by William Langford and Theodore Moreau are known best for their work at Lawsonia Links, but they had many other terrific designs in the Midwest, including Wakonda Club. Over the last two years, architect Tyler Rae completed a restoration project at Wakonda, exposing Langford & Moreau’s bold style and returning the wild property to its former glory. This September, we’re bringing Fried Egg Events to Wakonda for a day to experience some of the best Langford & Moreau the country has to offer.
Event Details
Date: Monday, September 9, 2024
Cost: $495/person
Format: 36-hole team event (18 holes best ball, 18 holes alternate shot)
Location: Wakonda Club – Des Moines, Iowa
Registration Status: OPEN – Register in the Fried Egg Golf Pro Shop
Why you should see Wakonda Club
Before being hired for the project, Tyler Rae mentioned Wakonda on a 2018 Fried Egg podcast as a course with so much potential. In researching Wakonda and Langford & Moreau for the project, Rae was convinced that the course started a new phase of the design duo’s career. “I think [Wakonda] was their coming out party,” he told Fried Egg Golf last month.
Langford & Moreau went bold at Wakonda and they never went back, as evidenced by their work at Lawsonia Links, Harrison Hills, Kankakee Elks, and many others. But their bold architecture also matched the land at Wakonda. You may think of Iowa as a flat state with a lot of corn fields, but there are beautiful rolling hills, especially at Wakonda. “It’s so much hillier than any other Langford that I’ve ever seen,” Rae said of the course’s land. “It makes Lawsonia look like a flat pancake.”
In restoring Wakonda, Rae helped bring back a lot of that boldness by exposing the vast bunkers that had been grown in overtime — some of which had trees planted in them over the years — bringing back the design’s strong green complexes, and widening playing corridors to show the property’s scale.
Today, Wakonda is far more representative of Langford & Moreau’s design style, a world-class layout with in-your-face architecture. The course previously held two U.S. Amateurs, a Women’s Western Open, and a Western Amateur, and we’re excited to add a Fried Egg Golf Event to the history books.
You can read all about Wakonda’s restoration on their website, including hole-by-hole renderings of the work completed by Rae and team.
In the area
If interested, the Maize could be the beginning of a four-day road trip for you that we’re taking with Club TFE members this September. Following Wakonda, we will visit The Harvester Club, Cedar Rapids Country Club, and Davenport Country Club. Click here for full details.
This weekend is rivalry weekend in Iowa City as college football heats up. Iowa takes on Iowa State on Saturday, September 7. A weekend of college football and world-class golf sounds pretty good, eh.
For baseball aficionados, Des Moines is home to the Iowa Cubs, the AAA affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. You can catch the Iowa Cubs in action against the Louisville Bats in the days immediately following our event.
If you’re looking for a cultural experience while in town, the Des Moines Art Center is worth your time. It’s free to enter and is just minutes away from Wakonda Club.
Photos of Wakonda Club
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Right of the 12th green following the restoration. Courtesy of David Blum / @drmnbig_drones
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Fairway connecting the 10th (left) and 8th (right) holes at Wakonda. Courtesy of David Blum / @drmnbig_drones
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The par-3 14th (foreground) and long par-4 11th (background). Courtesy of David Blum / @drmnbig_drones
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The dramatic falloff behind No. 6. Courtesy of David Blum / @drmnbig_drones
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No. 13, a rolling par 5 that works its way toward downtown Des Moines. Courtesy of David Blum / @drmnbig_drones
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A knoll on the Northwest portion of Wakonda's property. The par-5 5th (left) works off it, the tees for the par-3 17th (center) sit atop it, and the long par-4 16th (right) plays into it. Courtesy of David Blum / @drmnbig_drones
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The par-5 15th. Courtesy of David Blum / @drmnbig_drones
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Looking toward the green of the par-4 6th. Courtesy of David Blum / @drmnbig_drones
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Wakonda Informational Brochure
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Wakonda Master Plan
Traveling to Wakonda
Centrally located in the heartland of the Midwest, Wakonda Club is a manageable drive for many midwest cities, including Chicago, St. Louis, Kansas City, Omaha, Minneapolis, and Milwaukee. For those flying in, the Des Moines International Airport has direct flights to many different areas of the country. Delta, United, and American all have connections to Des Moines through Chicago as well.
Why “The Maize”
Golf is an endless puzzle that no one really solves. It is that search for better that keeps us coming back for more. When you’re in Iowa, that search may very well take you into a cornfield.
Relevant Fried Egg Golf Content
The Sultans of the Steam Shovel: Langford & Moreau– Our profile of the great design duo that is William Langford and Theodore Moreau.
Back in 2021, Andy Johnson commented on the Wakonda restoration announcement and how Rae made for an exciting architect choice after his recent work at Skokie Country Club and the Beverly Country Club.
Podcast with Tyler Rae – In April of 2018, before he was hired to restore Wakonda, joined Andy on the podcast to talk about his career to that point and the current work he was doing. Wakonda even earns a mention or two, most notably how it was ripe for restoration.
Tentative Schedule
7:30 a.m. – Registration and breakfast, practice facilities available
8:30 a.m. – Morning shotgun, best ball with partner
1:00 p.m. – Lunch
2:00 p.m. – Afternoon shotgun, alternate shot with partner
6:00 p.m. – Post golf hors d’oeuvres and awards. Playoff if necessary
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Questions? Email us at events@thefriedegg.com
