for a “golf resort.”

The yardages of the three nines have amazingly not changed one single yard since 2007: The Creek (3,348 yards, par 36) and The Oaks (3,436 yards, par 36) Courses were designed by Dick Rossen. The Stone House Course (3,257 yards, par 36) is a Ted Robinson, Sr. layout.

Of the three nines, The Creek is least remarkable, with relatively flat, parallel fairways. The Oaks is a solid, traditional test with undulating greens and multitudinous namesake oaks. The Stone House is the star, with ample scenery, elevation changes, and numerous rock outcroppings.

Starting out on The Oaks, one is almost immediately immersed in rugged beauty. The 498-yard 2nd is a lovely par 5 that snakes around massive oaks up to a green set against a backdrop of rocky foothills and steadfastly guarded on the right front edge by an enormous oak.

The 537-yard 4th is also visually appealing, and because it plays downhill, it ends up being more of a big par 4 than a true par 5. Nevertheless, the approach down through a neck of trees to the green protected in the front by a large bunker requires plenty of skill and guts to go for it in two.

The Stone House begins inauspiciously with perhaps the only “bad” hole on the property: a 505-yard par 5 starting with an awkward tee shot that need only travel some 220 yards with a good draw.

The layout picks up steam after the opener, however, and soon you’ll find yourself admiring one hole after another as they rise and drop across the dramatic landscape. Testosterone-laden Tour de France winner (and then loser) Floyd Landis trained on the roads encircling the course, so you can imagine the elevation changes.

The 416-yard 6th hole presents you with what might be the most striking tee shot on any inland course in Southern California. A well-struck ball will fly down from the elevated greens over rock and scrub to a rolling fairway. The approach then travels yet further down the valley to a green nestled into a grove of oaks. The only blemish on this otherwise perfect – and perfectly tough – hole is the freeway noise.

The 555-yard 9th ends your round with the tightest tee shot on this nine, though flares to the right will likely run back down the steep, scrubby hillside. The green is slightly elevated and tucked behind a burbling stream-fed pond.

As mentioned, The Creek nine is relatively nondescript. Greens here, though – as on the other two nines – are devilish to read, with several putting surfaces running away off the back, making long approaches very difficult to recover from. On the 9^th holes of both The Creek and Oaks, there is a small retention pond that should in no way be in play. But because of the short length of these par 4s, and the uncomfortable angles of both tee boxes, which don’t quite align with the preferred direction of play, somehow that damn pond looms larger than it should. (Got me both days, I must admit.)

Relatively flat, parallel holes are typical of The Creek nine.

Temecula Creek Inn Resort: The Verdict

Temecula Creek Resort has been around quite a while. The Oaks and Creek nines opened in the 1970s, and the Stone House nine opened around 1990. Honestly, it appears that little has changed since my visit in 2007. The new ownership has done some good work in renovating guest rooms and other facilities, but my recommendation would be to put more into the golf courses themselves. This said, I assume the Pechanga Nation’s focus is on the casino resort’s showcase course, The Journey, rather than this more recently acquired (and much older) property.

With appropriate investment in conditioning and staffing, the resort could be quite a draw, especially for non-gambling golfers. There are steep green fee discounts for California residents, so rates are more reasonable for locals. But for now, golf travelers will find a handful of memorable holes, some rough conditions, sparse player services, lovely surroundings, and, hopefully, no additional corpses.

Father’s Day Gift Guide 2026: Doing the best we can

Father’s Day 2026 approaches. This will be the first Father’s Day since my daughter was born in 1998 that neither she nor our son will be both out of the house and far beyond the range of a day’s drive. To say that I am melancholy would be like saying that Scottie Scheffler is “a good golfer.”

Being a father is sort of like playing golf. One day, everything seems to click, you make good decisions, the crowd cheers. The next day, nothing works, every break is bad, onlookers stand in stoney silence as your best effort nosedives into a pond. On good days and bad, we have to remember that we’re doing the best that we can.

Here are a few Father’s Day gift ideas that will let Dad know you appreciate the effort – he’s trying. He really is.

Project Tiger: The Birth of Genius and the Price of Greatness, by Gavin Newsham

One way to let old Dad know he’s doing OK is to document how things could have been worse. Kirkus Review describes this new book by long-time golf journalist Gavin Newsham, “A searing indictment of Tiger Woods’s father.” Sure, Tiger reached unparalleled heights in his play, his finances, his fame – but at what cost? This is a fascinating exploration of Tiger’s earliest years, which we call “formative years” for a reason. Earl Woods thought the world of his precocious son. But he also laid the weight of the world on his shoulders. The redemption may be that Tiger seems to be taking a very different approach with his own kids.

Bridgestone Golf Balls

Golf balls rank as probably the most gratefully accepted of all golf gifts. But even balls must be chosen with care. A dozen Nitros will likely end up “donated” back to the driving range. To avoid disappointment, work some casual questions into conversations with Pops like, “What is your average swing speed with a driver?” and “How important to you is spin around the greens?” Once you have this information, use the helpful chart on the back of all Bridgestone Your B boxes to select just the right ammunition for Dad’s next battle on the links – X, XS, RX, RXS ($55/doz.)

TRUE Linkswear Golf Apparel

Perhaps the most comfortable golf shoes on the market today are made by TRUE Linkswear. Both Dad and Mom will appreciate the ultralight, ultra-comfortable new Antigravity shoe by TRUE ($199). The styling and design features – waterproof, crossover tread, superfoam midsole – allow the Antigravity to pull double-duty both on and off the course.

I have a large selection of quarter-zips, but my new go-to – especially in “shoulder season” – is the TRUE Linkswear Quarter Zip ($125). It’s got just enough insulation to fend off a stiff springtime or autumn breeze, yet breathes easily enough to prevent over-heating, even walking the course. I appreciate the classic, understated cut and colors, too.

Turtleson Polos

Along with golf balls (of the right sort), golf polos are always appreciated. Speaking from experience, when Dad pulls on a brand-new polo and heads to the course, he is filled with confidence. Also speaking from experience, that confidence will evaporate after double-bogeying the first hole…BUT, he’ll still look good. Turtleson polos ($135) come in a range of eye-catching yet classic patterns, all in moisture-wicking, wrinkle-resistant fabric.

L.A.B. Golf Gear

I was playing golf with my own son yesterday – the young man whom I taught to play 15 years ago and who now hits the ball 50 yards past me off the tee…with his 3W, the little creep!! The only reason I beat him by a stroke yesterday (aside from the fact he was playing terribly, while I was playing infinitesimally less terribly) was that I was using “the world’s best putter.” < > — at least that’s how I described it to him. L.A.B. Golf’s DF3i putter saved me a half-dozen strokes yesterday, despite nearly nothing else in my game feeling right.

If your dad, like me, is a confirmed L.A.B. Rat, he’ll love some of the new L.A.B. apparel and gear. There are headcovers and caps, and apparel for both men and women. What I like best is that L.A.B. leans into the funky vibe of their lie-angle balanced putters by offering some equally quirky patterns and designs in their accessories. My favorites are the unique putter covers ($40-$120) and the retro-chic bucket hat ($50).

Finally, keep in mind that there is one gift beyond all others that Dad will remember most: If you can, take him out to play a round or two together – you’ll both miss these days when they’re over. Trust me on this.

First stop on the Tennessee Golf Trail: Henry Horton State Park

Henry Hollis Horton was the 36^th governor of Tennessee, serving from 1927-1933. Upon his death in 1934, the state procured a portion of his large estate with the intention of preserving it as a state park. The sprawling park opened in 1961, and in 1962 the park’s Buford Ellington Championship Golf Course debuted. The 7,060-yard, par-72 Charles Graves design eventually became the first in the present-day, nine-course Tennessee Golf Trail.

The Buford Ellington Course at Henry Horton State Park is characterized by generous fairways that are densely lined with towering hardwoods and thick brush. The routing takes advantage of the rolling terrain, with several elevated tees and greens. Multiple holes also challenge yardage estimations and club selections with blind tee shots and putting surfaces that cannot be seen from approach areas. The greens themselves are generally huge, with several tiers that require precise distance control to leave realistically makable putts.

I’ve played the Henry Horton Park course over a dozen times across the past two decades, and I can say with certainty that its current conditioning (Spring 2026) is the best I’ve ever experienced. A few years ago, the greens were resodded with Champion Ultradwarf Bermuda, and now that they have grown in, they are pure, true, and surprisingly fast. Every time I play here, I am shocked that the slope rating from the championship tees is just 128 (and a measly 122 from the white tees!). It’s certainly always played much harder than that for me.

Henry Horton State Park Golf Course, Hole 2 — one of the largest greens on the entire course, yet somehow still tricky to hit (and putt!)

Playing the Buford Ellington Championship Golf Course at Henry Horton State Park

The opening hole, a gently downhill, dead-straight par 4, plays shorter than the scorecard suggests, and along with holes 11 and 12, is one of the easiest on the course. The diametric opposites of these short holes are the par-5 6^th (568 yards), par-4 10^th (461 yards), par-4 13^th (420 yards), par-3 14^th (259 yards), par-4 17^th (410 yards), and par-5 18^th (611 yards) – all of which, if played from the tips, rank as some of the stoutest on the Tennessee Golf Trail.

There are four sets of tees, ranging down to 5,625 yards, with approximately 300 yards between each set. The exception is between the white tees and the green tees, with a difference of some 700 yards. The most notable advantage for players teeing from the more forward green tees is on Hole 6, where the white tees are separated from the greens by a forced carry of over 200 yards. This is a great hole for scrambles, as even bombs from the whites can be upstaged by worm-burners from the greens.

Henry Horton State Park Course, Hope 5 — the culmination of a sharp dogleg left that the biggest hitters might be able to get within 80 yards of cutting the corner from the tees

One of the more memorable holes is the 411-yard 9^th, where the best tee shots are fades between trees left and right over a precipitous drop-off to a blind valley. Aided by gravity and the firm, fast fairway, well-positioned tee shots will leave less than 150 yards to the three-tiered green, playing 10-15 yards longer, though, as the top of the flag will be barely visible on the steeply elevated putting surface.

After the turn, you’re smacked upside the head with the number-one handicap 10^th hole, which plays severely downhill and back up again. The sheer length of the hole (461 yards from the tips) means most drives hit into the opposite hillside and stop dead, leaving all but the biggest hitters 200+ yards up to the lofty green.

The remainder of the backside is composed of impressively varied holes – uphill, downhill, short, long and doglegs in both directions. The par-4 13^th is one of the most vexing, as a long draw from the tee can catch the corner of the right-to-left dogleg and potentially trundle downhill to within 150 yards of the green. However, over-draw it, and you end up in jail in thick woods; hit it straight, and you can run through the dogleg into more woods with well over 200 yards left for your second shot.

The long but mostly downhill par-5 18^th is an excellent closer, with a natural amphitheater around the back of the green to allow larger groups to set up and wait for foursomes to come in – ideal for spectating, applauding, or heckling, whatever the circumstances call for.

Hole 18, from the “spectator area” behind the green

Buford Ellington Championship Golf Course at Henry Horton State Park: The verdict

The Buford Ellington Course at Henry Horton State Park has the full collection of classic defenses: elevated greens that are both multi-tiered and steeply canted back-to-front, tree-lined fairways, and some serious length. It’s wild to me that the course slope rating from the white tees is only 122 – it always plays much harder for me than my home course, which has a higher slope rating. And now that the newly-sodded greens have grown in, they are some of the truest on the Tennessee Golf Trail.

Speaking of the Trail, it consists of nine courses, including three Jack Nicklaus-designed “Bear Trace” state park courses (Bear Trace at Cumberland Mountain State Park, Bear Trace at Harrison Bay State Park, Bear Trace at Tims Ford State Park), which get most of the attention from out-of-state visitors. But don’t sleep on the six other state park courses on the Trail, including Henry Horton, which all have lower greens fees: Fall Creek Falls State Park Course, Montgomery Bell State Park Course, Paris Landing State Park Course, Pickwick Landing State Park Course, and Warriors Path State Park Course. All state parks have cabins and lodges for golf getaways, many of which have been renovated and updated within the past 5-6 years.

Back at Henry Horton, those cabins, which are right across the road from the golf course and a short walk from the Horton-family cemetery plot, are joined by a completely renovated lodge (opening in late 2026). As for Chapel Hill itself, do yourself a favor and check out the Country Diner, just a few miles down the road from the park. The homestyle meals here are simply delicious and so reasonably priced, you almost feel guilty.

Hole 4, Parish Landing State Park Golf Course — one of my absolute favorites on the Tennessee Golf Trail

Towhee Club: New owners, new name, new greens, same creek

In 2013, I reviewed King’s Creek Golf Club, located in Spring Hill, TN. The two most memorable aspects of the 2005 Arnold Palmer design were the namesake creek and my first (and still only) hole-in-one. Upon returning to the area in 2026, I discovered that King’s Creek, which had closed several years earlier, was re-opened under new ownership and rechristened as the Towhee Club.

Said creek – more like a small river – still runs through the entire layout, influencing play on 13 of the holes. But, to be fair, the new moniker is equally apt, as there were dozens of towhees – lovely little songbirds – flitting amongst the trees, too. Aside from the name change, the new owners, who took over around 6 years ago, redid the greens, resodding them with TifEagle Bermuda, and removed “a bunch” of bunkers from the former collection of 49. Perhaps the most noticeable difference, though, is the brand new, ultra-modern, prairie-style clubhouse and restaurant.

Because the layout, and ever-present, snaking creek, have remained largely the same, however, the past advice to first-time visitors to this 6,783-yard, par-70 course holds: choose your tee boxes wisely. Even from the 5,665-yard white (Member) tees, there is plenty of trouble – and plenty of fun – to be had at Towhee Club.

Playing Towhee Club

So why is it so important to select the proper set of tees for your game? One reason is that the relatively diminutive course yardages tempt players to play farther back than they should. It must be kept in mind, though, that the course is a par 70. There are six par 3s, including four just under or over 200 yards, with the longest stretching to 241 yards from the back tees. If one chooses the tips, the par-5 7th is a monster at 615 yards.

This said, even the “Member” tees bring trouble into play for longer hitting higher handicappers. Also, taking driver off the tee, or even three-wood, often results half-wedges over the omnipresent creek or one of the remaining sand bunkers to greens.

Early in the season, conditions were still spotty, and the new greens were described by several in my group as “crunchy” or “crusty.” Still, they generally rolled true, despite patches on a few that were unplayable due to winter freeze and/or the previous summer’s mold damage. Considering the conditioning issues, the greens fees of around $100 seemed high, to be honest.

Highlight holes include the opener, which is a stout par-4 that requires a long tee shot to the elbow of a dogleg, and a second shot between trees and over that blasted creek to a wide but shallow green. From there, special note should be taken of the aforementioned par-5 7^th, with OB all down the left side, and the 430-yard, par-4 11^th, which features a pretty tee shot over a small pond, more OB left, and yawning fairway bunkers on the right.

The 15^th is arguably Towhee’s “signature” hole. The 195-yard, par-3 is picturesque, with water left, a tee shot over the creek, which you then traverse via a wooden bridge. From there, players with a good round going will need to hang on tight. The par-5 16^th and par-4 17^th holes are not rated as being very hard, but both tee shots are awkward, with water and trouble on both sides. And the 457-yard, par-4 18^th is simply a brute.

Towhee Club: The verdict

Towhee Club 18th green and new clubhouse

Don’t let the relatively short yardage and benign course and slope ratings of Towhee Club fool you. This is an enjoyable layout that plays tougher than the scorecard lets on. Smart, strategic play is rewarded. Thanks to the ever-present creek, even big hitters will have trouble overpowering it, no matter which tees are chosen.

Conditioning was an issue when I visited, but perhaps this could be chalked up to a relatively harsh winter. Still, greens fees felt a bit high – more than double what they were back when the course was named King’s Creek – considering that not much has changed aside from the turf on the greens.

Towhee Club also offers full practice facilities, and the course is perfectly walkable. As mentioned, the most striking upgrade over the original incarnation is the lovely new clubhouse, which frames the 18^th green quite nicely and also houses a very good and, by the looks of it, very popular restaurant called Birdsong Social.

Oh, in case you were curious, I did not repeat my 2013 hole-in-one. Sigh…