The Best Golf Courses in Illinois: Chicago and Beyond
Illinois golf is Chicago golf — the metropolitan area contains nearly all of the state's significant courses, concentrated in the northern suburbs and extending to the southern and western exurbs. It is one of the strongest major-market golf landscapes in America, anchored by three courses that have hosted major championships and surrounding them with a depth of quality public and private golf unusual for a Midwest city.
Medinah Country Club — Medinah
Medinah Country Club has hosted three US Opens (1949, 1975, 1990) and two PGA Championships (1999, 2006), as well as the 2012 Ryder Cup — the Miracle at Medinah, where Europe came back from 10-6 down on the final day to win the cup. Course No. 3 is the primary championship layout — a tree-lined design around Lake Kadijah with the elevated 17th tee shot over water as its signature hole. It is one of the most decorated private courses in America.
Olympia Fields Country Club — Olympia Fields
Olympia Fields Country Club hosted the 2003 US Open (Jim Furyk's victory) and the 2015 BMW Championship. The North Course is the primary championship layout — a classic parkland design with the mature trees and rolling terrain that defines Midwest private golf at its best. It is private but well known through its tournament pedigree.
North Shore Country Club — Glenview
North Shore Country Club's course, designed by Seth Raynor in 1923, contains some of the most interesting green complexes in the Chicago area — Raynor's template holes (the Redan, the Biarritz, the Double Plateau) executed with the precision that characterizes his best work. It is private but consistently appears on lists of the best courses in Illinois.
Public Golf in Chicago
The Chicago Park District operates several quality public courses, including Sydney Marovitz on Lake Shore Drive (the most scenically located public course in the city) and Jackson Park (historically significant as the site of Bobby Jones's first major win). Cog Hill Golf and Country Club in Lemont — which hosted the Western Open (now the BMW Championship) for decades — offers the best public golf in the suburbs with four courses, the best of which is the Dubsdread Course designed by Dick Wilson.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the most famous golf course in Illinois?
Medinah Country Club is the most famous course in Illinois, having hosted the US Open three times, the PGA Championship twice, and the 2012 Ryder Cup. Olympia Fields Country Club is the second most recognized Illinois venue through its US Open and BMW Championship history.
What is the best public golf course near Chicago?
Cog Hill Golf and Country Club's Dubsdread Course in Lemont is the most acclaimed public-access course in the Chicago metropolitan area, having hosted PGA Tour events for decades. Sydney Marovitz Golf Course in Lincoln Park offers the most memorable setting for a public round in the city itself.