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Matthew Sander

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Has anyone played Indian Lakes within the last few years and have any opinions? I played there a few years ago before the recent renovations. It was basic resort golf, ho-hum. I know that Rick Jacobson renovated it within the last several years and I've not heard much about the results. It seems they redid the greens and changed bunkers from simple ovals to more amorphous shapes. I also think they went from 36 holes to 27 which would help with what I felt was a crowded routing.

I bring this up because I received an email advertising their rates as $25 walking / $40 riding until further notice. I thought it may be worth checking out. Your thoughts...if any...  :)
« Last Edit: May 03, 2011, 10:26:03 PM by Matthew Sander »

jonathan_becker

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Re: Question for fellow Chicagoans...Indian Lakes
« Reply #1 on: March 25, 2010, 05:50:43 PM »
I caddied for a friend in a tournament in 2005 and I would never go out of my way to play it.

Let's just put it this way, as far as the rate goes, it's worth $25 to walk. 

Mark Smolens

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Re: Question for fellow Chicagoans...Indian Lakes
« Reply #2 on: March 25, 2010, 05:52:30 PM »
I played a Golf Channel tour event their either last year or year before.  Very poorly run place -- the crossovers for our tournament got mixed in with the public playing the other nine for some reason.  Was unimpressed with the course, but my opinion may have been affected by one of my playing partners who made Bernhard Langer's pace of play seem like Tom Watson's (I may suck, but I don't make people wait around for me to do so!).

Ken Fry

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Re: Question for fellow Chicagoans...Indian Lakes
« Reply #3 on: March 25, 2010, 08:09:31 PM »

I may suck, but I don't make people wait around for me to do so!


Ah, don't sell yourself short Judge.  You're a tremendous slouch.

Chris Flamion

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Re: Question for fellow Chicagoans...Indian Lakes
« Reply #4 on: March 25, 2010, 10:10:36 PM »

I may suck, but I don't make people wait around for me to do so!


Ah, don't sell yourself short Judge.  You're a tremendous slouch.



Quote of the week.

Haven't been there yet but would be willing to give it a go, especially for that price.

Matthew Sander

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Re: Question for fellow Chicagoans...Indian Lakes
« Reply #5 on: March 25, 2010, 10:25:25 PM »
Thanks for the responses guys. Unfortunately, it sounds like the prevailing sentiment is a bit icky. I'll probably give it a shot though while they're running the special.

Mark,
I've heard some bad things about pace of play at those Golf Channel Tour events. I do like the idea of open competition to get your blood churning and palms sweating. Unfortunately, it seems to lead to a course full of mediocre players giving every shot the U.S. Open treatment. Have you played in many of these events, and has the pace always been an issue?

Mark Smolens

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Re: Question for fellow Chicagoans...Indian Lakes
« Reply #6 on: March 26, 2010, 11:58:55 AM »
Matthew, if you are interested in playing some tournament golf, I highly recommend you look at the Weekly Challenge Golf Tour.  http://wcgt.com/ is the link to the website.  I've been playing both WCGT and the Golf Channel since '03 (the Golf Channel Tour had a couple of predecessor identities, but is run locally by a guy who used to be on the Board of Weekly Challenge).  John Downey, the local guy for the Golf Channel tries hard, but for some reason they guys on that tour can't get the concept of ready golf down.  At WCGT you are encouraged/required to play ready golf.  That means no honors on the tees -- first guy there gets up and hits.  That means if you get to your ball first in the fairway, even if you're closer, you hit.  There are some good players on both tours (on the WCGT, all handicaps and flights are mixed so you play with the women and the 30 handicaps, while on the Golf Channel Tour you only play with others in your flight), but I'm so sick of 5+ hour rounds that I gave up the Golf Channel Tour this year.

PCCraig

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Re: Question for fellow Chicagoans...Indian Lakes
« Reply #7 on: March 26, 2010, 12:03:46 PM »
To be honest I have never heard of Indian Lakes.

Those "Weekend Tour"-type events sound like torture. I would think there are plenty of good CDGA events during the week and various competitive Am tournaments played at Public Courses around the area to keep most busy.
H.P.S.

Mark Smolens

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Re: Question for fellow Chicagoans...Indian Lakes
« Reply #8 on: March 26, 2010, 12:48:41 PM »
If playing golf with a fun group of people, then drinking lots of beer afterwards and wandering out for a scramble sounds like "torture," then yes, Pat, playing on the Weekly Challenge Golf Tour is indeed that. . .

jonathan_becker

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Re: Question for fellow Chicagoans...Indian Lakes
« Reply #9 on: March 26, 2010, 01:02:04 PM »
I only have one experience with the Golf Channel Tour and it wasn't pleasant and I wasn't even participating.

A few years back at the notoriously famous Doak 0 that is ASU Karsten, I was playing with a few friends that went to school there.  That same day, there was a Golf Channel event.  Split tees and lots of players = 5+ hour rounds for everyone.

Anyway, as my group was coming up to 9 tee, there was a group standing on 18 tee as well (for those that don't know, both 9 and 18 share one huge tee box).  As we approached the tee, one of the players on 18 tee said he was distracted by the noise of my buddy looking through his bag.....roughly 75 feet away.  I said, "hey, I realize you guys are in a tournament, so we'll keep it down."  I was just being polite.  This guy ended up pulling a Judge Smails with his preshot routine (at least a minute from when he stuck the tee in the ground) and eventually hit a worm burner into the giant lake that splits 9 and 18.  Then, this guy had the nerve to bark back that he was "too distracted" to hit a good tee shot.

So we come around to 18 and sure enough there's my guy finishing up on 9 tee.  We both are teeing it at the same time and I looked over at him and said kiddingly (but he didn't know I was kidding) "Don't you make a damn sound while I'm teeing off!!"  ;D  He just stood there and looked at me like I was some big bully.  After I hit, I looked back at him and said "You lost all your rights today with your snail pace of play mixed with lack of game."  One of his playing partners then said "Thank God this is the last hole....this guy has been a nightmare to play with!!"  Everyone busted out laughing except for you know who.

Look, I always respect other golfers on the course and always try to be polite.  But I just couldn't take that guy's guff that day.   ;D

Mark,

Thanks for keeping the right perspective.   :)

Evan Fleisher

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Re: Question for fellow Chicagoans...Indian Lakes
« Reply #10 on: March 26, 2010, 02:05:16 PM »
To be honest I have never heard of Indian Lakes.

Those "Weekend Tour"-type events sound like torture. I would think there are plenty of good CDGA events during the week and various competitive Am tournaments played at Public Courses around the area to keep most busy.

It is a "resort" over in Bloomingdale with two 18-hole courses, Pat.

I only know about it because I could just about walk there from my first home which was just around the corner.  It was nice to go practice there on their big putting greens, but as others here have said the course(s) were fairly unremarkable.
Born Rochester, MN. Grew up Miami, FL. Live Cleveland, OH. Handicap 13.2. Have 26 & 23 year old girls and wife of 29 years. I'm a Senior Supply Chain Business Analyst for Vitamix. Diehard walker, but tolerate cart riders! Love to travel, always have my sticks with me. Mollydooker for life!

Trey Kemp

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Re: Question for fellow Chicagoans...Indian Lakes
« Reply #11 on: March 26, 2010, 02:18:04 PM »
Here is a photo....

twitter.com/TreyKempGCA

PThomas

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Re: Question for fellow Chicagoans...Indian Lakes
« Reply #12 on: March 26, 2010, 02:48:29 PM »
i played there a year or two ago and it was just okay....

...but if that price is for this weekend maybe i should check it out:  my girls and wife are having a TEA PARTY AT MY HOUSE :o :o :o  on Sunday
199 played, only Augusta National left to play!

Mark Smolens

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Re: Question for fellow Chicagoans...Indian Lakes
« Reply #13 on: March 26, 2010, 03:16:30 PM »
Jonathan,
One of the "appeals" of the Golf Channel Tour, as opposed to Weekly Challenge, is the opportunity to play on other tours around the country.  Because my Mom lives in Scottsdale, I played in one of the Phx chapter's events two winters ago.  It was a Troon course way southeast, fairly new, whose name I'm blanking on (Poston Butte).  The guy who runs that version of the tour thinks he's a junior Tim Finchem, which in retrospect he probably is.  Being a guest, I just wanted to fit in, but I asked him about their version of "ready golf."  His response was that we don't need to do that here.  I have no problem with playing the ball down and putting everything, but two of the guys in my group consistently putted. . . and then marked and cleaned their balls before tapping in those 12 inch putts.  My flight was the second one to go out.  We went around in 5 hours and 45 minutes -- on a course that my mother, brother and I had played two days earlier in 3 hours and 15 minutes (though I confess to having given my mother a couple of three footers, which obviously explains why we were faster).  I'm not even sure that the guys in the last flight would've had enough time to finish before dark.

Weekly Challenge keeps strict controls on pace of play, but even if there's a slow person in your group (and we have a couple), we simply hit when we're ready and drag them along.  For those of us not able to play country club golf, the Tour is a blast. . . and we're always looking for like-minded players to join us!

jonathan_becker

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Re: Question for fellow Chicagoans...Indian Lakes
« Reply #14 on: March 26, 2010, 03:42:18 PM »
Mark,

It sounds like you need to stick with the Weekly Challenge Tour, even if you can't travel as much.  5:45 is not fun under any circumstances when playing competitively....unless of course, you're winning.  :)

JR Potts

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Re: Question for fellow Chicagoans...Indian Lakes
« Reply #15 on: March 27, 2010, 09:25:59 AM »
The place is terrible.  Absolutely terrible.

That said, for $25 - it would be perfectly fine to grab some buddies, smash it around the course and drink as many beers as you can buy.

Chris Flamion

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Re: Question for fellow Chicagoans...Indian Lakes
« Reply #16 on: March 27, 2010, 11:18:10 PM »
I went out there today with 2 GCA folk.  I have to admit I was pleasantly surprised.  It had a lot of interesting green complexes and had some good fairway bunkering.  By no means would I consider it a great course, but I have played worse and would be willing to go back again if the price was right.


Matthew Sander

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Re: Question for fellow Chicagoans...Indian Lakes (Pics added)
« Reply #17 on: May 03, 2011, 10:12:52 PM »
I floated this thread about a year ago when Indian Lakes was advertising a $25 spring special. The feedback regarding the course was pretty negative. Three of us played and actually enjoyed what was on the ground. Some of the negative feedback was directed at how the facility was run. Fair enough, those experiences can make for a miserable day regardless of the course's quality. Also, there had been a somewhat recent renovation by Rick Jacobson and maybe some recollections were pre-renovation.

Another GCAer and I played again this past weekend (Highland and Woodland nines) and I was able to take some pics. There are some quality holes and many green complexes have large closely mown chipping areas to promote short game variety. Several holes had interesting greens with challenging countours that put emphasis on finding the right portion with your approach. All in all it was an enjoyable round with more interest than many of the other local publics. However, another potential drawback is price point. I don't believe it was terribly overpriced this past weekend with their spring rates ($56 walking), but high season is over $70 to walk on the weekend.

Some Pics...you'll see some houses, but they are all along the property boundaries.

From the fairway on par 5 2nd


Par 3 4th


Approach to short par 4 5th with interesting chipping area right of the green...



Par 5 6th


Tee shot at the dogleg left 9th. There is a diagonal bunker along the left that you can challenge to shorten the hole.


Going for the par 5 11th in two...


Av view of the 8th green from another fairway. You can see the closely mown turf around the green...


Short par 4 12th from the tee


A bunker with ubiquitous styrofoam cup


The par 3 13th


Par 4 15th


Another green complex with runoff to the left


Green at the par 3 17th

 






« Last Edit: May 03, 2011, 11:36:35 PM by Matthew Sander »

SL_Solow

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Re: Question for fellow Chicagoans...Indian Lakes (Pics added)
« Reply #18 on: May 03, 2011, 11:03:50 PM »
While I have plenty of issues with management, much of the criticism of the course is from those who played it before the redesign.  It was designed in the first instance for ease of maintenance; all bunkers and greens complexes were essentially large ovals to allow mechanical maintenance in a minimum amount of time.  While this made the course easy to maintain, it robbed it of almost all of its interest, particularly when it was placed on a site which could be called mediocre at best with a mundane routing.  As the pictures reveal, the shaping of the features is much improved.

Jeff Shelman

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Re: Question for fellow Chicagoans...Indian Lakes (Pics added)
« Reply #19 on: May 03, 2011, 11:42:37 PM »
Never played there, but the pictures aren't awful.

I've seen far worse.

PCCraig

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Re: Question for fellow Chicagoans...Indian Lakes (Pics added)
« Reply #20 on: May 04, 2011, 09:18:02 AM »
Matt:

Thanks for the pictures. Some of those holes don't look too bad. Rick Jacobson has made a nice niche for himself in redoing low maintenence public courses in Chicago. (Sportsmans, Glenview, and now this being a few of them).

But for $70 for a weekend round...  :o
H.P.S.

PThomas

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Re: Question for fellow Chicagoans...Indian Lakes (Pics added)
« Reply #21 on: May 04, 2011, 09:22:35 AM »
nice pics, thanks Matt

course is good at $56, but i think it goes up to $95 or something in the summer , which is too much

Jacobsen did some decent things with a certainly not great piece of land there
199 played, only Augusta National left to play!

Matthew Sander

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Re: Question for fellow Chicagoans...Indian Lakes (Pics added)
« Reply #22 on: May 04, 2011, 09:53:52 AM »
Pat,

I know that Jacobson also did Bowes Creek in Elgin, as well as some work at Cantigny in the mid 2000's.

Bringing up Cantigny with Indian Lakes is actually an interesting comparison. In my mind both are somewhat overpriced (Indian Lakes is in the summer), but I actually prefer the golf holes at Indian Lakes, especially the greens and surrounds.

Cantigny, which also has three nines, has a much more interesting and varied property with plenty of room. The 27 holes at Indian Lakes seem a little shoe-horned where many holes play side by side. Both are walkable, with Cantigny again benefitting from the varied site (parkland and some prairie), but again if we're just discussing golf holes on the ground, I prefer some of the features at Indian Lakes.

The facility at Cantigny is top notch for a public course. IT seems very well run, and they have an excellent all-season Academy and practice center. Cantigny also offers a caddy program which is not common for publics in the area. From the feedback on here, Indian Lakes suffers from spotty management and you don't seem to get as much for your dollar.

A fantastic aspect of Cantigny is their youth links. I have two (soon to be three) little kids and I can't wait to get them involved in the Cantigny youth program. It is a shorter course entirely for kids (adults can play, but only with their kids and the kids have to arrange the tee times.) It is a model that other clubs could learn from. Howver, Cantigny is part of a larger privately owned park that is funded through a foundation, so their business model is unique and tough for others to compete with.

JR Potts

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Re: Question for fellow Chicagoans...Indian Lakes (Pics added)
« Reply #23 on: May 04, 2011, 10:04:07 AM »
That is not the Indian Lakes that I played.  Is there another course there...because it must have been the other course that I played....and it may have been the worse course I've ever set foot on.

Matthew Sander

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Re: Question for fellow Chicagoans...Indian Lakes (Pics added)
« Reply #24 on: May 04, 2011, 10:13:31 AM »
Ryan,

To clear up any confusion this is Indian Lakes Resort (Hilton property) in Bloomingdale. The facility used to be 36 holes of pedestrian (generous assessment) golf. As Shelly pointed out, the greens and bunkers were all oval in shape to make for easy maintenance. They have since had a renovation that was done in stages. One of the 18 hole layouts was redone and named Blackhawk Trace at Indian Lakes (which are the pics I've posted). For a couple years I believe they left the additional East 18 untouched. They've since scrapped it and put another 9 on that portion of the property.

As I said previously Ryan, it is worth checking out (especially at spring rates) and has some quality features. I think you'd be surprised...
« Last Edit: May 04, 2011, 12:24:13 PM by Matthew Sander »