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Best Public Golf Courses Inside a 30-Minute Drive From Downtown Chicago

Updated: Jan 26, 2023



Chicago is home to a number of quality public courses, suited for everyone from beginners to experts. Just outside the city limits, in the suburbs to the south, north, and west, there is an abundance of luxurious golf courses that provide outstanding value and high-quality play. The majority of the courses are typical parkland layouts with old-school golf obstacles, but there are a few links in the mix as well.


Below is a list of the best public courses just minutes away from downtown Chicago. So pack your golf clubs, hail a cab and you can be teeing it up lakeside in minutes!

Harborside International Golf Center

Location: 11001 South Doty Avenue East, Chicago, IL 60628

Contact No.: +1 312-782-7837


About 20 minutes south of downtown Chicago, what was once a city dump is now a premier 36-hole golf complex with two expensive Scottish-style links, Port and Starboard. After a $1.7 million renovation in the spring, the courses are well-kept and the bunkers are in good shape. The bump-and-run may become your closest friend in windy situations. The property is located on one of the highest spots in the area, with views of the skyline and lake.



Ravisloe Golf Club

Location: 18231 Park Ave, Homewood, IL 60430

Contact No.: +1 708-798-5600


Ravisloe Golf Club has the elegance and beauty of a private club—and that's because it used to be one. Evident today is Donald Ross' fine-tuning of the course, with extensive bunkering around the small greens and waste areas. It is a short course by today's standards at 6,300 yards, but it's great for walking and offers many risk-reward challenges among its tree-lined fairways.






The Glen Club

Location: 2901 W Lake Ave, Glenview, IL 60026

Contact No.: +1 847-724-7272


Tom Fazio designed this course from the ground up, transforming a flat old Navy airbase into a stunning layout with elevation variations of nearly 40 feet in some places, rolling berms, hundreds of mature trees, and flowing prairie grass. It's considered by many to be the best game in the state.





Jackson Park Golf Course

Location: 6401 S. Richards Drive, Chicago, IL 60649

Contact No.: +1 773-667-0524


The fairways and greens are protected by large hardwood trees on this classic 18-hole golf course, which emphasizes accuracy shots to challenge and excite the golfer. The golf course was built on the site of the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition, and it opened six years later in 1899.






Billy Caldwell Golf Course

Location: 6150 N Caldwell Ave, Chicago, IL 60646

Contact No.: +1 773-792-1930


A great beginner's golf course as you are not rushed even if you are a novice. The course has only 9 holes but it sure is still fun and challenging. Just under a 30-minute drive from downtown.







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