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Fall Golfing in Minnesota is a Hole in One

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Walking between holes at The Jewel Golf Course in Lake City / Micah Kvidt
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Fall Golfing in Minnesota is a Hole in One

When the trees start to lose their green, Minnesota golfers know it's prime time to hit the green. With cooler temperatures, incredible fall foliage and less competition for tee times, fall may be the best time of year to go golfing in Minnesota. There are nearly 500 courses throughout the state; check out our suggestions for where to go golfing in Minnesota this fall to narrow the options.

Fall at the Hiawatha Golf Club

Hiawatha Golf Club is an urban golf oasis right inside Minneapolis

Fall Golfing in Minneapolis & St. Paul

About a quarter of Minnesota’s golf courses are located in the metropolitan area, which makes it easy to plan a weekend in the city filled with daytime golf and evening culture and fine dining. Many metro courses are tucked into suburban wooded enclaves. There are even a dozen courses right in Minneapolis and St. Paul.

Hiawatha Golf Club is one of the gems of the urban parks system. Located just a few minutes south of downtown Minneapolis in Lake Hiawatha Park, the historic 18-hole course is graced by Lake Hiawatha, several ponds and Minnehaha creek. It is also next to Lake Nokomis and the Grand Rounds Scenic Byway, a destination for parkway drives and cycling or strolling on trails.

Follow the Minnesota River Valley Golf Trail

Along the Minnesota River Valley Scenic Byway, follow the golf trail featuring great courses and trip-extending attractions such as historic main streets, craft brewery and vineyard tours, art and wildlife viewing along the river. Some of the courses along this route offer views of the river valley, such as St. Peter’s Shoreland Country Club. The Rees Jones-designed Dacotah Ridge Golf Club in Morton blends seamlessly with its rugged prairieland surroundings.

Pine Beach East golf course

Play the only par 6 in Minnesota at Pine Beach East at Madden's Resort / Peter Wong

Tee Off at These Scenic Resort Courses

Many of Minnesota’s classic lakeside resorts have exceptional golf courses and packages­­ — some including unlimited play on several courses — for the golf-loving traveler. In central Minnesota, the Brainerd Golf Trail has a cluster of acclaimed resort courses situated among breathtaking lakes and woods. This area has been named "one of the top 50 golf destinations in the world" by Golf Digest. Two Robert Trent Jones Jr. designs and an Arnold Palmer-designed course are among the high-caliber offerings.

Explore Minnesota's Unique Prairie Links Courses

Minnesota golfers can choose to play in diverse settings, including a number of open, tall-grass, links-style courses that recall the first seaside courses developed in Scotland. Wildflower Golf Course in Detroit Lakes is a prairie links course with rolling, open prairie lands, oak-lined fairways and views of Pelican Lake. Fall is a great time to experience the changing prairie hues on this unique course.

Fall golfing at Superior National Golf Club

Superior National Golf Club is one of Minnesota's most picturesque courses / Sue Howard

Find Superior Golfing in the Minnesota Arrowhead

The North Shore of Lake Superior, Grand Rapids and the Giants Ridge area offer superb courses and brilliant scenery. Giants Ridge Golf Resort has two courses, the Legend and the Quarry, which is recognized by Golf Digest as “the 16th best public course in the United States.” The North Shore offers everything from laid-back 9-hole courses such as the Silver Bay Municipal Golf Course and the Gunflint Hills Golf Course in Grand Marais to the stunning 27-hole Superior National Golf Club at the base of Lutsen’s Moose Mountain.