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ENTER TO WIN

The North Star State has 10,000 lakes Minnesota

Perfect summer weather with links and lakes aplenty

The Wilderness at Fortune Bay • Tower, Minn.

Golf in Minnesota – A Great Story

Home of 2016 & 2028 Ryder Cup

Minnesota has long been a favorite golf destination for great golf quality, variety and value. Plan your trip, bring your clubs and play where the world’s best players convene!

www.ExploreMinnesotaGolf.com

YOUR “BUCKET LIST” OF GOLF IN the HEARTLAND

It’s easy to imagine a beautiful golf course in Minnesota. The North Star State, otherwise known as the Land of 10,000 Lakes, of course (there are actually over 11,800 lakes over 10 acres), posesses more than 17 million acres of deciduous and coniferous forest as well as over two million acres of protected prairieland. You could fit a lot of great golf into that.

Were it not for a couple of Jeff Brauerdesigned gems — the Quarry Course at Giants Ridge and the Wilderness at Fortune Bay — and one of Arnold Palmer’s best ever designs at Deacon’s Lodge, the municipally-owned Chaska Town Course might top the list of the state’s best public layouts.

Opened in 1997 and designed by prolific architect Arthur Hills along with his associate Steve Forrest, the course co-hosted the 2006 U.S. Amateur Championship with Hazeltine GC and is set to do so again in 2024.

Hills once said of Chaska that it was “as good a course as we can build”. Forrest, meanwhile, says the site was ideal for golf featuring rolling topography and a number of nice water and wetland features. “We didn’t need to move much earth,” he adds, “just what was needed to create tee decks, fairway features, and green complexes. We weren’t contacted prior to the ’06 U.S.

Amateur because no changes were necessary. It’s a fair test for the best amateurs in the world and an enjoyable game for casual golfers.”

Head Golf Professional John Kellin says the course is very popular and typically records 31,000 rounds a year, though that number rose to nearly 39,000 last year when existing golfers had more free time to play and non-golfers discovered the joy of the game. With Providence Bentgrass greens and Penneagle Bentgrass fairways, the playing surfaces are usually immaculate.

To use Arthur Hills’s vernacular, Chaska might be as good a course as you can play for $55, but it’s just one of Minnesota’s many golfing treasures. For more information on what Minnesota has to offer, visit exploreminnesota.com.

The Digital Golf Pass

A must-have membership for the everyday golfer

Digital Golf Pass takes course discounts to a new level with deals that save you money on every round. Avid golfers will save thousands using this tool, which is a must-have for players that have tee times filling their personal calendar.

Even casual looperswill save hundreds playing weekdays and weekends with free and deeply discounted green fees using the pass. Digital Golf Pass rates are guaranteed and at-the-ready where and when you want them at courses throughout your region.

No need to scramble and find elusive on-line deals. Digital Golf Pass is already stocked with thousands of deals via your mobile device when you check in at the golf shop. Or print a voucher at home if you prefer. Visit digitalgolfpass.com for complete information.

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