Burnham Woods Golf Course

Burnham Woods Golf Course Overview
Burnham Woods is one of ten golf courses owned by the Cook County Forest Preserve. The course is nestled up right against the border to Indiana, but golfers don't cross over into the Hoosier state at any point during the round (I checked). Tall, mature trees line every hole, making shot accuracy a critical component of scoring well here. In fact, many of these trees are giant Cottonwood trees, which you don't see too often on golf courses around here.

In addition to the tall trees that protect the course, the greens here are tiny. There's not really room for error on approach shots. Luckily those greens aren't torturously contoured. Some of the fairways at Burnham Woods are patchy and under duress in a variety of areas. Hopefully the Forest Preserve can address this.

The Grand Culumet River borders the course to the south and Powder Horn Lake is about 750 feet northeast of the course. However, water barely comes into play here at Burnham Woods, with just a small pond in the center of the track. Frankly, that's really good news, as the course is already tricky enough.

There's a driving range here, but can only fit a handful of golfers at a time. It's also at a little bit of an odd angle and doesn't necessarily allow you to see where all your shots go. But it's definitely better than not having a range. There's also two practice greens.

Like most of the Forest Preserve courses, the pro shop is on the small side and combined with a snack shop-style restaurant. I think all golf courses should take their hot dogs seriously, and unfortunately the one I had here was a bizarre color, which you can see in the photo. I'll try another when I come back next time!