Public Play · Golf Trips from Chicago
Whistling Straits — The StraitsKohler
Pete Dye's walking-only links on two miles of Lake Michigan shoreline near Kohler, Wisconsin.
Par
72
Yardage
7,790
Rating · Slope
77.2 · 152
Holes
18
Green Fee
Contact for pricing
The Course
About Whistling Straits — The Straits
The Straits is Kohler's lakefront Pete Dye course, laid along two miles of Lake Michigan bluffs about nine miles northeast of the village of Kohler. It is walking only, with caddies recommended rather than required. Kohler lists the course as public, though its FAQ notes the Straits may carry booking restrictions for non-resort guests. Kohler puts O'Hare 142 miles away, so from Chicago this is an overnight trip, not a day out.
History
Whistling Straits — The Straits — History
Herb Kohler brought Pete Dye to a flat former airfield and Army training site on Lake Michigan in 1995, and Global Golf Post reports the Straits officially opened on July 6, 1998. It has since hosted the PGA Championship in 2004, 2010 and 2015, the 2007 U.S. Senior Open and the 43rd Ryder Cup, played in 2021 and won 19-9 by the United States.
Design
Whistling Straits — The Straits — Design
Kohler asked for Old World links on a site Global Golf Post describes as dead flat, so Dye trucked in about 7,000 loads of sand to shape three lines of dunes up to 70 feet high. He built roughly 900 bunkers, many of them deep, revetted pot bunkers, put eight holes on the bluff, including all four par 3s, and left room to run approaches onto the greens in the lake wind.
What Sets It Apart
Why Play Whistling Straits — The Straits
Built on a flat former airfield, the Straits has since staged three PGA Championships, the 2007 U.S. Senior Open and the 2021 Ryder Cup, and it is still played on foot only.
The Round
The Journey at Whistling Straits — The Straits
I.
The Opening
Outward Bound, the 493-yard 1st, is a gentle dogleg left that heads out toward the lake. The 597-yard 2nd hides a pot bunker 35 yards short of a long green, and the 188-yard 3rd has one of the front nine's largest, most undulating greens. Glory, the 494-yard 4th, is the No. 1 handicap. The winding 603-yard 5th precedes Gremlin's Ear, the 409-yard 6th, guarded by a deep sod-wall bunker.
II.
The Middle
The 221-yard 7th, Shipwreck, plays down to the shoreline. The 506-yard 8th, On the Rocks, has a green that falls away at the back into a pot bunker. The 442-yard 9th funnels to a small green on the way back toward the clubhouse. Voyageur, the 391-yard 10th, carries a deep valley past a center-line bunker. At 645 yards Sand Box, the 11th, is the longest hole, and the 163-yard 12th has what Kohler calls the hardest green to putt.
III.
The Finish
Cliff Hanger, the 402-yard 13th, sets its green on the bluff edge, and a large bunker guards the corner of the 396-yard 14th, a short dogleg left. Kohler calls the 503-yard 15th the start of one of championship golf's hardest four-hole runs: the 568-yard 16th, the shortest par 5; Pinched Nerve, a 249-yard par 3; and Dyeabolical, the 520-yard 18th and No. 2 handicap.
How to Play It
Whistling Straits — The Straits — Playing Strategy
Beginner / High Handicap
Choose a much shorter set than the 7,790-yard Black tees, rated 77.2 with a 152 slope, and take a caddie, as Kohler recommends. Expect to walk the full round. Play away from the pot bunkers rather than over them, and on the par 3s, all four set on the bluff, aim for the widest part of the green.
Intermediate / Mid Handicap
Use the ground: Global Golf Post notes the course lets approaches run onto the greens, so a low shot under the wind is often the better play. On the 6th, stay short of the sod-wall bunker, and on the 10th make sure the drive carries the valley. On the 14th, cutting too much of the corner brings the big bunker and a blind approach into play.
Advanced / Low Handicap
The 568-yard 16th, which Kohler pitches as a risk-and-reward hole, is the one real birdie chance in the closing run. Elsewhere the card turns on the 494-yard 4th and 520-yard 18th, the two hardest holes. With every par 3 on the bluff, wind sets the club more than the yardage, most of all on the 249-yard 17th.
Signature Holes
Whistling Straits — The Straits — Signature Holes
The Card
Whistling Straits — The Straits 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 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 36 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 36 | 72 |
| Yards | 493 | 597 | 188 | 494 | 603 | 409 | 221 | 506 | 442 | 3,953 | 391 | 645 | 163 | 402 | 396 | 503 | 568 | 249 | 520 | 3,837 | 7,790 |
| Handicap | 15 | 7 | 17 | 1 | 5 | 13 | 9 | 3 | 11 | — | 12 | 6 | 18 | 14 | 16 | 4 | 10 | 8 | 2 | — | — |
Good to Know
Whistling Straits — The Straits — questions answered
- How do I book a tee time at Whistling Straits — The Straits?
- Whistling Straits — The Straits takes tee-time bookings directly on its own website. Golf in CHI links the course's booking page on this listing.
- Who designed Whistling Straits — The Straits?
- Whistling Straits — The Straits was designed by Pete Dye and opened in 1998.
- What is the par and yardage at Whistling Straits — The Straits?
- Whistling Straits — The Straits plays to a par of 72 over 7,790 yards from the championship tees, with a course rating of 77.2 and a slope of 152.
- Is Whistling Straits — The Straits public or private?
- Whistling Straits — The Straits is open to public play. Tee times can be reserved in advance.
- Where is Whistling Straits — The Straits located?
- Whistling Straits — The Straits is located at N8501 Lakeshore Road, Sheboygan, WI 53083, in the Golf Trips from Chicago area of Chicagoland.
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Blackwolf Run — Meadow Valleys
Pete Dye's public Meadow Valleys course at Blackwolf Run in Kohler, finishing across the Sheboygan River.
How to Play It
Book a Tee Time at Whistling Straits — The Straits.
Whistling Straits — The Straits 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.