Ground Broken On Putting, Chipping Lawn At Deerpath Golf Course

LAKE FOREST, IL — In a first of its kind for the Chicago area, officials broke ground Wednesday on a 30,000-square-foot chipping and putting space at Deerpath Golf Course.

Dubbed The Lawn, the family-friendly facility is aimed at appealing to every level of golfer, from those who want to cut their handicap by shoring up their short game to novices, youngsters and social groups.

Due to open in spring 2022, the addition to the city-owned course will include an 18-hole putting course with a series of hills, dales and swales and a three-hole chipping course, as well as a surrounding fairway and line of synthetic tees.

“With the demand for golf continuing to grow, Lake Forest is proud to offer its residents a premier practice facility to encourage players of all skill levels to either start or continue enjoying the game,” said Sally Swarthout, the city's director of parks, recreation and forestry.

“Combined with the ongoing drainage and facility upgrades, Deerpath Golf Course is proud to be enhancing the first-class golf experience residents have enjoyed for more than 90 years," Swarthout added.

Designer Todd Quinto was inspired by the Ladies' Putting Course at St. Andrews in Scotland and other such putting greens in Florida, North Carolina and Oregon, according to a release.

With financial support from the Friends of Lake Forest Parks and Recreation Foundationand the Wadsworth Golf Charities Foundation, the project is part of a larger effort to encourage a wider variety of people to engage with golf in their own way, regardless of their age, background or skill level, it said.

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Swarthout told Patch the short game area and putting course, part of the third and final phase of the Deerpath Golf Course Renovation Project, cost at total of $350,000.

Other work already completed include new paved paths, club house renovations, new carts and ongoing drainage and other improvements, according to a brochure from last year.

The city has committed $1.5 million to facility improvements as part of the multi-year project, it said, and the third phase hoped to raise a total of $2.225 million in tax-deductible donations through foundations.

Back in 2017, Nancy Hughes, the late local philanthropist, pledged $500,000 to the kickstart the fundraising campaign, and the clubhouse was renamed the John and Nancy Hughes Clubhouse in her and her famed filmmaker husband's honor.

Golf course management company KemperSports, hired to operate Deerpath Golf Course in 2012, will also manage The Lawn, which will be normally free to use but also available for rental for private events.

Steve Skinner, chief executive officer of the Northbrook-based company, said The Lawn will be a wonderful addition to the municipal course.

“Our hope for The Lawn is that it can inspire the local community to either refine their existing skills, or better yet, give them the courage to pick up a club for the first time,” Skinner said.

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“Spaces like The Lawn quickly become a gathering place for people of all skill levels and ages to engage with the game of golf," Skinner said. "We could not be more proud to bring this asset to the City of Lake Forest, and we are thrilled to see the positive impact it will have.”