Jackson Park Golf Club

Typical Jackson Park. Friendly, decent condition, etc. Surprise to have a 2 hour front 9 but was followed by a 3 hour back 9. Simply makes it less fun. A simple ranger than runs about would make this course soooo much better.

I’ll preface this by saying I’m a 15 handicap or so and have played my fair share of courses in the Chicagoland area. Jackson Park is kept in outstanding condition for how much you pay (typically $23-$30 after taxes and fees for 18 holes). The groundskeepers deserve a standing ovation for how well they maintain the greens. I’d expect to see these greens on a course you’d pay $60 for a round, not $23. Although the fairways aren’t cut super short, they are still above average in my opinion. Tee boxes are all in good condition as well. The only aspect that can be improved upon would be the bunkers. Some you can hit out of, while others are straight up dirt with large rocks. I don’t find this to be a big issue, you can always rake and place or just move your ball out of the bunker. The course is shorter than most however, that doesn’t mean you lose out on having a large variety of holes. This will make you utilize every club in your bag and keeps the round interesting. The pace of play can be on the slow side during a busy day. I normally play during off peak times are have no issue finishing 18 around the 3 hour mark even with playing through a group or two. Overall, I highly recommend Jackson Park. The value, course conditions, and proximity to downtown are all simply unbeatable.

I would say you get what you pay for with a municipal course, but the price isn’t that great. Almost $50 for 18 with a cart, and you get a poorly-maintained course with cement bunkers. Just about every green has a narrow entrance with terrible bunkers on each side. Constantly feels like you’re hitting off concrete. Several rat’s nest holes with balls flying in from golfers on other holes. People walking and on carts makes for awkward pace of play. Goose poop and broken glass. Vagrants on the course trying to sell you balls or just yelling at you. Back-to-back par 3s and 5s. Very likely to get paired with a goofball golfer with poor etiquette. All of that being said, you could argue $50 for 18 holes in a big city is a good deal, despite the annoyances.

We only played 9 holes when it started to rain. When we came to the club house and asked can we get a rain check ,she said no, because rain was in the forecast. Then she left and we wanted to buy some beer while we waited to see if it was going to clear up, and she was no where to be found. So we just left, all this for $95 for 2. totally unacceptable.

The most expensive cart fee that I've seen -- $18 per person. That's $36 just for 1 cart for a two-some group. A mix of walking golfers and riding golfers complicates the pace of play.

Hard and soft dirt/bare spots throughout the course. Fairways were mostly clear of leaves. Greens looked good.

Please consider trimming back the bushes, trees, shrubs on all sides at the crossing on East Marquette Drive, on the way to the 4th hole/17th hole.

Jackson is decent for a muni course, however it has significant problems. The price is outrageous for what your getting. The course is short, crammed into the south side of Chicago, and poorly maintained. There’s rarely a starter and even when there is it’s a mess. I mean four 4-sums teeing off one after another on a weekday. You will be waiting on people ahead of you and have another group driving into you. The driving range is short and weighed and not even located at the course, you need to drive a few blocks for it. The putting green is small and can only comfortable hold around 2, maybe 3, people at a time. The greens are slow and barely break. The hole placements are either rarely changed or barely changed (can’t tell). There’s is dirt all over the fairway and rough (even the greens). The sand is essentially rocks and concrete. To make matters worse, they charge over $50 for 18 with a cart. You can play beautiful, full-length, private courses in the suburbs for half the price. I do golf here often just because it is in the city, convenient, and I don’t have a car to golf in the suburbs often. However, Jackson Park is only my last resort. The conditions of this course and the pace if play would be understandable if they weren’t charging absurd prices for this mediocre course.

This is my third year with Golf Now. I’ve used the app countless times. Today was the first time that I had to pay a total of $30 extra for two cart fees that were not included. I’ve never seen a cat not be included, so I was completely caught off guard. I am not a very happy golf now member.

Very impressed with the value and condition of the course.

Quality course, well kept greens. Pace of play can lag at times, but that’s the game. Enjoy yourself here.