The oldest golf course in Illinois, a title steeped in American golf history, belongs to the Downers Grove Golf Club. This article will walk you through its incredible origins as the first 18-hole course in America, explain its historical significance, and offer some practical, coach-approved advice for playing this or any other historic track.
The oldest public golf course in Illinois is the Downers Grove Golf Club. Situated in the suburbs of Chicago, this club opened in 1892, originally as the private Chicago Golf Club. While the Chicago Golf Club later relocated, the original land was preserved and now operates as a nine-hole public facility managed by the Downers Grove Park District.
So, a golfer today can still walk the same hallowed ground where modern American golf took its first steps. This isn’t just an old course, it is arguably the cradle of golf in the entire country, built by the legendary Charles Blair Macdonald––often called the father of American golf course architecture. He built a 9-hole course in 1892 then expanded to the first 18-hole course in the country the very next year.
To understand the importance of Downers Grove, you need to understand the man behind it: C.B. Macdonald. After learning the game in St. Andrews, Scotland, Macdonald was determined to bring authentic links-style golf to the United States. In 1892, he and his colleagues leased a sheep farm from A. Haddow Smith and laid out an initial seven-hole course. Guest demand was so immediate that it was quickly expanded to nine holes, officially forming the private Chicago Golf Club.
But Macdonald’s vision was bigger. Within a year, he had expanded the course to a full 18 holes, making it the very first 18-hole golf course in the United States. This was a monumental step. Golf in America up to that point often consisted of just a few haphazard holes in a pasture. Macdonald’s layout was a real, strategic golf course demanding thought and skill, modeled after the great courses of Great Britain.
The Chicago Golf Club's popularity exploded. By 1895, the club had grown so prestigious it needed more land to create an even grander championship-level course. It purchased a 200-acre tract of land in nearby Wheaton, Illinois, where it remains to this day as one of the most exclusive and historically significant private clubs in the world.
What happened to the original course? For a few years, it was operated by other private interests, but thankfully, this piece of history was not lost. The land was eventually acquired and later fell under the care of the Downers Grove Park District in 1968. They have maintained a nine-hole layout on the original property, preserving this vital link to the game’s American origins for public play. When you tee it up at Downers Grove, you are playing on land that hosted the 1899 U.S. Open, among other landmark early events.
Playing the Downers Grove Golf Club today is a unique experience. While it’s now a beautifully maintained 9-hole municipal course, you can still feel the history in the soil. The layout might not have the dramatic scale of modern courses, but it holds the subtle charm and strategic bones of Macdonald’s original design principles.
The course features gentle, rolling terrain, fairways lined with mature trees, and the small, relatively subtle greens that were characteristic of its era. This is not a course you can simply overpower. It requires precision and a good short game. It’s a wonderful walk, a step back in time where golf feels more connected to its simple, pastoral roots.
The very fact that it is a public, park district course is perhaps its greatest feature. Golf history is so often locked behind the private gates of exclusive clubs. Here, for an affordable green fee, anyone can experience a place of profound importance to the sport. It's living history, accessible to all who love the game.
As a golf coach, I love when my students play classic courses like Downers Grove. These layouts teach valuable lessons that a modern, “bomb-and-gouge” course sometimes hides. If you get the chance to play a historic track, here are a few tips to help you both score better and appreciate the experience more.
Early golf architecture wasn’t about hitting the ball 300 yards. It was about finding the correct angles. C.B. Macdonald was a master of this. Before you tee off, look down the fairway and think, "Where is the best place to be for my next shot?" Often, the widest part of the fairway isn't the best strategic position. Hitting to one side or the other may open up a much better angle to the green. Old courses reward brains over brawn. Leave the driver in the bag if a fairway wood or long iron puts you in the perfect spot.
Courses from this era were built before the invention of extensive irrigation systems and high-tech aerators. The ground was meant to be a factor in the game. Greens were often firmer and designed to have balls run up onto them. Trying to fly a high-lofted wedge at every pin might not be the best play. Practice a few low-running chip shots or a “pitch and run” with a 7, 8, or 9-iron. Using the contours of the ground to get your ball close to the hole is a classic skill that will serve you well on any course.
You’ll notice that most older courses feature significantly smaller green complexes than modern courses. This puts an extra emphasis on iron accuracy. Missing the green doesn't just mean a longer putt, it can mean a tricky chip from an awkward lie. During your practice sessions, work on distance control with your irons. When you're on the course, play for the center of the green. This simple strategy protects you from ending up "short-sided" - where you leave yourself very little green to work with on a chip shot.
Finally, when you play a course with this much history, don't get too wrapped up in your score. Take a moment to look around. Imagine golfers from over a century ago, with hickory shafts and different attire, walking the same ground. This isn’t just a round of golf, it's a connection to the timeline of the sport. Enjoy the walk, the architecture, and the simple beauty of a game played on a piece of land carefully designed for it over 130 years ago. A great shot feels even better, and a bad shot feels a little less painful when you're reminded of why you love the game in the first place.
While Downers Grove holds the title of the oldest existing course site, Illinois is rich with golf history. After C.B. Macdonald moved the Chicago Golf Club to its permanent home in Wheaton in 1895, that location cemented itself as one of America's premier golf institutions. Other historic private clubs followed, creating a "golden age" of golf around Chicago.
These clubs help tell the story of golf's rise in America, a story that began on a humble plot of land in Downers Grove.
The honor of being the oldest golf course in Illinois belongs to the public Downers Grove Golf Club, the site of the original Chicago Golf Club built in 1892. It represents an accessible, living piece of American golf heritage, offering every player the chance to walk in the footsteps of legends.
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