The secret is out: Wisconsin’s SentryWorld has become a national destination

Long before adventurous golf travelers had ever heard of Wisconsin destinations such as Whistling Straits, Sand Valley and Erin Hills, there was SentryWorld. The 1982 Robert Trent Jones Jr. design became an immediate must-play, drawing golfers to the quaint rural town of Stevens Point.

“It was one of those places you went in Wisconsin if you wanted to treat yourself,” said Scott LaPlant, a Green Bay native and member of Golfweek’s course-ratings panel.

More than 40 years later, it still is thanks to a massive reinvestment and reimagining of the entire resort that has transformed SentryWorld into what LaPlant calls “almost a hybrid of Shadow Creek and a Discovery Land property.” The secret is out; where once SentryWorld was a course played almost exclusively by Badger State golfers looking to spoil themselves, it’s now a national destination drawing more than half of its business from out of state.

Hole 16 at SentryWorld

Danny Rainbow, SentryWorld’s director of golf, said, “The critical moment in time came in 2012,” when Sentry Insurance, which is headquartered next to the course, was trying to decide what to do with its signature golf property. Rainbow said every option was considered, including the now-unthinkable notion of plowing under the course.

Sentry decided to go all in on golf, bringing back Jones for a 22-month reconstruction that, in hindsight, was just the beginning of a relentless annual effort to perfect the course and playing experience. That included closing the course again in 2021 – even before Sentry knew it would host the 2023 U.S. Senior Open – to allow Jones to refine his earlier work.

In retrospect, Sentry’s 2012 reinvestment in the course foreshadowed the company’s expanding commitment to the game of golf. That included becoming the title sponsor of The Sentry, the PGA Tour’s season-opening tournament in Hawaii, the USGA’s Official Insurance Partner and a First Tee trustee.

It would be difficult to overstate the transformation of SentryWorld – not just the architecture but the ethos and business strategy. LaPlant, who still has the original SentryWorld yardage book, recalls that it was “a busy place” as Cheeseheads flocked to Stevens Point in the 1980s to play the state’s hot new course.

With the 2022 opening of The Inn at SentryWorld, the property now ranks among the most luxurious golf resorts in the country. The boutique hotel is cozy, not stuffy, and like any memorable destination, has a…