THE MISTWOOD GOLF DOME has some new looks this season. So come enjoy the new bar in the dome, and the three Mistwood Golf Simulators in the dome. So play it either way at the dome, in the shell or on the screen. The Mistwood Golf Dome is on Rt.53 in Bolingbrook and home to TopTracer and McWethy’s Sports Bar. Call today and book your bay, or simulator at Mistwoodgolfdome.com or by calling (630)-739-7600.
THE GOG BLOG by RORY SPEARS, Director of Content and Creation for Golfers on Golf. Follow Rory on Twitter @GogBlogGuy or connect-LinkedIn/Facebook/Instagram.
Medinah’s flag pole remains in place near the 18th green of Course #3
MEDINAH’S COURSE #3 IS DONE
Well at least the construction is done, and what’s left is just for the course to go through the grow-in stage.
So if Mother Nature is not too harsh this winter, the course could reopen by late June. Fingers are crossed by the club and the members that, that will happen.
GOLFERS ON GOLF was the first media outlet to be allowed to walk the golf course, since it changed from dirt-piles to a golf course with at least some grass on the fairways, greens, and tee boxes. Sand has arrived in the bunkers, and to aide the grow-in process, the greens were mostly tarped over. But they were allowed to get some air and sun on the 60+ degree day, that GOG did it’s walk through.
From the tee of Hole #5, or is it #1 for at least a week in 2026. The new OB fence is on the left side of the fairway, but inside the new service road for maintenance vehicles.
The 2+ hour tour started on the fifth hole, a hole that could be hole #1 come late September in 2026.
Because with the bulk of the realignment of the golf course coming on what had been holes 12-18, the PGA Tour is looking to bring the new holes into play late in matches during the Presidents Cup.
But in match play, many matches end around hole 14 or 15. So Medinah’s holes 1-4, will likely play as holes 15-16-17-18 during President’s Cup week, with Hole #5 being the first tee box. Routing thousands of patrons to the fifth hole area during championship week to see opening tee shots could be an adventure. But the PGA Tour has almost 2 years on how to figure it out.
A bunker nest guards the right side of hole 6, with the OB fence on left.
Course #3’s hole numbers have changed. But not all of them, so let’s see if this confusing or not.
Ready-here we go!
Holes 1-6 are numbered the same. But now the new hole #7, is the old #10 that runs east to west along Lake Avenue. The former hole #7, is now hole #10. A flip-flop is also true for holes 8 and 11. Hole #8 is the old hole #11. The old hole #11 is now #8. Got that. Okay hole #9 is still #9, and hole #12 is still #12. Holes #13-14 are new holes. But hole #15 is the old hole #16. With holes 16-17-18 now being new holes.
The new hole #7 (old10) has changed slightly. There is more sand coming into the green. Plus some elevation changes in the fairway that previous was flat.
CREDIT AUSTRALIAN DESING FIRM OCM-in being very creative in putting some BITE back into Course #3.
So the members that told the renovation committee, they wanted a championship golf course, a course ranked in the Top 100, and one that could hold the type of tournaments it has hosted in the past. Well it seems that OCM has delivered just that.
OCM that stands for Ogilvy (Geoff) the 2006 U.S. Open champion, partners Ashley Mead and Michael Cocking looked to eliminate the knock on course #3. Which was that the par-3 holes all looked alike and played the same way. That has now changed.
Work is moving along at The Shack Golf Club in Glenview. Owner Nick Larkin is adding 4 new simulators and a putting green by mid-to late January. TheShackGolfClub.com 1717 Chestnut Street in Glenview.
The risk-reward pond on the old 14th hole is gone. But the water area that was short and right of the 12th green, has gotten bigger. Because the green has been moved close to the water.
Par-3 13th, is now the short 135 yard par-3, water is no longer in play. Holes 14 and 15 are new holes, with the 15th green in the area of the old 16th green.
16 is now a dogleg right over the water, and heads back towards the middle of the golf course. Not Medinah Road as it previously played.
Hole 17 is still a par-3, it plays over the water, but not towards the clubhouse, instead it plays away from the clubhouse heading south. Finally, 18 plays more like the routing prior to the 1988 U.S. Senior Open. Hole #18 runs east to west and towards Medinah Road and not the club house.
Hole #18 from the back tee. 485 yards-par-4. Welcome to Medinah.
So for the record, the renovation was not just done because Justin Thomas shot 25 under par at the 2019 BMW Championship.
Even Thomas hopes Course # 3 was not blown up because of his score that week, Thomas told Golfers on Golf.
But when you add up the cost of the work that needed to be done, due to an aging infrastructure, which will tear up the course anyway. It was smart play to make all changes at once. The par-3 design can no longer be a bone-of-contention among course raters and media critics. But the par-3 routing is different, because three par-3’s are now on the back side. So there is only one par-3 on the front nine. The overall par for the course is still 72, but it plays 37-35=72.
OCM is (L-R) Ogilvy-Mead and Cocking.
So besides the hole routing, what else changed or got improved.
Here are the new stats for Medinah #3.
87% increase to green size (4.75 Acres). 68% increase to tee boxes (3.75 Acres) 157% increase to fairways (57 Acres) 116% increase to bunker size (4.6 Acres) 71% decrease to mowed rough (32.5 Acres)
OLD COURSE #3 Square footage. Greens 103,089-New Course footage 208,986.
Tees Old Course 98,500, 165,000 on the new course #3. Fairways 953,000 old course #3, new course #3 2,450,000. Bunkers Old course #3 94,000-new course #3 203,000. Rough old course #3 rough, 4,900,000, new course #3 rough 1,433,000. Fescue/Native Grass old course #3 footage 0 feet. New course #3, 1,750,000 square feet.
DRAINAGE WILL BE MUCH IMPROVED: Because when you add over 40 miles of drainage, even to a big spread out property like Course #3, it does make a difference. The renovation costs were over $20 million, but not as high as the $30 million spent at 2023 PGA Championship course Oak Hill in New York.
When the golden fescue grows in, the wispy thin fescue won’t force golfers and caddies to step on the golf ball to find it. Medinah will have a new look to it, different than in the past. But when the course opens in 2024, some things will change for a while. 100 rounds per day in 2024, no carts in 2024, no guest play for 2024-members only, for now. So even the halfway house will be different, new chairs, tables, carpeting and a paint job. Toss in some grab and go items for golfers, which will help keep the pace of play moving.
So throw in new short course-full of par-3’s, and a new Himalaya style putting green (found on the ground of the previous 18th hole fairway), and Medinah has really added to it’s already great golf experience.
Golfersongolf.com thanks the members of the Medinah renovation committee and the OCM team who have helped our work in covering the project. So for details see MedinahCC.org.