Grand Falls Casino Resort Golf Course

Overview: Grand Falls Casino Resort Golf Course, also known as The Falls, is a Rees Jones layout on the open prairie near Larchwood and the Iowa–South Dakota border. Its broad, wind-exposed setting gives the course a links-like character, while the resort setting adds a large lake, a waterfall and carefully shaped greens to the landscape. The directory lists the course at 7,100 yards and par 72. Open green entrances and closely mown recovery areas allow different approaches, while the wind and the prairie scale make club selection and trajectory central to the round.

History: Grand Falls Casino Resort began operations in 2011, and the golf course was developed as a later addition to the property. Rees Jones and his team planned the layout around the open prairie, gentle rolling land and prevailing wind, with an emphasis on accessible green entrances rather than a heavily penal design. Severe weather delayed the planned opening, but all 18 holes opened to the public on May 20, 2015. The Iowa Golf Association records 2015 as the course's founding year and credits Rees Jones as architect. The result was a golf course closely tied to the resort's wider history while retaining an independent prairie identity.

Did You Know? Rees Jones described the wind as the course's hidden hazard. The property also includes a substantial waterfall and lake, features that turn the resort setting into visible parts of the golf landscape rather than background decoration.