Public Play · Golf Trips from Chicago
Blackwolf Run — Meadow ValleysKohler
Pete Dye's public Meadow Valleys course at Blackwolf Run in Kohler, finishing across the Sheboygan River.
Par
72
Yardage
7,314
Rating · Slope
75.3 · 145
Holes
18
Green Fee
Contact for pricing
The Course
About Blackwolf Run — Meadow Valleys
Blackwolf Run's Meadow Valleys course is open to the public and shares its clubhouse with Pete Dye's River course. Kohler describes a front nine across prairie, oak savannah and heathland and a back nine on glacier-carved ground. From the Black tees it measures 7,314 yards, rated 75.3 with a 145 slope. GPS carts are allowed and forecaddies are optional. From Chicago this is a long day at best, and better as an overnight.
History
Blackwolf Run — Meadow Valleys — History
Blackwolf Run, on land Kohler describes as the old hunting grounds of Chief Black Wolf and his Winnebago tribe, opened in June 1988 as a single Pete Dye 18 built with Herb Kohler. A 2009 Wisconsin GCSA article records a nine added to Meadow Valleys in July 1989 and a fourth nine finished in August 1990. Meadow Valleys today pairs half of the original 1988 holes with that 1989 nine.
Design
Blackwolf Run — Meadow Valleys — Design
Kohler calls the course subtle and devilish, built from Dye's signature elements, and Dye said the land had plenty of character and contour for golf. The hole notes show the method: a pot bunker and a blind approach on the 4th, elevated and shallow greens, a forced carry at the 15th and a blind drive at the 16th. The back nine rides glacier-carved ground along Weeden's Creek and the Sheboygan River, and the 14th green sits 40 feet below its fairway.
What Sets It Apart
Why Play Blackwolf Run — Meadow Valleys
Meadow Valleys is one of two full 18s at Blackwolf Run, and its finish is a river crossing: the 18th's second shot carries the Sheboygan River to a large double green below the clubhouse.
The Round
The Journey at Blackwolf Run — Meadow Valleys
I.
The Opening
Fishing Hole, the 392-yard 1st, offers a wide landing area between a pond right and bunkers left. The 446-yard 2nd runs downhill off the tee to a shallow, raised green, and the 182-yard 3rd is bunkered on almost every side. The 565-yard 4th asks for a decision on the tee to avoid a blind shot into a green guarded by a pot bunker. The 475-yard 6th, the No. 1 handicap, winds through bunkers to one of the deepest greens on the course.
II.
The Middle
With a strong drive, the 520-yard 7th can be reached in two despite fescue, bunkers and water, and its green opens from the right. Water runs the left side of the 240-yard 8th, whose green is partly hidden by mounding, and the 485-yard 9th rewards favoring the left. The 10th threads a drive through trees to the smallest green on the course. The 461-yard 12th, rated second-hardest, has a sharp drop to Weeden's Creek on the left.
III.
The Finish
The 341-yard 13th tees off over Weeden's Creek and climbs to a plateau holding the flattest green at Blackwolf Run. On the 14th the green sits 40 feet below the fairway with water on three sides. The 227-yard 15th is a forced carry to the resort's largest green, the 590-yard 16th starts blind, and an old maple guards the 182-yard 17th. The 478-yard 18th crosses the Sheboygan River to a double green below the clubhouse.
How to Play It
Blackwolf Run — Meadow Valleys — Playing Strategy
Beginner / High Handicap
Meadow Valleys is rated 75.3 from the 7,314-yard Black tees, so choose a forward set. Use the wide landing areas on the 1st and 2nd, play the 4th as a three-shot hole short of the pot bunker, and take an extra club over the hazards on the 15th and 18th. A forecaddie, optional here, is worth having on a first visit for blind shots like the 16th tee.
Intermediate / Mid Handicap
Long par 4s drive the 145 slope, so treat the 6th, 12th, 9th and 18th as bogey holes and find strokes on the par 5s. Place the drive on the 4th so the green is visible, approach the 7th from the open right side, favor the left on the 9th, and let the ball bounce onto the 12th green through its open front.
Advanced / Low Handicap
The 520-yard 7th is reachable after a good drive, and the 341-yard 13th sets up a short iron to a flat green once you clear Weeden's Creek. Loose irons are punished on the 15th, where a four-foot swale runs through the green, and on the 17th, which offers no recovery on the left. The closing approach must carry the river to a large double green.
Signature Holes
Blackwolf Run — Meadow Valleys — Signature Holes
The Card
Blackwolf Run — Meadow Valleys Scorecard
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Out | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | In | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Par | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 36 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 36 | 72 |
| Yards | 392 | 446 | 182 | 565 | 403 | 475 | 520 | 240 | 485 | 3,708 | 382 | 522 | 461 | 341 | 423 | 227 | 590 | 182 | 478 | 3,606 | 7,314 |
| Handicap | 7 | 5 | 15 | 9 | 11 | 1 | 17 | 13 | 3 | — | 10 | 14 | 2 | 8 | 6 | 16 | 12 | 18 | 4 | — | — |
Good to Know
Blackwolf Run — Meadow Valleys — questions answered
- How do I book a tee time at Blackwolf Run — Meadow Valleys?
- Blackwolf Run — Meadow Valleys takes tee-time bookings directly on its own website. Golf in CHI links the course's booking page on this listing.
- Who designed Blackwolf Run — Meadow Valleys?
- Blackwolf Run — Meadow Valleys was designed by Pete Dye and opened in 1989.
- What is the par and yardage at Blackwolf Run — Meadow Valleys?
- Blackwolf Run — Meadow Valleys plays to a par of 72 over 7,314 yards from the championship tees, with a course rating of 75.3 and a slope of 145.
- Is Blackwolf Run — Meadow Valleys public or private?
- Blackwolf Run — Meadow Valleys is open to public play. Tee times can be reserved in advance.
- Where is Blackwolf Run — Meadow Valleys located?
- Blackwolf Run — Meadow Valleys is located at 1111 W. Riverside Drive, Kohler, WI 53044, in the Golf Trips from Chicago area of Chicagoland.
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How to Play It
Book a Tee Time at Blackwolf Run — Meadow Valleys.
Blackwolf Run — Meadow Valleys takes its tee sheet directly — book your round on the club's own site.
Golf in CHI is an independent guide — we don’t sell tee times or mark them up. We map the exact way on.