Rich Harvest Farms is a private, 18-hole, 1,800-acre (7.3 km2) golf course and country club near Sugar Grove, Illinois with 49 members built in 1989 and expanded in 1999. Owned by Jerry Rich, a self-made millionaire from inventing a method to incorporate five separate stock exchange software programs into one and graduate of Northern Illinois University. Rich Harvest Farms hosted the 2007 NCAA Central Regional Men's Golf Championships and was the 2009 site of the Solheim Cup USA v. Europe matches. In 1999, it was named the fifth-best new private course in the U.S. by Golf Digest. In 2003, the course made its debut on that magazine’s list of Top 100 American Golf Courses. It is currently ranked number 45. After the success of the Solheim Cup, the LPGA is looking at Rich Harvest Farms to potentially host a future tournament.
In addition to a golf course and several private residences, the 2,200-acre (8.9 km2) rural site houses several antique stage coaches and a collection of vintage and modern vehicles, including Al Unser's 1992 Indy car, and cars from many movies. A portion of Rich's massive automobile collection occupies the first floor of a building with a 50,000 sq ft (4,600 m2). footprint.
The golf course is an extreme test of a golfer's skill. Measuring well over 7,700 yards (7,000 m) from the professional tees, the course requires precision with every shot. The famous fourth hole, Devil's Elbow, has one of the most intimidating tree-lined tee boxes and fairways of any golf course.
The site has a unique history. Rich, with golf course architect, Greg Martin, designed the present 18-hole course as an expansion from his original "18-hole" course, which began with only six greens -- each approached from three different angles from three different tees and fairways.
The course will be used for the 2012 Ryder Cup Captain's Challenge, which could be due to the Ryder Cup being held at Medinah Country Club in Medinah, IL.
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Famous quotes containing the words rich, harvest and/or farms:
“Injurious Time now, with a robber’s haste,
Crams his rich thievery up, he knows not how;
As many farewells as be stars in heaven,
With distinct breath and consigned kisses to them,
He fumbles up into a loose adieu,
And scants us with a single famished kiss,
Distasted with the salt of broken tears.”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)
“Power lasts ten years; influence not more than a hundred.”
—Korean proverb, quoted in Alan L. Mackay, The Harvest of a Quiet Eye (1977)
“A feeble man can see the farms that are fenced and tilled, the houses that are built. The strong man sees the possible houses and farms. His eye makes estates, as fast as the sun breeds clouds.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)