Canyon 7 Is Open: Andy North Returns to Christen Wisconsin's Most Dramatic Par-3
A year-long renovation has exposed the glacier-carved sandstone walls that made Canyon 7 famous — and transformed the most dramatic par-3 in Wisconsin into something no one quite expected.
On May 19, two-time U.S. Open champion Andy North stepped to the tee on a hole he knows better than almost anyone — and hit one of the first shots into a Canyon 7 that looked nothing like the one golfers remembered.
The occasion was the grand reopening of the signature hole at Trappers Turn Golf Club in Wisconsin Dells, closing out a year-long renovation that has reshaped the most talked-about hole on the property. North, who designed the hole, was joined by owner Todd Nelson, the project’s architecture team, and a crowd that came to see the canyon revealed for the first time. A group of golfers from the Wisconsin Dells Middle School program capped the afternoon with a “Beat Andy North” challenge — their first crack at the legend on the newly reopened hole. For a hole that spent decades hidden, it was a fitting way to step back into the light.
What the canyon finally looks like
Canyon 7 was always Trappers Turn‘s signature hole, but for years its drama was buried. Sitting deep inside a natural sandstone canyon, the green was hemmed in by overgrown trees that choked off sunlight and airflow and hid the rock walls that made the setting extraordinary. The renovation cleared all of it.
What’s left is the hole North always pictured. The glacier-carved sandstone walls — a defining feature of the Wisconsin Dells landscape — are fully exposed and now frame the green. The putting surface has been nearly doubled to close to 6,000 square feet, opening up new pin positions and a more dynamic, championship-style green complex. Expanded tee boxes, restored airflow for healthier turf, and new waterfall work behind the green complete the picture. The shot now plays into what North calls a box canyon — enclosed, dramatic, and unlike almost anything else in American golf.
A destination entering its strongest season
The reopening lands at the right moment. Canyon 7 caps a sustained, multi-year run of reinvestment that has steadily widened what Trappers Turn offers — from the Andy North-designed 12 North par-3 course to its expanded practice and putting facilities. Together they’ve turned a well-regarded Wisconsin Dells course into a genuine destination, anchored by owner Todd Nelson, founder of Kalahari Resorts & Conventions.
With three championship nines, 12 North, and now a fully transformed signature hole, Trappers Turn enters the 2026 season in the strongest position in its history — and Canyon 7 is the hole guests will want to see first.
Canyon 7 is open now.
More information and tee times at trappersturn.com.
