The length provides a great challenge. 7000 yards from the blues, 7500 from the blacks. One par 5 from the black tees plays 598. No sissy par 5's here. 2 par 5's over 570 from the blues. You should use every club in your bag. Greens are immaculately kept. very fast, and extremly tough. No flat greens here. Some are 2 levels. The 17th is a 3 tiered green, dont go long here, keep it short. A picturesque finishing 18. very narrow fairway here, water creeping in on both sides. I played on a Friday last, and the pins were in place for championship Sunday. Front green, behind a bunker. If you want easy, don't come here. But who wants easy. There is a reason this course had an Open qualifier in 96. Simply awesome.

My one complaint. I just wish there was a more defined fairway to short rough. Fairway grass could definitely be cut shorter, but overall not bad at all.

Outstanding challenging course, especially for the money. $17 well worth 3 or 4 rounds a week here. Dont be scared off by the low price thinking its garbage. This is an incredible value you will be glad you tried. I gaurentee you come back, unless you can't take a good challenge. You can't get any better unless you golf a place like this.

Customer Service

Didn't reserve a tee time, and was in and out of the pro shop ready to tee off within 2 minutes.

Course will test game off the tee, long irons, fairway woods, and especially the short game given that some GIRs will be a tough assignment. Definitely a thinking course...and not for the faint of heart.

Course could always use additional work...some bunkers need to be groomed better with new sand for instance, and greens tend to be awfully soft. Also, course has a tendency to burn out by August...hopefully this problem is being addressed.

A course for the modern golfer in that all the technology that improves distance and enhances forgiveness will be put to the test here. The course has some significant changes for 2003; notably bent grass tees (a needed upgrade), and enhanced hazards. All told, this course is a monster at 7500 yards. If they ever put in bent grass fairways and really improved some of the general conditioning, this course could host a PGA event. I've played here for over ten years...if you want to work on your long irons and fairway woods, this is the way to go. I guarantee that after playing this course a few times, every par 4 under 400 yards you play on another course will seem like child's play.

Customer Service

Jimmy is a great pro and is always there to help. Rangers, on the other hand, all seem to be of the geriatric variety and are generally found roaming the course picking balls out of water hazards...won't do much about slow play.

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If you've had a tough round, try taking a dunk in the swimming pool next to the clubhouse...it will be an experience you'll never forget!

Championship course: Design, variety or tees, speed of play. North course: Greens, challenge from back tees. Both courses: Inexpensive greens fees.

Both courses lack top notch conditioning. Grass on tees is almost too long to play off of!

Championship course is an excellent layout. The course can play quite long from the black of blue tees, but a recently installed (2-3 years ago) set of white tees makes the course friendlier to less skilled players. The fact that almost all of the tees are elevated helps for the blue and/or black player also. The trees have matured and provide quite a challenge for wayward tee shots. The greens are large and most of them have two or more levels. There are a good number of water holes with most of the water on the right. Unfortunately, course maintenance is not as good as it could be. North course is too short from the regular tees. It is quite a bit more challenging from the back tees however. The greens require some precision as they feature several small "zones" where pins are frequently tucked. This course in quite wide open with few trees and only a few water holes. There are numerous bunkers which do come into play. Both courses are quite reasonably priced and provide good value for your money. Both provide a good challenge from the back tees.

Customer Service

Friendly staff.

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Good practice areas.

The strength of the course is the layout. There are only one or two holes that are similiar to another. The par fives are all challenging. The sixth hole could be the best par four around.

Sometimes the condition of the tee boxes leaves much to be desired. They are almost always cut too high. The sand traps have little definition and need more sand or need to be raked more often. They tend to have many small rocks and pebbles. The greens have many un-fixed ball marks but that is more the fault of the patrons.

Bon Vivant is the best golf value in the Chicagoland area. The championship course offers 4 sets of tees to accomodate all levels of competition. The north course is not so hot. The greens are small and NEVER hold a shot. I don't mind running a shot up but not on every hole.

Customer Service

Jim does a great job with the customers. The snack bar service however is often slow. I wish the pro shop was more like the one at Pheasant Valley. There is rarely a good selection and hardly ever any

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The practice facility is good. Nice putting green and chipping greeen. The driving range is average. Good value on range balls.

Great value and not crowded even on the weekend.

Like any new corse the trees were small. Grass is not as well maintained 20+ yards from the green.

I played the new or North corse. It's relatevly flat and straignt course. The greens are relatevly small but I think that's due to how short this course plays. We played on a holiday weekend mid day and the course was wide open. What a joy to play 18 holes on a weekend in 3 hours. Well worth the ride from Chicago. Some greens have a type of pensula and it gets verry narrow. About 10 yards from edge to edge. Over all a good deal.

Customer Service

Verry good.

Overall condition of the courses. Different tee options for different skill levels. The greens role true. The overall beauty of both courses. Value, value value!!!

Tee boxes tend to be a bit shaggy.

The Championship course is long (7500 yds from the black tees)! I believe it is still the longest course in Illinois. You also have the option of playing fromm 7000 yds (blue tees)or 6300 and change (white tees). I've played from all three, and they all present many challenges. There is not a bad hole. The par 5's are long with water potentially creating havoc on each one. The fairways aren't too tight, but missing them with tee shots can be disasterous to your score. The trees are numerous and mature, the rough is thick, and the fairway bunkers have a knack for getting in the way! The greens have plenty twists and turns, and several of them are monsterous in size. The 17th green is three-tiered, and there can be a 4-club difference in an approach to a pin placement up front vs. a placement to the back of the green. A special mention has to be made about the last 3 holes, "The Waterloo", they have been called. Water comes into play on the par 3 16th, par 4 17th, and par 5 18th (which is a beautiful finishing hole!). I have had good scores literally "sink" on those three holes. This course is a must play especially for the price. Weekday rates are $18, $28 w/cart and weekends are $28, $38 w/cart. Fridays are considered weekdays!!! The ultimate deal is the Earlybird special...tee-off before 7AM on a weekday and play 18 with a cart for $17!!! There is also the new 18, The North Course. It is 7 years old and plays more links style. From the blue tees, it is 6600 yds. You have many wide open tee shots, but the greens are small and well-bunkered. Often, you need to club down, land you shot short of the green, and run it up. I feel this course is tougher than the Championship Course. If you a good short game, you can score well. It cost about $4 less to play this course than the Champ. The same Earlybird deal is available.

Customer Service

The staff is knowledgable, courteous, and friendly. Checking in to play is a snap. The head pro does an awesome job with outings of any size.

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The well-maintained driving range is in excellent condition. $4 will get you about 70 balls. Each course has a putting green, and there is a chipping green with bunkers to tune up the short game befor