SentryWorld Golf Course, Wisconsin
The third hole at SentryWorld Golf Course in Stevens Point, Wisconsin.
In 2017, one of my very best friends in the world asked me if I would accompany him and a college buddy of his to the U.S. Open. That year’s championship took place at Erin Hills in Wisconsin and was eventually won by Brooks Koepka, the first of his now five majors. Along the way, the three of us made a few pitstops; the first was at SentryWorld Golf Course in Stevens Point. A town of 25,000, Stevens Point is known around the Midwest chiefly for being the headquarters of Sentry Insurance, a business lines insurance company. Across the street from their command post is SentryWorld, a 1982 Robert Trent Jones, Jr. design originally created to appease employees of the insurance giant. The course was updated 10 years ago to abide by the times.
Bernhard Langer, the greatest middle-aged golfer of all-time, took home the United States Senior Open this week at SentryWorld. The win was an incredible 12th senior major championship for the 65-year-old wunderkind, who finished at seven under par. Hosting its first big tournament, the venue opened to rave reviews and I am excited to watch future events unveil at the central Wisconsin course. Just eight players finished better than even par, forging SentryWorld into a formidable test for the world’s best. Hometown Wisconsinites Steve Stricker and Jerry Kelly filled out the top three at five and four under, respectively. The beauty and greens of the course were exceedingly regarded.
SentryWorld is known as a high-grade public course. In 2021, Golf Digest ranked the track 50th in the country on their biennial top 100 list. Aside from a quick Google search yielding a litany of photos of the “Flower Hole”, I didn’t know a thing about SentryWorld before I arrived. Being the planner that he is, my friend Brendan kindly set up the entire shindig. We have joked in the past about our differing methods of planning: Brendan figures things out months in advance, and I “fly by the seat of my pants”. He’s wrong, but I digress.
I want to mention that the grainy photos seen in the post are the result of both Samsung S7 technology and an indifference to golf course architecture at the time. I’m sure had I visited SentryWorld in 2023, we would have two dozen photos to choose from. The quality can be blamed on my ignorance.
All right, enough with the buildup. Perhaps the finest trait of SentryWorld is its conditioning. We remarked on the first hole, a 423-yard dogleg left, that it felt like we were among the first golfers to ever play the course. The land is relatively flat, but SentryWorld more than makes up for its shortcomings with variety and flat-out fun holes. The stretch of three through five is my favorite on the front nine and compose a few of my favorite golf hole templates: a par three with a gorgeous water backdrop; a high-risk, high-reward drivable par four; and a par five that is reachable if you dare to take on a water hazard. The par five ninth, in which the golfer navigates both the first and second shots over a creek, can surrender scores of three or seven depending on how it is played. Indeed, Robert Trent Jones, Jr. does not mess around. At the U.S. Senior Open, the ninth played as a par four and, surrendering a 4.55 average score, the second hardest hole on the golf course.
From an aesthetic point, SentryWorld reminded me of The Classic at Madden’s, a great public course in Brainerd, Minnesota. Trees line the holes beautifully, and there is water galore. From my count, the blue stuff comes into play on 11 holes, though a few of these hazards are short carries from the tee box. Three, by my reckoning.
One of the most baffling occurrences I’ve ever come across on a golf course transpired on the 12th green. Brendan struck a high iron on the 165-yard hole to within three feet of pin. He hit a firm putt right at the center of the pin and the ball bounced in and then rattled out of the cup. The three of us reacted as if we had just seen Bigfoot. We had a low stakes match going—a few dollars, if I recall correctly—and that 12th green blow became the defining moment of the day. Shortly after, on the 13th, I chipped in a lucky screamer for birdie and Logan three-putted for bogey. He led by three after 11 holes and lost five of the next six to lose the match 2&1. Poor guy. Deep down, I think Brendan still believes that putt had something to do with the outcome. Luckily, he invited me to be a groomsman in his wedding later this year, so our friendship has outlasted his SentryWorld misfortune. Thanks, Brendan!
Onto the bad, if you could call it that, at SentryWorld. Holes 10 through 12 butt up against Interstate 39, and the sound can be an annoyance as you trek through the back nine. The aforementioned “Flower Hole” is the par three 16th. It is a postcard pretty hole that, like the 16th at TPC Scottsdale, places a gimmick—in this case, 30,000 flowers—on an otherwise uninspiring golf hole. Like putting lipstick on a pig, one might say. Though it lacks the design of many other offerings at SentryWorld, you’ll always remember the Flower Hole; you could argue Jones is a genius for creating such a shtick. There are a few forgetful holes, but ultimately the memorability of SentryWorld is sky high despite its lack of altitude change. There’s a reason the media was cuckoo for the course this week.
If you find yourself smack dab in the middle of the Badger State, teeing it up at SentryWorld is a no brainer. It’s a ridiculously well-conditioned, challenging golf course with a private feel to it due to its lushness and spread-out tee times. The price tag is a bit high, but it is always fun to play where the pros do. Just don’t expect to score like Bernhard Langer.