Celebrating 25 years in the commercial glass business in Chicago. Visit the show room at 1835 N. Major, or see Startechglass.com.

BY: Rory Spears Lead Writer and Assistant Editor.

WEEKEND IN WISCONSIN, it was and except for the flat tire it a was great one. The opportunity to visit a great future site, and to see a golf course that is getting ready to come back on line was great.

First up was the tour of the new Sand Valley project that is about 30 minutes south of Stevens Point Wisconsin. It is safe to say that Sand Valley is taking shape and a first routing by Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw is not official yet, but getting closer to being locked in. Later this week Crenshaw makes his first visit to the site. The 1800 acres that comprise Sand Valley, have had over 600 acres cleared.

On the valley floor of Sand Valley.

Coore has visited the site several times and his put in the flags for some possible tee’s and greens. What’s amazing is the sand base the property has, which is great for golf and great for those building golf on the site.

There are a few spots being looked at for the building of a clubhouse, and the practice facility. When you see what’s been cleared and what the routing might be, it’s gets one anxious for 2016 to come along quickly.

The area that could be used for holes two and three.

There is no date for a grand opening in 2016, that all depends on the construction phase and how the weather in the area goes over the next two summers and winters.

Mike Keiser has not yet announced which architect or architects, will build the second course. But it sounds like many architects are hoping to have a shot at one of the courses that eventually will get built.

The famed par 3, 16th hole at Sentry World, known as the flower hole.

The Sentry World Golf Course is coming around from the renovation by architect Jay Blasi part of the Robert Trent Jones Jr. team for 12 years.

There was a lot to be done when Blasi got to work on the course back in 2012. The progress this year got held up a bit by the long hard winter that not only Wisconsin had, but the entire Midwest.

The good news is that Sentry Insurance under CEO Pete McPartland has decided to redo the entire facility and do it right. Golfers will enjoy the entire product when it’s all completed. While I didn’t play the golf course before the renovation, I heard enough about it from Blasi that the new version with a couple of new holes is a major upgrade.

Work still continues inside clubhouse at Sentry World.

The Flower Hole, the par 3 16th has been replanted and come in nicely. If there is a hole anywhere in golf that makes better use of flowers I haven’t seen it.

Chicago area golfers will be glad to know that Hoffman Estates native Brian Dumler is still the head golf professional. Wisconsin native Mike James has returned from West Virginia to be the General Manager. The new golf carts look great and are complete with GPS. There is no date yet when the club will be open for play, but I’ll pass it along when Sentry World announces it.

Between the Kohler courses, Erin Hills, Lawsonia, Sentry World, and in 2016 Sand Valley, a few courses in the Dells and Madison area. Wisconsin is really becoming a golf destination.

For the all the folks at Kohler, the 2014 PGA Championship is in the books, the 2015 PGA Championship at Whistling straits is as they say at the draft, “on the clock”.

The second half of summer is here, Go Play. RS