The Ridge Golf Club

The Ridge Golf Club in Sioux Center, Iowa, opened in the mid-1990s as a Jerry Slack design serving the northwest corner of the state near the South Dakota border. Slack, a regional architect based in Iowa, created several courses across the upper Midwest during this period, typically working with the natural terrain available and designing layouts accessible to a broad membership base. The course sits in the gently rolling agricultural landscape characteristic of this part of Iowa, where elevation changes are modest but can be used effectively to create visual interest and strategic variety. The routing at The Ridge makes use of whatever natural contours exist in the property, with holes that likely move across and along ridgelines that give the course its name. In this region of Iowa, tree cover tends to be more limited than in the eastern part of the state, so wind often becomes a significant factor in play. The design reflects the practical considerations of a community course built to serve local golfers while providing a solid test from the back tees. The Ridge functions as a semi-private facility, welcoming both members and daily-fee players. It serves as a recreational and social hub for Sioux Center, a town of several thousand residents with strong Dutch heritage and community ties. The course hosts local tournaments and league play throughout the season, filling the role of a regional golf destination in an area where courses are more widely spaced than in Iowa's larger metropolitan areas.