VILLAGE OF LAC LA BELLE — It may not look like your backyard, but odds are, you wish your backyard was as scenic as Uncle Henry’s Backyard at The Club at Lac La Belle. The good news is you can still pretend like the rolling green grounds are outside your backdoor when the 9-hole, par-3 short course opens on Friday.
The new addition to The Club at Lac La Belle has been hosting a Charity Week to benefit area nonprofits since around Memorial Day weekend and afterward. Each day, a different local charity receives all of the proceeds from all the tee times for Uncle Henry’s Backyard.
The benefactors include the Oconomowoc Area Foundation, Zachariah’s Acres, The MACC Fund, the YMCA at Pabst Farms, and others.
The course
Originally when the Morse family purchased the property at 6996 Pennsylvania St. in 2018, they planned to not only restore The Club at Lac La Belle to its former glory, but to locate the headquarters for their company, Prestwick Corporation, to the land.
Those plans eventually changed and an addition was built onto the existing headquarters in Sussex, which meant the Morse family had available land to incorporate into the golf course that dates its origin back to the 1890s.
The idea to create a short course was formed.
“It’s a very different golfing experience,” said Tyler Morse. “The idea behind it was that short courses are just a ton of fun. They are gaining in popularity around the country right now.”
Short courses are a great way to introduce new people to the sport of golf, Morse said, it also appeals to junior and women golfers. To encourage kids to get into the game, it costs children 15 and younger only $15 for them to play every day before noon on Uncle Henry’s Backyard.
Morse encourages families to come out in the morning and experience what The Club at Lac La Belle has to offer.
The short course, which took two years to construct, can also appeal to people who don’t have enough time to golf 18 holes or even those with enough time play the 18-hole course before dinner and then finish with the 9 holes after.
The course is also built around choice and variety, according to its website, with multiple teeing options on every hole that introduce new angles, distances and risk-reward decisions from tee to green.
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Also adding to the backyard atmosphere are the other typical yard games, such as bocce and cornhole. There will also be food trucks and other activities for families.
Paying tribute to history
So, who is Uncle Henry? Henry Shufeldt, a Chicago distiller, used his wealth to build family homes in Chicago and Oconomowoc, which is where he built a golf course in 1895. Having a local golf course then encouraged his nephews, Chandler and Walter Egan, to take up the sport.
Beginning in 1902, Chandler and Walter became champions, earning their own gold medal, college titles at Harvard, Olympic Gold Medals, Western Amateur titles, USGA Amateur championships, and even an Oconomowoc Open, according to The Club at Lac La Belle’s website.
The current Uncle Henry’s Backyard reflects that history with a clubhouse with a wraparound porch inspired by the original one on the course built by Shufeldt.
“Henry Shufeldt started the golf course; he was big part of the community in the late 1800s,” Morse said. “We are bringing back some of that history.”
Supporting local charities
Morse said he is excited to welcome the first golfers to Uncle Henry’s Backyard while also giving back to the local community.
“I thought it would be neat. There are so many amazing charitable organizations here,” Morse said. “The short course is about community. What better way than to partner with local charities in the community.”
The Charity Week give-back will run through Thursday.
To learn more about The Charity Week and nonprofits that are benefiting, go to https://bit.ly/43cjrLY