Medinah Country Club (No. 3)

Medinah's championship course west of Chicago, host of three U.S. Opens, two PGA Championships, the 2012 Ryder Cup and the 2026 Presidents Cup after an OCM renovation.

Tom Bendelow designed Medinah's No. 3 course, which opened in 1928 about 25 miles west of downtown Chicago. Over the next century it became the Chicago area's busiest major venue: U.S. Opens in 1949, 1975 and 1990, PGA Championships in 1999 and 2006, both won by Tiger Woods, and the 2012 Ryder Cup, when Europe rallied on the final day to retain the cup.

The course has been rebuilt several times. Roger Packard reworked it before the 1990 Open, and Rees Jones stretched it past 7,500 yards before the 2006 PGA. The most recent change came from Australian firm Ogilvy, Cocking & Mead, whose $23.5 million project replaced narrow tree-lined corridors with much wider fairways, more strategic angles and three new holes. The course reopened in 2024.

Lake Kadijah has always defined the course, especially the water-guarded par 3s that historically included the 2nd, 13th and 17th. The renovation was done with the 2026 Presidents Cup in mind, and the course hosted the matches in September 2026, its first international team event since the Ryder Cup. Justin Thomas set the course record of 61 at the 2019 BMW Championship, on the pre-renovation layout.

Holes to know

2

Par 3

A par 3 played over Lake Kadijah, the first of the course's water-guarded short holes.

17

Par 3

A late par 3 across the lake that has shaped several of Medinah's championships.

Championships

• U.S. Open 1949, 1975, 1990
• PGA Championship 1999, 2006
• Ryder Cup 2012
• BMW Championship 2019
• Presidents Cup 2026

Design history

• 1986: Roger Packard redesign before the 1990 U.S. Open
• 2002–06: Rees Jones redesign before the 2006 PGA Championship
• 2023–24: Ogilvy, Cocking & Mead (OCM) renovation adding width and three new holes ahead of the 2026 Presidents Cup