Clubhouse Eats: The inside story of Muirfield Village GC’s famous milkshake

Welcome to Clubhouse Eats and Drinks, where we’ll introduce you to our favorite food and drink at some of the best golf courses, golf resorts and golfy locations around. Cheers!

It’s hard to beat a good milkshake on a hot day — or any day, if we’re being honest — but you don’t often find them on golf club menus. Unless, of course, that club is Dublin, Ohio’s Muirfield Village, affectionately known as “Jack’s Place,” where the Buckeye Milkshake has been a staple since 1976.

The milkshake’s name refers to buckeye candy or, rather, peanut butter dipped in chocolate (see Mrs. Nick­laus’ recipe below). The milkshake’s recipe is a closely guarded club secret that is never shared publicly, but the basics include premium ice cream, peanut butter and chocolate (but not buckeye nuts — they’re poisonous!).

Sounds deceptively simple, doesn’t it? As time has gone on, word of mouth helped the made-to-order milkshakes grow in popularity, and they soon achieved a certain lore that has only increased with the advent of social media and the increased visibility of the Memorial Tournament, where players are frequently shown on TV, milkshake in hand.

Internal photos and social media that could jeopardize the shake’s long-protected secret ingredients are strictly verboten. However, curiously, milkshakes have appeared on menus at venerable clubs like Colorado’s Castle Pines and Arizona’s Whisper Rock when former employees move on. “We have a lot of fun poking each other because the home of the best milkshake in golf is right here,” says Muir­field GC’s general manager and COO Nicholas LaRocca. “It’s the last best secret we have.”

Tournaments

Bash’s Buckeyes

This family recipe was adapted from Well Done!, a book by proud Ohio State alums Barbara and Jack Nicklaus. Barbara credits her mom, Helen Bash, for passing it down.

Combine pow­dered sugar and peanut butter in a mixing bowlPour hot butter over mixture and mix well again.

Makes 70 to 75 balls.

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As a four-year member of Columbia’s inaugural class of female varsity golfers, Jessica can out-birdie everyone on the masthead. She can out-hustle them in the office, too, where she’s primarily responsible for producing both print and online features, and overseeing major special projects, such as GOLF’s inaugural Style Is­sue, which debuted in February 2018. Her origi­nal interview series, “A Round With,” debuted in November of 2015, and appeared in both in the magazine and in video form on GOLF.com.

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