Golf Digest Lists Wakonda as #5 Best in State

Overview

Located on a beautiful property cut with ravines and depressions in south Des Moines, Wakonda is a textbook example of what happens when golf courses age: they tend to get dulled and more narrow, overgrown, restricted by trees and contracting grass lines and lose the character that made them exemplary in their day. Wakonda was built by William Langford, one of the most distinctive architects of the Classical Era of the 1920s. However, by the 2000s, little of his architectural expression remained. A major renovation by Tyler Rae in 2023, though, reversed the aging effect. Rae was able to reestablish Langford’s principles and trademark style, defined by large plateau greens, steep-faced bunkers cut into their bases and more spacious fairways that set up strategic driving lines off the tee. Rae considers Wakonda one of the country’s greatest hidden gems, and while the course has always been respected (it ranks fifth in Iowa), the sharpening of the dramatic architecture could push it toward the top of the state list.

About

Holes18
Length6859
Slope135
Facility TypePrivate
DesignerWilliam B. Langford, ASGCA/Tyler Rae (2023)

Awards

Best Courses in Every State

ranking history:

100 Greatest: The course was part of Golf Digest's original 200 Toughest Courses list from 1966-'68.

Best in State: Ranked first, 1985-'95, 1999-2001. Ranked third, 2011-'14. Ranked fifth, 2015-'18, 2021-'22, 2025-'26. Ranked inside the top 5, 1977-2010. Ranked sixth, 2019-'20, 2023-'24.
Previous ranking: 6th.
2025-'26 ranking: 5th.


100 GREATEST/BEST IN STATE SCORES

Shot Options
6.9318
Character
6.8764
Challenge
6.8364
Layout Variety
6.8172
Fun
6.9356
Aesthetics
6.6156
Conditioning
6.8075

Reviews