Des Moines (North) - Iowa - USA

Des Moines Golf and Country Club dates back to 1897, when 9-hole course was laid out by Warren Dickinson, one of the founding members. A few years later, the club secured a twenty-year lease on land to the north of its original premises and Tom Bendelow was called in to design the new layout.

When this lease expired, the club relocated again, moving to the 147-acre Ashworth Estate on the west side of Des Moines. Unfortunately, the imminent arrival of an interstate highway in the mid-1960s forced the club’s final move to Dallas County, where two 18-hole layouts were fashioned.

Both courses were designed by Pete Dye, with the North opening in 1968 and the South following a year later. The club has since hosted the US Senior Open in 1999 and the Solheim Cup in 2017, with a composite course (featuring nine holes from each course) used for the more recent event, which Pete Dye and Tim Liddy renovated in 2014.

In The American Private Golf Club Guide, author Daniel Wexler says “the present facility is headlined (but only just) by the slightly longer North course, a challenging layout which could easily have its par lowered two shots for major competition. Though its aesthetic offers few hints of Dye, it does feature some strong holes, particularly early in the back nine.”