The Kankakee Elks golf course was built in 1926 by the noted Golden Age team of William B. Langford and Theodore Moreau, whose works include the vaunted Links of Lawsonia (Wisconsin) and Harrison Hills (Indiana).

Here on the banks of the Kankakee River, the pair whittled dense forest into a string of captivating holes, capping each one with an elusive, undulating target. Kankakee Elks’ satin-smooth, vexingly swift greens are its calling card—the best surfaces south of I-80, some have said. They’re also the 6,430-yard circuit’s best defense, since only a handful of bunkers and a solitary water hazard come into play.