Horse Shoe Bay Golf Club

Getting To Know: Horseshoe Bay Golf Club

An Insightful Interview With Mark Klinger, PGA, Head Golf Professional

By Brian Weis

Whether you have played a course 20+ times a year or looking to play the course for the first time, insights from an insider can help enhance your golf experience. Below is an interview with Mark Klinger, PGA who shares some valuable tidbits about the course, memorable holes and must eats and treats at the 19th.

Give Our Readers An Overview of the Golf Course/Property
From the moment you can see the golf course, clubhouse and bay on your drive down County G, your senses will either begin to heighten with excitement or you may simply go numb as you're inspired by awe from the incredible setting. As you find the strength to look away from the memorizing view of the clubhouse perched along the bluff overlooking the water and begin making your turn up the hill towards the Golf Barn, your eyes will be drawn to the abundant beauty and detail of the property.

Once arriving at the bag drop you will go hands free for the rest of your experience. The exceedingly friendly staff will greet you with a warm smile as they introduce themselves and take your clubs away to your golf cart. As you enter the Golf Barn's silo door you will be immersed in the nostalgia of the property's farm history. The red carpet treatment will continue once you make your way to the fully stocked golf shop where PGA Head Golf Professional, Mark Klinger and his professional staff will ensure that your needs and wants are easily handled with the highest level of personalized service throughout your shopping experience.

If you like to practice as much as play, course architects Rick Robbins and Brian Lussier definitely had you in mind when creating our world class short game area. Not only do you get to overlook the bay while dialing in your wedges and putter on our multi-tiered green complexes, but you get a true taste of the exquisite playing conditions provided by Superintendent Brian Ferrie and Assistant Superintendent Mike Becker. With four to five tiers on both the putting green and short game green along with perfectly manicured greens, fringe, fairway, first and second cuts, you will feel like you are practicing out on the golf course itself. Once you have the wrists loosened up and you make your way up the hill to our driving range, at any time of the day you will feel like you are first person to step foot on the range tee. From the tightly mown tee to the four authentic greens ranging from 130 to 240 yards, our architects' and superintendents' magnificent touch is exemplified once again to provide you with consistent turf conditions that make it easy to take your game from the range to the course.

Last but not least, the golf course. Words are inadequate. To say the least, it will leave you desiring nothing more except another opportunity to soak in the views and perhaps redemption for some of the three putts can will find their way onto your card.

Although we pride ourselves on our exceptional property and priceless views, what truly completes the Horseshoe Bay experience is the staff's intrinsic desire for excellence and commitment to providing the highest level of personalized service. Through the leadership of our COO Andrew Morel you can expect that the smallest details of your experience will not go unnoticed in effort to make you feel right at home.

If Someone Was Looking To Golf In The Area, Why Should They Play Your Course?
Horseshoe Bay Golf Club is one of Wisconsin's top ten private clubs'. The high-end facility is located on the water of Lake Michigan's Green Bay in picturesque Door County. The championship 18 hole course is perfectly manicured and recognized as one of the best in the Midwest. The club is open 6 months a year, from May 1st to October 31st and is host to 450 members who travel from 27 different states to enjoy their summer homes located within the master community and around Door County. There is no other club within hours from Door County that attracts such a national pull.

Don't miss the opportunity to experience everything Horseshoe Bay has to offer and don't get too down on yourself for not having experienced it sooner in life!

What Tips or Local Knowledge Would You Provide To Help Them Score Better At Your Course?
Be sure to take a close look at the green complexes and do your best to land your approach shots on the appropriate tiers. Once on the greens, don't forget to account for the fact that your putts will break towards the water.

What Is The Signature, Most Talked About, or Most Photographed Hole?
#18 "Beauty of the Beast" - You'll understand why in my next answer. However, there is no such thing as a hole that is not photo worthy here at Horseshoe Bay. They are each unique, enjoyable, fun, challenging, and beautiful. Playing this golf course never gets old.

What Is Your Favorite Hole? Any Tips to Play It?
#18 "Beauty of the Beast" - This appropriately named finishing par 5 is everything you could wish for and more! With the Club Cottages nestled in the distance, the roaring American flag flying proudly over the Murphy's Barn, and the apple trees, there are numerous targets to focus on the from the tee that will certainly take your mind off the four bunkers that are hungry to swallow up your drive. However, if you have the driver dialed in by this time of your round, I recommend aiming at the grey structure that houses our dumpsters. Such a line will take the bunkers of out play and allowing you to catch the speed pocket of the dogleg fairway. As you leave the tee box and make your way to your next shot, you will be mesmerized by the stunning view of Green Bay. The first time I made the dogleg turn right towards my second shot, it was like the first time I stepped on property at Whistling Straits. I felt like I was taken swiftly from a magnificent Wisconsin landscape to an entirely different world that gave a new meaning to experiencing a "little slice of heaven". From this point it's up to you how you want the story to end. You can either go for it in two or play it safe. No matter what you do, take a second to pinch yourself and take in everything the incredible moment has to offer because it's one of a kind!

Must Have Dish or Drink after the round at the 19th Hole?
Before your round or at the turn, despite the time of day, you will thank us for recommending that you stop at Murphy's Grill in the Golf Barn and grab Breakfast Burrito. Made to order just the way you want it, it will be the fuel you'll need to keep your game sharp. Not to mention, it's a staff and member favorite!

Following your round, was you walk off the 18th Hole, your eyes will continue to be drawn towards the stunning view of Green Bay, making it difficult to walk away. The good news is that you don't have to! Our Member's Clubhouse, nestled on the bluff adjacent to #18 green, will provide you with the perfect atmosphere to enjoy a post round beverage while continuing to enjoy the views. Please don't hesitate to kick back, relax, enjoy something from our menu like the famous Renards Cheese Curds, make locally right here in Door County.

Back Tee Stats
Par: 72
Yardage: 7101
Slope: 139
Rating: 74.5

More Information
Horseshoe Bay Golf Club
5335 Horseshoe Bay Road
Egg Harbor, WI, 54209
920-868-4103
www.horseshoebaygolfclub.net

More Information »

Revised: 02/07/2018 - Article Viewed 14,817 Times - View Course Profile

About: Brian Weis

Brian Weis is the mastermind behind GolfTrips.com, a vast network of golf travel and directory sites covering everything from the rolling fairways of Wisconsin to the sunbaked desert layouts of Arizona. If there’s a golf destination worth visiting, chances are, Brian has written about it, played it, or at the very least, found a way to justify a "business trip" there.

As a card-carrying member of the Golf Writers Association of America (GWAA), International Network of Golf (ING), Golf Travel Writers of America (GTWA), International Golf Travel Writers Association (IGTWA), and The Society of Hickory Golfers (SoHG), Brian has the credentials to prove that talking about golf is his full-time job. In 2016, his peers even handed him The Shaheen Cup, a prestigious award in golf travel writing—essentially the Masters green jacket for guys who don’t hit the range but still know where the best 19th holes are.

Brian’s love for golf goes way back. As a kid, he competed in junior and high school golf, only to realize that his dreams of a college golf scholarship had about the same odds as a 30-handicap making a hole-in-one. Instead, he took the more practical route—working on the West Bend Country Club grounds crew to fund his University of Wisconsin education. Little did he know that mowing greens and fixing divots would one day lead to a career writing about the best courses on the planet.

In 2004, Brian turned his golf passion into a business, launching GolfWisconsin.com. Three years later, he expanded his vision, and GolfTrips.com was born—a one-stop shop for golf travel junkies looking for their next tee time. Today, his empire spans all 50 states, and 20+ international destinations.

On the course, Brian is a weekend warrior who oscillates between a 5 and 9 handicap, depending on how much he's been traveling (or how generous he’s feeling with his scorecard). His signature move" A high, soft fade that his playing partners affectionately (or not-so-affectionately) call "The Weis Slice." But when he catches one clean, his 300+ yard drives remind everyone that while he may write about golf for a living, he can still send a ball into the next zip code with the best of them.

Whether he’s hunting down the best public courses, digging up hidden gems, or simply outdriving his buddies, Brian Weis is living proof that golf is more than a game—it’s a way of life.