Green Garden Gold Course

Green Garden Golf Club features 45 holes across three courses: two 18-hole championship courses (the Blue course, opened in 1973, and the Gold course, opened in 1991) and a 9-hole Links course that opened in 2010. The facility operated an indoor golf dome for winter driving range practice until its collapse during a storm in January 2024, with reconstruction currently underway. The club also houses the 4 Seasons Grill restaurant. Since 2012, Green Garden has been owned by the proprietors of Hickory Hills Country Club, a 27-hole facility located approximately 20 miles north. They acquired the property for $5.9 million at a bankruptcy auction from previous owner William McEnery, who had also owned the Gas City service station chain before his business empire collapsed in 2011. Every time I played golf on the south side back then, those stores felt ubiquitous!

The Blue and Gold courses are both par-72 layouts that offer similar difficulty and feel. In terms of course rating and length, they’re comparable to other southside courses like Meadows Golf Club of Blue Island, Joe Louis The Champ, and Silver Lake North Course. The 9-hole Links course presents a different challenge entirely, featuring two par-3s and only one par-5. Most fairways on the Blue and Gold courses measure about 30 yards wide, while the Links course offers more generous fairway widths. All three courses incorporate plenty of water hazards, including a long tributary of Forked Creek that winds through the northwest corner of the property. The layout features some parallel fairways with enough spacing between holes to avoid feeling too cramped. Green fees include a golf cart, and golfers particularly enjoy the Gold course's 10th hole, which features a fun (or diabolical, depending on your day) island green.

Green Garden's practice facilities match what you'd expect from a three-course operation. The grass tee driving range sits about half a mile east of the clubhouse with its own parking lot, while the aforementioned indoor golf dome next to the clubhouse collapsed and is currently being rebuilt. Adjacent to the outdoor range down the street, you'll find a large practice green and a small practice hole used by the training academy, plus a full practice par-5 hole for academy instruction. Additional putting greens are located near the Blue and Gold courses, and there's a short game practice area with a couple of bunkers positioned to the right of the main driveway as you enter the property. The clubhouse contains a modestly sized pro shop and the 4 Seasons Grill, a full-service restaurant that serves classic bar food.