Courtesy of TPC Wisconsin (4)
TPC Wisconsin is officially the 30th property in The PGA Tour’s TPC Network, opening to members today, with a grand opening later.
Prior to opening, the property received a complete overhaul to meet TPC Network standards, including a course redesign, interior and exterior clubhouse improvements, and an enhanced golf Learning Center that will be completed in 2024. The redesign was led by 12-time PGA Tour winner, 16-time PGA Tour Champions winner and Madison resident Steve Stricker, who was aided by PGA Tour Design Services.
TPC Wisconsin serves as Madison’s only private facility offering an 18-hole golf course, all-season golf range, and other athletic amenities.
“We’re honored to bring the first-of-its-kind championship golf course to the state of Wisconsin,” PGA Tour golf course properties COO Jim Triola said. “TPC Wisconsin further strengthens the brand’s portfolio and our dedication to the highest standards of quality and prestige. This addition, coupled with our collective passion for the game, will continue to shape golf experiences for members and spectators for years to come.”
Stricker’s plans included re-grading the course to accent advancements by repositioning features and rebuilding all the infrastructure including greens, tees and bunkers, while implementing a new cart path system.
“I’ve lived on this course for many years — since it was Cherokee Country Club,” said Stricker, who was born in nearby Edgerton. “This is my home. I consider it a privilege to bring my PGA Tour career experience to bear on its re-envisioning and I have totally enjoyed working on the project with PGA Tour Design Services.”
The golf course has been replanted with newer, more improved species of turfgrass and has a new, more efficient, irrigation system. Some holes have been re-routed to improve green-to-tee walks and to create improved hubs of greens and tees. Spectator mounding has been integrated into many of these areas, taking into consideration the events to be played at TPC Wisconsin, starting in 2025. In addition to the course redesign, the Steve & Nicki Stricker American Family Insurance Learning Center will be enhanced in 2024 and will include a new indoor hitting structure that features club and putter fitting, an indoor putting green, Trackman technology and an outdoor short game practice area.
TPC Wisconsin also incorporated significant environmental improvements throughout the redesign. The proximity of the course to the Cherokee Marsh, part of an extensive wetland complex of more than 2,000 acres, lends itself to an important component of the overall health of the local and regional ecosystem. TPC Wisconsin restored more than 35 acres of degraded on-site wetlands to improve water flow, floral diversity, pollinator habitat and grassland bird nesting areas. Various boardwalk structures and clear span bridges serving as golf car and walking paths have been incorporated for crossing over wetland and waterway resources that integrates the ecological features with the golf and spectator experience. The course also features extensive waterways and water features that have undergone rehabilitation to improve water quality, fisheries and amphibian habitat and other aquatic species diversity. Heartland Ecological Group completed a comprehensive ecological restoration plan and led the club’s restoration efforts.
“The redesign of the course has gone exceptionally well,” TPC Wisconsin owner and president Dennis Tiziani said. “We’ve raised our fairways two to four feet to ensure drainage and playing surface perfection. The work that has been put in on the property from 2021 to 2023 is an engineering marvel and an ecological miracle. I’ve been around the game of golf for a very long time, and I assure you that what we’ve created is not only going to be a challenging course, but a memorable one. Players will remember every hole — not just two or three signature holes like on many courses. And, because golf instruction is my passion, TPC Wisconsin will be among the best places in the world to improve your game.”
