Robert A. Black Golf Course
Chicago, Illinois · 9 holes · par 33 · Public. Designed by Ken Killian, Dick Nugent, opened 1979.
A caddie's yardage book for every hole: plays-like distance from USGS lidar elevation, reach and carry numbers for every bunker and water hazard, green front, middle and back, which way each green falls, and the lay-up zone on par 5s. Distances are from the back tees along the mapped hole; for a shorter tee, take off the scorecard difference.
Course profile
- At about 600 ft the ball carries about 1% farther than at sea level, so a 150-yard shot plays like about 149. Golfers visiting from low elevation should expect to club down.
- Biggest climb: hole 9, where the green sits 9 ft above the tee and plays about 3 yards longer.
- Biggest drop: hole 1, where the green sits 18 ft below the tee and plays about 6 yards shorter.
- 9 greens tilt 2% or more. Each hole below says which side of the hole leaves an uphill putt.
Maps: tee at the bottom, green at the top. The dashed line is the mapped hole; the gold band is the lay-up zone; the arrow on the green points downhill.
Scorecard
| Hole | Par | Hcp | Blue | Red |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | 1 | 481 | 447 |
| 2 | 3 | 15 | 130 | 114 |
| 3 | 4 | 5 | 346 | 319 |
| 4 | 3 | 13 | 167 | 132 |
| 5 | 4 | 9 | 313 | 293 |
| 6 | 4 | 7 | 310 | 290 |
| 7 | 3 | 11 | 164 | 135 |
| 8 | 3 | 17 | 103 | 87 |
| 9 | 4 | 3 | 347 | 329 |
Tees
| Tee | Yards | Rating | Slope | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blue | Female | 2361 | 103 | |
| Blue | Male | 2361 | 100 | |
| Red | Female | 2146 | 98 | |
| Red | Male | 2146 | 96 |
Hole 1 · Par 5
- Plays like
- 475-18 ft
- Green · Blue tee
- 464 · 481 · 495front · middle · back
- Green size
- 33 × 19yards deep × wide
- Fairway
- 18 ydswide at 232
- Green slope
- 5%falls to the right
In play
- Bunker left: 211 to reach, 245 to carry
- Bunker left: 387 to reach, 413 to carry
- Bunker front of the green
Playing notes
- Plays about 6 yards shorter: the green sits 18 ft below the tee.
- Fairway bunkers on the left: 211 to reach, 245 to carry. Drives that finish short of 211 stay clear; otherwise the right side is the safer line off the tee.
- The fairway is about 18 yards wide at 232.
- Best lay-up: 90 to 170 yards from the green, where the fairway is about 21 yards wide with no bunkers or water within 16 yards.
- Bunkers short of the green; take enough club to carry it.
- The green falls from left to right, about 5%. Finish on the right side of the hole for an uphill putt.
Hole 2 · Par 3
- Plays like
- 130level
- Green · Blue tee
- 118 · 130 · 142front · middle · back
- Green size
- 29 × 25yards deep × wide
- Green slope
- 2%falls to the front-right
In play
- Bunker front-right of the green
Playing notes
- The green is guarded on the right by bunkers; miss left.
- The green falls from back-left to front-right, about 2%. Finish on the front-right side of the hole for an uphill putt.
Hole 3 · Par 4
- Plays like
- 346-1 ft
- Green · Blue tee
- 336 · 346 · 353front · middle · back
- Green size
- 28 × 32yards deep × wide
- Fairway
- 39 ydswide at 221
- Green slope
- 2%falls to the front-right
In play
- Bunker left: 194 to reach, 260 to carry
- Bunker front of the green
- Bunker front-left of the green
- Bunker back-right of the green
Playing notes
- Dogleg left at about 220 yards.
- Fairway bunkers on the left: 194 to reach, 260 to carry. Drives that finish short of 194 stay clear; otherwise the right side is the safer line off the tee.
- The fairway is about 39 yards wide at 221 and narrows to 26 at 238.
- Hazards guard both sides of the green; aim for the middle.
- Bunkers short of the green; take enough club to carry it.
- The green falls from back-left to front-right, about 2%. Finish on the front-right side of the hole for an uphill putt.
Holes 4 to 9
4 · Par 35 · Par 46 · Par 47 · Par 38 · Par 39 · Par 4
The rest of this guide has the same caddie detail for every hole:
- 6 plays-like yardages
- 11 hazards with reach and carry
- 6 green slope reads
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Hole maps, hazards and playing notes come from mapped course data and USGS 3DEP elevation (public domain), not a visit. Plays-like numbers use the Skitty caddie's rule of one yard per 3 ft of rise, from the longest tee; altitude uses 1.16% of carry per 1,000 ft. Tees, hazards and conditions change; check with the course before you play. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL 1.0) via OpenGolfAPI. Scorecard yardages and ratings as published. See a mistake? Email [email protected].