Midland Hills Country Club

Make no mistake, Midland Hills is destined to climb the Minnesota private club rankings thanks to the good fortune of discovering Seth Raynor’s original design maps in the ceiling of the maintenance facility in 2018.

That discovery prompted the club to hire Jim Urbina in 2020 to return the course to its original intent, including widening fairways, massive tree removal, restoring bunkers benched into greens, and reclamation and squaring of greens.

The result is the kind of course that speaks to golf nerds, particularly architecture purists.

My only disappointment in a course that is replete with template holes, is the decision to make only the back half of the Biarritz a putting surface. The front half and valley are kept at fairway height, I suppose at the behest of the members. Still, this course is soulful, imminently playable and ultimately pleasurable a year into its rebirth.

If you like old-style courses with rolling terrain, smooth fairways that slope right or left, and fast greens with lots of undulations, you’ll love the Midland Hills Country Club golf course. The course was first laid out in 1919, and although it has been modified over the years the course retains many of the original features and original charm, including several “template holes” that incorporate design elements from some of the famous Scottish links courses. Most of the greens are at least slightly elevated and most allow run-up shots to reach the pin. There are no par 4 or 5 holes that require a forced carry approach over water to reach the green. The fairways are not overly wide, but are generous enough. There are few fairway bunkers, but the greenside bunkers are deep and you’ll really want to avoid them. Every hole was fun to play for the first time, but three really stood out for me. The tee shot on the par 4 8th hole is over water and will require a decision as to how much you want to risk in order to have a shorter approach to the green. Left of the tree on the far side of the pond is a good aiming point, resulting in a short iron approach shot. The green is severely elevated, so you will need to take enough club to be sure to get on top because any ball falling short will roll all the way down the hill and you’ll need to repeat the shot. The par 4 14th is a template hole called the Punchbowl. Following a good tee shot you’ll have a blind approach to the green. If the pin is set in the front or middle of the green (indicated by the 150 yard marker), you should hit a shot 10 yards less than the indicated distance to the pin. This is because the punchbowl effect of the terrain will funnel a short shot onto the green and toward the pin. Take your par and move on. The par 3 16th is an excellent Biarritz template hole, 197 yards from the middle tees. If you can’t carry the green on your tee shot, it may be better to hit the tee shot with a lower trajectory that will land short of the swale in front of the green and then run through the swale and onto the green. Otherwise you’ll be trying to putt through, or chipping over, the swale to get to the pin. A really fun hole! Having played at least fifty of the courses in the Twin Cities area, I have to say that this is one of my favorites. I was fortunate to have a member invite me to play and I plan to stay in his good graces so he’ll invite me again!

I have played this country club a handful of times, and I really like it. They have a very nice pro shop and clubhouse, staff is pretty nice and the range is one of my favorites I have been to. Multiple targets, different sized greens and other things you can aim at. The course is maintained really well and the greens are close to perfect. People fix their divots, but its a country club so people probably have an added interest in keeping their club nice. They have some water hazards on the front 9 and the back 9 is more wooded. This is a city country club but for the most part you don't realize it while playing. There is only 1 hole that runs along a freeway, so you have to be a little careful there not to go right. Mental game. They have nice outdoor bathrooms, which is always a plus. I love playing here and can't wait until I am back.

If you like traditional type courses this one is a good one. Greens will test any level of golfer. Course is always in great shape and is fun to play.