Erin Hills or another?

[Brian Cenci]

A friend and I are taking a trip to Whistling and staying in Sheboygan, WI in two weeks (5 days/4 nights).  

We're scheduled to play the Straits and Irish courses at Whistling and the River course at Blackwolf Run (not Meadow Valley).  We're also playing Lawsonia (Links) and scheduled to play Erin Hills.  

We're a little hesitent to play Erin Hills based on the condition of the course as shown in the pictures on this site.  

Any advise on any other good publics in this area?  Or do any of you think the course is in better shape (or will be) in two weeks when we play it?  I have a hard time paying $150 for a course where you need to roll it in the fairway.  Any advise would be appreciated.

-Brian

[Dan Moore]

If it were me I'd play 36 at Lawsonia.  In fact you can play all day during the week for $85 with cart and they have a 2nd 18 designed by Joe Lee which was in great shape 2 weeks ago.  

[Phil McDade]

Mascoutin, in Berlin, just north of Lawsonia, enjoys a fine reputation among golf cognescenti in Wisonsin, and is somewhat underappreciated sitting in Lawsonia's shadow. The WSGA just held the WI State AM there. A father-son Packard 18 with a relatively new 9 by Jacobson.

[Brian Cenci]

I see on "The Next Fifty" they list North Shore, WI as a play.  Is this course any good?  Can't find a decent web-site with any info. on it.

-Brian

[Phil McDade]

Brian:

I believe that's in reference to North Shore Golf Club in Menasha, just south of Appleton, a very low-key private course that dates back to the 1920s and enjoys something of a cult reputation among golf architecture fans. It's been discussed infrequently on GCA; it gets very little talk among the Wisconsin golf crowd. (I've never played it, and have never met anyone who has -- it's one of those courses that folks talk about in hushed tones, i.e., "You've played North Shore?" I don't know if it's relatively easy to get on or not as a private course -- no advice, sorry.)

[RJ_Daley]

Ditto what Phil said.  I've been to North Shore only to tour the outstanding work done there by Renaissance Golf (Bruce Hepner and with support from the superintendent).  It is one of the finest works of restoration-remodelling I have seen.  But, I have yet to receive an invite to actually play there.  Low key, not ostintateous or elitist, just not interested in publicity, it seems.

So, others in the area... The Bull at Pinehurst Farms, Nicklaus, is the obvious choice as it is right across the hwy from the Meadow course at BWR.  It is expensive as well.

OUr county municipal (Brown County Golf Course) has a good reputation, is a good round of golf, that doesn't yield to low scoring.  It isn't an architectural masterpiece, but it is solid golf.  

And, I'm there quite often and do drink beer once in a while...

[David Neveux]

RJ in your honest opinion, is "The Bull" worth the coin?  What I guess im trying to say is, I'm not really looking to play anything for over a hundred bucks that is alright.  I could stay in Lansing and play Eagle Eye for eighty.  Basically we are looking to play places that make the trip worth the effort.  That being said, maybe "the bull" is legit, I just don't want to pay 100 plus for a little foreplay.  Thanks for your insight everyone.  BTW, how good are the other courses at whistling / BWR?  From the photo's the Irish Course looks pretty awesome.  Thanks again everyone, I owe a lot of great rounds to this website.  

[Brian Joines]

From the photo's the Irish Course looks pretty awesome.  

Looks can be decieving...

[Greg Clark]

I would consider dropping the Irish and playing Meadow/Valley.  The back 9 holds it's own with any stretch in the Kohler area.  I played Lawsonia Links for the first time 3 weeks ago and loved it.  Plenty on this site about that course.  I would say that it played softer than the other courses I played in the area which was a little dissappointing.  Quite a bit of poa on the greens as well.  I also thought that a fairly glaring weakness of the course was the overabundance of doglegs to the right.  Even a few straight holes had the tee boxes all the way to the right, again favoring a fade.  

That being said the fairways are plenty wide to hit with a draw, and all the fun is with the stupendous green complexes anyway.  I loved the course and only point out a few shortcomings, because you never read any about Lawsonia on this site.  

I was very impressed with The Bull.  Played fairly firm and fast and has several extremely strong holes.  5-9 are great.  13 is one of the toughest and better par 5's I've played.  16-18 is a strong closing stretch.  The course is tough, especially the back 9.  12-14 is a brutal test of golf, but one I enjoyed.  Played on a Thursday morning and we had the whole course to ourselves.  There was a price break at 2pm.

The Bull is comparable to the Meadow/Valley course.  I still would slightly favor MV.  Straits and River are the real class acts however.  Not sure about the conditioning of Erin Hills, but if you weren't going to be back to the area for awhile, I would have a hard time passing that one up.