Western Lakes Golf Club

Golf Course Overview: Western Lakes Golf Club

Insights From An Insider With Jason Hoelz, General Manager

By Brian Weis

Local and traveling golfers love to research courses before playing them, whether it is to gain some local knowledge or to set an expectation before their upcoming round. Below is an interview with Jason Hoelz who shares some valuable insight about the property, its most talked about holes and the signature dish/drink to consume at the 19th hole.

How Does Your Course Differ From The Others In The Area?
We take great pride in offering country club conditions on a public golf course. I can't tell you how many times I heard compliments last year about how fantastic the fairways were and our greens are always rolling well. I don't think you'll find another course in the area that is in as good of condition for the price as Western Lakes.

For someone who has not played the course in awhile, has there been any new changes/renovations to the course or property?
2018 is the 30th anniversary for Western Lakes and we have been continuously improving the course ever since it was formally known as Tumblebrook. In the 90's we redesigned holes 2, 3, 6 & 7 with curving fairways and bunkers. In the 2000's many fairways were lined with trees in strategic positions that have grown up and are now becoming very difficult if you don't hit it straight. We've continuously been adding drain tile to ensure playability throughout the year and the results of our constant tinkering are a really nice golf course.

What is your course's answer to Amen Corner? (Describe your best/hardest 3 back/back/back holes)
That would definitely be our 3 finishing holes. #16 is a long par 4 with one of the trickiest greens on the golf course - you don't want to be above the pin. #17 is our signature hole, a 178 par 3 with all carry over water. And #18 is another nice par 4 with out-of-bounds along the entire right side as well as behind the green. The left side is protected by a couple of bunkers and a line of trees that become more of a problem every year. Most days all 3 holes play into the wind, so finishing with 3 pars is challenge!

What is your course's claim to fame, or is there a little known fact that golfers should know about the property?
The architect of Western Lakes is also the same man that designed Naga-Waukee golf course, a county course just down the road from us. Larry Packard built our course as Tumblebrook in 1963 and lived another 50 years until he died in 2014 at the age of 101.

What tournaments/events have you (recently) hosted or will be hosting?
We host an annual "Big Cup" golf tournament that is a lot of fun. We swap out the regular hole for an 8inch cup and play a scramble format. The winning score has been as low as -20 and the round only takes 3.5 hours! It's a great time and this year it will be hosted on Friday August 10th 2018!

Besides golf, what other amenities do you offer if a golfer wants to spend most of the day at your facility?
We have one of the best practice facilities in the area. We have a large putting green with 9 holes and keep it maintained to the same standards as all our greens on the course. There is an additional chipping green with a nice bunker for practicing as well. We have a very large driving range with a tee box that you are sure to find a nice patch of grass on, as well as 3 target greens for dialing in your yardages.

Signature sandwich or drink?
We've got a refreshing cocktail called the "WLGC"!
W-hiskey, L-emonade, G-inger Beer, C-lub Soda

Contact Course
Western Lakes Golf Club
W287 N1963 Oakton Road
Pewaukee, WI, 53072 2626910900

www.westernlakes.com/

Revised: 02/26/2019 - Article Viewed 18,814 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.