Braemar Golf Course

By R.J. Smiley

In the hay days of golf, only Braemar’s patron card holders (Edina residents) could get a tee time. Many avid golfers have forgotten about this hidden gem! Braemar Golf Course is still a busy place, but not as busy as it once was…… You can get a tee time. The entire facility revolves around the Don Brauer designed original 18-hole golf course that is ranked among the top 75 public golf courses in the nation by Golf Digest. The year-round golf center features a large well managed clubhouse, 27 regulation holes, two 9-hole executive courses, a winter golf dome and the busiest driving range in the Twin Cities. Braemar has hosted numerous state and national amateur tournaments and championships and hosted the last regular PGA tour stop event.

If you are looking for a real test of golf, you don’t have to drive 100 miles or pay a $100 green fee to play a real “meat and potatoes” golf course. In the 2008 MGA Mid Amateur Championship, Braemar proved to be a tougher test than its big brother, host course, Edina CC. The fairways are tree lined, the greens are large and well bunkered and the course features a variety of holes where water seems to be in play on every other hole.

You know you are in for a test when you tee it up on the first hole and wonder why they call this one “the beast” and it’s listed as a par 4. Playing around 460 yards the hole can be an impossible par when the wind is from the north. Braemar sometimes feels like you are playing in a forest, but the wind is a huge factor as you navigate your way through this well kept track. From the back tees, the par 4 holes, as a group, are among the strongest that you will find anywhere. Will Braemar ever host the U.S. Open? No! Is Braemer a golf course you should put on your must play list. Yes!