Pretty cool course, Next to lake Michigan, smack in the city. I enjoyed it, if i lived here i would be a usual here for sure. read more

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The Marovitz course is a wonderful municipal track right next to Lake Michigan. Yardage is a respectable 3265 yards from the blue tees. The layout is not intricate or particularly unusual, but the course is always in nice shape and the greens are large and tricky with big bunkers and slopey contours. The staters and rangers are friendly and knowledgeable. Expect the course to be busy, but don't be shocked - it's affordable, fun and right in the city. read more

Sydney R. Marovitz Golf Course - First tee from the practice green, Lake Michigan - Golf Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Marovitz is a gem of a public golf course. It's all about the location and the population served. First place I ever played golf and 50 years later the course is even better than ever. Plus it's directly on Lake Michigan. Lake view on 1, 4, 5 and 6 with plenty of boats to take in. Great staff and I hear they will get watered fairways in the next 2 years. I play 3x per week and my time of play is 2:00 - 2:20 hrs. And that's due to the staff trying their best to keep up the pace of play. There are still people out there learning to play like I did 50 years ago. Have some patience. read more

Overall had a great experience with the course. I had read a lot of mixed/bad reviews, and the only thing that was true was the pace of play. Tee times are close together, but I was able to walk and play with my girlfriend and keep pace just fine. The staff was very friendly, and the views do not mess around. I am from Michigan and I'm used to paying hundreds to get Lake Michigan views while golfing, and this course offers that plus city skylines, for $35 can't be beat. Would recommend to anyone visiting the city. read more

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If I could leave zero stars I would. The course itself is a typical city public course. The biggest issue with this course is simply the staff. The staff's attitude made what should have been an enjoyable day completely miserable. Their behavior was unprofessional and uncalled for, showing zero patience or understanding--especially to beginners who are just learning the game. This kind of treatment is shameful and completely goes against the spirit of golf, which is supposed to be welcoming and help grow the game. If the staff can't treat players with basic respect, especially newcomers, then they have no business running a public golf course. I hope management takes this seriously because this experience does nothing to promote or grow the sport we all love. read more

Could be a great course with its beautiful location. Would make a ton of sense for them to spread out tee times and charge more because the experience sucks. No water fountains in the clubhouse, no water jugs out on the course, and apparently no water for any of the grass because all of it is dead and hard as a rock. I get that it's late summer and we haven't had much rain but it's on Lake Michigan and dirt cheap courses in the south burbs 25 miles from the lake are maintained significantly better. About half the greens have some issues. We teed off late because a group in front of us was a bit late and the ranger was basically following us from hole to hole telling us we're slow. Listen I'm not great at golf but I've never had anyone tell me to pick it up, much less borderline harass us about it. Tailing us on every hole does not make us play faster- if anything you'll play way slower. We teed off, got to our balls quickly, and hit our next shots. Not sure what else you want us to do. You pack in tee times like no one's business- it's not your paying customers' faults that is causing pace of play issues. It's a 9 hole course and stalking us through the 8th hole to make sure we're exactly mimicking the pace of the group ahead of us is pretty crappy if I'm putting it nicely. They have signs on the course indicating what pace you should be at. We were 10 minutes ahead at each one based on our tee time (which we teed off 5-7 minutes after bc of the late group (that we were waiting on 6/9 holes)). Really disappointed as I was so excited to play at such a beautiful place. Not worth it at all. Ruined a good time with old friends read more

Nice to be on the lake/close to downtown, but that's about the only positive spin. Maintenance is ok, but not great. Expensive for a flat course of only 9 holes, and parking isn't free. read more

Sydney R. Marovitz Golf Course - Clocktower - Golf Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Terrible experience. Brought a party of 6 and played 9 holes. We waited on the group in front of us at each hole yet we were the ones lectured by the old and demented Marshall to play quicker. At no time did we hold any group up behind us, we waited at each hole for the group of 3 in front of us that played slower. At the last hole the Marshall said to us "you aren't going to play here again. " At no point were we holding up anyone nor loud/impolite on the course. We rented clubs and bought drinks from the course while the other groups that were also old retirees did not give the course more money but the Marshall left alone. If you are young the old Marshalls will single you out. Do not spend any money at this course, every business survives off of the customer experience and this course will punish polite customers giving a terrible experience. If we could give 0 starts we would. read more

Beautiful public 9 hole on the water. Grass is sometimes a bit crispy but it's still worth a round. Holes are long. Views are nice. Pace of play can be slow. Expensive for 9 holes at a public course....but heck....Chicago. We don't have many close options. read more

Sydney R. Marovitz Golf Course - Beautiful Par 5 right on the lakefront. - Golf Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

We took a team to play a practice round and Tee'd off in the AM. Our groups were on pace up until about the 6th hole where we did delay a few minutes. Jeff and John were very understanding about one group of girls that are novice and checked in on us during our practice round. There were 2 women that worked there that lecturing and berating our head coach about pace of play and suggested we could find another place to practice at. Is this how this course treats our underprivileged youth? It's sad and unfortunate that this course's priority isn't about growing that game, instead it seems that only seasoned players are the priority. read more

Great views. Good course. Great day for golf. A little slow play but the rangers did a good job keeping everyone on time

This is about a 3.5 star affair. The fairways are green and brown. It is nice playing near Lake Michigan but you are at eye level on a flat course so you do not see much of the lake with other obstructions or how the course is laid out. The course is moderately long so you do not have to be a big bomber to play here. It is somewhat challenging, mostly due to the trees. There are many trees but when you look up at the upscale apartment buildings across the street you may feel as if you are playing golf in Central Park. All in all, a nice play given only 9 holes and the location. It is summer so bear that in mind as the course surely looks nicer in the Spring. read more

Amazing customer service at the pro shop by Ed. Absolutely above and beyond courtesy for golfers. He is such a great asset to the park district and the course. I really enjoy this course and of course being a public course, it's not going to have a private course quality/upkeep. The visuals on the 6th hole are as good as any you'll ever experience. read more

Live close and thought this would be a fun place to play. While the views are decent, the course is nine times out of ten, in poor condition. Ball marks are all over the greens, the course tee times are obnoxiously close together - we're talking 9:08 and 9:15 tee times, so it's already jammed. Plus, starters like to cram as many people in as possible. I've showed up a few times in the first tee box, five minutes to spare before tee off, only to be told I'm late. At the end of the day, I guess i you get what it pay for. But $25-35 to be rushed, and play a course in bad shape is not with it. read more

I've played this course a few times and it's located in a pretty nice spot for a golf course-- you can see the city and the lake while you play. Generally the greens are well kept and the course plays well too. The reason for the low review is essentially the highly aggressive ranger that roams the course looking to push pace of play even when you're right up behind the next group. She thought it necessary to follow us for a few holes, tell us where and how to drive our carts, and correcting random etiquette. Most people out here aren't looking for a PGA experience so I think it's ok to let guests play as they choose so long as they are mindful and respectful. Overall, I've never met someone so horrible on a golf course before, particularly because she kept making these comments to the female in our group or to the two younger guys we were paired with...class A bully on the course. read more

Weird greens and a lot of dead grass for a course that's next to an unlimited fresh water supply. Very disappointing course.

Starter started us halfway up the first hole because we weren't 15 minutes early. We decided to walk rather than do carts and the group in front of us and behind us chose carts. As we were finishing a long par 5 (hole 5) the ranger came and gave us flack for our pace of play and stated the hole in front of us shouldn't be empty which was a par 3 that was about a 110 to the pin. Of course no one would be on hole 6 if they had a cart and we were walking. She followed us and talked about our pace all the way to the next tee box. We had to tell her to leave so we could play. She later parked at the end of 8 and waited for us and then followed us and inched along every time we hit a shot on hole 9. Front desk was polite but the ranger has a complex and is under the impression that she is running Augusta. read more

Me and my husband did not feel welcome. I do not think black people are allowed here. At least that is how we were feeling for the short period of time we were there. We ended up leaving before even golfing. They did give us a refund so that was good. Course was beautiful! read more

The course is a good value, in part because maintenance and management have been very good.

Been a member of Senior Golf League that has grown from 25 to 100+ in the past 7/8 yrs due to our leader Curt W. and the great, friendly staff (especially JAN our starter) and quality of course. We play in 2 to 2:15. Oh. The food/refreshments at Cafe also superb!!! read more

The course is beautiful and it's the best up kept public course I've played in Chicago.

It saddens me to read that many other people had the same experience. Some of the rangers here have no idea how to do their job. If there is a group in front of you slowing things down, they'll be sure to harass you instead of the slow group. The ranger will just follow you for several holes putting awkward and intense pressure on you. I had to tell the ranger that the group ahead of us was the culprit and that she was making us feel extremely uncomfortably for her to finally leave us alone. But that took 3 holes of stalking and random lame comments telling us to "hit from the white tees" for that to happen. The pace of play is bad because the rangers have no idea how to identify which groups are slow, but will just instead put intense pressure on groups that aren't moving slow, making for a horrible experience on a sub par course. read more

6:39am tee time today, and the course marshal/ranger was absolutely horrible! We're all adults. There's no need to talk to us like we're children. He kept coming to us about playing slow, but we were just a little behind the group in front of us. We were a four-some, and the group behind us was a two-some, and they never had to wait, yet he still kept telling us to hurry up. And when we had to wait, I didn't see him heckling the group in front of us. Whoever you are, there's no need to be so grumpy. It's a bad first impression! I don't see myself coming back anytime soon. read more

Meredith the. Starter for the senior league keeps everything moving with a smile. Very friendly and a beautiful course. read more

Marovitz is a great choice. Our Mens League plays there every week and we get great service and a round of golf. It is a busy course on the lakefront of Chicago....over 50,000 rounds a year. read more

Range Marshall was a complete ass. Kept bothering us about our pace of play when there was another group ahead of us still waiting to tee off. Yelled at one of my scratch golf buddies to pick the ball up in the fairway (hit a 300yd bomb btw) and move on to the next hole. Didn't make any sense. None of us were playing slow yet we kept getting harassed for the first 3 holes. Don't bother coming here unless you can play 9 holes in under an hour. That seems to be the pace of play they expect here read more

As a woman, I've had my fair share of misogyny on the golf course, but this takes the cake. I've never met a ranger so rude or aggressive in 15 years of playing golf. He seemed to believe that we were slow because there were 2 women in the group. I was with a few newer golfers, and I knew pace would be a potential issue, so we were playing scramble. However, he pointed out which balls to play, telling us to play best ball - when we were already doing that. He constantly came around after each hole to see how fast our play was and gave us unsolicited advice on how to play. We were consistently waiting for the group ahead of us, so the pace of play was clearly a problem somewhere ahead of us. We should have known too, since our tee time was delayed. But he seemed to target us because we were POC and had women in the group He finally left us alone after hole 4 or so when he realized we were playing just fine. But to harass a group for the first few holes just because there were women? It ruined the entire course for me. Wouldn't recommend in general, but especially for new golfers, women, or people of color. Just go somewhere else. read more

Had a 12:03 tee time, showed up at 12:04 and they said they already sent someone out for our tee time, and they charged us for the full round. Seemed like a nice course, but won't ever find out. Super disappointed in the service, argued with us that we clearly had missed our time slot by walking in 1 minute late. Tried fighting to not be charged but they didn't seem to care. Would give 0 stars if it was an option. If you have a booking, make sure to show up 10 minutes early. read more

We were a little reluctant on booking a tee time based on the other reviews made by women. My friend and I decided to go early in the morning on a Saturday, we were paired with two men and met a wonderful lady that was the starter. On hole four, an older gentleman we presumed to be the ranger quizzed us on our reservation and pace of play, but let the men be. If you can get past the misogyny, fun nine holes! read more

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Should have listened to the reviews before coming here. The older staff workers wouldn't leave us alone on my sisters birthday. They made us feel so uncomfortable by watching us and targeting us on the course. As an active golfer I have never experienced anything like this in my life. Multiple workers told us to leave MULTIPLE times for different things. We learned that if we cooperated with them we could get our moneys worth and get the out of here. They still will watch you no matter what. Pretty course but isn't worth the unprofessional staff. read more

Let me start off by saying that this is a really nice and scenic course!! But over the past month it's become really frustrating playing here because a round of golf which used to take 2 -2.5 hours now takes 3.5 -4 hours and this is due to the below reasons 1) people bring guest who say they are going to walk on the course and start goofing around on the course .. in the middle they had a rule which did not allow observers and that definitely helped the speed of the game 2) there have been times where people dont play ready golf and just take upto 5 mins to hit their ball because they are busy talking to people or they are on their phone. 3) there have been times i have also been stuck behind a group of 5 - 6 players in 1 tee time because their friends are in a different tee time 4) when players cannot find their ball they spend upto 15 mins looking for them 5) people hit multiple balls at 1 time . I understand the temptation to try hitting the ball again but dont do it every hole and after every shot . 6) there are a lot of beginners who play here and these people cannot even connect the ball . Go to the driving range and first learn how to hit the ball This used to be my favorite course to play on because it was a fun , scenic and relaxing to play here but now its just FRUSTRATING!! read more

A plethora of sub par reviews, simply put I disagree. In Chicago on business, rented clubs, cart and had a great time. Course in good condition, staff great, just an all around fun outing for a party of fore! Rates are very reasonable for Chicago. read more

Really fun course, Jan the starter is amazing. Perfect way to start the day on the lakefront. Nine holes and burns out a bit late summer but they're keeping it in great shape. read more

This is a fun course to play but there are a few things to keep in mind, both good and bad. I was able to get a single golfer tee time for 5 on a Saturday afternoon. Of course, I was going to be grouped with others but I'm OK with that as I like meeting my fellow golfers. When I arrived, I was greeted by helpful pro shop staff, got my pull cart and directed to where I needed to go. The starter had a system set up where we would wait in a queue to tee off on the first hole. This was both good and annoying. It kept order as to who tees off next, which is good, however the starter didn't seem to go in order by tee time which annoyed those who ended up teeing off after their time. I arrived early and ended up teeing off at 4:50 but the group I was with was supposed to tee off at 4:40. I think it would certainly benefit you to show up early. For the first couple of holes, we felt a bit rushed but after that, the pace seemed to slow considerably and there was a backup or two. The condition of the course was fine and what you'd expect from a city golf course. The bunkers were full and fluffy, thought I noticed a couple of bunkers were missing the rakes. Also, a couple of holes are pressed right against the lakefront trails which made teeing off a bit awkward. I completed 9 holes in just over 2 and a half hours, which is a little long. Maybe trying it out on a weekday could get a round in faster. read more

Sydney R. Marovitz Golf Course - Golf Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Great layout. Sneaky tough given the green complexes. The course is usually is good shape, which is impressive given the amount of play. It's also impressive given the poor conditions as recent as 5-10 years ago. Always enjoy seeing Pat and Mel. read more

Ok, for my bicentennial Yelp review I decided to do Marovitz Golf Course. Somebody tell this place it's a public course, because it looks too good. Wait, scratch that... say nothing. Whatever keeps this place looking good. I think it's among the best public courses I've ever played. Most of the others, if not all, are located in a suburb of a city... which means they can't possibly get as much wear and tear as this place gets (so, there's your warning: it's super busy on the weekends). Why wouldn't people want to come here? It's a long 9-hole course. It has well kept fairways, sandtraps and greens. You can't beat the view, with the lake flanking along the entire east side. All this and we haven't even talked about the price... which is nice! Make sure to get your CPDG Player's Advantage Card to save money every time you play at this... or any other Chicago Park District course. In fact... here's the website for you to check it out and even reserve a tee time while you're there: www.cpdgolf.com read more

Sydney R. Marovitz Golf Course - Golf Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Great city course to play. Spectacular views along the lake front and the Chicago skyline. Course is well-maintained although there is no sprinkler system for the fairways, so course depends on rainfall. The staff is friendly, knowledgeable and courteous. Have played the course for years and pace of play is much better now as most rangers work to keep groups moving. Challenging course for golfers of all ability levels. A real taste of Chicago for the veteran city resident and the uninitiated to the city. Nine holes makes it a plus as it can be played in under 2 1/2 hours or less most days. Weekends might be slower, but I rarely play it on the weekend. read more

I like this little course in the heart of the city. $30 to walk 9 holes could be a little steep, but you can't argue for being downtown. Well run course and clubhouse. The starters and staff are very nice and helpful. True course is short and in OK shape. If you are looking for a challenge, this is not your place. Beware that this place gets really backed up and can play very slow. Count on 3 hours to play 9 holes. Overall a great golfing experience! read more

Sydney R. Marovitz Golf Course - Golf Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

golf course is fine but for as expensive as it is you would expect they would have parking and bathrooms. everything there is public. not even the resturant has bathrooms. read more

My friend golfed here last week with her husband and was discriminated against (a woman of color). They were walking the course and timing themselves to make sure they kept under the 15 min per hole (they were under time). The ranger approached them halfway through the second hole and told my friend that there was another course in Chicago she could play at and would get a refund if she left now. My friend suggested the men on a cart behind her play through and the ranger said, "no, we're full today". When they went back to the clubhouse they checked the schedule and there was availability throughout the entire afternoon. The ranger had lied. My friend and her husband asked to speak to a manager and waited but the manager was "unavailable". She left her number and was told the manager would call her to discuss her experience. He never called. As I write this, I am noticing there are several other reviews of woman being discriminated against at this course and of other people of color having "bad" "strange" experiences. I will not support a course with discrimentory practices. read more