Minnesota recommendations - Raynor or Ross

[John Mayhugh]

I'm making a short business trip to northern Minnesota in June.  Since I will be playing in a golf outing (at a pretty forgettable course unfortunately) and thus will have my clubs along, I thought I would try to redeem the trip by playing a really good course.  I realize that I'll have to do a lot of extra driving, but it should be worth it.

I know that there are several Raynor courses in the Twin Cities area and have read good things about Northland (Ross) in Duluth.  Raynor is bordering on deity status with me but I don't know much about his Minnesota courses.

Wondering if I could get some advice from those from the area or anyone who has some playing experience in that area.  If I'm only playing one round, which course should I choose?  At the moment, I'm taking for granted that access won't be a huge problem.  This is DEFINITELY not a request for access assistance, just advice on where to play.

[Jason Topp]

Golden Age:

The three Raynor courses are (in order of quality)

Somerset
Minnesota Valley
Midland Hills

Somerset is the class of the group.  I enjoy the other two but I recall Midland Hills having an overgrowth of trees.  I have never played a Raynor in another city so I'm not sure how the quality compares.  You will recognize the templates at each of the courses.


The following courses were either fully designed by Ross or he was involved in some significant degree at some point (My ranking):

Interlachen
Northland
EDIT - White Bear (never played it)
Minnekahda
Woodhill (never played it - this is a guess)
Minneapolis

All are very good.  Northland may be my favorite to play, although it is in a little rougher shape due to its more Northern locale.

Other designers to consider:

Tillinghast
Golden Valley Country Club
Rochester Country Club

Stanley Thompson
North Oaks

Tom Vardon
White Bear Lake  [EDIT - Ross - very highly rated by many.  I have not played]

Bendelow
Edina

Mish - Mash - old Quirk:
Town and Country


If I had one round, given your initial post I would recommend:

1.  Interlachen
2.  Somerset
3.  Golden valley
4.  White Bear Lake
5.  Northland (175 miles from Twin Cities)

[John_Conley]

John, you should be fine with just about anything in the Twins.  White Bear Yacht is pretty cool and Somerset is a real treat.  Interlachen and Minikahda are more famous due to hosting Opens.  Have fun wherever you play.

[Tom_Doak]

White Bear Yacht Club is the most interesting course of the bunch, in my opinion.  However, it's probably also the toughest to get on.

Somerset is far and away better than the other two Raynor courses.

I've heard Northland had significant renovations since I saw it a few years ago.  Jeff Brauer's Quarry at Giant's Ridge is a bit further to the north of Duluth -- I hadn't realized where it was until last week when I suggested we meet a potential client from Brainerd over there.  The pro told us that 80% of their customers come from more than 100 miles away, i.e. the Twin Cities.