What follows is a pretty good selection of 18 destination-quality golf courses and resorts in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin, compiled by Tribune travel writers Robert Cross and Alan Solomon in consultation with former Tribune golf writer Reid Hanley.
All three actually play the game, though only Hanley can consistently hit a golf ball farther than he can throw a golf club.
It is not a list of the Top 18. We aren’t that smart. But it probably isn’t far off.
All fees listed are high-season rates; in the Midwest, “high season” — like fall color season — doesn’t begin and end at the same time everywhere, so call ahead. Many of the courses offer lower offseason and twilight (late afternoon) rates, and be alert for room-golf packages and other discounts.
The yardage distances are from the back (championship) tees, which are generally used mainly in tournaments or by people who have no trouble hitting a 1-iron 270 yards out of a pot bunker.
WISCONSIN
1
Blackwolf Run Golf Club (River Course), Kohler
6,991 yards, par 72
Fees: $125 weekdays with cart, $140 weekends.
Lodging: At the American Club hotel and the Inn on Wood Lake (both reduced fees, packages).
Phone: 800-344-2838
It’s a really hard course, and it’s really spectacular. It’s also home of this year’s U.S. Women’s Open (June 29-July 5), which means the course’s usual fine conditioning will be even finer. A third course opening this summer, highly anticipated Whistling Straits (like the others a Pete Dye layout — but no carts allowed), reinforces this golf resort’s lock as the Midwest’s best.
2
Brown Deer Golf Course, Milwaukee
6,716 yards, par 71
Fees: $65 (half cart $12) weekdays, $70 ($12) weekends.
Lodging: Various in Milwaukee.
Phone: 414-352-8080
That the Greater Milwaukee Open will be played here for the fifth straight year adds glamor to a county course that’s already a public treasure, especially after its $3 million upgrade. Not overly long, and a lot of fun; the greatest challenge may be getting a tee time.
3
Grand Geneva Resort & Spa (The Brute), Lake Geneva
6,997 yards, par 72
Fees: $110 with cart.
Lodging: At the resort (packages) and various in Lake Geneva.
Phone: 800-558-3417
High praise for this sandy (68 bunkers) monster, and improved marks for its upgraded links-style companion, once the Briar Patch (which had degenerated to the Dog Patch) and renamed The Highlands. Played back-to-back, a treat — especially after 2 p.m., when the fee for The Brute drops to $70 ($50 after 4 p.m.).
4
Golf Courses of Lawsonia (Links), Green Lake
6,764 yards, par 72
Fees: $50 weekdays with cart, $55 weekends.
Lodging: Green Lake Conference Center and various in Green Lake (packages).
Phone: 800-529-4453
An absolute gem to play, according to one of our experts, a links course that’s as true to the Scottish form as it can be without salt water. The neighboring Woodlands course is more conventional but first-rate as well.
5
The Springs Golf Club Resort, Spring Green
6,562 yards, par 72
Fees: $70 with cart.
Lodging: At the resort (reduced fees, packages), some elsewhere in Spring Green.
Phone: 800-822-7774
A sneaky little golf course designed by Robert Trent Jones Sr., tucked into a valley that inspired both the young and the elderly Frank Lloyd Wright, whose studio-home there draws worshipers. A third nine, designed by Andy North and Roger Packard, opened in 1994. No poor cousin, it works well in the rotation.
ILLINOIS
6
Eagle Ridge Inn and Resort (The General), Galena
6,820 yards, par 72
Fees: $131 with cart.
Lodging: At the resort (reduced fees, packages) and various in Galena proper and in Dubuque, Iowa.
Phone: 815-777-2500
Of the resort’s three courses, The General, a newish Roger Packard design, slightly outranks also-excellent North. All three (the third is the South course) share and effectively utilize some of northern Illinois’ most dramatic terrain. Proximity to one of the Midwest’s more charming places to buy fudge is another plus.
7
Cantigny Golf Club (Woodside and Lakeside), Wheaton
6,625 yards, par 72
Fees: $85 with cart or caddy.
Lodging: Various in Chicago (the club is about an hour from the Loop) and west suburbs.
Phone: 630-668-8463
Three solid nines; the course’s popularity for group outings can keep you from the consensus No. 1 combination (the Hillside is a shade less interesting). But each is immaculate, flower-bedecked and — rare among new (1989) courses — there’s no housing along the fairways. The fact that Cantigny and the Chicago Tribune share some history has absolutely nothing to do with its inclusion here. Honest.
8
Cog Hill No. 4, Lemont
6,976 yards, par 72
Fees: $100 with cart.
Lodging: Various in southwest suburbs and in the Joliet area.
Phone: 630-257-5872
Nicknamed “Dubsdread,” this is ranked among the country’s best courses and has been home of the (now) Motorola Western Open since all-male, all-private Butler got dumped in 1991. Bring a driver and a shovel: 120 bunkers await. And the 18th, a 448-yard par 4, truly is one of the great finishing holes in golf. Find a motel, throw Gleneagles, Ruffled Feathers and Big Run — three nearby beauties — into the weekend mix, and pretend you’re in Monterey.
INDIANA
9
Brickyard Crossing, Indianapolis
6,994 yards, par 72
Fees: $80 with cart.
Lodging: Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hotel (reduced fees) and various in Indianapolis.
Phone: 317-484-6572
Yes, there’s a gimmick: Four of the holes (7 through 10) are in the infield of the Indianapolis Speedway. Which means some of the backdrop is empty grandstands. But this is a quality layout, updated by Pete Dye, who incorporated some of the old Speedway Golf Course in his design. Carts not allowed on the track.
10
The Fort Golf Course, Indianapolis
7,144 yards, par 72
Fees: $39, $51 with cart.
Lodging: Various in Indianapolis.
Phone: 317-543-9597
Golf Magazine has named this one of its “Top 10 You Can Play” (Eagle Ridge’s The General is another). On what was once Ft. Benjamin Harrison’s military course, Pete Dye, who lives nearby, kept the first two holes and invented the rest. An outstanding in-town (sort of — it’s just outside the I-465 loop) course, with maybe the only hills in central Indiana.
11
French Lick Springs Resort (Hill Course), French Lick
6,625 yards, par 70
Fees: $36 weekdays with cart, $46 weekends.
Lodging: At the resort (packages).
Phone: 800-457-4042
When Donald Ross built his “new” courses in 1919 (Walter Hagen won the PGA there five years later), French Lick was already drawing the gentry. It’s by far the greater test of the resort’s two layouts; the gentler, flatter Valley course adjacent to the rejuvenated classic grand hotel-spa dates to 1907.
12
Covered Bridge Golf Club, Sellersburg
6,832 yards, par 72
Fees: $38 weekdays with cart, $43 weekends.
Lodging: Various in Louisville area.
Phone: 812-246-8880
A fine housing-development course designed and owned by pro Fuzzy Zoeller in far, far southern Indiana (in fact, just 20 minutes north of Louisville). Neatest feature: a double green shared by the 9th and 18th. And yes, there is a covered bridge.
13
Otter Creek Golf Course (North and West), Columbus
7,258 yards, par 72
Fees: $55 weekdays with cart, $70 weekends
Lodging: Various in Columbus
Phone: 812-579-5227
A Robert Trent Jones Sr. layout, and from the back tees a monster of a course (No. 5 measures 616 yards). In a town famous for its unusual architecture (take the self-guided tour — just follow the signs), it’s only right that the clubhouse was designed by the formidable Harry Weese.
MICHIGAN
14
Grand Traverse Resort (The Bear), Acme
7,065 yards, par 72
Fees: $130 with cart.
Lodging: At the resort (packages, reduced rates) and various in the Traverse Bay area.
Phone: 800-748-0303
It’s long, and it’s nasty. The original owners asked Jack Nicklaus to give them the most difficult course in Michigan, and the Bear (both of them) delivered. Not really a links course, but with hints of Scotland: heather, pot bunkers, cantilevered greens and not a lot of level ground. A first-rate facility, with rates to match.
15
High Pointe Golf Club, Williamsburg
6,849 yards, par 71
Fees: $55 weekdays with cart, $65 weekends
Lodging: Various in the Traverse Bay area (packages).
Phone: 800-753-PUTT
Especially fun because of a split personality — links on the front nine; hilly and forested on the back. A Tom Doak design, it’s on Golf Magazine’s “Top 100 in the U.S.” list (No. 74, ahead of Olympia Fields, Butler and Cog Hill No. 4).
16
Dunmaglas Golf Club, Charlevoix
6,897 yards, par 72
Fees: $95 with cart.
Lodging: Various in Charlevoix-Petoskey area (packages).
Phone: 888-VIP-0909
Views of Lake Charlevoix and Lake Michigan add to what’s one of the prettier and more difficult layouts in a golf-heavy region accustomed to (and willing to pay for) the finer things. Best public course in Michigan, according to Golf Digest. Absolutely dazzling when fall hits its hardwood forests — but Michigan is like that.
17
Boyne Highlands Resort (Heather), Harbor Springs
7,218 yards, par 72
Fees: $120 with cart.
Lodging: At the resort (packages) and various in Harbor Springs-Petoskey-Charlevoix-Boyne City area.
Phone: 800-GO-BOYNE
The best — and longest — of the resort’s three first-rate 18-hole courses. Scenic, with huge bunkers, interesting holes and just enough water, this Robert Trent Jones Sr. course is special; the resort’s links-style Donald Ross Memorial is a challenging partner.
18
Treetops Sylvan Resort (Masterpiece), Gaylord
7,060 yards, par 72
Fees: $76 with cart.
Lodging: At the resort (reduced rates, packages) and various in Gaylord, Charlevoix, Petoskey area.
Phone: 888-TREETOPS
Of the full-service resort’s four 18s, this one — opened in 1987 — gets the edge from Golf Digest. Designer Robert Trent Jones Sr. called it “my masterpiece,” and so does the resort. Opinion is split, though: One of our experts prefers Rick Smith’s “Signature” course; Tom Fazio’s congenial “Premier” is his only Michigan course. Together, they put Treetops near the top.
