With his golf course design business based 30 miles away in Libertyville, Ill., highly acclaimed Rick Jacobson was an obvious and convenient choice to build Bowes Creek Country Club in Elgin. Based on reviews on GolfNow.com, locals approve of the work of their native son, giving Bowes Creek an average rating of 4.5 on a scale of 5. The course has many of the player-friendly touches typical of Jacobson courses: wide fairways, big greens and multiple, scattered tee boxes, giving holes an array of different looks.
Prairie Landing Golf Club is laid out on the rolling land next to a small airport in DuPage County, 40 miles west of Chicago. Also, as you move through this layout, you can't miss the train tracks that run the perimeter of the course, reminiscent of some of the great links courses in Scotland. What the planes and trains do is add quaintness to a sprawling complex of remarkably interesting holes, tricky greens and a practice facility that is one of the best anywhere in the area.
For most golfers, it will take some planning and travel time to get to Stonewall Orchard. Good courses are worth the extra effort, however. Take the time, spend the day, enjoy the experience, and make up your own mind about that devious 18th hole. Dave Berner has more from Grayslake, Ill.
Owned and operated by the Byron Forest Preserve District, PrairieView Golf Club sprawls across gently rolling hills dappled with native prairie grasses and wildflowers. The landscape lends itself to a variety of holes from some that are tight and tree lined to others that are wide open with a links-style design.