via GoogleBrainerd Lakes
Brainerd Lakes is the Midwest's go-to summer resort-golf destination, with five lakeside resorts inside 20 miles anchored by an Arnold Palmer Top 100 Public course, 12 courses in our catalog, $$ pricing, 2.5 hours from MSP, best played April through October.
Five resorts inside a 20-mile radius. Madden's on Gull Lake, Cragun's, Grand View Lodge, Breezy Point, and Ruttger's, anchored by Deacon's Lodge (Arnold Palmer's tribute to his father, Top 100 Public) and The Classic at Madden's (Golf Digest 5-star). Grand View runs 54 holes across The Pines, Preserve, and Garden; Cragun's just dropped a new 18 + 27 by Tom Lehman. The 2.5-hour MSP drive plus a 6.5-hour reach from Chicago and Milwaukee makes this the Midwest's go-to summer-week resort rotation. Mid-May through September peak; October is shoulder.
What are the top golf courses in Brainerd Lakes?
12 courses
Brainerd Lakes has 12 courses in Scramble's catalog, anchored by The Classic at Madden's on Gull Lake, Deacon's Lodge at Breezy Point, and The Pines at Grand View Lodge. Multiple of these are nationally ranked. Each plays as a destination-quality round on its own. All three play within a normal trip itinerary out of the same lodging base.
$$$The Classic at Madden's on Gull Lake
Scott Hoffmann (1997)
$$Deacon's Lodge at Breezy Point
Arnold Palmer (1999)
$$The Pines at Grand View Lodge
Joel Goldstrand (1990)
$$$Lehman 18 at Cragun's Legacy
Tom Lehman (2022)
$$$Dutch 27 at Cragun's Legacy
Tom Lehman (2024-2025)
$$The Preserve at Grand View Lodge
Arnold Palmer Design Co. (1996)
$$Pine Beach East at Madden's on Gull Lake
James Dalgleish (1926)
$$Pine Beach West at Madden's on Gull Lake
Don Herfort (1968)
$$Whitebirch Golf Course at Breezy Point
Original 1930 (no Lohmann attribution)
$$Traditional Golf Course at Breezy Point
Frank Schaberg (1924)
$$Whitefish Golf Club
Don Herfort
$$The Lakes Course at Ruttger's Bay Lake Lodge
Joel Goldstrand (1991)
Photos by Google
How much does a 3-round Brainerd Lakes golf trip cost?
A 3-round, 4-golfer trip to Brainerd Lakes runs about $1,112 per person with mid-range ($$) lodging. That covers 3 peak-season green fees, lodging at roughly two golfers per room, and a daily food + ground-transit allowance. Flights are excluded since they depend on your home airport. Adjust the round count, group size, or tier on the trip calculator to see how the number moves. See the full breakdown →
Where is Brainerd Lakes and how do I get there?
Brainerd Lakes sits in Minnesota. The closest major airport is Minneapolis (MSP), which serves as the primary hub for most visitors. Most groups fly into MSP, rent one or two SUVs, and base out of a single resort or hotel for the entire trip.
What's the best month for golf in Brainerd Lakes?
The strongest months for golf in Brainerd Lakes are Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, based on 20-year playability scores combining temperature and precipitation. Brainerd Lakes averages a 24°F high in January and a 83°F high in July, so playable conditions cluster in the shoulder months. Book early in those windows. Rates and tee-time inventory tighten as the season firms up.
Best months: Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct
Brainerd Lakes data is part of Scramble's catalog of 128 destinations and 971 independently researched courses. Weather data from 20 years of Open-Meteo; awards compiled from Golf Digest, Golfweek, and state-level rankings.
Published June 2026. Updated when the data or Scramble’s recommendations change.