There are really only three ways onto The Merit Club in Libertyville. You join, you know a member, or you land a spot in an event or outing. I took door number three when I was invited to play for Team Wisconsin in the annual Writers Cup, the Wisconsin Golf Writers against the Illinois Golf Writers. Once the invite came through, I cleared my calendar and spent the next few weeks waiting like a kid on Christmas Eve.

The day finally arrive and it felt only fitting to roll up in a pair of Jordan low-cut golf shoes. His Airness is a member here, and while he no longer lives in Illinois, he still keeps a locker at Merit. I did not see him. I did glance around the locker room a few more times than a grown man should. The shoes did not come with his vertical leap or his competitive streak, but they looked fitting walking up 18.

Enough about me. Here is what you need to know about one of the most private tracks in Chicagoland.

A Major Championship Before Its Tenth Birthday

Merit opened in 1992, the passion project of Bert Getz Sr. and his family, who still steer the club today alongside its member owners. Chicago architect Bob Lohmann drew it up, but the design was a group effort. Getz had a hand in it, as did superintendent Oscar Miles, who had prepped Butler National for Western Opens, and Ed Oldfield, the first head pro and a swing coach to a who's who of LPGA players, Betsy King among them.

Oldfield's LPGA connections are a big reason the USGA came calling so fast. In 2000, a course that was only eight years old hosted the U.S. Women's Open. Karrie Webb won by five shots over Cristie Kerr and Meg Mallon, the first of her back-to-back Open titles. A young Lorena Ochoa made her major championship debut that week. Most clubs wait half a century for that kind of resume. Merit did it before it was old enough to drink.

The big names came back in 2016 for the LPGA's UL International Crown, which the United States won. Merit has bounced around Golf Digest's Best in State list for Illinois for three decades, landing at 27th in the 2025-26 rankings in a state stacked with old-money heavyweights. Golfweek also slotted it among the top 100 modern courses in America back in 1998. Club leadership has said they would be open to hosting another big event if the right one comes along, and a bunker renovation was on deck as of 2025.

The Course: Woods, Prairie and Plenty of Water

Merit is a par 72 that stretches to roughly 7,000 yards from the back tees. The round starts tucked in the trees, then opens into rolling prairie with long views across the property. Water shows up early and often, and there is sand on nearly every hole. The greens are big, firm and quick, and straight putts are a rumor. Walking is encouraged, and the club has run a caddie program since the day it opened.

The third is the first real wake-up call, a 563-yard par 5 where a creek cuts diagonally across the fairway between ponds on either side. Choose your line carefully or choose a new ball.

Then comes the sixth, the hole I am still thinking about. On the card it is a short par 4, about 366 yards from the tips, and it drops around 25 feet from tee to green. Your first instinct is to grab driver. Ignore your first instinct. The play is something that carries about 180, because the fairway runs out straightaway and a pond waits for anybody who gets greedy. The whole hole snakes left to right like a garden hose somebody dropped off the back of a cart. The fairway is narrow and lined with trees, and after the bend it picks up again on the right. From there the green is guarded by water, so you need two good irons in a row. The alternative, for the brave and the overserved, is to rip a hybrid or 5 wood over the trees on the right and find the fairway on the other side. You will want to know which guy in your group you are before you step on the tee.

The 14th is the hardest hole on the course, a 426-yard par 4 that bends right around water. The closer is a par 5 of about 550 yards that drifts left past a lake toward the clubhouse, a good finishing hole whether you are protecting a lead or settling a bet.

How to Get On: You Probably Cannot, So Say Yes

Let us manage expectations. Merit is ultra private. There are no public tee times, no stay-and-play package, no back door through a resort concierge. Golfers get on by playing with a member, play or landing a spot in an invited event or outing. That is it.

So if an invite ever shows up, you take it. Move the dentist appointment. Tell the boss your grandmother needs you again. You will want to take a caddie and walk it the way the club intends, and get there early, because the practice setup includes a three-hole practice loop, a par 4, a par 3 and another par 4, that most clubs would kill for.

And to close out my own story: Wisconsin won the Writers Cup the same week the Packers beat the Bears and the Brewers took down the Dodgers to push deeper into their 2026 playoff run. On Wisconsin!

The Merit Club: What You Need to Know

  • Location: Libertyville, Lake County, about 45 miles north of downtown Chicago
  • Opened: 1992
  • Architect: Bob Lohmann, with input from Bert Getz Sr., Oscar Miles and Ed Oldfield
  • Course: Par 72, roughly 7,000 yards from the tips, plus a three-hole practice loop
  • Big events: 2000 U.S. Women's Open (Karrie Webb), 2016 UL International Crown (United States)
  • Rankings: Golf Digest Best in State for Illinois, 27th in 2025-26
  • Access: Ultra private, member-accompanied or invited events only
  • Caddies: Yes, and walking is encouraged
  • Must-know hole: No. 6. Leave the driver in the bag
  • Dress code tip: Jordans are thematically appropriate