If you ask any PGA Professional or Golf Course General Manager today, delivering a fun, memorable and relaxing golfing experience is their number one priority. At Deer Run Golf Club in Victoria, long-time PGA Head Professional Tom Abts takes that responsibility extremely personally.

“I try to run Deer Run like it’s my family, and that we’re hosting a round of golf. Everything is for that round of golf – everything – the food and beverage, the shop, the range, and especially the golf course. We’re not trying to do other things. And money is not our first concern. A great time spent with fun, good people is what we’re all about,” says Abts.

Tom is not shy about spreading the word that this golf course is specifically designed for fun. Their website describes the course as, “…a public golf club with the charm of an old, private club – but without the stuffiness.” To that end, “Fun at the Run” was a long-standing slogan for the course.

“Over 30 years ago, I was saying that a round of golf should be 4 hours… and should be fun. Back then, it was slow and too serious. We’ve never tried to make it silly or cute. Fun just means being relaxed and happy… and really enjoying playing the game of golf. Hitting a ball with a stick is fun. The game of golf got hijacked by people who didn’t really like golf, or life itself.”

Having someone with the talent to deliver the message a course is trying to convey is a luxury not many clubs have and no one… I mean no one is better suited to talk fun at Deer Run Golf Club than Tom. But words only paint part of the picture. To get the full experience, one must play the course.

It does not take long to tell you are walking into some place special. Pulling into the parking lot, you notice perched on top of the hill a small former farmhouse that has been converted into the clubhouse. Surrounding the walkway to the clubhouse, rows of flowers and landscaping make you feel as if you are walking up to a neighbor’s house. Then you notice music playing from apparently nowhere as the speakers are part of the landscaping. You see a patio with people laughing and sharing a drink or a meal. You already have the sensation that fun is happening all around you.

As you step into the shop, you smell the hardwood and see one of the best apparel selections in town. It has the feel of being a family-owned store on Main Street somewhere.

You are greeted right away as the counter is just steps from the door. Once you check in, you feel compelled to explore the clubhouse more, so you stroll a few more paces and enter the pub. Not a bar, it is a PUB complete with couches and a fireplace. Even the main dining area is more of a sunroom than a dining room. If that wasn’t enough, you see a screened in porch that overlooks the 10^th hole. All of this and it’s just the clubhouse.

Before your round, most people (PGA Professionals excluded) want to hit a few balls and roll a few putts. While Deer Run’s range is slightly shorter than many, it does have an automatic ball system. Hit a shot, and another ball appears. While this feature is common at some ranges around the country, Deer Run was one of the first facilities to offer this luxury at a Twin Cities’ course.

The putting green is surrounded by natural, high prairie grasses that almost force a player to relax as you step on the green just from the beauty.

All of this means nothing if the course isn’t good right? Deer Run passes that test with flying colors.

To start, the playing conditions are as pristine as you will find anywhere. Superintendent Bary Provo and his team are well respected for delivering a consistent test of golf no matter what Mother Nature throws at them.

The course itself plays anywhere from 4,900 yards from the forward tees to 6,500 yards from the tips. While it’s not as long as some of the neighboring courses, it is all you can handle.

Any good course worth its salt has a stretch of holes that flat out test your game. At Deer Run, that stretch of holes is 5, 6 and 7. Local players dubbed this part of the course The Run’s “Amen Corner.” While there can only be one of those, after playing said holes, you understand their point.

It starts with a short but difficult par 4. How difficult you ask? When hosting the Minnesota Women’s State Open one year, the scoring average for the week was 6! Players are advised to use the hill on the right to put the tee shot in the proper position for an approach that can best be described as… hard. Uphill to a two-tiered green that slopes hard from back to front with a massive fall off to the right of the green. If you are going to miss, miss left!

While the par 3 sixth is a straightforward uphill tee shot, bunkers guarding the front right and OB left mean you need to be accurate.

If you get through number 6 unscathed, you are rewarded by having the trickiest hole on the course next. The tee shot is everything. Water left and a water hazard right about 200 yards off the tee… next to OB right. Take driver at your own risk!

Long-time patron, Scott McQuillen’s favorite hole is hole #9. “From the black tee, a 390-yard par 4 into the prevailing south wind. A big Oak protects the left side while trees and hazard protect the right side. Challenging downhill approach over a water hazard to a three sectioned green with water on three sides. You can make 3 or 6 at any time.”

If you ask Tom his personal favorite, his response is quick and concise. “Hole #17. Great risk-reward hole. Fair, but tricky. A drivable par 4. You can easily make 3 or 5.”

Hole #18 takes you back to the clubhouse. As it sits in the distance of this par 5 finishing hole, you know that the fun can continue in the pub or on the patio.  It is a perfect way to end the day.

And don’t expect much of the “Fun at the Run” experience to change anytime soon.

“Our goal is to get better – not bigger,” says Abts.  All our profit goes back into the operation. This is a labor of love.”