Merit Club in Libertyville was the site of Karrie Webb's U.S. Women's Open triumph in 2000...
U.S. Women's Open set for Erin Hills, continuing trend of elite courses for top women's championship
Photographs courtesy of USGA
This article appeared in the April 2025 edition of Chicago District Golfer.
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Following Yuka Saso's triumph at Lancaster Country Club in 2024, the U.S. Women's Open will be held at Wisonsin's Erin Hills May 29-June 1.
By the time the opening tee shot is struck and the 2025 U.S. Women’s Open Championship gets underway next month at Erin Hills near Milwaukee, it will have been nearly 13 years since the preeminent championship in women’s golf was last played in Wisconsin (at Blackwolf Run in Kohler) and some 25 years since its only other stop in the upper Midwest this century (at Merit Club in Libertyville).
Moreover, it will be the first time in eight years that the USGA has taken the event to a venue built in the 2000s (at Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, N.J.).
After a five-year run on iconic courses like The Olympic Club in San Francisco (2021) and Pebble Beach Golf Links down the road on the Monterey Peninsula (2023), the 80th U.S. Women’s Open presented by Ally heads to Erin Hills, May 29 through June 1, and continues another trend for this championship that has seen epic growth of late.
Erin Hills will become the 15th facility to play host to both a U.S. Open (2017) and a U.S. Women’s Open, and more are on the way. In fact, the next 11 assigned sites for the U.S. Women’s Open have also played host to a U.S. Open starting with Riviera CC in Los Angeles in 2026 and ending with Shinnecock Hills GC on Long Island, New York in 2036, with famed Chicago Golf Club (2033) among the classic stops in between.
“I would say this: Players have told us that where they win their (women’s) U.S. Open is important,” Shannon Rouillard, the senior director of championships for the USGA in charge of the U.S. Women’s Open and U.S. Senior Women’s Open, said recently. “Given that, you see recently this run of Women’s Opens being played at U.S. Open golf courses. As you look into the future, you’re going to continue to see the same.
“I think it’s fantastic. It elevates the Women’s Open. It shows how important it is to us as an organization to have the Women’s Open on these traditional U.S. Open golf courses as well as show them how important this is for us as an association, to give the women the chance to play these U.S. Open courses.”
2024 U.S. Women's Open champion Yuka Saso
The men’s U.S. Open is scheduled out through 2042 and every venue in the rotation except Riviera CC (2031) and Los Angeles CC (2039) has played host to the event at least five times. Erin Hills might be considered for openings in 2043, 2045, 2046 or 2048 if it can provide a U.S. Women’s Open test as demanding as the one last year at Lancaster CC in Pennsylvania, where Japan’s Yuka Saso won her second title by three shots over countrywoman Hinako Shibuno, the only other golfer under par.
If nothing else, the 2025 U.S. Women’s Open continues a strong relationship between the USGA and the state of Wisconsin.
Over the next 15 years, another dozen USGA championships will come to the Dairy State – five at Erin Hills, four at Sand Valley near Nekoosa and three at Whistling Straits near Sheboygan. For now, this is the last in a stretch of five USGA open championships played on Wisconsin fairways – a run highlighted by the 2017 U.S. Open at Erin Hills and one that started with the epic 1998 U.S. Women’s Open at Blackwolf Run where South Korea’s Se Ri Pak outlasted U.S. amateur Jenny Chuasiriporn in a 20-hole playoff.
“It was certainly one of the defining moments in U.S. Women’s Open history,” Rouillard said. “I was actually watching the highlights of that championship within the last six months or so. It was fun to see the drama unfold between Jenny and Se Ri. You think of the impact Se Ri had in winning that championship on the future of young Korean golfers. Look at where we sit today. Korea continues to put out incredible talent and golfers on the LPGA Tour.”
Indeed, nine Koreans have combined to win 10 U.S. Women’s Open titles since Pak’s breakthrough victory, including Na Yeon Choi in 2012 when the championship returned to Wisconsin at Blackwolf Run.
For Erin Hills, its honor roll of USGA Champions includes Pennsylvania’s Tiany Joh (2008 U.S. Women’s Public Links), Texan Kelly Kraft (2011 U.S. Amateur), Floridian Brooks Koepka (2017 U.S. Open) and Irishman Matthew McClean (2022 U.S. Mid-Amateur). None of those four championships was played earlier than the middle of June, which means the U.S. Women’s Open has the honor – and, possibly, the challenge – of being the earliest on the calendar.
“The championship ends on June 1, so we’re looking at it being mainly a May championship,” Rouillard said, acknowledging that her team will have to remain flexible with the course set-up because the tournament falls as Wisconsin is making the often-volatile transition from spring to summer. “If we end up with an east wind, Erin Hills is going to play really tough. It makes Nos. 16-18 play into the wind. We need a lot of flexibility within the plan and we’re going to remain nimble throughout the championship because Mother Nature always has a seat at the table.”
Meanwhile, it remains to be seen who takes a seat at the head of the table by week’s end.
After missing the cut last year in Pennsylvania, World No. 1 Nelly Korda will seek to claim her first U.S. Women's Open at Erin Hills.
Saso became just the second golfer since Annika Sorenstam in 2006 to become a multiple U.S. Women’s Open champion a year ago, a nod to the degree of difficulty in winning the event. In fact, none of the golfers currently in the top 10 of the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings have done it – No. 8 Jin Young Ko finished runner-up to A Lim Kim in 2020 and No. 9 Charley Hull was second to Allisen Corpuz in 2023 at Pebble Beach – and No. 2 Atthaya Thitikul was the only one in the top 10 a year ago.
Top-ranked Nelly Korda has never finished higher than T8 (in 2022) and last year shot 80-70 to miss the cut by two strokes a little more than a month after finishing her stretch of five-consecutive LPGA Tour wins. Only the 2022 U.S. Women’s Open at Pine Needles in North Carolina has produced more than seven sub-par scores for the week (13) during the last five years and Minjee Lee’s winning score of 13-under is the only one to reach double-digits since 2018 – and one of just four over the last 25 years.
“That is the USGA’s DNA – a tough and fair test of golf,” Rouillard said. “We talk about it a fair bit inside the walls of Golf House. That’s what we’re known for – the toughest test these players are going to see all year long.”
Rob Hernandez is the senior editor for Wisconsin.Golf, a website run by the Wisconsin State Golf Association that covers all things golf in Wisconsin.
Quick Jaunt to Erin Hills Offers Many Possibilities
World-class golf and Wisconsin hospitality await Chicagoland visitors
BY ABBEY ALGIERS
As the 2025 U.S. Women’s Open Championship presented by Ally approaches, golf enthusiasts from around the world have their eyes on Erin Hills. Some will travel great distances to attend, but Chicagoans are lucky – the roughly two-hour drive to Erin Hills Golf Course in Erin, Wisconsin is a breeze. Plus, the timing of the Championship (May 29 – June 1), is ideal for visiting Erin Hills, with its stunning landscapes and views of nearby Holy Hill.
ACCOMMODATIONS
With Downtown Milwaukee just 35 minutes from Erin Hills, the city is a great place to stay. Milwaukee accommodation options include The Pfister Hotel, Saint Kate - The Arts Hotel, The Iron Horse Hotel and The Kimpton Journeyman Hotel by IHG. Want to get closer to the course? Head to Milwaukee's western suburbs, such as Wauwatosa, Brookfield or Delafield (the boutique Delafield Hotel is a great find). Stay closer to Erin Hills in nearby Hartford (try the Cobblestone Hotel & Suites) or choose from hotels in Jackson, Germantown, Menomonee Falls and West Bend.
DINING
U.S. Women’s Open fans can find restaurants, supper clubs (when in Wisconsin…), bars, breweries and wineries all within a reasonable drive from Erin Hills. Options less than twenty minutes from the course include Fox & Hounds, Johnny Manhattan’s, The Copper Dock, Mineshaft Bar & Restaurant and the tasting room at Hartford’s Brewed Omen. If there’s a plant-based eater in the group, Hartford’s Plantonic Cafe is a great option for breakfast or lunch. Other nearby options include Oconomowoc’s Twisted Fire, Sobie’s Restaurant and Lago Su Bella, Brookfield hotspots such as Cooper’s Hawk Winery & Restaurant and North Star American Bistro, and Delafield favorites, I.d. & Belfrē Kitchen. Plus, the nearby area known as “Lake Country” has numerous lake dining options such as Smoke on the Water BBQ and Fishbone’s Cajun & Creole. All are within 30 minutes of Erin Hills.
GOLF
Perhaps watching the U.S. Women’s Open will inspire a round or two of golf after the tournament at nearby courses, such as The Club at Lac La Belle (offering stay and play at a nearby inn), Western Lakes Golf Club, Washington County Golf Course, Hartford Golf Club and many others. Or plan a future getaway to Erin Hills, and other Wisconsin premier courses such as Whistling Straits, Blackwolf Run, Sand Valley Resort or SentryWorld.
BEYOND GOLF – attractions for visitors of all ages
Spectators at Erin Hills can’t help but notice nearby Holy Hill, the world-famous Basilica and National Shrine of Mary. Visitors can tour the basilica, chapels and grounds, while also climbing the tower for incredible views.
Other Washington County attractions include lakes, trails and parks, as well as cultural options such as the Schauer Arts Center, Wisconsin Automotive Museum in Hartford and the Museum of Wisconsin Art in West Bend. In addition, take advantage of area shopping at The Corners of Brookfield or Mayfair Mall in nearby Wauwatosa.
COME FOR THE GOLF, STAY FOR THE VIBE
For Chicago area golf fans, a trip to the U.S. Women’s Open Championship offers world-class golf and a relaxing getaway in one of Wisconsin’s most beautiful areas. It’s an ideal spot to spend a day (or several) and the perfect way to kick off the golf season!
Abbey Algiers is a Wisconsin-based travel writer who loves golf.
