Lakeside/Hillside at Cantigny Golf

Cantigny Golf in Wheaton, Illinois, operates two distinct 18-hole courses designed by Roger Packard and opened in 1989. The facility sits on the former estate of Colonel Robert R. McCormick, longtime editor and publisher of the Chicago Tribune, and the property's history as a private estate influences the courses' parkland character. The land was donated to create a public golf facility alongside the Cantigny Park museums and gardens, making it one of the more accessible daily-fee options in the western Chicago suburbs.

The Lakeside course plays as the shorter and more forgiving of the two layouts, featuring water hazards on several holes and a routing that moves through mature trees and relatively gentle terrain. The Hillside course offers more elevation change and strategic challenge, with Packard incorporating the property's natural contours into a design that demands more precise shot-making. Both courses share the manicured parkland aesthetic common to upscale Chicagoland golf, with tree-lined fairways and well-bunkered greens.

Cantigny's dual-course setup allows the facility to accommodate high rounds volume while maintaining solid conditioning standards. The courses host various regional amateur events and remain popular with suburban Chicago golfers seeking a step up from municipal facilities without private club membership. The setting within Cantigny Park, which includes military history museums and formal gardens, distinguishes the golf experience from typical daily-fee venues in the region.