Whistling Straits - Irish Course

Getting To Know: Irish course at Whistling Straits

An Insightful Interview With Michael Aschenbach

By Brian Weis

Whether you have played a course 20+ times a year or looking to play the course for the first time, insights from an insider can help enhance your golf experience. Below is an interview with Michael Aschenbach who shares some valuable tidbits about the course, memorable holes and must eats and treats at the 19th.

Give Our Readers An Overview of the Golf Course/Property
Just inland from the great lake and interspersed by four meandering streams, the grassland-and-dunes aspect of the Irish is a deceivingly tranquil landscape. Both traditional and memorable, the Irish is full of unique challenges.

If Someone Was Looking To Golf In The Area, Why Should They Play Your Course?
They should play the Irish course to experience what Kohler golf has to offer. The Irish course is designed by Mr. Pete Dye and is ranked in the top couple public courses in the state of Wisconsin.

What Tips or Local Knowledge Would You Provide To Help Them Score Better At Your Course?
To score well on the Irish course you will have to hit fairways with your tee ball and hit greens in regulation. If you happen to hit an errant tee shot, your #1 option should be to get your golf ball back in the fairway as soon as possible. If you attempt to overpower the course, it will tend to catch up with you and your score will suffer.

Recent Awards or What You Are Most Proud About The Course?
Irish course at Whistling Straits was ranked # 35 in Golf Digest's ranking of America's 100 Greatest Public Golf Courses for 2011/2012.

What Is The Signature, Most Talked About, or Most Photographed Hole?
Hole #13 is the most talked about. It's a par 3 that plays anywhere from 111 yards to 183 yards. The name of the hole is "Blind man's bluff". The over 14,000 square foot green sits 30 feet below the tee box and your shot to the green is completely blind.

What Is Your Favorite Hole? Any Tips to Play It?
My favorite hole is the 474 yard par 4 16th called "Deep dye". I love long par 4's that require quality ball striking or a clever short game to make par.

Must Have Dish or Drink after the round at the 19th Hole?
Jigger Ale, Kohler's own ale small batched brewed at Destination Scotland and imported strictly to the Kohler properties is a must have beer. It is a creamy and light refresher that is complimented well with a bowl of our homemade beer cheese soup.

Who Holds Course Record and What Was Their Score?
Mike Frechette, 67, in the 2007 WAGPA Stroke Play event.

Back Tee Stats
Par: 72
Yardage: 7201
Slope: 146
Rating: 75.6

More Information
Irish course at Whistling Straits
N. 8501 County Road LS
Sheboygan, Wisconsin, 53083
920-565-6050
http://www.americanclubresort.com/index.html

More Information »

Revised: 10/08/2012 - Article Viewed 35,686 Times - View Course Profile

About: Brian Weis

Brian Weis is the mastermind behind GolfTrips.com, a vast network of golf travel and directory sites covering everything from the rolling fairways of Wisconsin to the sunbaked desert layouts of Arizona. If there’s a golf destination worth visiting, chances are, Brian has written about it, played it, or at the very least, found a way to justify a "business trip" there.

As a card-carrying member of the Golf Writers Association of America (GWAA), International Network of Golf (ING), Golf Travel Writers of America (GTWA), International Golf Travel Writers Association (IGTWA), and The Society of Hickory Golfers (SoHG), Brian has the credentials to prove that talking about golf is his full-time job. In 2016, his peers even handed him The Shaheen Cup, a prestigious award in golf travel writing—essentially the Masters green jacket for guys who don’t hit the range but still know where the best 19th holes are.

Brian’s love for golf goes way back. As a kid, he competed in junior and high school golf, only to realize that his dreams of a college golf scholarship had about the same odds as a 30-handicap making a hole-in-one. Instead, he took the more practical route—working on the West Bend Country Club grounds crew to fund his University of Wisconsin education. Little did he know that mowing greens and fixing divots would one day lead to a career writing about the best courses on the planet.

In 2004, Brian turned his golf passion into a business, launching GolfWisconsin.com. Three years later, he expanded his vision, and GolfTrips.com was born—a one-stop shop for golf travel junkies looking for their next tee time. Today, his empire spans all 50 states, and 20+ international destinations.

On the course, Brian is a weekend warrior who oscillates between a 5 and 9 handicap, depending on how much he's been traveling (or how generous he’s feeling with his scorecard). His signature move" A high, soft fade that his playing partners affectionately (or not-so-affectionately) call "The Weis Slice." But when he catches one clean, his 300+ yard drives remind everyone that while he may write about golf for a living, he can still send a ball into the next zip code with the best of them.

Whether he’s hunting down the best public courses, digging up hidden gems, or simply outdriving his buddies, Brian Weis is living proof that golf is more than a game—it’s a way of life.