Across the state you’ll find a bevy of classic properties that started as nine-holers but expanded to a full 18 decades later. For me, Old Hickory Golf Club and Minocqua Country Club come to mind as examples, but it was commonplace for golf to start as a nine-hole enterprise in many of Wisconsin’s small towns before expanding in the post-WW2 era to meet a growing demand for the game.

The ensuing contrast between nines at these properties can either help or hinder the golf experience, depending on the overall quality of the course and the manner in which the club integrated the newer nine into the routing.

Nowhere have I seen more contrasting nines than at Stoughton Country Club, though, a charming private layout featuring a classic nine in the hills adjacent to Lake Kegonza and a modern nine that meanders through open farmland.

Designed by Golden Age architect Willie Watson, also known for his work at Interlachen, Belvedere and The Olympic Club, the “classic nine” spills over rolling, wooded terrain with quirky shots into small greens, demanding precision in a way that reminded me of Old Hickory.

Harry Smead, the obscure architect who designed magnificent Pine Hills Country Club, also had a key role in building out the original nine, and I can definitely see where he made his mark with similar shaping to Pine Hills around the greens.

In 1995, the club expanded to 18 holes by adding a distinct property to the east of the original club. This “modern nine” features fewer trees with an open setup that will favor longer hitters. Winding through farmland next to a suburban neighborhood, long views of the countryside are in ample supply on this section of the property.

Stoughton Country Club often flies under the radar in the Madison area, as it’s a lower-key club tucked next to the lake, a bit off the beaten path. It’s best known for offering an affordable membership but little has been publicized about the golf course itself. After living in the Madison area for decades, it remained the only course in the immediate area I hadn’t played yet, until I paid a visit this summer.

This was a worthy visit and made for an enjoyable golf experience with great variety and excellent course conditions. While I wouldn’t call it an “easy” layout, it’s a playable course that could yield a low score on a good day (which, unfortunately, wasn’t the case for me). The contrasting styles of the nines do require a well-rounded game, however, calling for precision on one half and power on the other side.

Mid-summer humidity cloaked the region during morning photography, not optimal in and of itself, but it did yield a vibrant sunrise with oranges and reds spilling over the landscape in memorable fashion.

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Course Summary

Stoughton Country Club

Stoughton, WI

Architect: Willie Watson (1922)

Par 71, 6360/6035/5533/5103 Yards

Course/Slope Rating: 71.2/127; 69.7/126; 67.5/118; 65.4/115

Course Highlights

The routing at Stoughton Country Club is, to put it mildly, odd.

As a tale of two nines, each with distinct character, you’d think they would form the front and back nine respectively. But since the newer nine sits on a plot of land several blocks from the clubhouse, an alternative approach to routing was necessary to allow for both sides to start and end near the home base.

This was achieved by designating two “connector holes” to the rest of the back nine – first the par three 10th playing to the east from the clubhouse and then the finishing hole returning home.

The tenth is particularly interesting, a longer par three playing downhill into a grove of oaks. With a distance of over 200 yards and a postage stamp green, this is a tough start to the back nine and requires a well-executed shot to have a good chance at par. The topography falls off right-to-left into the trees, so the left side should be avoided at all costs.

On the front nine, the first hole serves as a connector to two and three, a brief stint on the modern half of the course. This narrow opening par four weaves through mature foliage, demanding a straight ball off the tee before finishing at an elevated green.

The classic nine offers ample variety with a wide range of yardages, particularly on the par fours, with holes four and eight of the longer variety and five and seven being shorter, tricky doglegs.

I especially enjoyed the seventh, a short dogleg left that crests a hill on approach, setting up a partially blind second shot. Drives hit down the left side of the fairway will be in danger of being blocked out by trees. The best play is up the right side to set up a downhill approach to a tiny green with a troublesome downslope just left of the surface.

The ninth may well be the course’s signature hole, a tight, mid-length par four playing over a pond to a green tucked next to the clubhouse with a speciman oak towering over its back half. This is one of the first golf scenes you’ll see upon arrival and it’s probably the most dramatic hole on the course. The demanding approach shot is do-or-die, and if you miss the fairway it might be smart to chip out short of the water and pitch on. Fortunately, I hit my best iron shot of the day to set up a tap-in birdie here.

The par five second and par three third serve as an introduction to the open style of the modern nine. On this part of the property, you can swing freely off the tee and recover with ease after most offline drives. Longer yardage makes up for a relative lack of tree trouble to some extent, but there should still be good scoring opportunities on this stretch.

The second is particularly getable, a short par five that mid-to-long hitters should be able to reach in two comfortably. A small, raised green will repel all but the best attempts to get home, so it’s important to avoid short-siding yourself to emerge with a birdie.

The back nine is home to the other seven modern holes, a stretch that promises opportunity to make up ground on the scorecard. Much like the classic nine, here you’ll find a wide range of yardages and good variety of hole orientations to keep the experience interesting throughout the round.

The par three 13^th features one of the property’s only encounters with water, but with 30+ yards of room between the pond’s edge and the front of the green, the hazard is mostly for show. With a larger, more receptive green, I found this to be the easiest par three on site.

The 15^th is a double dogleg par five that is plenty reachable in two but requires two bold shots over the corners of the doglegs. With farmland lurking just yards beyond the green, you’ll want to be absolutely sure not to overclub, lest you may lose a ball after a seemingly good shot.

Closing Thoughts

With two disparate nines it would be easy to expect a less than cohesive, or even schizophrenic, golf experience at Stoughton Country Club. However, that wasn’t the case at all in my first round here. Weaving together the property are great conditions and fun yet challenging greens found throughout the round.

This was a solid first-time play for me this summer, and I can imagine it’s an excellent everyday course for members. The layout is playable but also has trouble lurking in the form of small greens and savvy use of topography to create challenging shots (particularly on the classic nine). The club has a local, laid-back feel similar to what I’ve seen at other small town Wisconsin courses, and it’s close enough to Madison to make it a viable local option for membership and guest play alike. Last but not least, its lakeside clubhouse setting is a gem, one that I’m sure I’d enjoy thoroughly as a member.

Stoughton Country Club Website