What are the best private golf courses in the state of Illinois?
Trying to narrow the nearly 150 Illinois private golf courses into a top 15 is tough, but that’s what Golfweek, part of the USA TODAY Network just like the Journal Star, has been doing for many years.
Golfweek earlier this month revealed its full state-by-state rankings for private golf courses, and Illinois’ top courses were distilled into the 15 best. The top spot are all in the Chicago area — led by Chicago Golf Club in Wheaton, followed by Shoreacres in Lake Bluff and the No. 3 course at Medinah Country Club.
Looking for the top public courses in Illinois? You can find those by tapping here.
How do these rankings determined? GolfWeek’s ratings panel continually evaluates courses and rates them based on 10 criteria on a points basis of 1 through 10. Those categories include routing, conditioning, greens, and memorability and variety of golf holes. They also file a single, overall rating on each course. Those overall ratings are averaged to produce GolfWeek’s state-by-state rankings.
Here is Golfweek’s top 15 ranking for Illinois private golf courses as of 2025:
Illinois’ best private golf course rankings as of 2025 by GolfWeek
- 1. Chicago Golf Club, Wheaton
- 2. Shoreacres, Lake Bluff
- 3. Medinah Country Club No. 3, Medinah
- 4. Old Elm, Highland Park
- 5. Beverly Country Club, Chicago
- 6. Butler National, Oak Brook
- 7. Olympia Fields North, Olympia Fields
- 8. Skokie Country Club, Glencoe
- 9. Black Sheep, Sugar Grove
- 10. Conway Farms, Lake Forest
- 11. Olympia Fields South, Olympia Fields
- 12. Bob O’Link, Highland Park
- 13. Glen View Club, Golf
- 14. Onwentsia Club, Lake Forest
- 15. Rich Harvest Farms, Sugar Grove
Find the rest of Golfweek’s state-by-state rankings, plus a look at the top public-access courses in the U.S.
