Harborside International - Port Course

Harborside International Golf Center Overview
Harborside International Golf Center, located on the south side of Chicago and owned by the Port of Chicago, opened in 1995. It features two very challenging 18-hole courses, the Port course and the Starboard course, which are considered the nicest public golf courses within actual city limits. Architect Dick Nugent designed these courses to emulate traditional Scottish or English seaside links. It is currently managed by KemperSports.

The facility was constructed on 428 acres of former landfill and garbage dump, described by Nugent as "the pits, literally," as noted in a June 28, 1995 Chicago Tribune article. The construction involved moving 3 million yards of dirt and introducing 2 million yards of fill, seal, and topsoil. Links-style golf was a natural fit due to an Illinois EPA requirement for a clay seal to cap the site, which prohibits penetration from tree roots and the like. The beautiful clubhouse was completed in 1997. Upon opening in 1995, the cost to play, including a cart, was $65. In 2017, Harborside International Golf Center underwent a $1.7 million bunker renovation.

The 20,000-square-foot clubhouse, designed in a Frank Lloyd Wright-inspired style, is one of the nicest in Chicagoland. It serves as an imposing backdrop on several holes. Inside, it contains a solid pro shop with merch featuring the Harborside logo, and a restaurant called The Pier at Harborside, which offers classic bar food. The club features an amazing 57-acre practice facility on the southwest portion of the property. You could spend hours here honing the craft, which I’ve done on a couple occasions. It includes a grass tee driving range, three large greens for putting, chipping, and pitching practice, and multiple bunkers. An additional practice green is located north of the clubhouse, en route to the first tees of both courses.

The courses at Harborside are generally maintained in very good condition, as would be expected at their price point. Architect Dick Nugent stated, "wind is the hidden hazard here," and indeed, it is almost always windy, which significantly increases the challenge. Errant shots tend to be drawn into elevated mounds of thick fescue, where golf balls frequently disappear into the shadow realm. While the fairways on both courses are wider than those at many other Chicago area courses, they twist and turn and are characterized by numerous punishing fairway bunkers. Both courses feature elevation changes, which add an element of variety. The green fee includes a golf cart; while the courses are walkable, doing so constitutes a considerable hike.

Port Course
The Port course measures 7,123 yards from the back tees, with a course rating of 74.6 and a slope of 137. Like its counterpart, the Starboard, it is a par-72 layout featuring two par-5s and two par-3s on each nine. However, the Port is slightly longer by about 100 yards. The difficulty level is similar to other area courses such as Golf Club of Illinois, Bolingbrook, and Prairie Landing. Water comes into play on three holes. The signature hole is the par-3 15th, known as the Anchor hole. Its green and surrounding bunkers are shaped to resemble a large anchor, though this design is more apparent from an aerial view than from the tee.