St. Louis Golf Courses & Tee Times in Illinois

Who runs public golf in St. Louis

Public golf here is a patchwork of city, suburban and private-public courses. In the City of St. Louis, Forest Park holds two: the 27-hole Norman K. Probstein course and the nine-hole Highlands, which also has a range and clay tennis courts. Probstein was rebuilt from 2001 to 2004 under Stan Gentry, started by a $2 million gift from Norman Probstein, and now plays as three par-35 nines named for local trees. University City runs Ruth Park, a nine-hole Foulis design from 1931. In St. Charles County, St. Peters Golf Club is owned and run by the city. St. Louis County's Creve Coeur Lake Memorial Park holds Crystal Springs Quarry, an 18-hole course that opened in 2001.

Public courses worth knowing in St. Louis

• Forest Park Golf Course: Opened as a Robert Foulis nine in 1912, hosted the 1929 U.S. Amateur Public Links, rebuilt 2001-2004 as three par-35 nines.
• Spencer T. Olin Community Golf Course: Arnold Palmer design in Alton, Illinois. Hosted the 1996 U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links and the 1999 U.S. Amateur Public Links.
• Missouri Bluffs Golf Club: Tom Fazio design from 1995. Has hosted PGA Tour and USGA qualifiers and the St. Louis Nike Classic.
• Gateway National Golf Links: Links-like Keith Foster design through native grasses and wetlands on the Illinois side, close to downtown.
• Ruth Park Golf Course: University City's nine-holer, a Robert Foulis design dating to 1931, formerly University Golf Course.
• Normandie Golf Club: Built by Robert Foulis in 1901; one of the oldest public courses west of the Mississippi and a founding MGA club.

Booking tee times in St. Louis: the local rules

Booking rules are set course by course; no metro-wide resident card turned up. Ruth Park takes reservations up to seven days ahead, by phone at 314.727.4800 or online. Forest Park's advance window is not posted on the pages read.

Why tee times in St. Louis are hard to get

The season in St. Louis runs roughly from spring to late fall. The first warm weekends in spring and the cool, dry weekends of fall are the hardest to book.

Each course releases its tee times on its own schedule, commonly a week or two out, with residents of town and county courses often booking first. Leagues, outings and members claim chunks of the sheet in advance, and whatever prime weekend times are left tend to go on release day.

When tee time cancellations happen

Booked-up doesn't mean gone. Plans change: groups cancel ahead of the course's cancellation deadline (often 24 to 48 hours out), players drop when the forecast turns, and a group that shrinks leaves an open spot. Those times quietly come back on the booking page, usually for minutes, not hours.

How to get a tee time in St. Louis

Doing it by hand? Here's what works.

1. Know the booking window. Find out how many days ahead each course releases times, and whether residents get an earlier window. Be ready the morning it opens.
2. Look again 24 to 48 hours out. That's when most cancellation deadlines pass and spots come back.
3. Be flexible on group size. Singles and twosomes fit into gaps a foursome can't.
4. Try twilight and weekday afternoons. They're the last to fill and often cheaper.
5. Keep a quicker course in your back pocket. Nine-hole and executive courses are easier to get on and play faster. Around here that includes Bent Oak Golf Course - 9 Holes, Carlyle Lake Golf Course and Indian Mounds Golf Club.

Read the full guide to getting a tee time when everything's booked