Superior National at Lutsen - Canyon Nine

Loved every minute. Every hole was incredible. Beautiful in all the fall colors.

Paid over $200 for my wife and I. Can’t believe they charge you additionally for the driving range. The club house guy said it’s always been that way……my response was “that doesn’t make it right or first class”. Always have enjoyed the track and the sand traps are in great shape. Recently aerated greens made the experience not worth the money. No water on the course, no cart girl on the course, no Marshall on the course, $8 to warm up on the driving range. Way better places to play. I have played up there many times and unfortunately probably won’t be back. Much prefer Wilderness and Giants Ridge courses which are less money, free ranges, better amenities and superb conditions and layouts. Glad SUPERIOR NAtional spent millions on a remodel. Just wish it was worth it. It wasn’t for me today. Try the others I mentioned instead.

Love the course but to pay almost $100 and find a driving range that is in as bad a shape as this course is totally unacceptable. I know we are in a drought but most patrons would tell you that has never been a practice area that compares with the course. There wasn’t even any water or towel to be found in the club washer. How hard would that be? Management should consider offering this at no charge like it used to be years ago until such time as the range can be watered. I know other northern MN courses have much better range and clubhouse facilities.

Played the River/canyon and two days later the River/mountain. Great course layout. Greens a little slow. The mountain 9 combines golf with football/golf, thus not as well maintained. A truly must play ciurse if in Minnesota.

Golfed all three courses while vacationing on the north shore. Mountain course was nice but canyon and river courses were definitely a cut above. I’m from Florida so the elevation changes were a treat. Greens were in good shape and very fast. Beautiful layout. Only wish the view of Lake Superiority was better but the wildfires in Canada made it hazy. Would definitely golf here again

My wife and I paid the $150 for Friday afternoon twilight rates. We kept up with the threesome in front of us. At the 12th tee box, the sprinklers came on...with plenty of daylight left. We called the pro shop and asked that they turn the sprinklers off and they said no. We played through the sprinklers on 12 and made our way to the 13th tee. When we arrived at the 13th tee, the sprinklers were turned on us again. Furious, we headed to the pro shop. There, we were treated like unwanted trespassers instead of the lifeblood of the North Shore (tourists), they did not refund all of our money but only a prorated portion. We called the next day to complain to management and spoke to the golf pro who unapologetically admitted that he was the one that had the sprinklers turned on us, and spoke to us like we were unreasonable and out of line. Again, NO APOLOGY. When a business puts their product above their customers, there is something terribly wrong. We spent a small fortune across the North Shore this past week as this has been, in the past a wonderful destination. My wife and I left a day early and headed back home, second guessing our vacation choice. Yes, all prices up and down the North Shore were jacked way up...everywhere. Probably will not pick the North Shore for our next getaway...and even though "never" is a long time...will NEVER play Superior National again!!! Too many beautiful golfing destinations across the US where patrons are welcomed and treated with respect and the staff actually works to ensure that their customers have the time of their lives. That is what vacation should be about. Superior National has a nice course but is completely ignorant on how to treat customers. This management team actually believes that they are doing you a favor just by letting you onto their property…they do not care about you or your experience. Stay away at all cost. I have played several golfing destinations across the US and without fail have always been left with wanting more. Not Superior National. I never again want anything to do with this course under this management….EVER!!!

We picked Minnesota North Shore for a much needed vacation. One planned attraction for us was Superior National Golf Course. We were very much looking forward to playing the reconstructed 9's. We played twice, and both outings were the twilight rates (still expensive for us). The first outing was wonderful...teed off at 4pm and played with plenty of daylight to spare. Second outing, same tee time, but because it was Friday, rates increased to $75 per head. My wife and I paid the $150 and ventured out. We played faster than the earlier round keeping up with the threesome in front of us. When we hit the 12th tee box, the sprinklers came on...with plenty of daylight left. We called the pro shop and unapologetically were told that it may be because the grounds crew thought the course appeared dry. We asked that they turn the sprinklers off and they said they had no way to communicate with the grounds crew. We played through the sprinklers on 12 and made our way to the 13th tee. When we arrived at the 13th tee, the sprinklers were turned on us again. Furious, we headed to the pro shop and had to argue to get money back...after being completely disrespected and treated like unwanted trespassers instead of the lifeblood of the North Shore (tourists), they did not refund all of our money but calculated what holes we had left and prorated what we paid. We called the next day to complain to management and spoke to the golf pro who, again, unapologetically admitted that he was the one that had the sprinklers turned on us, and spoke to us like we were unreasonable and out of line. Again, NO APOLOGY. When a business puts their product above their customers, there is something terribly wrong. We spent a small fortune across the North Shore this past week as this has been, in the past a wonderful destination. My wife and I left a day early and headed back home, second guessing our vacation choice. Yes, all prices up and down the North Shore were jacked way up...everywhere. Probably will not pick the North Shore for our next getaway...and even though "never" is a long time...will NEVER play Superior National again!!! Too many beautiful golfing destinations across the US where patrons are welcomed and treated with respect and the staff actually works to ensure that their customers have the time of their lives. That is what vacation should be about. Superior National has a nice course but is completely ignorant on how to treat customers. This management team actually believes that they are doing you a favor just by letting you onto their property…they do not care about you or your experience. Stay away at all cost. I have played several golfing destinations across the US and without fail have always been left with wanting more. Not Superior National. I never again want anything to do with this course under this management….EVER!!!

Course improved greatly after 2018 renovation. White sand bunkers pop off the green fairways with the blue water of Lake Superior as a backdrop. The views are amazing on many tees and greens. Pro shop and grill is small and needs improvements which are coming in 2021. Will be a top 10 course in Minnesota.

We played this course on September 22, 2020, and the leaves were peak in Lutsen. Every hole was so beautiful. Canyon course is a bit difficult for a beginner. There are views of Lake Superior, from so many of the holes. We will definitely play here again.

Beautiful challenging course! Been playing for 12 years. River and canyon 9 were redesigned and greatly increased my enjoyment playing there. The greens are hard to read.

Course was in great condition. Greens rolled soft and slow. A combination of recent rain and mowing. The course has a nice layout and views of Lake Superior. No breakfast, only lunch. A must play if you’re in the area.

This was my first time up to the course and based on the advertisment, i thought it was going to be full of crazy down and up hill tee shots and the last 5 holes deliver on that but the first 13 are just ok. Not bad but doesn't have the wow factor of the others.

The conditions were good, not great. Certainly not on the same level of the other high end courses in the state. Greens were a little shaggy and very slow. For 100 bucks, that wasn't what I was expecting. I also have a real problem with high end courses charging 100 bucks and not providing complimentary range balls. This should just happen like it does at the other high end courses. I also thought it was weird that the guy behind the counter makes it a point to lecture golfers about teeing off on time while in the clubhouse. Maybe just have a starter and treat your guests like adults.

Bottom line, it was good, not great. Probably not worth 100 bucks.

Superior National Golf Course is nestled between the ski slopes of the Lutsen Mountains and the shore of Lake Superior, providing spectacular views of mountains or lake on almost every hole. The course was renovated three years ago and the former three nines that played interchangeably were reconfigured into the “Premier 18” hole track (the River and Canyon nines), and the old Mountain 9 used for nine hole play or for FootGolf. This review covers the Premier 18. The course features expansively wide fairways and dramatic elevation changes on many holes. Rough is not very high, so losing a ball that wanders a little off the short grass is unlikely, but balls that go farther astray will almost surely be lost in the deep woods that lie beyond. There are five sets of tees ranging from 6,763 yards to 4,238 yards. Based on our average drive and the scorecard recommendation, we played the middle (Blue) tees at 5,857 yards (68.9 rating, 127 slope) and found this to be a wise choice, providing some moderately easy holes and a few real challenges. Greens were large and undulating, with some breaks that were very difficult to read. However, one major disappointment was the speed of these greens- definitely on the slow side. Every member of our foursome left many putts short and many chips from off the green failed to get anywhere close to the hole. We speculated that winter kill may have led the greenskeepers to leave them longer than usual in order to help them heal. Nevertheless, our overall experience of the course was very positive, and the views were amazing. The course starts with an easy par 4 that gives no hint of what is to come. The fun begins on the second hole, a 135 yard par 3 that is all carry over a whitewater canyon of the Poplar River. A 135 yard shot is usually no big deal, but the canyon and the whitewater can definitely get in your head, and two of our group failed to make it across and onto the green. From there the course provides right and left dogleg holes, more forced carries over canyons and many elevation changes. Well-placed fairway bunkers caught many otherwise good drives, and the many greenside bunkers ruined a few approach shots. The par 4 eleventh hole is 399 yards from the blue tees, with a canyon running across the fairway about 300 yards out. From there it’s almost all carry to the green, so following your drive you must assess your ability to carry the hazard or choose to lay up. Only one of our group managed to par this hole. Probably the most spectacular hole on the course is the short (110 yards from the blue tees) par 3 fifteenth. From a severely elevated tee you must choose the right club to carry the river canyon. If you’re long, you’ll find yourself chipping back from a slope that serves as a backstop past the green that is wide, but not very deep. Once again, one member of our group lost a ball in the river. And there was no drop zone.
As stated earlier, the only shortcoming of this course was the speed of the greens. The variety of holes and the challenges presented by the many different looks of the fairways and greens made the experience very enjoyable. Every member of our group took at least a few pictures of the views. I will definitely plan to come back.

We got a great rsyr from Golf now...the weather was cloudy and cool...but the course is one of the most dcrniv in the Midwest. Great layout with many unique holes..course conditions are the best ever althoughy the greens are a bit dlog...very playable if you pick the right tees. Love iy

Superior National is a beautiful course with a great location and views. However the customer service leaves a bit to be desired. I have played there 2 times this summer and each time the lack of customer service was disappointing. The first time it had rained and no one bothered to offer a towel to wipe off the golf cart even though the party ahead of us got huge towels to wipe off the cart seat. I guess since I was not a regular I didn't get the same service. I asked for a towel and was given a bar towel. Not exactly adequate.
The second experience wasn't much better. Made a tee time, checked in (all by the same person) and headed out to the first tee. I was told by the starter I was playing with another party. However no one told me that when I made the tee time or when I checked in. The party i was paired with had specifically asked to play alone when he made a tee time a week in advance. No one told him either he would be playing with another party. It was very busy and I understand being paired is sometimes necessary but common courtesy is to let golfers know they are being paired. Neither of us would have had an issue had we just been notified before heading out.
If Superior National wants to become a destination golf course they definitely need to improve on their customer service!