WINTER GOLF REVIEW:
I took a ride out to Lemont a few weeks ago to check out the great deals that Ruffled Feathers was running for this mild mannered winter we Chicagoians are having.  I believe I paid roughly $30 for a weekday with a cart, which if you are unfamiliar with Ruffled Feathers is a great deal (typically the rates are in the 80-100 dollar range).  The golf course is always in good to great shape, the greens roll quick and smooth, and the course is fun to play (some tough holes and some scoring holes).  For playing in early March Ruffled Feathers was in good shape, the greens hadn’t been mowed, but they still rolled well.  For winter golf I was very happy with the way the course played.

I wanted to review the layout at Ruffled Feathers, since we really can’t go very much on the course conditions since I last played in March.  The PB Dye (Pete Dye’s son) course can play as long as 6900 and as short as 6000 from the men’s tees.  The course rating runs 73.7/140 from the back tee box.  Ruffled Feathers is a great public golf course to play, its always in great shape, it’s tough but fair, and depending on the tees you play can be a beast to a pussy cat.  However, the green fees are high for a public golf course in the area, but you are getting what you pay for.  You want the nice greens and pristine conditions you are going to have to shell out the money for it.

I particularly like the back nine at Ruffled.  The front starts out really tough (after the first hole) and remains to be a bitch for the remaining 8 holes.  After playing 10 and 11 (the 10th is a tough par four with water left, and 11 is an island green par three) you can play the rest of the back nine and score (as long as you don’t count the 17th and the 18th).  There have been many rounds saved at Ruffled by playing well between 12 and 16, and finishing with a par on 17 and 18.  17 is a mid range par 3 with water all left (you can bail out right though and have plenty of green to work with) and 18 is a mother of a finishing hole with water left of the green and ranging in the 450 yard neighborhood.  Still a very fun course to play, and a good score at Ruffled feels like a great score at other places.

All in all I give Ruffled Feathers Golf Club in Lemont, IL a solid BIRDIE.  The greens are good enough that you can really enjoy yourself at this public golf course with private golf course conditions.  You do pay for the better conditions, so I recommend checking out this bad boy on GolfNow.com or possibly calling the proshop for a coupon, 2 for 1 deal, etc…  I would also recommend grabbing a bite to eat in the clubhouse, great food and spectacular views of the golf course.