Finkbine Golf Course turns a new page in Iowa City. The 71-year-old course is currently undergoing a reimagination project that will be completed for the 2027 golf season. The renovation will be the course’s most significant changes since it relocated in 1955.
Architect Scott Hoffman will spearhead the project after spending 13 years as a senior design associate for golf course architect Tom Fazio.
Hailing from Nebraska, Hoffman started his own design firm, and his first solo design, Lost Rail Golf Club in the Omaha area, and put the golf world on notice in 2022. His opening project landed at 94th on Top 100 Golf Courses
USA’s website.
The renovation will be closing the door on an era of Finkbine that holds fond memories for many golfers of all ages. Hailing from Pleasant Valley, Iowa, Hawkeye junior women’s golfer Maura Peters recalls stories from her father and grandfather playing the course in junior and amateur tournaments.
Finkbine previously played host to the Big Ten Championships and the Ben Hogan Tour, the former name of the PGA’s
developmental league.
The reimagination project is thanks to donations from University of Iowa alumni Mary Lee and Fritz Duda. The Dudas also provided donations for the James M. Hoak Family Golf Complex and the new Nagle Family Clubhouse in 2020.
“Any time recruits can see upgrades and excitement around your golf program, it definitely turns an eye,” Megan Menzel, Iowa women’s golf head coach, said.
The project is a part of a bigger goal for Finkbine: bringing the course up to modern standards. The new design will lengthen the course to fit the modern game and add new unique challenges that weren’t there before. The project helps Finkbine and the Iowa golf teams propel themselves into a new era.
“It will help us compete in the Big Ten and come out knowing we have a really good championship-style golf course that will prepare us week in and week out.” Menzel said.
The spring season has been unique for the golf teams. While the course was playable during the fall, construction forced the Hawkeyes to find creative solutions.
“Before a tournament I went out with my coach and hit a bucket of balls, and we were able to hit shots into an old green from different places,” Peters said.
While the women’s team did not play in Iowa this spring, the men’s squad hosted the Hawkeye Invitational at the Riverside Casino and Golf Resort on April 20-21.
Finkbine has already hosted a variety of high-level golf tournaments, but with golf balls now traveling farther due to new technology and an irrigation system that needs an upgrade, the course featured its limitations.
“It was built in the ’50s, and golf has changed over time,” Dain Coppock, director of operations at Finkbine, said. “We were hosting Iowa amateur events; this will prompt us to start hosting U.S. Open qualifiers.”
The renovation will not only raise the championship profile of the course but also be more appealing for golfers of all skill levels.
As the weather gets warmer and golf season begins, the excitement for the reimagination project at Finkbine is palpable.
“I wish I could see the look on everyone’s face the first time they play it,” Tyler Stith, the Iowa men’s golf head coach, said. “It’s going to be a centerpiece for the UI and something that everybody in the state is proud of.”