BY: RORY SPEARS

MIKE MUNRO (STANDING) HAS SOLD HIS GOLF DOME

It became the golf venue that brought a winter golf season to the Chicagoland area, the White Pines Golf Dome.

Located on the grounds of the White Pines Golf Club in Bensenville, the award-winning White Pines Golf Dome has been a staple of the Chicago golf scene for over 20 years.

As a result the phone call that founder Mike Munro received one day in the middle of a winter, over 20 years ago helped create winter golf in the Chicago area.

Munro admits about the time in life he was looking for something new, that call came that told him of a dome up in Michigan. One where golfers were extending their season and pounding balls all through the cold and snow of a Michigan winter. While doing it they were enjoying a beverage of their choice, and the game of the week was on a TV located right behind the Tee-line.

Opportunity was knocking and Munro didn’t hesitate, he jumped in the car and drove about four hours towards Detroit. He spent a full weekend talking to the ownership, learning everything he could. By the time he came home, the wheels were turning.

The White Pines Golf Dome didn’t happen over night. The was a dome to be made, a location to acquire and other factors to figure in. While Munro was a regular golfer at White Pines, at first he didn’t even think of making the club the location for his planned dome. It took a little convincing, but in the end it was the right move. A central location in the Chicago area, easy access for both suburban and city located golfers. Very convenient to O’hare Airport.

Then came the planning into how big to make the dome. Munro didn’t think small, he thought big. He decided to make sure that golfers could hit shots of at least 100 yards.

The White Pines Golf Dome is already open for the 2014-2015 winter golf season.

It didn’t take long for White Pines to become the winter hang out for Chicago area golfers. Top instructors started giving lessons there, golf companies started coming in and allowing golfers to hit to types of golf clubs while the snow was still deep outside, and the temperatures weren’t much above zero.

Soon it became apparently that the golfers needed more than just a tee line, they needed indoor putting greens, short game area’s and now even simulators.

Munro even had to up his food and beverage offerings, because golfers came at all times of the day to practice and hit balls. In recent years when Munro added TV’s, golfers enjoyed hitting balls, while sneaking a peak at the Bears, Blackhawks and Bulls games.

White Pines became so successful that it didn’t take long for other golf domes to start popping up, now the Chicago area has several. Regardless of where that dome is at, or who owns it. Chicago golfers have Munro to thank for making Chicago a year round golf destination.

The Gog Blog caught up with Mike Munro, who spoke about the tough decision to finally sell his dome, The White Pines Golf Dome and what might be next for Munro on the Chicago golf scene.