Northwood Country Club

Overview: Northwood Country Club is a nine-hole course on 490th Street in Northwood, Iowa, where the Shell Rock River forms part of the setting. The club calls its layout “The Nasty Nine,” a local nickname that captures its compact scale without understating the test. The scorecard is reported at par 36 and about 3,002 yards, with a mix of holes that asks for more than a casual walk through open farmland. It is a small-town course with an identity rooted in local play.

History: The club’s own account places its founding in the 1920s, describing a course that has served the northern Iowa community for generations. That date refers to the club’s beginnings; the precise first season of play and any changes to the present routing are not documented on the current official page, so no more exact opening year is assigned here. The name and nine-hole count match the Northwood address in the directory, rather than other courses called Northwood elsewhere in the United States.

Did You Know? The official site gives the course the affectionate tag “The Nasty Nine” and says it sits between the Shell Rock River and the quiet landscape of northern Iowa. The label suggests a little local pride in a course that does not need championship length to command attention. Its nine-hole format also makes it easy to understand how Northwood functions as a neighborhood club: one familiar loop, played with enough variation to remain engaging for golfers of different abilities.