Boulder Ridge Country Club

Boulder Ridge Country Club is a 27-hole private club set in the Fox River Valley, offering three distinct nine-hole layouts — North, South, and West — that can be combined into three championship 18-hole configurations. Designed by Bob Lohmann in collaboration with touring professional Fuzzy Zoeller, the course rolls through gently sculpted terrain with water features and strategically placed bunkering throughout. The West nine, added in 2006, expanded the club's playing options and added fresh strategic variety to an already well-regarded layout.

Boulder Ridge Country Club opened in 1989 as an 18-hole private golf and social club within the gated community of Boulder Ridge in Lake in the Hills, Illinois. The project was conceived by the Plote family as an amenity-rich private retreat in McHenry County, situated roughly 40 miles northwest of downtown Chicago in the scenic Fox River Valley. The original 18-hole course — comprising the North and South nines — was designed by Robert M. "Bob" Lohmann, ASGCA, a prolific golf course architect in the Chicago metropolitan area. Lohmann collaborated on the design with Fuzzy Zoeller, the 1979 Masters champion and 1984 U.S. Open winner, who brought an understanding of championship-caliber playing conditions to the project. The resulting layout features gently rolling terrain, generous fairways lined by mature trees, and multiple water hazards that come into play on a number of holes.

The course was built with bent grass tees, fairways, and greens, which became the standard for private clubs in the Chicago region. From the championship tees the North/South combination stretches to 6,977 yards with a course rating of 74.4 and a slope of 142, reflecting its demands from the back. The course plays to a par of 72 and rewards precise ball-striking and course management. In 2006, Boulder Ridge expanded with the addition of a third nine — the West Course — also designed by Bob Lohmann and Fuzzy Zoeller. The West nine gave the club three fully playable 18-hole configurations: North/South, North/West, and South/West, each with its own distinct personality and difficulty. The North/West combination measures 6,809 yards (slope 144) and the South/West plays at 6,850 yards (slope 145), making the West nine one of the more challenging additions.

Heritage Golf Group, a management company specializing in private and semi-private clubs in the Chicago area, has been associated with the property, supporting club operations and member services. The club is situated within a private gated residential community, and membership at Boulder Ridge includes access to the full complement of golf, social, and fitness facilities. Boulder Ridge's reputation rests on the quality and variety of its golf. The combination of Lohmann's design expertise and Zoeller's competitive instincts produced a course that balances playability with genuine challenge across all skill levels. The club has become a valued fixture in the northern Illinois private golf landscape, drawing members from McHenry County and the broader northwest suburbs of Chicago. Boulder Ridge plays 6,977 yards from the championship tees to a par of 72 with a course rating of 74.4 and slope of 142.

The Bob Lohmann and Fuzzy Zoeller design combination reflects the 1980s practice of pairing celebrity playing professionals with established regional architects — Zoeller's U.S. Open and Masters championship credentials lending marketing credibility while Lohmann's technical expertise ensured design quality. The McHenry County setting, with its rolling glacial terrain and mature tree coverage, provided a natural canvas suited to the parkland private club tradition that Lohmann and Zoeller aimed to serve. The McHenry County setting, on the rolling glacial terrain of northeastern Illinois, provided Lohmann and Zoeller with the topographic variety needed to create the elevation changes and visual drama that distinguish Boulder Ridge from flatter suburban designs.