Top 11 Outdoor and Indoor Driving Ranges in Chicago for the Best Golfing Experience

The charming city of Chicago, with its spectacular hills, undulating valleys and lush greenery, houses over 200 golf courses to hone your skills at the great game. Driving ranges in Chicago come with splendidly manicured golf courses and water features for players of all aptitudes. They are some of the country’s best, with picturesque vistas to admire after finishing your rounds. The first-ever 18-hole golf course was established in Chicago, a now United States’ golf mecca.

With esteemed heritage, well-maintained heated greens and wide fairways, driving ranges in Chicago offer the perfect spots for exploring challenging game terrain, natural beauty, and delicious clubhouse dining experiences. These driving ranges offer individual practice bunkers and professionally built putting greens against riveting backdrops of Chicago city.

Types of Driving Ranges in Chicago

Driving ranges in Chicago are of outdoor as well as indoor types. Built strategically for both golf lovers and non-players, these destinations are equally ideal for fun-filled parties, birdwatching, hiking and celebrating private events. While outdoor driving ranges in Chicago are well-suited for sunny and ambient days, indoor stalls with heated practice bunkers and chipping areas are a luxurious necessity in times of unforgiving weather and snowfall.

Top Outdoor Driving Ranges in Chicago

If you seek a place to perfect your swings before a big game or simple flagsticks to enjoy recreational golf, here is a comprehensive list of the best outdoor driving ranges in Chicago, their locations, timings and amenities.

1. Diversey Driving Range

Diversey Driving Range in Chicago upscales your game of golf with their state-of-the-art two-storey driving range. Consisting entirely of mat hitting areas, this facility offers the most expansive views of Lincoln Park Zoo, Lake Michigan, downtown Chicago and practice tees for even the most advanced golf professionals. You can train under certified PGA professionals at their 18-hole course. Covered and heated indoor stalls are also available for off-season rounds. Bring your kids along to try out the junior 9-hole programs every weekend.

Location: 141 West Diversey Parkway, Chicago, Illinois 60657

Cost: $10 - $16 per bucket

Open hours: 9am - 9pm. Last bucket sale at 8pm.

Amenities:

• Advantage card buckets
• Two-tier range
• 72 practice tees
• Target and putting greens
• Miniature Golf

2. Arrowhead Golf Club

This top-notch golf club in Naples’ neighbourhood offers a spacious 27-hole course that is breathtakingly beautiful in all seasons. The Arrowhead Golf Club’s driving range is a collection of 30 hitting bays on premium mats without grass. 3 practice bunkers with separate chipping areas and putting greens cater to making golf an enjoyable experience for all skill levels. Coveted for weddings, parties and social get-togethers, the clubhouse and American bar against the driving range’s backdrop offer elaborate menus for events and casual dining.

Location: 26W151 Butterfield Road, Wheaton, Illinois 60189

Timings: 7:30am to 5pm, Tuesday to Sunday. Open from dusk to dawn on Labor Day.

Amenities:

• No-grass tees
• Practice bunkers
• Putting and chipping greens
• Restaurant and bar

3. Ballybunion Golf

Sprawled over 340 yards, this driving range in Chicago borders the 18-hole golf course with special “Mini Golf Events” for families. The facility operates with an inventory of 68 practice tees, with most including grass. To ensure that your practice sessions with talented professional coaches aren’t disrupted in winter, 20 heated indoor stalls are available. Across the last hole sits the grand neon-lit clubhouse serving American meals and refreshments. Since the entire property is a protected wildlife habitat, rare country wildflowers and vibrant birds are common sightings at the driving range.

Location: 4200 Route 83 Long Grove, Illinois

Timings:

• Tuesday to Saturday: 10am - 4:45pm
• Sunday and Monday: 12pm - 4:45pm

Amenities:

• Practice bunkers
• Grass tees
• Indoor practice stalls
• Golf carts
• Food and beverage

4. Marquette Park

Located on a pristine island surrounded by a lagoon, Marquette Park is an abode for playing quick 9-hole rounds of golf and lavish dining. This destination golf course is the only one in Chicago with natural grass tees and has a massive driving range with 36 holes among shady practice bunkers. Split into 4 sets of 9, the golf driving range is also a sought-after championship ground to play golf with your friends and family. Mature oaks, along with elevated greens, strategically placed water features and preserved chipping areas create a recreational retreat for golfers and non-golfers as well.

Location: 6401 S. Richards Drive, Chicago, IL 60629

Open hours: 

• Friday to Tuesday: 7am - 7pm
• Thursday: 12pm - 7pm

Prices: $9 per bucket

Amenities:

• Practice bunkers
• Year-round
• Family-friendly
• Putting greens
• Restaurant and bar

5. Topgolf Chicago

Topgolf Chicago is a craze among its kind in downtown Chicago, boasting of a driving range with more than a hundred hitting bays. This venue is an ideal place for amateurs, owing to spacious fairways and accredited professional coaches. Alongside offering an 18-hole course with indoor facilities and large flagsticks, the property is big on entertainment for weddings, bachelorette parties and corporate events. Topgolf houses many full-service restaurants and snack bars lined along the facility’s last hole, a premium meeting room, banquet hall, and rooftop restaurant with bonfire pits.

Location: 2050 Progress Parkway, Schaumburg, Illinois 60196

Timings: 12pm - 5pm, Monday - Sunday

Cost: $27 - $47 per bay. All games are half price every Tuesday.

Amenities:

• Climate controlled hitting bays
• Shot tracer
• Restaurant and bar

6. Jackson Park Driving Range

Introducing a brand new clubhouse with spick and span restaurants, corporate banquet hall and bars serving chilled drinks, Jackson Park Driving Range is a leading practice course in Chicago. Established in 1899 over the Columbian Exposition, the 18-hole course spreads over 500 acres of ancient trees and large greens that challenge golfers of all aptitudes. The driving range features putting greens and 34 mat tees to prepare you for bigger rounds. You can utilize each club in their bag at the par 5’s of 560 yards and 3’s of 200 yards.

Location: 6401 South Richards Drive, Chicago, Illinois 60649

Timings: 7am - 5pm, open daily

Cost: $8 - $13 per bucket

Amenities:

• Cart rentals
• Advantage cards
• League play
• All mat driving range
• Bent and Rye Grass

7. Oakton Driving Range

Oakton Driving Range in Chicago welcomes you to its innovatively built practice course for short and long golf rounds. The synthetic putting and chipping greens allow you to play smooth and quick mini shots, whereas five spacious and different targets help perfect your shots at varying yardages. If you’re further looking for practising full shorts at short range, Oakton Driving Range’s sand bunkers and PGA training school will satisfy your expectations.

Location: 2800 Oakton Street, Park Ridge, Illinois 60068 - 1835

Timings:

• Post season: 10am - 8pm
• Extended season: 12pm - 6pm

Cost: $8 - $13 per bucket

Amenities:

• Putting greens
• Chipping greens
• Clubhouse dining
• Accessibility features

8. Fountain Hills Golf Club Driving Range

Flaunting an elaborate inventory of a par 36, 9-hole golf course and driving range in Alsip District, Fountain Hills Golf Club in downtown Chicago’s elite facility for recreational play. Opened in 1996, the extraordinary Scott Miller-designed club covers 66 acres of wooded grass mats, including 3 pristine lakes and sand traps. Bunkered target greens, chipping areas, and synthetic tees align with the lighted driving range for amateurs to ace long and short games. After your rounds, enjoy refreshing drinks and Pan American menus at the Hole-in-One Clubhouse and Backnine sports bar.

Location: 12601 Kedzie Avenue, Alsip, Illinois 60803

Timings: 9am - 5pm, open daily

Cost:

• $5 - $13 per bucket
• Eagle Card Level: $250 with 30% bonus

Amenities:

• Team/junior programs
• Golf outing
• Leagues and tournaments
• Private events
• Conference center

Top Indoor Driving Ranges in Chicago

Few games captivate its players like golf. Missing out on your swift appointed rounds due to rain, snow and heat are unacceptable in Chicago. The following indoor driving ranges are leading destinations for amateurs and pros alike.

1. McQ’s Sports Dome

Location: 730 North Bolingbrook Drive, Chicago, Illinois 60440

Timings:

• Monday to Friday: 8am - 10pm
• Weekends: 7am - 10pm

Cost: $25 - $40 per bay, per hour

Amenities:

• Polyurethane mats
• 42 hitting stations
• Food and sports bar

Acclaimed as one of the best indoor driving ranges in the Chicagoland area by WGN-TV, this award-winning golf club offers refined “Real Feel” practice mats, calculated targets for all skill players levels and flexible training hours. This club highlights two putting greens with 15 holes and heated stalls with fantastic chipping areas. What sets McQ’s Sports Dome apart from its contemporaries is their full-service American restaurant and glamorous OTB on-premises, meant to curate casual yet unforgettable hangouts with your friends, family and fellow golfers.

2. Buffalo Grove Park District Golf and Sports Center

Location: 801 McHenry Road, Buffalo Grove, Illinois 60089

Open hours:

• Monday to Friday: 8:30am - 3:30pm
• Closed on weekends.

Amenities:

• 32 hitting stations
• Clubhouse dining
• Practice bunkers
• Pro shop

Buffalo Grove Golf Center has crowned the best indoor golf facility in Chicago since eliminating exclusive outdoor tees and adding magnificent heated domes. Realistic synthetic mats of grass, separate putting and chipping greens, and two spacious sand bunkers contribute to experiential practice sessions with PGA professionals. Mike Terson, a regular professional at BGPD, also points out just how delectable their restaurant and bar menu is. You can also purchase varieties of golf merchandise, equipment buckets and carts at their full-service pro shop.

3. White Pines Golf Dome

Location: 500 West Jefferson Street, Bensenville, Illinois 60106

Timings: 6am - 7:30pm, open daily

Cost: $89 - $250, unlimited rounds

Amenities:

• Bar and grill
• Golf simulator
• Heated range

White Pines is a 260-acres golf dome and the largest in the area, flaunting newly renovated practice mats and 48 hitting bays over two storeys. Their 45-foot chipping and putting greens house suspended targets as well as ground-level ones. One of the country’s most advanced and high-tech virtual golf simulators are provided at White Pines Driving Range, along with other facilities like a beer counter and restaurant. Additionally, it’s always a comfy 65 degrees within “The Dome”.

Every golf aficionado agrees that regular and deliberate practice is the best way to ace your swings. Plan your next visit to these driving ranges in Chicago with superior facilities and PGA professionals to aid your game while clubhouse outings leave you and your friends relaxed. If you have visited driving ranges in Chicago or have further queries, let us know in the comments below.