My Quest to Check Off Golf's Best Experiences

The Irish Course was solid and good fun, but probably my least favorite of the four Kohler courses.  It was also the worst of the four weather days that we faced, so it's always possible that that was part of the reason.  While the course was fun, many of the holes just seemed too contrived for a course that wants to have the feel of a natural Irish course.  It contradicts myself as it would have required more dirt-moving, but I think I would have preferred more mounding/dunes and fewer man-made ponds.  This is what you'll get when you play the Straits Course for the most part.  The Irish could have used it as well, but I suppose it would be poor to have both courses look the same.  As they typically offer the best bargains for the Irish and Meadows Valleys Course at Blackwolf Run, I'd say the course is definitely worth playing if you're in the area, but if I had 10 rounds to divide across all the Kohler courses, I might only play this one once, with two on the Meadows Valleys, three on the River Course, and four at Straits (if cost had nothing to do with it).

#16, "Deep Dye," Par 4, 425 Yards


Back-to-back long par 4's.  This one has water down the left side, though it's not visible from the tee.  The line of the left fairway bunker is where the water is, so keep it to the right of that, though not far enough right that you put it in the drop-off area right of the fairway.  A pot bunker is short and right of the green, but the approach is open other than that.

#17, "Irish Mist," Par 4, 335 Yards


A short par 4 with water on the left the whole way, and tight against the green.  Just get it out there and give yourself a comfortable club into the green.

#18, "Black and Tan," Par 5, 523 Yards


A long and tight dogleg right par 5 is the finishing hole here with water that must be carried from the tee.  A creek crosses the fairway at about 100 yards out, so that will come into play when judging a lay-up shot.  Carrying the creek will leave a blind uphill pitch into the hole while hanging back will leave more of a view of the hole.

#15, "Frog Water," Par 4, 416 Yards


The #1 handicap hole.  Trouble is on the right side of this hole, but hugging the right side of this dogleg right will also give you the shortest distance into the hole (somewhat of a cape style).  Par is a good score here.



#14, Tullamore Dew," Par 5, 508 Yards


This hole is sort of a linksy version of the 11th at TPC Sawgrass.  In both cases you can theoretically get to the green in two, but it's a huge risk with trouble all around the green.  It turned back into the wind when I played it, so going for it in two was out of the question.  Laying up is the smart play to try to make par and move on.

#12, "Highland Trek," Par 4, 373 Yards


Left is the side to avoid on this one.  No real bunkers exist on this hole except random ones here and there that shouldn't have any impact on play.  It was straight downwind when I plated it, and I could blast away off the tee with no worries

#13, "Blind Man's Bluff," Par 3, 152 Yards


This is the most memorable hole on the Irish course in my opinion.  When I was referring to holes that remind of Lahinch, this is the one that I was talking about.  There's no doubt that it's a quirky hole, but when I'm making a tee time to play a course that calls itself Irish, I expect Quirky.  The hole is almost 100% blind over a huge bluff.  The green is gigantic at over 14,000 square feet.  From that standpoint, you could say that the hole is kind of silly since the first time player has no idea where to aim without the assistance of a caddy.  I walked up and tried to get a feel for an aiming point, which I could do because there were no groups in front or behind us.  However, on a busy day, I could see this hole being a big delay.  Regardless, when I think of the Irish Course, this is the hole I think of every time.  The picture of me with the flag...keep in mind that I'm 6'6, and you still couldn't see the flag from the tee on the day I played it.  They need to make it another 5+ feet taller!

#11, "Lamb Chop," Par 3, 177 Yards


Why lamb chop?  It should be pretty obvious when you see this hole and as huge flock of sheep spend most of their time between this hole and the 11th on the Straits Course.  This one is a strong par 3 with sand all around.  The bunkers left are extraordinarily deep and a back right pin position is scary.

#10, "Shepherd's Post," Par 4, 378 Yards


Off to the second nine.  This side is longer than the front and in my mind, a much better effort at an Irish course.  There are still some Pete Dye holes, most notably 16-18, but the stretch of 10-15 is solid and more unique than most holes on the front.  10 is a great start and a good example.  Of course, this is an example of Pete Dye's genius with a bulldozer as none of these dunes and hills were on the property he was given.  However, in my mind, it totally works and leaves the player in awe.  I sure didn't feel like I was on the banks of the Great Lakes on this one.  Keep it in the fairway or else!

#9, "Last Gaspe," Par 4, 322 Yards


This is a hole where the tee you're playing is critical.  484 yards from all the way back, 409 from the blues, and 322 from the greens....woah!  From the green's it's clearly a scoring opportunity to get some good momentum before starting the back nine.  From the greens, you'll be carrying the first creek (not so easy from the tips).  Your tee shot should be no more than 250 yards, and can be plenty less if you prefer.  The green is deep and the second shot is over another creek, so judge your club appropriately on the approach.  From the tips, this would be quite a golf hole.  From the greens, it's pretty simple as long as you avoid the creek

#7, "Troll," Par 4, 344 Yards


This one bends to the right.  It's 232 yards to the bunker on the right side, so choose a club that will avoid that.  The approach to the green requires precision with trouble all around.

#8, "Garden Creek," Par 5, 501 Yards


The same distance as the 5th, and a similar shape as well.  Again, it's a tight driving area and a second shot over a creek.  Small landing areas all around and a bunker that guards the entrance into the green must be avoided on the second shot.  Just like the 5th, this has mostly a target golf feel, which can be pretty disconcerting when the wind is blowing.

#2, "Giants Leap," Par 4, 347 Yards


After an Irish-looking first hole, it's off to a couple Pete Dye holes that felt out of place.  This one is a traditional Dye risk/reward type hole.  Hugging the water line on the left will give you the best line into the green, while bailing a bit to the right will bring fairway bunkers into play a require a more difficult approach to a shallow green from that angle.  There are a few ponds that come into play on this course.  They make for decent golf holes, but feel pretty un-natural on this property and take away form the Irish feel.  The second hole is one of these.

#3, "Sleeper," Par 3, 128 Yards


A pretty standard Pete Dye par 3 here.  Water along the left with a bunker fronting the green as well and railroad ties holding up the banks.  It's all carry to the hole, so this is not one of the holes that allows for a run-up shot.  It's only a wedge in most cases to an undulating green.  Again, this hole could have been on any piece of land from Florida to California and anywhere in between.  Not a bad hole, but weird for an "Irish" course in Wisconsin.

#4, "Sandbanks," Par 4, 432 Yards


After a pretty soft beginning, it's time to finally play golf at the 4th.  Your drive must avoid all the sand to the left, but similar to the 2nd holes, the best line into the green will be from the left side.  So, a drive down the left is preferred.  From the green tees, if the wind is helping, carrying the left bunker altogether is a plausible play, but not for the faint of heart (the carry is about 250 yards).  I wouldn't recommend that shot on your first trip around the Irish, but maybe as you get used to the lines it's doable.  If your drive is down the right, your approach will look like the second picture below....not easy!

#5, "Devil's Elbow," Par 5, 501 Yards


Target golf here.  Going for this green in two requires two very precise shots, and I'd probably recommend just playing it safe.  Get your drive out there and then you'll have a decision to make as to whether you'll try to carry the creek which diagonals across the fairway at around 125 yards from the hole.  Obviously, the safest route is to lay up short of it and play for par, but I can't make you do that!

#6, "Mulligan's Watch," Par 3, 135 Yards


An Island green awaits at the 6th, though this time the surrounding hazard is sand, with lots of little pot bunkers surrounding it.  Again, only a short shot, but plenty of trouble making par if you don't make a good swing.  Some people are into golf course restrooms.  This one was unique and it was pretty cool how they carved it into a "dune" to make it blend into the land.  Kohler faucets and fixtures await, of course.

#1, "High Ground," Par 4, 369 Yards


The first on the Irish actually looks a bit like the first on the Straits.  Bunkers all the way down the right side are to be avoided, but a reasonably generous fairway can be hit with less than driver if you have first tee jitters and feel more comfortable just getting your ball in play.  The green angles away from the player to the right and has bunkers all around.  As is the case on many holes at the Irish Course, the front of the green is open, leaving the low run-up shot as an option if you're coming in from the right side of the fairway.  When trying to emulate a course in Ireland, and make a course more playable in high winds, this is a good design feature.

My round at the Irish Course was the first of four rounds of golf in four days, and part of a trip to Kohler than I made with a college friend.  After checking out a Cubs game the night before, and checking Wrigley Field off a different bucket list, we made the drive to Kohler from the northern suburbs of Chicago.  After a drive of nearly two hours, we arrived in the Sheboygan area, and the nearby town of Kohler.  We'd be playing the Irish Course first, then the Straits Course the following day, and then I'd go on to play in a Golf Channel Amateur Tour event that was being played at Blackwolf Run Meadow Valleys and River Courses.  In both cases, I played the tamer course first on each property, and then the toughest test second.  With that said, the Irish Course was no slouch, and no walk in the park.  It was a cool day in May, and the winds were blowing plenty.  I've yet to play in Ireland, so I can't really make a fair comparison to golf in the Emerald Isle, but I'd say this track did a reasonable job making me feel like I was across the pond, at least in this cool and breezy day of May.  There were holes that were clearly the vision of Pete Dye, and a few holes that could have probably been mistaken for Lahinch....only a few though.  However, don't get me wrong--you don't make a trip to coastal Wisconsin to feel like you're in Ireland.  And, with this said, the Irish Course at Whistling Straits is a strong track.  The course is a good mix of holes from some standard Pete Dye looks, to some that were more unique. 


The Irish Course is laid out on the less sexy land at Whistling Straits.  The Straits course got the lakefront property, while Irish is laid out a bit more inland.  However, you're still close enough to get plenty of lakefront winds, even though it can't be seen from most parts of the course.  While it doesn't have the water views, it has many of the same view of high sandy dunes that were created by Dye.  The course is a bit more forgiving than the Straits, but still packs a punch.  We played the Green tees, which were 6,366 yards and played to a rating/slope of 72.0 / 137.  From all the way back, the course stretches to 7,201 yards and 75.6 / 146, playing to a par of 72 in all cases.  I'll refer to distances below from the Green Tees:

Whistling Straits (Irish)

​Haven, Wisconsin




Checked off the Bucket List May 17, 2012



Golf Magazine:

#74, Top 100 Courses You Can Play (2012)

#4, Best Public Golf Courses in Wisconsin (2012)


Golf Digest:

#39, America's 100 Greatest Public Courses (2013-2014)

#5, Best in the State of Wisconsin (2013-2014)