Updated: 1/1/2020
The Oaks golf course is a family run business with a love for golf (and weddings). The Oaks golf course is an 18-hole course open to the public receiving early praise from Golf Digest. The national review put The Oaks golf course on the map for golfers in the southern Wisconsin area. The course and the experience has a lot to offer local golfers. I would recommend The Oaks golf course, however, there are some things to note before giving a full endorsement. This golf course review of The Oaks will detail those items.
Experience
The Oaks could be considered a step above the traditional municipal golf course. There are obvious investments in the property including the clubhouse, carts and practice facilities. The combination of these things result in a slightly higher than average green fee but deals and discounted rates can be found.
The Oaks golf course is a busy place. Expect the tee sheet to be filled if it a moderately nice day. The starter does a really nice job welcoming every golfer and keeping groups in order. I cannot say enough nice things about the starter. He is great. Every. Time.
The golf course receives lots of play from many different levels of golfers. This includes many corporate events and outings. At times, the course will appear beat up both on the tee boxes and greens. This happens at all busy courses. I would like to see The Oaks provide guidance and education to all golfers on topics like pace of play, using the in-cart display, and fixing pitch marks/divots.
My last comment on the experience at The Oaks would be to put the starter down towards the first tee. Instead, he is forced to chase golfers around to get them lined up. In my opinion, golfers should go to him.
Venue / Facility
The Oaks is equally known for its wedding venue (if not more so) as it is the golf course. In fact, The Oaks Instagram has about a 5:1 ratio of wedding vs. golf course pictures. Update: The Oaks marketing team has done a nice job refocusing the Instagram account.
Over the past few years, The Oaks has renovated its clubhouse, including the pro shop. They have also constructed a large 6,300 square foot “Event Center” positioned just off the 8th hole. The pro shop is suitable with plenty of The Oaks branded gear, top of the line golf clubs and accessories. The restaurant and bar area is spacious with a good beer and food selection. The venue at The Oaks is top notch and should be mentioned in this golf course review.
The location of The Oaks is nestled alongside Interstate 94 outside of Madison, WI. This stretch between Madison and Milwaukee is highly traveled. Unfortunately, due to this traffic, holes 11 through 13 can be quite distracting. The constant buzz of the interstate can be heard for over 50% of the holes on the course. There is not much The Oaks can do about this noise unless a noise barrier wall was constructed.
Architecture / Hole Layouts
The land owner, John Blaska, hired golf course architect Greg Martin of Martin Design to lead the development of The Oaks. At par 71, Greg chose an interesting path with (6) par 3s, (5) par 5s and (7) par 4s. This decision may have been due to the routing selected by Greg.
On The Oaks website, there are quotes from golfwisconsin.com and golfnow.com describing the golf course experience. They use terms such as “The variety and distinction of each hole will require a thoughtful approach” and “Bent grass fairways, tees and greens give the tract a country club feel, as does its thick rough and true-rolling putting surfaces.”
I love a lot of things about The Oaks but there are some head-scratching holes requiring a fix. For my course review, I would describe The Oaks as “unnaturally difficult”. The reason for this would be a couple holes that do not fit with the rest of the design and are quite difficult for any average golfer. The difficulties include minimal landing areas, over-grown trees and fescue. In addition, there are a few greens that appear to have settled since construction making them overly challenging and unnecessary. The unfortunate consequence of this setup is a slow, unenjoyable round of golf.
Hole Redesign Opportunities
This course review for The Oaks would not be fair if I did not offer direct, constructive feedback.
Hole 2 – Par 3 155 Yards
The second hole sets up the entire course experience at The Oaks. I have played with several strangers who dread this hole. I do not believe this is the experience The Oaks is after. The front of the green is severely sloped eliminating any possibility of a pin placement. The rear section of the green is also sloped towards the back. This appears to be an example where the green has settled into a position not intended leaving the middle hump the only reasonable spot for a pin.
The Fix: Raise the green delivering on several more pin positions. Clear out the brush along the back of the green offering a bailout area.
Hole 9 – Par 5 518 Yards
This reachable par 5 is anything but straightforward. The tee shot required is a blind 220 yards over a cart path and hill in order to hit a 35 yard wide fairway. Anything left by 20 yards goes down a steep bank and likely in the hazard. The entire right side of the fairway is guarded by deep fescue just by 8 yards off. The smart play is to hit a 185-220 yard shot off the tee. However, I witness golfers pull out driver 95% of the time on this hole because it is a par 5. The results: lost golf balls and slow play. Every. Time.
The Fix: This recommendation will take significant investment but I believe can be accomplished. Clear out the trees along the left by 50 yards and fill in with dirt. Broaden the landing area and reposition the green to the east.
Hole 14 – Par 4 435 Yards
Hole 14 is a par 4 severe dogleg left. The fairway goes at a 45 degree angle away from the player requiring a carry of 150-225 yards based on the tee. The line required is cut so close to the tree line that only a precise shot will suffice. Once the fairway is found, a marsh needs to be cleared on the approach requiring a carry of 150+ yards. Again, this type of architecture is so difficult for The Oaks’ target customer; the average player.
The Fix: Fill in the marsh off the tee boxes AND 100 yards of it on the second shot. This fix will eliminate almost EVERY golfer pushing the tee shot to the right into hole 15. These changes will drastically increase the pace of play on the second nine holes.
Conditions
The Oaks is typically the first course in to be ready for play in the Spring and will stay open late into fall and even winter. Update: I played The Oaks on December 26th, 2019! I love this about the golf course. The course has bent grass throughout creating a consistent playing experience from fairway to green.
The greens at The Oaks are large enough for enjoyable play but can often have such severe slopes that only a few pin positions are available to the greenskeeper. Another shining spot for The Oaks would be its practice facility. Investments in equipment and staff has made this the location for club-fitting and instruction. The large two-tiered practice green, lengthy driving range with several aiming sticks and a second green for bunker play make practicing enjoyable.
Conclusion
The Oaks makes its appeal to the “every man” golfer. This is a place you want to get a group of friends together to enjoy some beers and fun. I believe some small changes to the golf course can deliver on this experience every time. Couple these changes with a focus on pace of play and it could quickly turn into a golf destination for players as far as the Milwaukee area. Finally, search for rate discounts or package tee times (can be found at the local Costco) to avoid paying full price. The potential for The Oaks is obvious. I look forward to seeing this course mature and be a shining golf spot for the Madison area.
