Hole-by-Hole Guide
We’re excited to announce the launch of our new Interactive Course Guide!
Take a hole-by-hole tour of Golden Eagle with detailed layouts, helpful tips, and video tours designed to help you get familiar with the course and plan your strategy before you tee up.
Check out the hole-by-hole guide here!
Standing on the first tee today, it’s hard to imagine that Golden Eagle once existed only on paper. The manicured fairways and rolling greens were once just a vision. In 2001, after careful planning, extensive research, and thoughtful design, Golden Eagle opened to its first golfers and would eventually become one of Minnesota’s favorite championship golf courses.
Rather than reshape the land, Golden Eagle’s design let the landscape lead the way. Each hole was designed to work with the property’s 210 acres of existing forest, wetlands, and rolling terrain.
Recognizing that the beauty of the former private preserve was one of the property's greatest assets, natural buffers were implemented to protect the landscape, providing a sanctuary for wildlife, supporting an ecologically balanced turf management system, and creating a stunning backdrop for every round.
Now, as we celebrate Golden Eagle’s 25th anniversary, players of every skill level come to enjoy this championship-caliber course. With built-in natural hazards and an unforgettable playing experience, each hole challenges golfers with its own strategy, character, and design.
We’ve put together pro tips to help you navigate each unique hole and maybe even shave a few strokes off your score.
The Front Nine
Hole 1
Before it became the opening hole at Golden Eagle, this stretch of land was dense, overgrown, and untouched. Today, it is a lengthy, straight par 5 that opens the round, with a fairway bunker and water hazard running along the left side. A deep greenside bunker protects the approach to the green. This hole generally plays as a three-shot par 5. As you line up your shot, favor the right side of the fairway to steer clear of the hazards, and then focus on positioning your second shot for a comfortable approach.
Hole 2
Created by carving a path through tall trees, Hole 2 is a shorter par 5 that offers longer hitters the opportunity to reach the green in two shots. Favoring the left side of the fairway provides the best angle for an approach between the two greenside bunkers. The green angles from left to right and is well protected by bunkers on both sides.
Hole 3
Clearing the land for Hole 3 revealed a naturally rolling landscape whose elevation changes became a defining part of the hole's strategy. This downhill par 4 plays shorter than expected on the approach shot, with shots tending to roll out. Carry your drive over the right side of the fairway bunker to be rewarded with a short approach into a deep green.
Hole 4
When Hole 4 was created, the tall, gorgeous elms and maples were preserved on either side of the hole, creating a tree-lined fairway that’s especially gorgeous in fall. Beyond its beautiful setting, this par 3 features a large greenside bunker on the left. The center of the green is an excellent aiming point. There is more room beyond the green than is visible from the tee.
Hole 5
Stretching 518 yards, Hole 5 opens with sweeping views of the surrounding Northwoods, creating one of the most scenic tee shots on the course. This third and final par 5 on the front nine plays downhill with a slight dogleg to the left. Favor the right-center of the landing area to set up your second shot, but avoid pushing the ball too far right, where a water hazard and large greenside bunker come into play.
Hole 6
You’ll truly appreciate the natural rolling terrain of Golden Eagle while playing this hole. It’s a short par 4 that offers a high level of risk and reward. Approach shots missed to the left will leave an uphill shot over a greenside bunker with little room for error beyond the green. While drivable for longer hitters, the hole is protected by two fairway bunkers and a greenside bunker guarding the left side of the green.
Hole 7
Hole 7 is Golden Eagle’s number-one handicap hole from the back tees. The fairway slopes from both sides toward the center, helping to funnel well-placed drives into the ideal landing area. The uphill approach is protected by a large greenside bunker and a smaller bunker at the back right. The center of the green is an excellent target on this challenging hole.
Hole 8
Making the most of the course’s natural landscape, Hole 8 was thoughtfully designed to showcase how strategic design can make even a shorter hole a memorable test of skill. This short, downhill par 3 features a greenside bunker on the right with ample room beyond the green and to the left. But missing the green will leave a challenging downhill recovery shot.
Hole 9
With the water hazard shared with Hole 5 running along the right side and out of bounds bordering the left, accuracy and safety off the tee are the priorities. A well-placed drive sets up an uphill approach to a green protected by a greenside bunker.
The Back Nine
After a quick refreshment and bite to eat at the Clubhouse, it’s time to tackle the back nine, where you’ll be greeted with a fresh set of challenges, spectacular scenery, and some of the course’s most memorable holes, including back-to-back par 5s.
Hole 10
Stretching 422 yards, Hole 10 winds through the landscape, with mature trees framing the fairway and creating a strategic challenge from tee to green. A dogleg left presents a true risk-and-reward opportunity, featuring a forced carry over both a water hazard and a fairway bunker. Take on the corner with a bold tee shot to set up a short approach into a green guarded by a deep bunker on the left.
Hole 11
Creating this hole meant cutting through dense overgrowth, allowing the natural downhill slope, bordering wetlands, and surrounding woods to become defining features of the design layout. With wetlands to the left side and woods beyond the green, this downhill par 3 requires a precise shot. So while the flag may tempt you to attack the pin, be careful not to come up short.
Hole 12
Capturing everything golfers love about the Northwoods, this par 4 winds through a narrow corridor framed by towering trees and woods, creating an unforgettable setting from tee to green. Featuring a fairway bunker on the right and a greenside bunker on the left, favor the right side of the fairway toward the two large pines to create the best angle into this shallow green, where trouble surrounds the target. Approach shots that carry beyond the green will leave a very difficult recovery.
Hole 13
Designed to follow the natural contours of the landscape, this downhill par 3 requires a forced carry over protected wetlands to a green guarded by bunkers on the left, right, and back right. Don't forget to check the wind before pulling a club. The breeze coming off the lake has a habit of pushing tee shots to the right.
Hole 14
At 535 yards, this long par 5 begins a stretch of back-to-back par 5s and presents one of the course’s more demanding scoring challenges. Players who can carry the right side of the fairway bunker may have the chance to reach the green in two, while laying up to approximately 140 yards is an excellent strategic option. With dense trees lining the fairway, trouble extends along the left side from tee to green, including a forced carry from 140 yards out. Longer hitters may choose to carry the hazard with their second shot, but doing so brings both sides of the hazard into play.
Hole 15
Don't let the shorter yardage fool you. Hole 15 still demands a thoughtful approach. Built around the Golden Eagle’s rolling terrain, this par 5 offers a tempting chance to reach the green in two, but only if you're willing to take on a little risk. Carrying the left side of the first fairway bunker can leave a much shorter second shot, while anything pushed right may find a steep slope and a challenging hit. A well-placed approach just over the right edge of the second fairway bunker gives you the best chance of feeding the ball onto the challenging two-tier green.
Hole 16
A picturesque downhill par 3, Hole 16 showcases the natural beauty of Golden Eagle with scenic wetlands bordering the left side. While the views may steal your attention, the challenge remains, with two strategically placed greenside bunkers protecting nearly every pin position except those at the front center of the green.
Hole 17
You’re on the home stretch! At 419 yards, this long par 4 incorporates native vegetation as a natural hazard, requiring a forced carry and confident approach shot. Club selection off the tee is critical. Too much club can bring the hazard into play, while too little can leave a lengthy approach into a challenging green protected by a greenside bunker on the left. From the green and red tees, this hole plays as a par 3.
Hole 18
Stretching 431 yards, the finishing hole invites golfers to slow down, take in the beauty of the surrounding Northwoods, and enjoy one final test of the course. Blending the natural landscape and strategic design, you’ll face a demanding tee shot with a forced carry and a fairway bunker guarding the right side. The challenge continues with another forced carry into the green, where an uphill approach often plays longer than expected. A deep greenside bunker and a steep, closely mown slope can send shots that come up short rolling back down the hill, creating a dramatic finish.
Grab your clubs, take in the scenery, and experience the transformation of a former private preserve of forest and wetlands into the championship course Golden Eagle is today. Twenty-five years later, every hole continues to showcase the natural beauty and strategic challenge that make this Northwoods course truly unforgettable.
