Crystal Dows in Frankfurt, Mich.
Patrick Koenig
As a part of GOLF’s rigorous scores course of for our newly launched Prime 100 Programs within the U.S. and Prime 100 Programs You Can Play rankings, our fleet of 100-plus professional panelists recognized one of the best golf programs in each state.
You may try the hyperlinks under to browse all of our course rankings, or scroll right down to see one of the best programs in Michigan. And if you happen to’re trying to create your personal journey sooner or later, you’d be smart to let GOLF’s new Course Finder device help you. Right here, you may toggle all of our lists — Prime 100 public, greatest munis, greatest quick programs, greatest par-3s and extra — or filter by worth to create the proper itinerary to your subsequent journey.
GOLF’s different course rankings: Prime 100 Programs within the World | Prime 100 Programs within the U.S. | Prime 100 Programs You Can Play | Prime 100 Worth Programs within the U.S. | America’s Finest Municipal Programs | The 100 Finest Quick Programs within the World
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The most effective golf programs in Michigan (2024/2025)
SYMBOL GUIDE
# = Prime 100 Course within the U.S.
Y = Prime 100 You Can Play within the U.S.
V = Prime 100 Worth Course within the U.S.
P = Public/Resort
Ed. word: Some programs have been omitted from our rankings as a result of they didn’t obtain sufficient votes.
1. Oakland Hills – South (Bloomfield Hills) [#]
By means of the years, Oakland Hills — the famed “monster” that Ben Hogan slayed within the 1951 U.S. Open — grew to become lengthy, slender and laborious, which match the descriptive of different American championship programs. That was by no means meant to be the course’s destiny — this was Donald Ross’s parkland thought-provoking magnum opus. Fortunately, all of Ross’s glories, after which some, have been introduced again in 2020 when Gil Hanse, Jim Wagner and crew restored Ross’s width and taking part in angles. The greens have been expanded a whopping 35 p.c, and the bunkers themselves have been restored to their earlier immense scale. Fescue grasses blow within the wind and the undulating web site, not hidden by bushes, optimizes parkland golf’s regal providing with a few of its greens like the first and 14th able to stealing your breath.
Larry Lambrecht
2. Crystal Downs (Frankfort) [#]
Due to its distant location, Crystal Downs was as soon as neglected however that modified when Tom Doak launched the course to Ben Crenshaw within the Eighties. A mixture of sturdy breezes off Lake Michigan, thick fescue roughs, undulating terrain and fiendishly contoured greens make this one of many harder Prime 100 programs relative to its par of 70. Measuring just below 6,600 yards, monster size shouldn’t be required when you’ve got greens this good.
3. Kingsley Membership (Kingsley) [#]
Mike DeVries moved solely 30,000 yards of filth to construct this minimalist Michigan masterpiece. From the opening drive on the split-fairway 1st, Kingsley gives golfers an inspiring variety of decisions, forcing them to suppose their means across the course. With spectacular par-5s, drivable par-4s and a blinding number of greens, Kingsley is a severe participant’s paradise. If all these challenges fry your mind, don’t fear — there’s a bottle of Jameson hidden close to the 18th tee.
4. Forest Dunes-Loop – Purple/Black (Roscommon) [Y, P]
courtesy of Forest Dunes
5. Bloomfield Hills (Bloomfield Hills)
6. Orchard Lake (Orchard Lake)
Orchard Lake is presumably probably the most intact Charles H. Alison within the U.S. because the routing as we speak is sort of equivalent to its unique design. This 1926 Alison design started its Keith Foster restoration in 2012. Daring bunkering returned to the surprisingly undulating topography, bushes have been faraway from taking part in corridors and greens have been expanded to unique intent. The greens are delicate and at instances misleading, and it has particularly sturdy par-3s. Good variation of design and size within the par-4s and par-5s. Holes 15-17 may be one of the best stretch within the Detroit space.
7. Franklin Hills (Franklin)
8. Belvedere (Charlevoix) [P, V, Y]
Due to how Golden Age architect William Watson included meandering creeks, dramatic valley partitions and beautiful Michigan rolling landforms into his routing right here, the golfer needs for nothing. Watson’s greens — each their contours and their placement — are marvels, a lot of which don’t require bunkers for window dressing. For example, the floor on the sixth includes a savage false entrance that consumes practically one-third of the placing floor. Different bunkerless greens embrace the sixteenth and seventeenth, each of which Watson benched into hillsides. A faint-hearted method to the 346-yard sixteenth finds the golfer a dozen-plus ft under the placing floor; similar goes for a pull on the 179-yard seventeenth. Belvedere has attracted a legion of design followers through the years, and for good cause.
Brian Walters Images
9. Meadowbrook (Northville)
10. Arcadia Bluffs – South (Arcadia) [P, Y]
11. CC of Detroit
12. American Dunes [P, V, Y]
13. Arcadia Bluffs – Bluffs (Arcadia) [P, Y]
14. Greywalls at Marquette [P, Y]
15. Forest Dunes – Weiskopf (Roscommon) [P, Y]
courtesy of Arcadia Bluffs
16. Level O’Woods (Benton Harbor)
17. Indianwood – Previous (Lake Orion)
18. Oakland Hills — North (Bloomfield Hills)
19. Misplaced Dunes (Bridgman)
20. Barton Hills (Ann Arbor)
21. Detroit GC – North (Detroit)
22. Stoatin Brae (Augusta) [P, V, Y]
Heathland is a broad, open expanse of heath. Change heath with native grasses and you’ve got Stoatin Brae in south-central Michigan. The uphill drive off the freeway to the clubhouse provides nothing away about what you’re about to expertise. A lot of the entrance 9 traverses a plain, after which, beginning at 10, the land goes loopy — a topsy-turvy six-hole stretch that you simply gained’t quickly neglect. It is among the greatest stretches on this complete listing, though lots of people don’t learn about it. Different standout holes embrace the quick par-4 eighth and the one-shot seventeenth to a knob inexperienced. The inexperienced charge of nicely underneath $100 belies what’s a first-rate design and taking part in expertise.
Larry Lambrecht
23. Detroit GC — South (Detroit)
24. Bay Harbor [P]
25. True North
How we rank our programs
For our newly launched Prime 100 U.S. and Prime 100 You Can Play lists — a course of that helped us create 50 best-in-state rankings — every panelist was offered a poll that consisted of 609 programs. Beside the listing of programs have been 11 “buckets,” or groupings. If our panelists thought of a course to be among the many high three within the U.S., they ticked that first column. In the event that they believed the course to be amongst Nos. 4-10, they checked that column, adopted by 11-25, 26-50, and so forth out to 250+ and even a column for “take away.” Panelists have been additionally free to write down in programs that they felt ought to have been included on the poll.
