Where are you playing tomorrow - Chicago (Round2)

[cane700]

Sunday we played 7 Bridges. There are some great holes there but some that are just poorly designed. Hole 14 is around 400 yards from the green tees and a funky dogleg left. A well struck tee shot aimed at the 150 yard marker went too far and the second shot needed to be played backwards and away from the green. That doesn't make a lot of sense. There was no one out there, maybe the $86.00 rate scared them off, and we rarely saw anyone in front or behind us. The greens were is less than optimal conditions...looks like a lot of fungus permeated certain parts of the greens. Lots of credit though to the rangers, who were out checking on them and one went as far as to stop, introduce himself and ask how we were enjoying the course. The outside bar for a post round beverage might be the best of any course...great setup and just a fun environment. SB is a once every few years course...would rather play Bowes or the Highlands at a much lesser rate and much better conditions.

 

I live on seven bridges. It isn't a bad course, and conditions are usually pretty good. I walk the path during lunch a lot and there is hardly ever anyone out there. Peak rate is $130, it is a $75 course at best during peak times. I am on my balcony now and haven't seen a player pass by (rain in the area, but still). I wonder how business would be if they dropped the peak rate to $100 (still over priced), and lowered the other times as well obviously. They have a good twilight membership as well, but no range kept me from joining. I will play it 2/3 times a year, not a ton for a course I live one.

 

Wow, $130 to play 7B? That's gotta be the biggest rip off in Chicago area golf.

 

Just looked at their website and the top rate is Saturday before 10 when it's $116. You can basically play the Highlands twice for the cost of 1 round on 7B. Plus, the Highlands doesn't have any funky holes, has a range, has a walking rate, etc.

 

Seven Bridges: The nicest course I never wanted to play again.

[ldchristopher]

Played Mill Creek today. Had only played there once before and I had no recollection of the course. Some very sloped greens and a few very tough pin placements. Greens were fairly smooth, but slow and burnt out on the hills. Looks like they didn’t use a pre-emergent because there was crabgrass everywhere. 18 has two blind shots and if you’ve never played that hole you have no idea what to do with your second shot. Round was a pleasure because the rain held off, I played in 3 hours, and I ended up playing with a guy that we found out we shared a mutual aquaintance.

Right before the start of the season, Arcis announced it was going to stop managing Mill Creek and it was sold back to the original owners. It was unclear whether or not the course was going to allow any golfers this year before they opened up in about mid May. My guess is next year the crab grass will be gone and the course will be back in decent shape.

[B-Man]

Playing Mistwood Friday afternoon. Invited by a client. Yay.

[Argonne69]

I'm flying out to Seattle on Friday evening for 6 days, and 9 rounds of golf in the Puget Sound area. I'll be playing Chambers Bay on Sunday morning. The weather forecast looks promising with only a small chance of rain two of the days.

[Holy Moses]

I'm flying out to Seattle on Friday evening for 6 days, and 9 rounds of golf in the Puget Sound area. I'll be playing Chambers Bay on Sunday morning. The weather forecast looks promising with only a small chance of rain two of the days.

 

Do you walk every course? Carry your bag or use a Clik Gear?

[leric90]

just wondering, what would you guys rate as the most difficult course in chicagoland?

 

also anyone want to join me for a round at kemper lakes?

[DavePelz4]

Statistically, Rich Harvest Farms is rated at 79.8 from the tips with a slope of 155. I'm pretty sure it's in the top 10 toughest courses in the US.

 

It's also the home course of the Harvard of the Midwest, Northern Illinois University.

[Argonne69]

I'm flying out to Seattle on Friday evening for 6 days, and 9 rounds of golf in the Puget Sound area. I'll be playing Chambers Bay on Sunday morning. The weather forecast looks promising with only a small chance of rain two of the days.

 

Do you walk every course? Carry your bag or use a Clik Gear?

 

On my golf trips where I'm playing two a day, or multiple rounds in a few days, I use an electric cart unless it's a high-end course that requires walking (e.g. Erin Hills, Streamsong). At Chambers Bay I'll have a caddie, but the other rounds I'll be riding.

 

I walked four rounds in two days at Bandon Dunes a few years back, and it darn near killed me. I think I could walk one round, and ride a 2nd, but walking two a day for multiple days is a no-no.

[dhartmann34]

just wondering, what would you guys rate as the most difficult course in chicagoland?

 

also anyone want to join me for a round at kemper lakes?

I think Bull Valley is the toughest I've seen. Chutes off the tees, lots of trees, rough and a few blind shots. Gotta keep it straight.

 

I love Kemper. I used to caddie there. Haven't been out there since they redid the bunkers, although I hear it's great!

[DavePelz4]

just wondering, what would you guys rate as the most difficult course in chicagoland?

 

also anyone want to join me for a round at kemper lakes?

I think Bull Valley is the toughest I've seen. Chutes off the tees, lots of trees, rough and a few blind shots. Gotta keep it straight.

 

I love Kemper. I used to caddie there. Haven't been out there since they redid the bunkers, although I hear it's great!

 

Bull Valley is a meager 77.2/151. Basically a pitch and putt.

 

Kidding...have been trying to get on there for 20 years!

[leric90]

yeah i heard bull valley was tough, id love to play it sometime! Anyways if anyone is interested in kemper, i think we can go for a round next tu/thur afternoon. just let me know!

[dhartmann34]

yeah i heard bull valley was tough, id love to play it sometime! Anyways if anyone is interested in kemper, i think we can go for a round next tu/thur afternoon. just let me know!

I'd be down if the weather is decent. How long have you been a member out there?

[Waterboy]

just wondering, what would you guys rate as the most difficult course in chicagoland?

 

also anyone want to join me for a round at kemper lakes?

I think Bull Valley is the toughest I've seen. Chutes off the tees, lots of trees, rough and a few blind shots. Gotta keep it straight.

 

I love Kemper. I used to caddie there. Haven't been out there since they redid the bunkers, although I hear it's great!

 

I was going to say bull valley also. There are some tight tee shots that you have to hit a long ways out there. Rich harvest feels too manufactured for me.

 

I thought I heard that Butler was tough but I've never been.

[dhartmann34]

just wondering, what would you guys rate as the most difficult course in chicagoland?

 

also anyone want to join me for a round at kemper lakes?

I think Bull Valley is the toughest I've seen. Chutes off the tees, lots of trees, rough and a few blind shots. Gotta keep it straight.

 

I love Kemper. I used to caddie there. Haven't been out there since they redid the bunkers, although I hear it's great!

 

Bull Valley is a meager 77.2/151. Basically a pitch and putt.

 

Kidding...have been trying to get on there for 20 years!

I've got a friend that is a member out there. He has a great charity tournament out there every August which is fun. I didn't get to play this year since I was just getting back from Florida yesterday... But I heard it was a good day out there.

[propman]

Have not played many private courses. The most difficult course I have played in the Chicago area is Big Run.

[leric90]

yeah i heard bull valley was tough, id love to play it sometime! Anyways if anyone is interested in kemper, i think we can go for a round next tu/thur afternoon. just let me know!

I'd be down if the weather is decent. How long have you been a member out there?

 

im just a social member so we can play on tue/thur, but i've actually only played there once and so im trying to go out a few more times

[VNutz]

Have not played many private courses. The most difficult course I have played in the Chicago area is Big Run.

 

That's what I was thinking. Don't hear of many that score well there.

[B-Man]

Have not played many private courses. The most difficult course I have played in the Chicago area is Big Run.

 

That's what I was thinking. Don't hear of many that score well there.

 

I shot 3 under 81 there one time.

[DavePelz4]

Have not played many private courses. The most difficult course I have played in the Chicago area is Big Run.

 

That's what I was thinking. Don't hear of many that score well there.

 

74.6/142.

[Argonne69]

Cog Hill Dubs is 77.8/151 from the tips. 'Probably the toughest public access course.

 

Oak Grove is 75.0/142 from the tips.

[VNutz]

Have not played many private courses. The most difficult course I have played in the Chicago area is Big Run.

 

That's what I was thinking. Don't hear of many that score well there.

 

I shot 3 under 81 there one time.

 

Ho hum

[Shriner]

Cog Hill Dubs is 77.8/151 from the tips. 'Probably the toughest public access course.

 

Oak Grove is 75.0/142 from the tips.

 

You could have a great debate, that is for sure. My vote for public courses would be Oak Grove or Makray Memorial.

 

If we are being honest, the rating system doesn't really accurately show how much more difficult a course is compared to another. I just played Whittaker Woods and I would say it is easily one of the most difficult courses I have ever played, top ten for sure, despite its rating. If you are playing under public conditions...no spotters for balls and no caddies for distance, you really don't have much of a chance as you will probably lose 3 balls by sheer bad luck, which is six strokes before the round begins.

 

Ultimately, the answer is probably different based on your individual golf game. In Cary, Chalet Hills is rated much easier than Foxford Hills, probably because Foxford Hills is over 7k yards. However distance does not bother me but narrow holes do, so Chalet Hills is MUCH more difficult for me. I also believe Oak Grove to be more difficult than Cog Hill. Curious what others think as far as most difficult public courses...

[Argonne69]

Whittaker Woods is rated at 74.3/144 from the black tees, so it's not too far behind Dubs. I'd say Dubs is the hardest, as the fairway and greenside bunkers are quite penal if you're offline. The multi-section greens also make two-putting tough if you're not in the pin's quadrant.

 

Whittaker has few bunkers, so a little offline isn't as punishing. A lot offline and you're certainly in the junk. The greens are also much more benign than Dubs.

[Shriner]

Whittaker Woods is rated at 74.3/144 from the black tees, so it's not too far behind Dubs. .

 

Scorecard from Sunday says 74.8 / 147. It must have gotten harder since you played it last ;) I am going to try Cog this year, it has been a few years for me. Stonewall would be another to throw in the mix for public courses.

[Jazzmastafish]

If we are being honest, the rating system doesn't really accurately show how much more difficult a course is compared to another.

 

If we are being honest, um, it's supposed to?

 

The key to understanding how it works, is to know that the course rating is a measurement of how difficult a course is for a scratch golfer, who is usually assumed to not hit it in the sh!t, which is more reliant on the courses overall distance. Whereas the slope is a measurement of how much MORE difficult a course plays to a bogey golfer, which is more reliant on how penalizing it is when you hit a shot offline as bogey golfers do.

 

Of course these ratings are generalized, and sure one golfer might find, say, Pine Valley slightly easier than, say, Spyglass Hill for their game, but when you get to ratings above 75 and slopes above 140 (which is 140/113 = 1.24x harder than the average course for a bogey golfer) you're really just splitting hairs to say that one championship caliber course is "more difficult" than another.

[ldchristopher]

I wouldn't put too much stock in the rating and slope of courses in the Chicago area. Some of the numbers at these courses make absolutely no sense at all. Super inflated numbers at places like Broken Arrow come to mind and all of the combos at White Hawk that include the Silver Hawk nine have a rating of at least 76, which is insane. That said, overall the hardest are probably Rich Harvest Farms (never played but others that have said it was the most mentally exhausting round they've ever had) and Butler (again, I've never played but supposedly the pros wouldn't play it from the tips when it hosted the Western Open). The toughest public courses are probably Dubs, Oak Grove and Stonewall. Oak Grove is a 75/142 that's only a par 71 while Stonewall is a 75/150 that, judging by the fact that the number 1 handicap is the 510-yard par 5 8th hole, might also play as a par 71 for tournaments and US Open qualifying rounds. I've played Oak Grove and Stonewall from the tips and, for me, Stonewall was significantly more difficult.

[Holy Moses]

I’ve heard it’s Butler National, hands down

[geochitown]

just wondering, what would you guys rate as the most difficult course in chicagoland?

 

also anyone want to join me for a round at kemper lakes?

I think Bull Valley is the toughest I've seen. Chutes off the tees, lots of trees, rough and a few blind shots. Gotta keep it straight.

 

I love Kemper. I used to caddie there. Haven't been out there since they redid the bunkers, although I hear it's great!

 

Bull Valley is a meager 77.2/151. Basically a pitch and putt.

 

Kidding...have been trying to get on there for 20 years!

 

Cdga has some nice tee times at Chicagoland private clubs, bull valley being one

[geochitown]

Anyone played quit qui oc near Sheboygan?

[dhartmann34]

Anyone played quit qui oc near Sheboygan?

I have....but it was like 10 years ago. I don't remember much other than it being a bit tight with decent conditions. Nothing special really.