Lincoln Valley Golf Course

Lincoln Valley Golf Course sits in State Center, a small town in central Iowa roughly halfway between Des Moines and Waterloo. The course was designed by Gordy Cunningham, a regional architect who worked primarily in Iowa and neighboring states during the latter decades of the twentieth century. Cunningham's designs typically emphasize playability for everyday golfers while working within the gently rolling agricultural landscapes common to the region. The course occupies terrain characteristic of central Iowa, where modest elevation changes and open farmland create straightforward routing opportunities. Trees frame many holes without overwhelming the layout, and water features appear on select holes to add variety. The design reflects a practical approach suited to a municipal or daily-fee facility, offering accessible golf for the local community and visitors passing through the area. State Center itself is a town of fewer than a thousand residents, and Lincoln Valley serves as a recreational anchor for the surrounding Marshall County area. The course provides a typical Midwestern golf experience—unpretentious, walkable, and shaped by the region's agricultural heritage. Conditions and maintenance reflect the resources available to smaller Iowa courses, where the focus remains on providing affordable golf rather than championship-level presentation.