River Club of Mequon

Getting To Know: River Club of Mequon

An Insightful Interview With John Haines, Director of Marketing

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 John Haines 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
Three distinct nines of equal charm and challenge, the 27 holes at River Club of Mequon delivers both sensory and shot value variety and plenty of capacity for its membership, regardless of skill level. This is a layout that has hosted competitions like the WI State Open and the WSGA State Junior as well as every kind of charity event one can imagine and still maintains availability for members on most occasions. When the cold weather comes, The River Club boasts two separate golf simulation theaters that can keep your game sharp while bringing many of the world's most famous courses to your own club.

Having undergone a multi-million dollar renovation, The River Club takes pride in cultivating its reputation as a casually elegant private club committed to personal service. From the grandeur of our state-of-the-art clubhouse with an unequalled array of contemporary amenities, RCM stands out as the most distinctive and inclusive family entertainment venue in Southeast Wisconsin.

The River Club has several dining options. There is The Aftermath, the member's only lounge as well as restaurant that's open to the public called "nines."�

What Tips or Local Knowledge Would You Provide To Help Them Score Better At Your Course?
Patience, position, and the judicious use of power are the keys to scoring at River Club of Mequon, as they are at every course, but there are risk/reward seductions lurking at RCM that can be symptomatic of an otherwise fine brain hopping the crazy train to Dreaded Otherville.

Recent Awards or What You Are Most Proud About The Course?
River Club of Mequon was in the Milwaukee Business Journal top 25 of highest slope-rated golf courses in the areaâ¬¦an admittedly curious ranking criterion when you think about it.

More importantly, this course has hosted:
* US Open Qualifying
* The Wisconsin State Open
* The Milwaukee District Match Play
* The WSGA State Junior

What Is The Signature, Most Talked About, or Most Photographed Hole?
No# 1 on The River Nine is a Sea Pines Harbor Town-like double dogleg that some love, some hate and eventually confounds most. It's deliciously controversial and always a challenge.

No# 3 on The Woodlands Nine is a short par four with a fairway that slopes from the out of bounds right to a forest on the left and features a slender tree-surrounded green that also shunts short-iron shots immediately leftâ¬¦yet putts simply donâ¬"t break much at all.

No#3 on The Highland Nine is simply one of the best par-five holes in Wisconsin. Perfectly placed bunkers in the tee-shot landing area as well as the second shot lay-up area, with trees right and water guarding short left of an undulating, well-designed green complex. Beautiful -- and tough.

Must Have Dish or Drink after the round at the 19th Hole?
The Aftermath Bar and Grill features some great post-round culinary options. I prefer the knee-weakening Cranberry Turkey Melt with smoked turkey, brie cheese, cranberry chutney on toasted whole wheat. It comes with long and lanky golden fries and it all goes well with a pint of Spotted Cow.

Who Holds Course Record and What Was Their Score?
The competitive course record is the subject of much debate and requires pre-digital era research.

Back Tee Stats

Yardage: Woodland 9 +River 9 6736 / River + Highland 9 6739 / Woodland + Highland 6749

More Information
River Club of Mequon
Mequon, WI, 53092
262-242-1400
www.riverclubofmequon.com

Revised: 10/28/2012 - Article Viewed 34,177 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.