Whistling Straits (Straits Course)

In an era of containment mounds, water features, and cart-forward golf design, Pete and Alice Dye were tasked with creating a walking-only course “to look like Ballybunion” along the shores of Lake Michigan in central Wisconsin. This was the vision of businessman and golf developer Herb Kohler, who had already tasked the Dye's to build two courses at Blackwolf Run a few miles away. 

While the new course would have tremendous views of the vast lake, which is reminiscent of the Irish Sea, the flat landscape that was once a World War II military base would have to be completely reimagined and manufactured to mimic the massive dunes found along the Irish coast. This Herculean task required millions of yards of dirt to be imported and highly engineered to create a completely new landscape atop the 70-foot bluffs. The catalyst for making this project work was that Pete theorized pushing the shoreline bluffs back inland to build faux dunes. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, who had final say, realized this would be a great way to stop ongoing coastal erosion by providing beaches that could withstand the crashing waves and ultimately gave the green light to Dye and Co. Tons of sand was purchased from a nearby farm which allowed Pete to create the dramatic dunescape and visual extravaganza seen today. 

To an untrained eye, the faux dunes of Whistling Straits would appear to have been there for hundreds of years. Pete created a stepped topography where the non-coastal holes were perched up above the lower lying lakefront holes, which produced stunning views on all 18 holes and provided a necessary framework for adequate drainage. The construction of the Straits was just one piece of this fascinating puzzle. Dye formulated a double figure-eight routing along the two-mile shoreline that allowed for eight holes directly on the water: Four holes play north-south and four play south-north. Each coastal section is split into pairs so you play a sequence of two inland holes, then two water holes throughout the round. In addition, the fescue-covered landscape exhibits over 1,000 individual bunkers, which elicits a sensory blitzkrieg for those playing the course. Whistling Straits is a true masterpiece of golf course construction and design that properly hosts major championships while also appealing to the everyday golfer.

Take Note...

Winter work. In order to push the shoreline bluffs back inland, the construction crew utilized the frigid winter months to drive their heavy machinery on top of the frozen lake to complete this feat of engineering.

‍Pete did. During construction of the 17th hole, Alice told Pete that the hole wasn’t difficult enough and that “there needs to be a chance of making double bogey.” Herb suggested pushing the green atop a tall, nearby mound while Alice suggested placing a pond between the green and the lake. Pete ignored both suggestions and built a large fronting mound that obscures the view of half the putting surface from the championship tees. To capture this moment, Alice crafted a sketch of each of the three ideas and titled them “Herb Said,” “Alice Said,” and “Pete Did,” respectively. This story captures Pete’s stubbornness and his genius of using visual deception as a challenge versus a physical hazard. Today, this framed sketch is hanging inside the bar at the clubhouse.

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