Category Archives: Wisconsin Golf Trail

The Stevens Point Country Club

SentryWorld commands most of the attention in Wisconsin this year. This is due in part to its recent renovation and reopening as well being selected to serve as the venue for the 2023 US Senior Open.

One should not, however, overlook the Stevens Point Country Club located just 3 1/2 miles southeast of SentryWorld. The club unfortunately lost over 2,500 Norway spruce and white pine along with several other varieties in the early 2000s due to Dupont’s Imprelis herbicide. After the EPA pulled it from the market in 2011, Dupont lost an estimated $2 Billion in a class action lawsuit and filed claims.

Stevens Point received their fair share-at least two commas in the number, and membership then voted in favor of a renovation plan by Craig Haltom of Oliphant Golf Management. While it’s still parkland in nature, the routing opened up nicely with the loss of the trees and is set on a natural tract of lowland on the east side of the Wisconsin River’s wetlands. Although water hazards affect play on less than 1/3 of the holes there’s a host of conventional and massive waste area sand bunkers yet with generous green complexes. 

If you’re in town for the US Senior Open this summer, Stevens Point is a must-play, and if there’s time for another round, check out the nearby Wisconsin River Club. Before or after the Open when SentryWorld is open for outside play, the Stevens Point area offers a great long weekend golf retreat. There’s plenty of reasonable lodging, restaurants, and shopping and a host of other outdoor activities in this Central Wisconsin Tourism Corridor.

Pioneer Point Golf Course, a par 3 layout on steroids!

The 200 yard 7th with the Biarritz green

The Wisco Golf Addict profiles the new Pioneer Pointe, a 13 hole, par 3 layout on the west side of Madison, Wisconsin in great detail. It’s a golf course directly in the crosshairs of the game of golf’s target audience and investment criteria. The golf course/real estate development overlays the former Tumberdown 18 hole golf club on the site. The layout promises to not only invite new players to the game with the design and format, but impress golf course architectural geeks.

  • Modeled after the 15th at North Berwick, the Redan is a much copied and respected par 3. At PP, it’s the 175 yard, 3rd with the trademark features of a large green angled left to right and sloping front to back at a 45 degree angle to the tee box.

There’s a variety of holes modeled after notable and historical golf clubs including the Road Hole, Short, Double Plateau, Redan, Boomerang, Lion’s Mouth, Biarritz, Punchbowl, Eden, the 7th at Lawsonia, the 6th at Riviera, and the 7th at Pebble Beach. It was designed by the Lohmann-Quitno design firm who have quite a resume of design work across the country. It’s a worthy addition to a golf rich state which includes the likes of Lawsonia, Sand Valley, Erin Hills, Whistling Straits, and SentryWorld to name very few.

The 113 yard 9th was inspired by the 7th at Pebble Beach with the smallest green on the course surrounded by three sand bunkers from an elevated tee box.

In short, golf seems to be heading in the direction of shorter courses to reduce the barriers to entry for play and investment. They cut the playing time, reduce the cost to maintain, and as well as providing lower green fees. Many of the new and redesigned short courses introduced in the last few years offer a wide variety of architectural nuances adding to the interest and history of the game adding more drivers for golfers to try these new venues.