Prairie Woods Golf Course | Avalon, WI | Par 71

Overall, I would say this is an unusual layout, but I mean it in a pretty good way. You get a lot of different things thrown at you at Prairie Woods. You’re got your wide open, your tight, your straight, your doglegs, your quirky. The course is pretty short, even from the tips, and there are times when it definitely feels short. There are multiple par-4s that a long hitter can drive or at least get very close to. There are only three tees available, so you’re limited on how you can play the course. You start off your round with the wide open, as 1 is a short, downhill par-4 with some fairway bunkers the only reasonable obstacles. A nice way to ease you into your round. You continue with this style for a few holes, including a very short par-5, and probably the signature hole, the par-3 3rd. Starting with 5, you start to see a little more of the character the course has, as more trees are brought into play. From this point on, you’ll be in and out of trees framing fairways and making things a bit more difficult. The back nine starts with another short par-4, followed by a majestic par-3 down the hill. There will be several spots where you can play more conservatively, as driver can get you in trouble. There’s only one par-5 on the back – the course is a 36-35-71 setup – and it’s one of the more strategic and challenging holes on the property. If you can manage to keep your ball relatively straight and know your distances, this course is definitely there for the taking.

I have only played the course a couple of times, so I am trying to not be too harsh, but the condition during my most recent visit was a little rough. The area had been pounded with rain, so there were a lot of areas of saturated ground and standing water. I coined the phrase “impromptu pond” on more than one occasion. So while all the rain is out of their control, the course clearly struggles to handle moisture. You could tell there’s a good amount of play on the fairways and in some areas of the rough, especially when you get into the more wooded areas. None of it really stood out, but I did notice it while I was playing. I thought the greens were quite nice, and receptive to approach shots. They rolled consistently well, but it was tough to get a gauge on the speed due to all the moisture.

Prairie Woods has a nice range right along the parking lot, with plenty of space to accommodate larger groups. There are a couple of good-sized putting greens, which is something I always appreciate. There was space to hit longer pitch shots, as well as chips, and with multiple greens, you could not get in the way of people that wanted to putt.

The clubhouse stands out as you drive up the long, straight road onto the property. The pro shop is small and basic. It has what you need. The bar/grill area is up a level and is open and relaxing. There is outdoor seating that allows you to view the course while you have a post-round beverage.

You stock golf carts get the job done. No GPS, no extras to speak of, but the cart was clean and ran well. Not much else to talk about.

The first word I think of when describing the Prairie Woods staff is friendly. And that was across the board. Every person I encountered was friendly. The course ranger stood out as someone who clearly loves what he is doing. He chatted with us a few times and made sure we were OK with the pace of play and gave us updates on how things were moving. Every course could use a ranger like that! I had multiple staff help me when I stopped in at the turn. These are little things that leave positive feelings.

Again, it is a shorter course, but 18 holes with a cart on a weekend for less than $60 is becoming an oddity these days. You aren’t going to find too many better deals out there in the world of golf we live in now.

This is a short course with several easy holes. But there are also some challenging holes lined with trees and with water in play. Those holes can certainly jump up and bite you. If you’re a straight hitter, you’ll have a good chance to post a good score here.

Drivable par-4s and short par-5s is usually a good start to a fun course in my book, and Prairie Woods has that. There’s also a good variety of hole designs that keeps the course from being boring. There is sure to be a few holes that you’ll remember.

The hole that is likely to stand out to most players is the par-3 3rd. It’s protected by water in the front and huge mounds all along the back. The green is especially wide, but not very deep, so distance control is the key here. It shouldn’t be too demanding of a shot, but all the danger around it might make you second guess yourself on what club to pull.

It’s a toss-up between 9 and 15, but I am going to go with the par-5 15th hole. This is a tree-lined hole that takes a sharp turn to the left. Not only getting in play, but getting the in position to have an effective second shot is the key. Longer hitters can hit it through the fairway on the right if they’re not careful, and anything too aggressive down the left will result in a punch out. Once you’re in position to go at the narrow, elevated green, the work isn’t done, because holding it with a longer club is going to be tough. Anything over the green is going to be an impossible up-and-down, so it’s almost better to just play it as a three-shot hole if you’re not spot on with your approach yardages.

I don’t mind short, strategic par-4s, but I think that hole #6 is a bit to quirky even for me. It measures just xxx yards and bends around a patch of large trees on the right to an elevated green. Anything missed to the right might leave you either completely blocked or result in a lost ball. So, that means the smart play is something around a 170-yard shot off the tee, which I don’t enjoy that much. Visually, it doesn’t really present a lot of positive outcomes.

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