CHICAGO, IL – Illinois has reason to celebrate as six of its golf courses made Golf Digest’s list of America’s 100 Greatest Golf Courses.
This year’s edition is hailed as the most scientifically rigorous ranking ever published by Golf Digest, with 1,800 panelists providing more than 85,000 evaluations over a 10-year scoring period.
Chicago Golf Club, ranked #13, in Wheaton opened the country’s first 18-hole course in 1893, built by C.B. Macdonald, the preeminent golf expert in the U.S. at the time.
Butler National Golf Club, ranked #75, in Oak Brook was former tour player George Fazio’s ideal of a championship course, with 10 forced-carries over water in 18 holes.
Canyata Golf Club, ranked #85, in Marshall was created by energy-industry CEO Jerry Forsythe and boasts nearly flawless manicuring, with only a handful of rounds played each year by invited guests.
Medinah Country Club: No. 3, ranked #93, in Medinah is Exhibit A for the notion that great golf courses aren’t created, but evolve. A major tournament site since 1949, it has undergone a succession of remodelings and has improved with every session.
Olympia Fields Country Club, ranked #99, was established in 1915 and is known for its stunning course and rich history, having hosted several USGA and PGA Championships.
Shoreacres Golf Club, ranked #55, possesses a unique topography, playing along plateaus and over ravines that feed into Lake Michigan.
Other notable courses that made Golf Digest’s America’s 100 Greatest Golf Courses list include Victoria National Golf Club, located in Newburgh, Indiana, features an unusual and unpolished Tom Fazio design that has been praised by panelists for its difficulty. Erin Hills Golf Course in Hartford, Wisconsin, was initially designed to be a simple, affordable, lay-of-the-land layout but was eventually tweaked to host the 2017 U.S. Open, won by Brooks Koepka.
Finally, the highly coveted Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia, has undergone numerous changes over the years to keep it competitive for the annual Masters Tournament. To read more about these courses and others on the list, click here.
