After years of preparation for Presidents Cup, Medinah is ready for its moment

Joie Chitwood III has overseen 3½ years of meticulous preparation for this week’s Presidents Cup at Medinah Country Club as the event’s executive director, but the international golf tournament’s arrival brings new and unavoidable pressures.

“This is an intense moment of time,” Chitwood said. “Everyone’s on adrenaline and caffeine. No matter how much time we had, this week was going to be this week.”

More than 30,000 spectators are expected daily during tournament play Thursday through Sunday. Smaller crowds are anticipated for practice rounds Tuesday and Wednesday.

Being ready for the international event required both logistical preparation and physical construction.

Since April, 566,000 square feet of temporary venue space has been built around Medinah Course No. 3 to supplement the stately clubhouse and relatively small number of other permanent structures.

“We build for six months, we’re open to the public for six days, and then it takes three months to take it all down again,” Chitwood said.

Providing off-site parking in the area for fans and volunteers is another challenge for every Presidents Cup venue, he added. The tournament is held every two years, with U.S. golf courses alternating as host with non-European international sites.

Spectator parking will be largely at Scottish Rite Valley of Chicago in Bloomingdale, near the southwest corner of Medinah Country Club, as well as at Eaglewood Resort and Spa in Itasca on the east side of the course.

There will be additional lots in Glen Ellyn and Schaumburg as well as shuttles to and from the Medinah Metra station.

Lake Park High School’s East Campus, located along Medinah Road, and the West Campus in Roselle won’t have classes for the entire week of the Presidents Cup as the properties are used to support a mix of operational and hospitality needs for the tournament.

Lake Park High School District 108 Director of Communications Sherri Anderson said the non-attendance week has been planned for about three years and is similar to how the school handled the September 2012 Ryder Cup and August 2019 BMW Championship at Medinah. Students began this school year two days earlier than usual and will have an abbreviated winter break.

To make up for the impact on neighbors, residents of the 25 homes facing the country club along Medinah Road are receiving parking passes to access their properties as well as complimentary tickets to watch some of the action across the street.

The most distant parking site, being used to shuttle in about 1,800 volunteers, will be at Woodfield Mall in Schaumburg, which is still nearer than some remote lots for past Presidents Cup tournaments have been, Chitwood said.

Finding so many volunteers for the prestigious event required time but not an overt amount of persuasion, he added.

“We started that process over a year ago,” Chitwood said. “In the golf world, volunteering is a big deal.”

President Donald Trump’s recent acceptance of the role of honorary chairman added another layer to the preparations. No public announcement has yet been made regarding the timing of Trump’s attendance, but communication with the Secret Service is underway and ongoing, Chitwood said.

Much thought was put into making the Presidents Cup experience at Medinah a special one, and providing a Chicago flavor for the international event.

Fan Zones spread across the course bear such titles as “North Side,” “Southside,” “Lakeview” and “The Loop.”

The order of the holes on the championship course has also been changed from what regular members experience to heighten the drama of the Presidents Cup.

A three-sided, 3,000-seat stadium has been constructed around the tournament’s daily starting point.

“This is where the matches will tee off every day,” Chitwood said. “This is where the energy will be at its highest.”

At the opposite end of each match, Medinah’s traditional 18th hole has been recast as the tournament’s 14th, with the expectation that significant changes in players’ fortunes could happen there. It’s surrounded by a network of enclosed and open-air viewing pavilions.

“It would be a shame if the match ended early and you never got to see Medinah’s signature hole,” Chitwood said of the decision to play the 18th hole earlier in the round.

The tournament days will be anything but a chance for Chitwood to relax and live in the moment. He doesn’t know where his oversight responsibilities will take him at any particular moment. If there are signs of rain, for instance, he’ll probably be talking with the on-site meteorologist.

A chance to reflect on the outcome of his labors might arrive — at best — during the dismantling of the support structures, expected to last through the end of the year, or even after his return to his permanent home in Florida for the holidays.

epeterson@dailyherald.com