Cog Hill Course #4 - Dubsdread

Cog Hill Golf & Country Club Overview
The golf mecca known as Cog Hill was born in 1926 when the three Coghill brothers purchased land in Lemont and hired David McIntosh to design a golf course. The first course debuted in 1927, followed by the second in 1929, right before the stock market crash that kicked off the great depression. In 1951, former Cog Hill caddie and employee Joe Jemsek bought the property, and the Jemseks have owned it ever since. In 2016, the property was annexed into the suburb of Palos Park.

Four golf courses coexist at Cog Hill, at a variety of price points ranging from sub-$50 (courses #1 and #3) to nearly $200 (course #4 -- Dubsdread). They range from ~6,300 to ~7,500 yards with course ratings to match. The premier course here is Dubsdread, which has hosted numerous professional and amateur tournaments throughout the years. It was the site of the PGA Tour's Western Open (1991-2006) and BMW Championship (2007, 2009-2011). Tiger Woods won the Western and BMW a combined 5 times, while other recent notable winners include Justin Rose, Trevor Immelman, and Dustin Johnson. Cog Hill also hosted the 1997 US Amateur Championship, won by Matt Kuchar.

While the courses have different personalities, they share some characteristics. There’s not a tremendous amount of water across all four venues. In addition, hills and elevation changes add flair across all four tracks. And of course, all are very well kept and nicely manicured. Cog’s practice facilities are excellent, with a huge Toptracer driving range and grass tees too. There’s numerous practice greens throughout the property, with a bunker and chipping area, and an entirely separate golf academy area with six PGA & LPGA professionals. Cog Hill has three separate pro shops, and all the merch you could possibly want, both of the logo and non-logo variety. Somehow the stately clubhouse feels both historic and modern at the same time; maybe classic is the best word to describe it. They host lots of weddings and events here. The restaurant has great food and all the American fare classics you’d expect. You’ll have a great golf experience here.

Cog Hill Course No. 4 - Dubsdread
Legendary Dubsdread opened in 1964 and was designed by Dick Wilson & Joe Lee, architects that also created Bay Hill, Doral's Blue Monster, PGA National Golf Club (East Course), and La Costa. ​​Later, Rees Jones updated the venue in 2008. As of 2023, Dusdread sits at #56 in Golf Digest’s top-100 public US courses, and #92 in Golf.com’s top-100 public courses in the world. As previously mentioned, “Dubs” hosted PGA Tour events for decades, along with various USGA championships. It’s an exceptionally challenging course that tests a golfer's mettle at every opportunity.

At 7,554 yards, the course is one of the longest in the entire midwest. The absurd course rating of 78.0 from the championship tees implies disaster lurks everywhere. The slope rating of 153 denotes that bogie golfers are in for an extremely long day. After all, the maximum a slope rating can be is 155! Luckily, there’s 5 tee boxes to choose from. Pick your poison. Tiger Woods set the Dubsdread course record with a 62 in the 2009 BMW Championship here in 2009, a tournament he won by 8 strokes.