Best Golf Courses in Minnesota 2026
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Minnesota has more than 10,000 lakes and, per our directory, 256 public golf courses. That is a lot of golf spread across a state that runs from Twin Cities suburbs to the Iron Range to lakes country up north, and most roundups either stick to the metro or default to the handful of resort names everyone already knows.
We went the other way. We pulled every public course in our Minnesota directory with a valid slope rating, sorted by that number, and picked nine that spread across the state rather than clustering around Minneapolis. Slope measures how much harder a course plays for a bogey golfer than for a scratch player. The national average is 113. Every course below is rated 130 or higher, and one clears 140.
Minnesota also happens to have the cleanest walking data in our entire directory. All 256 public courses on file, every one, list walking as permitted. We are not filtering for that here because it does not narrow the field at all, but if you want to leave the cart behind, this state gives you more room to do it than almost anywhere else we track.
How we picked: These selections come from our course directory records: slope rating, yardage, par, and posted green fees. They are not based on subjective play impressions. We have not played all nine. Everything stated below is drawn from the directory data, and every course links through to its full record. Conditions and policies change, so call the clubhouse before you drive out.
Jump to the comparison table if you just want the shortlist.
Best Golf Courses in Minnesota 2026 Comparison Table
| Course | Location | Par | Yardage | Slope | Green Fees |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Meadows at Mystic Lake | Prior Lake | 72 | 6,318 | 143 | $$$ |
| Edinburgh USA Golf Course | Brooklyn Center | 72 | 6,335 | 137 | $$ |
| Blueberry Pines Golf Club | Menahga | 72 | 6,700 | 136 | $$ |
| Willinger’s Golf Club | Northfield | 72 | 6,233 | 136 | $$ |
| Inver Wood Golf Course | Inver Grove Heights | 72 | 6,194 | 135 | $$ |
| Hoyt Lakes Municipal | Hoyt Lakes | 72 | 6,542 | 134 | $ |
| Pioneer Creek Golf Course | Maple Plain | 72 | 6,953 | 134 | $$ |
| The Summit Golf Club | Cannon Falls | 72 | 6,471 | 132 | $$ |
| The Preserve | Pequot Lakes | 71 | 6,260 | 130 | $$$$ |
1. The Meadows at Mystic Lake
Location: Prior Lake, MN Holes: 18 · Par: 72 · Length: 6,318 yards · Slope: 143
The highest slope of any course on this list, by a wide margin. A 143 rating against 6,318 yards means the difficulty is not about length. It is the kind of number that tells you to bring extra balls before you tell you to bring a driver you don’t already own.
The course rating of 76.9 backs that up. That is more than four shots above par, which on a par-72 course points to a layout that defends itself even against a strong player. Bluegrass fairways run to bent grass greens, water is in play, and the record shows 21 to 30 bunkers, a moderate amount for a course this demanding. Our records list a pro shop, driving range, and rental clubs, and tee times can be booked in advance.
Who should skip it: High handicappers looking for a confidence-building round. A 143 slope will find every loose swing.
Full details: The Meadows at Mystic Lake
2. Edinburgh USA Golf Course
Location: Brooklyn Center, MN Holes: 18 · Par: 72 · Length: 6,335 yards · Slope: 137
The standout number here is the bunkering: 71 to 80 sand traps in our records, more than any other course on this list. On a 137-slope course at 6,335 yards, that much sand is doing a lot of the defensive work that other courses get from length or water.
Opened in 1987, with bent grass fairways and greens throughout, which is less common than the bluegrass fairways most of this list runs on and tends to reward a player who can work the ball through the air rather than along the ground. Water is also in play. A pro shop, driving range, and rental clubs are all on site, and the course accepts tee times in advance.
Who should skip it: Golfers who lose their patience in bunkers. This is the sandiest course on the list by a wide margin.
Full details: Edinburgh USA Golf Course
3. Blueberry Pines Golf Club
Location: Menahga, MN Holes: 18 · Par: 72 · Length: 6,700 yards · Slope: 136
The longest course on this list outside of Pioneer Creek, and the only one of the nine in lakes country rather than the Twin Cities metro or the Iron Range. At 6,700 yards with a 136 slope, this one earns its difficulty honestly, through length and trouble both.
Between 51 and 60 bunkers per our records, the second-heaviest bunkering here, plus water in play. Bluegrass fairways run to bent grass greens. Opened in 1990, with a driving range, pro shop, and rental clubs on site, and tee times booked in advance.
Who should skip it: Anyone short off the tee. At nearly 6,700 yards this plays long even before the slope adds difficulty.
Full details: Blueberry Pines Golf Club
4. Willinger’s Golf Club
Location: Northfield, MN Holes: 18 · Par: 72 · Length: 6,233 yards · Slope: 136
Willinger’s ties Blueberry Pines for the third-highest slope on this list despite being more than 400 yards shorter. That combination, a 136 slope on a 6,233-yard course, means the trouble is concentrated rather than spread across a long walk.
Between 51 and 60 bunkers according to our records, tied for the second-most on this list, with water also in play. Bluegrass fairways and bent grass greens, opened in 1991. It offers a driving range, pro shop, and rental clubs, and is one of the exurban options here if you are coming south out of the Twin Cities rather than staying in the core metro.
Who should skip it: Golfers looking for a quick, easy round. The bunker count says otherwise.
Full details: Willinger’s Golf Club
5. Inver Wood Golf Course
Location: Inver Grove Heights, MN Holes: 18 · Par: 72 · Length: 6,194 yards · Slope: 135
The shortest bunker count on this list, 1 to 10 in our records, paired with a 135 slope and 6,194 yards. That combination usually means the difficulty is coming from somewhere other than sand: tight fairways, water, or a routing that punishes the wrong miss.
Water is listed as in play, bluegrass fairways run to bent grass greens, and the course opened in 1991. Driving range, pro shop, and rental clubs are listed, and tee times can be booked ahead. Green fees in our records run from $27 to $36, one of the more affordable options on this list for a course with a slope this high.
Who should skip it: Bunker players who use sand to bail out of trouble. There is not much sand here to bail into.
Full details: Inver Wood Golf Course
6. Hoyt Lakes Municipal Golf Course
Location: Hoyt Lakes, MN Holes: 18 · Par: 72 · Length: 6,542 yards · Slope: 134
The number that jumps out here is the course rating: 78.3, the highest of any course on this list, more than six shots over par. That is an unusual rating for a municipal course, and it says a scratch golfer will work harder here than the 134 slope alone suggests.
This is also the only course on this list from the Iron Range rather than the Twin Cities metro or lakes country, which matters if the idea that Minnesota’s toughest public golf sits only in the suburbs needs correcting. Bluegrass fairways, bent grass greens, water in play, and a light bunker count of 1 to 10 per our records. Green fees run $23 to $26, the most affordable course on this list. Our records show no pro shop and tee times are not accepted in advance, so plan to walk in.
Who should skip it: Anyone who needs to book a tee time days ahead. This one runs first-come, first-served according to our records.
Full details: Hoyt Lakes Municipal Golf Course
7. Pioneer Creek Golf Course
Location: Maple Plain, MN Holes: 18 · Par: 72 · Length: 6,953 yards · Slope: 134
The longest course on this entire list at 6,953 yards, close to 400 yards longer than any other entry here. A 134 slope on a course this long is a different kind of hard than the shorter, sandier courses above it: this one tests distance first and asks the shorter questions second.
Bluegrass fairways, bent grass greens, water in play, and a light bunker count of 1 to 10 in our records, similar to Hoyt Lakes and Inver Wood. Our records show no pro shop and tee times are not accepted in advance. Green fees run $32 to $52.
Who should skip it: Shorter hitters and anyone playing their first round back after a layoff. At nearly 7,000 yards this is a full day’s work.
Full details: Pioneer Creek Golf Course
8. The Summit Golf Club
Location: Cannon Falls, MN Holes: 18 · Par: 72 · Length: 6,471 yards · Slope: 132
The Summit sits in the middle of the pack on slope and yardage both, a 132-slope, 6,471-yard course that reads as a straightforward, well-rounded test rather than one defined by a single extreme. Our records do not carry grass type or bunker count for this course, which is itself worth noting: where the data goes quiet, we are not going to guess.
What the record does show is a broad set of practice facilities: a putting green, teaching pro, chipping area, and a golf school, more instruction infrastructure than any other course on this list. Green fees run $35 to $44, and tee times are accepted in advance.
Who should skip it: Golfers chasing a specific stat line, like bunker count or grass type, to plan their round around. Our records don’t have it for this course, so you would be planning blind on those specifics.
Full details: The Summit Golf Club
9. The Preserve
Location: Pequot Lakes, MN Holes: 18 · Par: 71 · Length: 6,260 yards · Slope: 130
The outlier on this list, and included deliberately. The Preserve carries the highest green fees here by a wide margin, $94 to $135 in our records, more than double every other course on this list. It is also the only par 71 among nine par-72s.
That price buys the second-heaviest bunkering on this list, 61 to 70 traps, plus bent grass fairways and greens throughout rather than the bluegrass fairways most of this list runs on. Water is in play, and access in our records is listed as “Path” rather than “Course,” typically meaning cart paths connect every hole. Opened in 1996, with a full facility set: driving range, pro shop, rental clubs, and tee times booked in advance.
Who should skip it: Budget golfers. Every other course on this list costs less than half of what this one does.
Minnesota’s toughest public golf is not confined to the Twin Cities. The Meadows at Mystic Lake carries the highest slope on this list from inside the metro, but Hoyt Lakes Municipal posts the highest course rating from the Iron Range at a quarter of the green fee. If you want one round that tests every part of your game without the resort price tag, start with Inver Wood or Willinger’s. If budget is no object, The Preserve is the one built for it.
Looking for the classic list? Our original best public golf courses in Minnesota covers ten courses from the Twin Cities to the Canadian border from a more subjective, play-based angle.
Browse every course we have on file in our Minnesota course directory.
Cover image artificially generated for illustrative purposes.