Golf Course Bar and Grill Near Me | River Oaks Golf Course & Event Center in Cottage Grove, MN

Special Grill Pop Up Event January 21st

Dreaming of our delicious fish fry?

You can get a taste of it during our next Special Grill Pop Up Event on January 21st!

Skip cooking for the night and let Chef Isaac cook you his delicious Signature Fish Fry, Marinated Ribeye Steak, Cajun Penne Pasta or one of his other dishes! Find our menu HERE!

Make your reservation now by clicking HERE!

Golf Club Near Me | Minneapolis - St. Paul, MN | River Oaks Golf Course & Event Center in Cottage Grove, MN

News from the club… ⛳️

Football is over… it’s time to kick off the 2021 Golf Season​!

Coming soon to River Oaks… Toptracer Range!

Stay tuned for more details! In the meantime, find more about this exciting new feature in the video below.

Additional New Features Coming This 2021 Season:

Renovated Golf Shop that will feature a social area, shuffleboard, more clothing and televisions

Tents – We purchased 2400 square feet of tents to host more events outside

Live Scoring – Offering live scoring for tournaments on our carts, through our app and in the clubhouse and golf shop

New parking lot and landscaping

Bocce Ball Leagues

Sunshades over our patio for a better dining experience

Join us for our Fish Fry at Eagles Grill and Patio!

Starting February 19, join us on Fridays for our Lenten Fish Fry!

Reservations are required with limited seating capacity.  To-go orders are available online through OpenTable. For more information and to view the menu, click below!

Purchase your 2021 Membership today!

New for 2021 is our Twilight Membership!

We offer a variety of memberships to suit each golfer.

Click below for more information!

Sign up now for our Golf Leagues!

Featuring Senior, Women, Men and Junior Leagues for all ages and abilities. 

New times, days and lessons for 2021.

New to Golf?

Want to know what to do when you step foot on the first tee or arrive to the course?

We have opportunities to learn what you should expect.

Plus, Compelling Social Experiences, such as:

Golf Tournaments and Outings

Special Events and Banquets

Weddings

Bocce Ball

Wine, Spirits and Beer Dinners

We look forward to seeing you here at River Oaks soon!

Let’s Keep in Touch!

Don’t miss a beat! Stay up to date by following us on Facebook.

If you love our course, make sure you like our page!

Tee Times Near Me | St. Paul-Minneapolis, MN | River Oaks Golf Course & Event Center

We are OPEN!

The golf course will be reopening the weekend of October 30th- weather permitting. We are currently taking online reservations for Saturday, October 31st and beyond. We will make a decision soon if we can open as early as Friday, October 30th.

Please book your tee time using the button below. We can’t wait to see you!

 

Golf Course Near Me | Minneapolis - St. Paul Metro Area | River Oaks Golf Course & Event Center in Cottage Grove, MN

RIVER OAKS KITCHEN EXPANSION!

In June, Governor Walz allowed for the allocation of the 841.4 million from the state’s share of Federal CARES Act funds to local governments who had eligible costs related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The City of Cottage Grove submitted the Coronavirus Relief Fund Certification form to Minnesota Management and Budget, and by the end of July, the City received $2,813,281.

The CARES Act Funding went towards many different facets of the City; including public safety measures, disinfection of public areas, staff teleworking equipment, unemployment costs for furloughed workers, and COVID leave costs. After all these expenses, there were still funds to be shared.

Aerial view of the progress made on the new River Oaks kitchen expansion.

Due to COVID-19, the staff has been challenged to maintain efficient operations for food and beverage service here at River Oaks while assuring protection to employees and patrons through a safe work environment. The current two-kitchen system accompanied by the lack of storage space and doors on the main level poses complications in food preparations, traffic patterns, touchpoints, and delivery and storage. This led to the Parks and Recreation Department to put together a proposal that would help mitigate these problems and make River Oaks a safe place to work and keep their guests happy.

On September 2nd, the Cottage Grove City Council voted on a contract proposal for the expansion of kitchen facilities at River Oaks at a not to exceed price of $672,345.

It was approved. The construction will break ground in the next few weeks and is expected to be completed before the end of the year. This new expansion will help River Oaks achieve the financial success that COVID-19 has compromised, both in the short term and long term.

 

Golf Course Special Offers Near Me | River Oaks Golf Course & Event Center

SWING KING! YOUR CHANCE AT $10,000!

This past week River Oaks had their first Swing King winner, Mike Buttleman. Mike earned golf’s greatest achievement, a hole in one, on hole 16 that won him $10,000. 

Mike Buttleman holding his gigantic check for $10,000 after hitting a hole-in-one on hole 16.

River Oaks offers its golfers a daily hole-in-one contest from Swing King on our hole 16, a 170-yard par 3. Swing King is the first fully automated hole-in-one contest designed for everyday play. All golfers have the option to participate in a Hole-in-One contest either at the Pro Shop when they check-in, on-course via iPad on beverage cart, or both. Just pay $5 or $10 before you tee off on hole 16, and when you hit that hole in one, you will win $10,000 or $20,000!

What is even crazier than Mike hitting a hole in one is the club that he used. Mike’s spectacular shot came off of the face of a 9 wood! Any regular golfers out there will know that a 9 wood is rare. You don’t see many golfers with a 9 wood in their bag. One thing a 9 wood does is adds loads of loft. It pitches the ball high up where it will land with little to no roll. It was this added loft that helped Mike hole out from over 170 yards as Mike’s ball bounced once and trickled into the hole. 

Here is a video of Mike’s hole in one:

Congratulations Mike! 

Do you think you might have the skill or the luck to have your chance at a hole in one? 

 

 

Face masks are now required.

Due to new state mandates, we are now requiring masks or face coverings to be worn while inside our facility. This will go into effect on Saturday, July 25th.

This is being done to ensure a safe environment for our golfers & our staff! Please adhere to social distancing guidelines & stay home if you are exhibiting any of the symptoms of COVID19.

Golfing is a great way to have fun & stay safe while observing social distancing. We’re thankful for our golfers & can’t wait to see you out on the green!

Book your next round online through the link below.

Golf Range Near Me - Twin Cities Metro Area | River Oaks Golf Course & Event Center

HITTING THE RANGE: NEW CHANGES TO RIVER OAKS DRIVING RANGE

COVID-19 is in full swing, but River Oaks still wanted to allow golfers to work on their golf game without the fear of being exposed to germs. With that in mind, River Oaks has made some slight changes to our driving range.

Instead of purchasing range balls by the bucket, range slots are paid for by the hour with unlimited balls! Stop in our clubhouse to ask to use the range, and just $10 will get you an hour on our practice range to hit as many balls as you can. You will find pyramids of practice balls waiting for you at your driving stall. All balls are guaranteed to be clean and sanitized. If you need more balls, our staff will be more than happy to supply you with more until your hour is up.

Come out and stop by our driving range practice up on your swing. You’ll probably need to after a late start to the golf season!

 

Improve Your Game!

Does your game need some extra help?

Our staff is ready to help you improve your game, no matter your skill level! We have a variety of lesson options and clinics available to fit your needs, including both adult and junior lessons.

Call us at (651) 438-2121 to purchase, or order online through the button below!

KEEPING THE FLAGSTICK IN?

Pinehurst posted on Twitter announcing it was incorporating a 2” diameter PVC pipe cut to 2.5” in length, then popped into the hole.

While Minnesota golf courses remain closed during this public health crisis, other courses across the country continue to open their doors to golfers. Over the last month, many courses have made many surprising and creative innovations to help golfers stay safe during this pandemic. Courses have asked for pins to remain untouched while either reducing or raising the hole depths to avoid as much physical contact with the hole or flagstick as possible. A few places have even gone and removed the pins altogether. 

Either way, courses as a whole are advocating for golfers to avoid touching the pin and leave it in during your putt. Anyways, this whole thing got me thinking! If golfers will be expected to leave the pin in . . . how exactly will this affect their game?

Maybe you are used to putting with the pin in, but realistically this is probably a new phenomenon for most golfers. After all, it was only last year that the USGAchanged its rule on the subject. 

Under Rule 13.2a(2) of the USGA rule book, “There will no longer be a penalty if a ball played from the putting green hits a flagstick left in the hole.” 

What was once a violation of the basic rules of golf has now been deemed acceptable. This controversial rule change has now given golfers the option of leaving the flag in the hole during a putt. However, this raises a question. Does leaving in the pin help or hurt your putt? 

Bryson DeChambeau putting with the pin in.

In the PGA, it is still a controversial topic. Some say it is situational, while others would never dare to pull the pin. Then there are players like Bryson DeChambeauwho swear by it!

DeChambeau was a physics major at Southern Methodist University in Dallas. He has been known to apply his knowledge of physics to help gain an edge in his golf game, effectively earning him the nickname The Scientist. According to DeChambeau’s mathematical and statistical analysis, you will hole a higher percentage of putts when you leave the flagstick in.

“The pin in is an easy one. It’s statistically proven to be a benefit in 99 percent of situations. Anything outside of ten feet I’m going to leave it in.” – Bryson DeChambeau

A putt about to fall into the hole with the flagstick in.

According to golf writer, Dave Pelz, the reason behind this philosophy is that a significant amount of energy is lost from a putt’s speed when the ball hits a fiberglass flagstick. The speed-loss allows gravity to pull the slower moving ball straight down into the cup more often than not. The pin is your friend. Even if you don’t hit it dead on, it can still help you. 

This summer, we may not get the option to pull the pin. Putting with the flag in may be forced upon us all. However, at least it is nice to know that it could potentially help us drain a few more putts and shave a few more strokes off our score!

Introducing a NEW Touch-Free Experience at River Oaks

We are looking forward to seeing you back out on the course again soon. When we open for play as decided by our state officials, we will have an all new touch-free experience to ensure the safety of our golfers and staff, including new procedures to limit contact and minimize touch points throughout the course.

We hope you all are staying safe and healthy during this time, and we will keep you updated on when we are able to re-open again soon. We appreciate your continued support and understanding.

Sincerely,

Your Friends at River Oaks Golf Course and Event Center

Updated Course Procedures

Golf:

  1. The golf shop and clubhouse will not be open.
  2. We will only be taking phone or online reservations for golf with prepayment.
  3. Please follow social distancing guidelines. Do not congregate in the parking lot.
  4. Please proceed to the starter tent 5 minutes before your tee time. Water, soda, and beer will be available for purchase at the starter tent.
  5. Carts will be sanitized after each use. If you have prepaid for a cart, please take one cart per person. Members of the same household can share one cart.
  6. Credit card only transactions will be allowed – we will not process cash transactions.
  7. Please do not remove the pins from the holes. We will have it set up so that you will not need to reach into the hole to get your ball.
  8. Water coolers, bunker rakes, benches, ball washers, or trash cans will be removed from the course. We will have a trash can at the end of your round to properly dispose of your trash.
  9. If you used a cart, after you are done golfing park the cart in the designated dirty cart area. Please remove all of your personal items and all of your garbage and dispose of your garbage in the trash dumpster located near the cart return.
  10. Do not linger in the parking lot.  Golfing is a privilege right now and we don’t want to lose that by having groups of people in the parking lot.

Range:

  1. Please pay at the starter tent.
  2. The charge will be $10 per hour per person for as many balls as you would like to hit. Payment can be made via credit card at the starter tent.
  3. Golf ball pyramids will be set up for golfers to use.
  4. Range balls will be disinfected after use.

Practice Green:

  1. We will use aiming sticks instead of holes on the practice green.
  2. Limit of 10 people on the practice green at one time.

We appreciate your support and flexibility during this unique time. We look forward to seeing you soon!