Here’s a trivia question you might find surprising: Who offers more golf courses — Chicago (brutal winters, damp springs, muggy summers), or Arizona (year-round blue sky, snowbird haven, vacationers’ paradise)? Take Chicago, and you’re a winner, especially if you know the best deals.
Besides some decent links in the city with bargain rates, there are suburban bargains not far from downtown or O’Hare Airport.
These suburban choices allow you to play everything from championship level golf to a quick par 36 and not bust your wallet.
Here’s how they score with Metromix, with course descriptions, rates, special deals, and a rating: 1 = eagle of a course, 2 = birdie of a course, 3 = par of a course and 4 = bogey of a course.
Far West
Orchard Valley Golf Course is owned and managed by the Fox Valley Park District — but the usual stereotype of park district versus country club courses ends there. One of Chicagoland’s top courses, Orchard Valley hosted the Illinois Open in 1996 and 1998. Designed by architect Ken Kavanaugh, the course features imaginative holes with large expanses of water, and numerous bunkers along most fairways and greens. The fairways themselves frequently slope toward hazards, requiring some precise shots. The greens are fast. The 13th hole reflects the history of its number — unlucky 13. Even the course brochure agrees: “Just a tough hole. Is there such a thing as a par 4 1/2?”
Advice: Course offers four tee choices based on your handicap: Black for 0-8, Blue for 8-18, White for 18-25, and Red for 25 and up. Don’t be a hero if you’re not there yet. You’ll be challenged playing within your own game. Take the premier courses in the Chicago area — Seven Bridges, Kemper Lakes, Cog Hill, Pine Meadow — you won’t find a better all-around value than Orchard Valley, even for non-residents.
Rating: 1
Stats: Non-residents: weekdays $43 for 18, $30 after 3:30 p.m.; weekends $50 for 18, $34 after 3:30 p.m. Residents: weekdays $25 for 18, $22 after 3:30 p.m.; weekends $31 for 18, $26 after 3:30 p.m.; senior and juniors (weekdays only) $32 for 18. Carts are $26 for 18, $20 for 9. 18 holes. Course is 6,745 yards (from championship tees); par 72.
Orchard Valley Golf Course is at 2411 W. Illinois Ave., Aurora. From Chicago, take Interstate 290 (Eisenhower Expressway) to Interstate 88 (East-West Tollway) west. Last exit in Aurora is Orchard Lane. Go west 1 1/2 miles on Orchard Lane to course. Phone 630-907-0500.
19th hole: Full-service restaurant in a beautifully decorated clubhouse.
Northwest
Streamwood Oaks is a 9-hole championship course that can best be described as a hidden gem. Set in a natural wetland, the course features hazards with every hole, including water, marshes with cattails, and a number of narrow fairways lined with dense trees and foliage that gobble up errant balls. You’ll feel like you’ve played a round here, even if it’s only 9 holes. The course is nestled within a subdivision on both sides and remains invisible to motorists passing by just west on Illinois 59. And since most folks don’t know it’s there, walk-ons during weekdays are easy.
On weekends, you get this deal: after 3 p.m., bring your wife or child and play family golf rates of just $9 each — that’s a buck-per-hole, and hard to beat. Toss in the course’s card deal (get a card punched each time you play and after nine rounds, the next one’s free) and you have an exceptional value.
Advice: Keep your driver in the bag for the par 4 hole 1 and par 5 hole 6 — you’ll want to lay up because of the water. Hole 4 — the first par 5 — is very challenging and doesn’t allow any shortcuts as it winds around a huge marsh area — cut across the loop and your ball is wet and gone. Approach area for hole 2 is narrow; some golfers say the hole isn’t fair. Play it and see.
Rating: 2
Stats: Non-residents: weekdays $13 for 9 holes, $15 on weekends. Residents: weekdays $12 for 9 holes, and $14 weekends. Seniors 60+ weekdays only pay $9 before 3 p.m. Weekends after 3 p.m. $9 per person if accompanied with wife or child. Carts are $16 or $10 for a single rider. Course is 9 holes; 2,597 yards; par 36.
Streamwood Oaks is at 565 Madison Dr., Streamwood. Take Interstate 90 from Chicago to Illinois 59 exit and head south to Illinois 19 (Irving Park). Turn east, go two blocks and look for signs to course. Phone 630-483-1881.
19th hole: Free coffee, snack bar available in small clubhouse.
North
Village Green is a privately owned course in Mundelein. The nearly 40-year-old layout features large, well-maintained greens. Maple and pine trees abound.
It’s comparable to some forest preserve courses in the area, but the key points here are price. You don’t pay more if you don’t live in the town. Additionally, the course works for 4-stroke handicappers as well as whackers and beginners. Four holes require navigating some water and the course’s fairways are somewhat tight. Cost is barely over $1 a hole and you don’t have to wait until 5 or 6 p.m. when it’s half-dark for twilight rates to kick in because weekend twilight starts at 2 p.m. Several Chicagoland coupon books have 2-for-1 deals in them for the course.
Advice: Some of the par 4s don’t require using your driver, but since the fairways are tight, you might play with your 3 or 5 wood anyway. The par 5 16th hole is the signature test of the course, featuring a 325-yard climb upward, after which you’re greeted with 100 yards of water — hit your approach short or mess up your drive/second shot combo and it’s “see ya!”
Rating: 3
Stats: No resident/non-resident fees differentials, as the course is privately owned. Weekdays $20.50 for 18, $13.50 after 3 p.m.; weekends $27.50 for 18, $19.50 after 2 p.m., $15.50 after 4 p.m.; seniors and juniors weekdays only are $16.50 for 18. Carts are $23 weekdays, $27.50 weekends. Course is 18 holes; 6,235 yards; par 70.
Village Green is at 2501 N. Midlothian Rd., Mundelein. From Chicago, take Interstate 94 (Edens Expressway) north to Illinois 176; head west to Midlothian, turn right and go about two miles. Phone 847-566-7373.
19th hole: Clubhouse with full bar and lunch-type sandwiches only; after 3 p.m., just hot dogs unless there’s a prearranged party.
Southwest
Gleneagles Country Club features two 18-hole courses featuring various obstacles and lengths. Play the Red course and you’re looking at six holes where water comes into play; the White course is waterless, but has faster greens, plus interesting par 3s with slopes. Both courses have bent grass on the fairways. Opened in 1924, the club is dotted with lots of mature maples and oaks, and the Gleneagles’ staff says the courses are equally popular. The club is the former home of the Chicago Open, and is very reasonably priced: you can play twilight golf at 3 p.m. and pay less than $1 a hole on one of two possible courses.
Advice: The Red course is 6,081 yards and the White is 6,302. Both play well with a 3-wood. On the Red, the 17th hole can be the Phantom Menace — the par 4 finds most folks with about 220 yards to the green after their tee shot, with a 90-yard lake to cross before they get there (kerplunk!). The 9th hole also involves navigating a small lake. The White course is dry but has sloping greens early on. There’s lots of sand to play in, too.
Rating: 2
Stats: All players pay the same rates. Weekdays $25 for 18, $14 for twilight (begins at 3 p.m.); weekends $31 for 18, $15 twilight; for seniors Monday through Thursday only, 18 holes $15 walking or $25 with cart from 6-11 a.m. Carts are $26 for 18, $17 twilight. Two courses, both par 72. Red course is 6,081; White is 6,302.
Gleneagles Country Club is at 13070 McCarthy Rd., Lemont. From the city, take Interstate 55 to La Grange Road and head south to 123rd Street, which becomes McCarthy. Or take I-55 to Illinois 83 south and go to Bell Road; go south on Bell Road and then right on McCarthy.
19th hole: Full-service bar and restaurant open throughout the day and evening, featuring largely American cuisine.
West
Villa Olivia Country Club is perfectly located just 25 minutes west of O’Hare Airport. A ski resort by winter, its back nine holes cover hilly terrain you wouldn’t want to walk with a golf bag. Three new holes have been created recently. The course isn’t overly long — less than 5,600 yards — but it requires using most of the clubs in your bag. The 18th par 5 hole is uphill, as is the 12th — a tough par 4. Front par 3s are over water, and some fairways are tight.
Rating: 3
Advice: Seek out the coupon deals available on its Web site (www.villaolivia.com) or visit local sporting goods stores in the Bartlett, Bloomingdale or Roselle area (Sports Authority, Sportmart, Play It Again Sports, Pro Only Golf in Stratford Square Mall, Green Valley Driving Range in Roselle) for 2-for-1 coupons. Thousands were distributed and offer what is possibly the best deal in the area: play twilight after 4 p.m. weekdays with a partner and you get 18 holes and a cart for $17 each!
Stats: Weekdays $30 for 18, weekends $35; weekday twilight $16 and $9 cart (begins at 4 p.m.), $9.50 for 18 (6 p.m.); weekend twilight $26 for 18 and $14.25 cart (3 p.m.), $19 for 18 and $9 cart (6 p.m.). Seniors 60 and over weekdays Monday through Thursday and Friday morning only are $28 for 18 including cart.
Villa Olivia is at U.S. 20 and Naperville Road in Bartlett. From Chicago, take I-290 and exit at U.S. 20; head west about 10 miles to course. Phone 630-289-1000.
19th hole: Full-service bar and country club restaurant; popular fish fry on Friday nights.
