Fairways & Greens - Minnesota

New owners of any enterprise typically have plenty of new ideas. A grand scheme. Ways to make everything better. But everyone knows that (no matter how small, or how necessary) CHANGE is most often resisted, and taking over a golf course isn’t like taking over a home.

Like any golfer who cares about where they play golf, I always check out the website to see what I’m in for. Whether intentionally clever or not, Mount Frontenac’s home page gives away little, and leaves you wanting to see more.

Indian Hills hosted my high school’s team matches back in the mid seventies and has consistently been a gracious host of events in which I’ve participated as well as statewide competitions I’ve followed over the years.

I’ve been saying it for years, and finally had the chance to write about it to thousands of you last year. “The Bridges is THE biggest golf surprise in the “gap” between the Twin Cities and La Crosse.”

Wait… What? As in THE Deacon’s Lodge? The lake-laced tree-lined rocking and rolling Arnold Palmer design in Brainerd? The #2 Golf Course on GolfWeek’s Best in State for Minnesota? That Deacon’s Lodge?

To a generation of video gamers, the name “Madden” is synonymous with greatness. People hear the name “Madden” and they think of football. Similarly, to several generations of Minnesotan’s, Midwesterner’s and beyond, the “Madden’s” name is also synonymous with greatness, albeit in an entirely different realm.

When GolfWeek releases their “Best Courses You Can Play in Each State” list, everyone flips to his or her own state of residence to see where each course ranks. At Breezy Point a great deal has changed from the release of last year’s list.

“Have you played Crystal Lake in Lakeville?” A golfing friend asked me a couple of weeks ago. “Ain’t never been, but I’d sure like to go,” I sung in my best Jimmy Buffet voice.

Say what you will, but I’m kind of a purist when it comes to most things regarding golf. One of my biggest pet peeves regarding golf today is the number of golf courses that seem to have been designed by people who don’t know anything about golf.

If your buddies have discussed the idea of a golf road trip this summer, keep reading for five great reasons to play The Jewel in Lake City, MN. Just over an hour’s drive from St. Paul, The Jewel was recognized by Golf Week in 2011 as the one of the three best public courses to play in Minnesota.

When the modern era of golf course architecture emerged with a merged emphasis on target-golf, the game was lead into the arms of extreme difficulty, and demanding golf for the average player became more than a wee bit of too much to take.

When the modern era of golf course architecture emerged with a merged emphasis on target-golf, the game was lead into the arms of extreme difficulty, and demanding golf for the average player became more than a wee bit of too much to take.

Few people would describe the Twin Cities area as “wilderness” but at least a part of it is. Central Minnesota is surrounded by and dotted with lakes, marsh, pine forests, fields, etc… and a great deal of those elements are displayed in full splendor at several of the area golf courses.

Every time I look at the Minnesota state quarter I think of The Wilderness at Fortune Bay. Not sure if that’s odd or not. A glance at the loon, fishing boat and tree lined lake (on the “tails” side) takes me to the Lake Vermilion coastline of hole 13.

Most golfers like to take golf trips with their buddies or family members. As much as golfers love to return to familiar venues, where they experience few surprises, they seem to continually be in a quest for something new; new golf challenges, new restaurant menu, new drives through unexplored country with a surprise around every corner, even a tube ride on the lazy river.

Thousands of golfers head north on I35 from the Twin Cities each year towards Tower, Biwabik and Lutsen and, about halfway to each you pass by a Stay & Play destination (in Hinckley) that would serve all as the perfect pit stop and/or tune-up to/from any of those places.