Blackberry Oaks Golf Club
About
Blackberry Oaks in Bristol is a public golf course that has been recognized as one of the Chicagoland area's best courses. The course design utilizes the natural beauty and hazards of the landscape including the native wetlands, grassy prairies, and towering stands of mature oaks. Blackberry Creek also meanders through the course. In addition to the natural hazards, a heavy smattering of strategically placed bunkers was also incorporated into the design. Although it can seem intimidating, the golf course isn't overly formidable if you can manage to stay out of the sand and water. The third and 12th holes are two par 4s that are memorable for their water hazards. The third has a lake along either side and the 12th has a green that is almost entirely surrounded by water.
| Tee | Par | Length | Rating | Slope |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blue | 72 | 6404 yards | 71.3 | 134 |
| White | 72 | 6003 yards | 69.6 | 130 |
| Red (W) | 72 | 5294 yards | 71.4 | 128 |
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Out | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | In | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blue M: 71.3/132 | 343 | 515 | 370 | 172 | 369 | 317 | 486 | 191 | 377 | 3140 | 373 | 523 | 161 | 361 | 365 | 202 | 492 | 400 | 387 | 3264 | 6404 |
| White M: 69.6/128 W: 75.0/134 | 323 | 473 | 328 | 158 | 343 | 304 | 464 | 175 | 332 | 2900 | 347 | 506 | 148 | 345 | 343 | 176 | 466 | 394 | 378 | 3103 | 6003 |
| Green M: 67.1/121 W: 72.3/128 | 312 | 455 | 313 | 146 | 323 | 284 | 445 | 161 | 314 | 2753 | 340 | 420 | 140 | 330 | 325 | 166 | 385 | 350 | 310 | 2766 | 5519 |
| Red M: 66.1/119 W: 71.1/126 | 300 | 437 | 298 | 144 | 303 | 262 | 439 | 147 | 294 | 2624 | 330 | 417 | 135 | 298 | 316 | 156 | 376 | 340 | 302 | 2670 | 5294 |
| Family 2 W: 66.1/105 | 216 | 360 | 220 | 144 | 230 | 185 | 349 | 93 | 210 | 2007 | 255 | 315 | 74 | 235 | 230 | 70 | 310 | 265 | 249 | 2003 | 4010 |
| Family 1 W: 62.2/99 | 165 | 248 | 168 | 65 | 185 | 152 | 265 | 80 | 180 | 1508 | 179 | 262 | 55 | 182 | 175 | 60 | 248 | 192 | 148 | 1501 | 3009 |
| Handicap | 17 | 1 | 7 | 11 | 15 | 5 | 9 | 13 | 3 | 8 | 2 | 12 | 16 | 18 | 10 | 14 | 6 | 4 | |||
| Par | 4 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 36 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 36 | 72 |
| Handicap (W) | 13 | 1 | 7 | 5 | 17 | 11 | 3 | 15 | 9 | 8 | 2 | 12 | 16 | 18 | 14 | 6 | 10 | 4 |
Course Details
Rentals/Services
Practice/Instruction
Policies
Food & Beverage
RestaurantAvailable Facilities
ClubhouseReviews
Well maintained
This was nice course although it was short there were many obstacles. Course management is key. Greens in excellent shape
Great deal
The course was in great shape when I played. The greens were smooth and fast. Definitely worth the money.
Nice Layout - Great Condition
The course is always in great condition and the greens put true. Thick rough makes it a challenge if you miss the fairways. (Wish I could grow grass like that at home!!)
Nice Condition
The course is in nice condition for 2014, especially when looking at other courses in the area as it relates to the greens. The greens are receptive and moderately quick. I doubt many will say these greens are fast shaking their heads in disbelief (and perhaps disgust) but they are fast enough in my opinion (and true). the fairways are in good shape and the rough is, er, rough. Not a fan of hole 10 or 18, but other than that, this is a very nice course, and accomodating staff.
Not impressed with this course
Corse is located near a railroad line - The noise from a mile long train are not what I wanted to hear when golfing.
Not a good value for money.
Greens filled with ball marks that no one seemed to repair
One of the best in the area
I have been playing this course for a long time. It is an above average challenge. The revamped bar is very nice too!
Great course!
Staff here is great! Friendly and always ready to help out. Course is in great condition for a public course. No management company! New bar is great!
Good Spring Conditions
Conditions good.
Greens rolled true.
Only issue was was large bump at bridge's end on 9th. No warning. I hit it hard and my head hit top of cart. All my stuff flew out of cart as well as bag. Went to pro shop to complain and was informed it's bring worked on. No love for me though. Still sore.
Haven't played here in years since it's been so overpriced. Got Hot Deal for $24. With $10 needed for gas (85 mile round trip from Hoffman Estates) it was still a good price point. Wouldn't pay more than $44 on weekend. Long ride.
Perfect Experience
Aside from the weather being fantastic, the course and environment added to a wonderful day. Perfect place with no pressure, so great for average golfers who hit their fair share of bad shots. Conditions are excellent and scenery is gorgeous.
Blackberry Oaks
One of my favorite courses in Northern Illinois. Only disappointment was golf now said they had GPS, but they don't . Although most sprinkler heads were clearly marked with yardages. Very good food, nice bar too !!!
Enjoyable Round
Course in very good condition considering brutal winter we just went thru. Temp still not warm.
great time
Well run and in great shape after a horrible winter.
Very playable
Don't let the high slope rating fool you, it's just to high in comparison to similar courses. Few forced carries, blind shots , tough downhill or side hill lies. Not overly long or tricky. If they ever allowed for long rough that could make it harder. Lots of sand everywhere. Fresh country air and clean facility. A good test without being overly complicated.
Very nice course
Very well maintained and quality course for the money!!
Best Greens I've seen all season
Overall course is in very good shape, particularly the greens.
Great value for the price we paid... not so great if having to pay full price.
The absolute biggest complaint is that the course is NOT marked very well. It seemed nearly impossible to determine the shot. There were markers in the fairway, but you had to drive around to find them. They also had some kind of ribbon wrapped around trees (not sure why they could not have painted strips around the trees), but you had to find the trees which in some cases were difficult and then you had to make sure you found all 3 to figure the distance. I cannot image why there are not painted stakes on the sides of the fairway, it is cheap and they are usually easy to locate. Other than that, course was interesting.
Well designed, well maintained, friendly staff.
It is a well designed course. Holes follow each other fairly well. It is well maintained with a friendly helpful staff.
Water in play on 14 holes - 3 stars
A fun fairly interesting course that was in decent shape. Booked as a single on golfnow for $17 which was a great value. A couple of greens were a tad bumpy and the stimp slower in comparison to other tracks in the area. Course value at most is $30 to $35 on weekend they are asking close to $50 during the week! Suspect on busy days and weekends you're in for a least a 4.5 to 5 hour round or more with high handicappers because of all the water hazards (which does get "old"...."overkill" for me...managed to avoid the water except one errant tee shot). Course is straightforward/cookie cutter/fairly flat/modern large greens overall design reminded me of Brightondale in Kenosha (less severe greens at Blackberry with many having a little contour but not too much) three "blind" shots over trees on dog legs playing fast/dry that was a surprise due to all the water hazards. Play will slow down considerably on the back nine due to routing -10th hole requires shorter tee shot with longer approach, 12th par 3 forced water carry (15th green next to the 17th green with 16th & 18th tee boxes nearby). The finishing hole is real gem/challenge but as designed is a ridiculous high handicappers nightmare. The foursome in front of me took over 20 minutes to finish the 18th. Decent clubhouse - beware bar/restaurant floor is extremely slippery if you're wearing your golf shoes. Had an enjoyable day and I'll play it again as long as I can get a $30 or under rate.
Great Layout
I really love playing Blackberry Oaks but.......yesterday the weather was cool in the morning and the back 9 had 4 or 5 greens that were not cut thus when putting there was a stream of water coming off the ball which made it hard to putt. Also there was an outing after us and their restaurant was closed to us.