Chicago Heights West Golf Course

Chicago Heights West Golf Course carries more than a century of golf tradition in the south suburbs. Originally opened in 1912 as the Chicago Heights Country Club, this historic nine-hole track was designed by legendary course architect Tom Bendelow on sixty acres just outside the Chicago Heights city limits. A 1912 Chicago Inter Ocean newspaper article noted the ambitious plans: "Work begins at once on nine hole golf course. The club has purchased sixty acres of ground just outside the limits of Chicago Heights and will begin work at once on a $3,000 clubhouse and a nine hole golf course." For decades, the club served as the social hub for Chicago Heights' upper crust, where dues were $35 per year payable in three installments.

However, times changed for both the industrial town and its country club. By 2000, dwindling membership forced the club's sale. As then-president Mike Bush explained to the Sun Times, “We just don't have the amenities others do. We're nine holes and a banquet facility.” He noted that other local clubs offer 18-hole courses, swimming pools and tennis courts. The Chicago Heights Park District acquired the property in the early 2000s, making it one of two nine-hole courses they now operate alongside the newer East course that opened in 1991. Interestingly, the clubhouse basement once housed a boxing ring and training academy, likely making this the only golf course with such a unique distinction.

Today's Chicago Heights West measures 3,165 yards from the tips with a rating of 68.5 and slope of 122. The course maintains Tom Bendelow's signature small greens while offering flat, highly walkable terrain perfect for its 10-minute tee time intervals. The par 36 track includes the standard mix of two par 3s and two par 5s. A small creek winds through the southern portion, coming into play on holes 8 and 9. And maybe hole 6 if you’re having a tough day. (Or even hole 1 if you’re hopelessly struggling.) The layout features narrow, parallel fairways separated by mature trees, making accuracy essential as errant shots can quickly turn penal.

The modest clubhouse houses a basic pro shop with golf essentials, plus a full bar and Iron Pearl Banquets event space. While there's no driving range, golfers have excellent practice opportunities with a putting green near the clubhouse and an outstanding short game area east of the first fairway (next to the 2nd tee box). This hidden gem offers about 90 yards to a small practice green complete with an adjacent bunker. If I lived near here, I’d use this area all the time.

As a reasonably priced municipal course, Chicago Heights West focuses on accessible golf rather than pristine conditioning, but it maintains solid shape compared to similar facilities while preserving over a century of golf history.