And there’s Golf!

by Ken Hambleton

If you wander down the fairways of Pioneers Golf Course, the oldest public course in town, you can almost feel the presence of all the Lincoln golfers from the last 90 years.

Roughly the same layout since 1933, Pioneers is distinctive and well-loved. 

No sand bunkers. Plenty of grass bunkers, quick, well-kept greens, and more trees than any other course in town makes Pioneers a good starting point for a tour of the five city-owned and operated courses located in the four corners and the middle, of town. 

Pioneers Golf Course is part of a giant emerald-city complex that includes a driving range, practice putting green, the Pioneers Nature Center, Pioneers Park, and the Pinewood Bowl. 

Recently rebuilt tee boxes and the relatively new No. 5 fairway enhance the experience on the course that offers vistas that include plenty of trees, farmland, and the wide-open spaces that are such a key part of Nebraska. 

The variety of holes includes the short and long par 3s, changing challenges with the north-bound holes, and the south-bound opening holes on each nine. 

Holmes Golf Course is the second oldest public course in town and is also part of a park system that includes Holmes Lake, walking paths, and more hills than the other city courses. 

Holmes boasts a 1960s-type design with long downhill and long uphill par 5s, with plenty of trees and a wide variety of par 3s. 

Large greens, with many levels and a variety of breaks, make Holmes distinctive. 

Mahoney Golf Course is pretty typical of the mid-1970s public courses. 

Once wide-open and relatively easy, the trees have grown up and now the designed doglegs must be respected. Six par 3s look simple, but trap location, relative to the pin placement, can make Mahoney tougher than expected. 

The top-of-the-line, links-style Highlands, built in the mid-1990s, has always been the monster for length, winds, and big-wide-fast greens. There is plenty of sand to play in. Enough elevation changes, holes into the prevailing winds, and holes three holes over water present the challenge every day. 

Wide fairways and long, deep fescue grasses just past the rough make this one of the prettiest courses around. 

Four corners of Lincoln and each one has a city-owned and operated championship golf course. 

And for fun, there’s a par 3 course in the middle. 

Add four privately-owned public courses, three country clubs, and all the town courses in the area, and there is no excuse to avoid playing golf in Lincoln. 

The hidden gem among the city courses is the mid-town Ager Memorial Course. A par 3, the tree-lined course boasts some of the best greens and fairways in Nebraska. Inexpensive, quick to play, and great for any age or skill-level player, Ager is consistently listed as the “best bang for the buck” nationally. 

Far from done with golf in Lincoln are four country clubs, the classic style Country Club of Lincoln and Hillcrest. 

The world-famous Firethorn, designed by Pete Dye, and Wilderness Ridge are as much art as they are golf courses. 

Privately owned, public courses in and around the city include
the improved Hidden Valley, the much-improved NuMark,
the five-star rated by Golf Digest Woodland Hills, and the par 3 Pine Valley. 

Short drives can get you to Ashland Country Club, award-winning and rebuilt Quarry Oaks, fascinating Iron Horse, and the Beatrice Country Club. 

If you have more time to explore, there’s Wild Horse in Gothenburg, the Prairie Club in Valentine, three gorgeous courses in Grand Island and three in Kearney, and the No. 7-ranked course in the World—Sandhills Golf Club near Mullen. A couple of new additions with Landman Golf Club in Homer, Tantanka near Niobrara, and GrayBull, a new course near Maxwell add to Nebraska’s incredible variety of great golf courses.