University of Minnesota is putting its golf course up for sale

The University of Minnesota announced Friday it will sell a 141-acre site in Falcon Heights that includes historic and beloved Les Bolstad Golf Course.

To put that in scale from a real estate perspective, it’s bigger than the 122-acre former Ford plant site under development in St. Paul’s Highland Park neighborhood.

The university announced plans to sell the Les Bolstad site on the same day it proposed dramatic tuition increases that would be the biggest in 14 years at the Twin Cities campus.

School officials say the golf course is not bringing in enough money to make extensive repairs and continue upkeep.

The U plans to sell the course on which many students, faculty, staff, alumni and former Gophers golfers — including future PGA Tour star and major champion Tom Lehman — have played since it opened as a nine-hole course in 1916.

An adjacent golf learning and practice facility used by the Gophers men’s and women’s golf teams as well as the Elizabeth Lyle Robbie Stadium — home to the Gophers soccer team — will not be included in the sale. Neither will the KUOM radio tower.

The course on Larpenteur Avenue in Falcon Heights will remain open through this golfing season and close as usual in the fall. Activities already scheduled for the rest of 2025 — including the Roy Griak Invitational cross-country meet — will be held as planned. But the golf course will not reopen next spring.

The course is named in memory of Gophers golfer and longtime coach Les Bolstad, who in 1926 became the youngest U.S. Public Links champion. But it is no longer the home course or tournament course for either Gophers golf team.

“We recognize this course holds generations of memories for our community,” Calvin Phillips, university vice president for student affairs, wrote in a letter to golfers. “This decision reflects careful consideration and was made in light of today’s challenging financial environment.

“As a public university, we have a responsibility to ensure that our land and resources are aligned with our core mission: supporting students, advancing research and serving the state of Minnesota.”

The course was expanded in 1919 and again, to 18 holes in 1929. The clubhouse was built in 1931 and still stands. The course officially was renamed in 1983 to honor Les Bolstad.

Minnesota Golf Association President Paul Meierant has played the course at least once a year in the past 35 years since he moved from his St. Louis to attend the University of Minnesota.

“It is beloved,” Meierant said. “It has had its ups and downs in its maintenance, but it is by far a place where generations have absolutely felt the passion for golf to grow. I’d hate to think it’s not going to be there, especially for U students.

“A lot of colleges have a golf course as part of or near it. Unfortunately it won’t be convenient for students, as viable and valuable as Bolstad is.”

Such redevelopment sites are highly coveted real estate. Just a few miles away from the course, development is already well underway at the Ford plant site called Highland Bridge.

Today, Twin Cities-based Ryan Companies is developing hundreds of townhouses, apartments and condominiums have been built and more are on the way.

Late last year, Ryan also bought the 179-acre Thomson Reuters headquarters in Eagan. Plans call for housing and industrial buildings, which have been a hot commodity in the metro.

The course needs investment of nearly $10 million to tackle deferred maintenance and investment to keep it viable, according to the course’s website.

A sale price has yet to be determined. The U will obtain two appraisals to determine fair market value, the school said.

The decision to sell comes after the university unsuccessfully sought donors over the years to raise money to replace failing infrastructure and modernize outdated facilities, the course’s website said.

“Gopher Athletics will work with the golf programs to make sure that the teams are still able to practice at a championship level,” the school said.

The U said it will reinvest proceeds from the sale into areas “more directly aligned with the core mission of teaching, research, and service.”

The city of Falcon Heights said it has taken steps to prepare for the sale and reuse of the property, including potentially rezoning the site.

“The City of Falcon Heights looks forward to working with the University of Minnesota, potential buyers and the community to reimagine this property,” the city said in a statement.