Planning a Chicago Golf Trip

A Chicago golf trip comes down to two decisions: which public courses to play from a base in the city, and whether to add a few nights in Wisconsin. The private clubs that top the rankings are for members and their guests only, but the public bench is deep, and Kohler, Erin Hills and Sand Valley between them hold nine places on Golf Digest's 2025-26 America's 100 Greatest Public Golf Courses. This guide is for the golfer flying or driving in: the regions easiest to reach, the resort add-ons, the season and the drive times the courses themselves publish.

Where to play from a city base

Chicago's public golf is spread across the suburbs and over the Indiana line, so build each day around one region rather than trying to cover the map.

In the city. Harborside International, a municipal facility on the South Side, has two links-style Dick Nugent courses on reclaimed land beside Lake Calumet, treeless and open to the wind, with the downtown skyline in view. The Port is the older of the two; the Starboard is No. 8 on Golfweek's 2026 Best Courses You Can Play list for Illinois.

Southwest suburbs. Cog Hill No. 4 in Lemont, known as Dubsdread, brings tour history to public golf: it hosted 16 Western Opens and five BMW Championships, the last in 2013. It is No. 1 on that Golfweek list, and Mistwood in Romeoville, with its revetted sod-wall bunkers, is No. 4. The southwest suburbs hub lists the rest.

Western suburbs. The Preserve at Oak Meadows in Addison, a forest-preserve course rebuilt along Salt Creek, is No. 6 on the Golfweek list. Cantigny in Wheaton keeps 18 of its 27 holes open while its nines are renovated one at a time through 2027.

North Shore and Lake County. The Glen Club in Glenview, Tom Fazio's course on a former naval air station, is semi-private, takes non-member bookings up to seven days ahead and has overnight rooms in its clubhouse. Golfweek ranks it No. 3 in Illinois. Farther north in Grayslake, Stonewall Orchard, Arthur Hills' first Illinois design, is rated 75.3 with a 152 slope from the Silver tees, so it is no warm-up round.

Northwest Indiana. Across the state line, Northwest Indiana adds courses of its own. Lost Marsh in Hammond plays over a capped steel-mill slag dump on Lake George, with views of the city, and Sandy Pines in DeMotte, set among white pines on sandy ground, has cottages on site for an overnight.

Adding a Wisconsin resort

The bigger trip goes north. Each of these is an overnight or, at best, a long day from Chicago.

• Kohler. The Straits at Whistling Straits, No. 26 on Golf Digest's 2025-26 America's 100 Greatest and the 2021 Ryder Cup course, leads three more Pete Dye courses at the resort. See Kohler Golf.
• Erin Hills. Erin Hills, host of the 2017 U.S. Open and the 2025 U.S. Women's Open, is public, walking only and No. 49 on Golf Digest's 2025-26 America's 100 Greatest, with lodge rooms and cottages on the property.
• Sand Valley. Four walking-only 18s in central Wisconsin's sand country, three of them open to outside play. The fourth, The Lido, is for Sand Valley resort guests only, with limited tee times Sunday through Thursday. See the Sand Valley trip guide.
• Lake Geneva. Geneva National has three courses, by Arnold Palmer, Gary Player and Lee Trevino, and holds one of them for members six days a week on a rotation, so check which is open on your date. Grand Geneva Resort adds two championship courses.

The simplest shape is a few rounds from a city base, then one resort. By the published figures in the next section, Geneva National is the shortest drive and Sand Valley the longest, which is a fair guide to how many nights each deserves. For an Illinois alternative, TPC Deere Run in Silvis, the public home of the PGA TOUR's John Deere Classic each summer, is a trip west, an overnight or a long day. Wisconsin Golf Trips from Chicago compares the options in more depth.

Back in the city between rounds, MyRSVP covers Chicago's restaurants and nightlife.

When to come

Chicago-area golf runs roughly from April to early November, and from about November to March most Chicagoland courses close or go to limited winter play. The Wisconsin resorts keep a shorter season, roughly May through October, and Sand Valley closes all of its courses for the winter. A trip that pairs the city with a resort has to fit that shorter window. When to Golf in Chicago covers the seasons in detail.

Getting around

Plan on a car: the courses are spread across the suburbs, Northwest Indiana and Wisconsin. The drive times worth knowing are the ones the courses and resorts publish:

• Lost Marsh: about 30 minutes from downtown Chicago, by the club's estimate.
• Sandy Pines: about 90 minutes from O'Hare, per Golf Chicago Magazine.
• Geneva National: about 76 miles from O'Hare, per the club.
• Erin Hills: roughly two hours by car from O'Hare, per the club.
• Kohler: 134 to 142 miles from O'Hare depending on the course, by the resort's figures.
• Sand Valley: 3 hours 55 minutes by car from Chicago, or 3 hours 30 minutes from O'Hare, per the resort.

The private clubs

The top three on Golf Digest's 2025-26 Best in State ranking for Illinois, Chicago Golf Club, Shoreacres and Medinah No. 3, are private and for members and their guests only, as is every other private club in the area. None takes a public booking, so build the trip around the courses above. How to Play Golf in Chicago explains the access types.

How to book

Public and semi-private courses book through GolfNow or the course's own tee sheet, linked from each course listing; windows vary, from seven days for non-members at The Glen Club to 60 days at Cog Hill. Resort courses book through the resort, and The Lido is for Sand Valley resort guests only. Private clubs are members and their guests only. We don't sell tee times.