Lester Park Golf Course facts for kids

Lester Park Golf Course was one of two public golf courses in Duluth, Minnesota. It was known for its beautiful views of Lake Superior. The course was first opened in 1934.

Lester Park was located near the Lester River. Duluth's other public course, Enger Park, opened earlier in the 1920s. Lester Park was famous in Minnesota for its lovely scenery. You could see Lake Superior from 20 of its 27 holes!

The original 18 holes were updated several times. In 1985, a third "Lake 9" course was added. This new section made the course longer and more challenging.

Over the years, different groups managed the golf course. From 2007 to 2014, Professional Golf Management, Inc. ran the course. Then, from 2015 to 2019, Billy Casper Golf managed both Lester Park and Enger Park.

Sadly, the city of Duluth closed Lester Park Golf Course in 2020. This happened because of budget cuts during the COVID-19 pandemic. The course has not reopened since then. The city has been looking at new ideas for the land. In 2023, the land for the "Lake 9" course was sold. The future of the rest of the Lester Park site is still being decided.

The main 18-hole course at Lester Park was a full par 72. It stretched for 6,828 yards from the longest tee boxes.

The Story of Lester Park Golf Course

The land where Lester Park Golf Course was built has a long history. Long ago, glaciation (when glaciers covered the land) shaped Minnesota. This created a landscape with hills and rich soil. These features were perfect for building a golf course.

In 1934, the city decided to build a new course. The existing course was too far for some people. So, a new one was planned for the northeastern part of Duluth. The land for this area, called Lakeside, was given to the city in 1890. It was donated by Thomas Cole, who was president of Oliver Iron Mining.

Playing at Lester Park

Lester Park Golf Course had 27 holes. This included an 18-hole course and a tougher 9-hole course. The grass on the main playing areas, called fairways, was a type of bluegrass.

The greens, which are the smooth areas around the holes, were once Bermuda Grass. But because of harsh weather, many parts were changed to bentgrass. Bentgrass is stronger and can handle tough conditions. It can also be cut very short and withstand a lot of foot traffic.

The course had four different sets of tee boxes. These are the starting points for each hole. They ranged from red tees, which were the shortest distance to the hole, to blue tees, which were the farthest. Golfers could usually book a tee time up to a week in advance. If they needed to cancel, they had to do so 24 hours beforehand.