The Refuge Golf Club

played here many times its very nice nice greens fairways sand very nice all around.
very hard some days due to the marsh its vlose to on every hole the insects ,horse and deer flies omg ask before you show up,bring some spray or else.

This is an excellent course in the North, North burbs which may be too far for some. However for golf enthusiasts it's a must play in the ciites. The course is always in great shape (I wish they gave another option between "maintanied" and "pristine"), and the deals on golf now are unbelievable. When you look at the deals (even in the middle of summer) they are very cheap. The course is a good challenge for all level and the holes are interesting. Only drawback in the drive.

this is a fantastic, well maintained, nice course. there are lots of wooded out of bound area so careful those hookers and slicers.. fairway are large although looks small when u r on tee. great course over all ..enjoy it ...

The Refuge was overall a nice course. There were several holes with the usual carry over water areas that made the course challenging. The greens were in fantastic shape & putted true. I would certainly play this course again.

The pro shop attendant was extremely courteous upon our arrival which got the morning off to a great start plus we were able to tee off about 25 minutes ahead of our scheduled time which is always nice.
The tees, fairways and greens were in very good condition although it appears many of the patrons show very little etiquette in repairing ball marks on these greens. I am sure I repaired at least 4 to 5 other marks beyond my own on almost every green. The greens were firm yet receptive to crisp irons from the shorts. Even got a few short irons from the rough to stop on greens within a reasonable distance. Really loved the fact that the holes were freshly cut. Nothing on the edges went in...putts had to be center cut or the ball just would not go. Also, these are fairly large greens. So just getting on can still leave a significant challenge in two putting for a par or whatever (I think I 3 putted at least 3 times because many of the holes that day were cut on slopes). You really need to be under the hole here.
Front nine is pretty casual and open. Not much trouble. The back nine however is a real test. Several holes require a pretty significant carry off of the tee to cover marsh and wet areas. Several other holes on the backside are tree lined and have legs which call for you to hit your ball to certain spots setting you up for your approach into the green.
My partner and I played from the back (black) tees the day we played in pretty windy conditions so we got our money's worth. We found the course to be a very fair course but you need to bring your A game because you will be penalized if you get out of position. Overall a fine experience and given the multiple tee boxes available I think players of all skill levels would enjoy their round at The Refuge.

I love this course.well worth the hour drive.I play here whenever possible.

I love this course but won't be going back for a while. They book their tee times too close together resulting in very slow pace of play. And, to make things worse, they appear to have NO rangers out to get people moving along.

It's too bad that such a nice course chooses not to enforce any type of pace of play! Our group waited almost half an hour on the fourth hole!

I would give it a better rating if they had any water to drink on the course. That much money, a dress code and nothing to drink? There was a cart girl but it was hot and she couldn't get to us fast enough.

Great course , exellent conditions, scenery was incredible. Lost 5 golf balls!!!!

Fun course...good condition...Golfnow made it very reasonable...a lot of tee shots over wetlands where you couldn't see the landing area...and...there was no water to drink on the course. We were forced to make the cart girl very busy...so...not all bad.

The course was in great shape and very well done. It provided a lot of challenge off the tee to putting on the green. Didn't fair well on this first outing, but really look forward to coming back to play again.

The course and faculties are always in great shape.

the course was in really good shape with the exception of some weird burn marks in certain greens that looked more chemical than natural. we had an extremely slow group ahead of us, but talking to people around the course this was not typical. there are a lot of forced carries, but the course does give you plenty of scoring opportunities if you hit a good shot off the tee. definitely a great deal if you pay the golfnow price.

course was in good shape, tee boxes need some work though. A ranger out there would help too.GPS worked correctly,using golfnow was no problem. just walked in showed the proshop my confirmation and that was it.

Tough challenging track, not going to score well if you can't get off the tee straight. Course is in good shape and the greens have a quick pace to them. Only negative is that the horse flies could eat a small child, make sure to bring plenty of bug spray.

Course was in good condition but played slowly. It was very helpful playing with another twosome that had played the course before. The GPS was not very helpful.

This is a beautiful course and well worth the drive.

I've always enjoyed playing this course. It's not the longest even from the back tees, but the carry on most holes, tight landing area, and undulating greens make for a very challenging course. You need to bring your game if you want to score.

Not a course for short shooters, lots to shoot over.

This is an excellent golf course that will challenge golfers of all skill levels. Generous fairways offer the player an opportunity to get started and from there bunkers, trees, water and large greens with multiple pin placements take over. Bring your "A" irons and putter. You'll need them.

The only weakness in the entire facility is the clubhouse which is in desperate need of improvement in the bar designated for the golfers. Though apparently not an original part of the clubhouse layout, it lacks the same character and quality found throughout the rest of the facility including nicely appointed restrooms.