University of Michigan Golf Course
Ann Arbor, Michigan

What do Augusta National, Pebble Beach and the University of Michigan Golf Course have in common? All were laid out by master course designer Alistair MacKenzie.

I’m never going to get to play Augusta. And it’s unlikely I’ll get to Pebble Beach ... but the UM “Blue” course is a terrific substitute.

Located in Gaylord, Michigan, Black Forest is one of GolfWeek’s Ten best public courses in Michigan. Considering that the state has more than 800 public courses, that’s high praise. I also think it’s mostly deserved.

For this GolfBlogger, the most lasting impression of Black Forest golf course was of size. It’s BIG. Spread over 400 acres, Black Forest uses every inch to its advantage; an employee told me that there are seven miles of cart paths.

Black Forest was designed by Tom Doak, who has gained fame as the minimalist architect of such courses as Pacific Dunes and Cape Kidnappers. Doak’s philisophy is to let the ground dictate the holes, rather than impose his will on the landscape with a platoon of bulldozers. It’s the right approach, assuming that the tract of land you’re working on has character.

There’s plenty of character in the land Black Forest Golf Course is situated on. It’s hilly, blanketed with forest, and dotted with streams, lakes, marsh and prairie. In short, it’s typical of the land Michiganders like to call “God’s Country.”

Doak’s quest to find holes, rather than create them shows in the course routing. On most holes, there’s a great deal of distance from green to new tee. Others are right next door. But with just two exceptions, I think they all were terrific finds.

Two other design features of Black Forest stand out. The first are the greens. Unlike other resort area courses that let players pump their greens-in-regulation stats with landing zones large enough for helicopters, Black Forest’s are relatively small and tough. On several holes, they’re deceptively so. Many of the greens are significantly elevated, creating a plateau effect and leading to a misjudgment of depth. A couple are nestled behind swales or bends. Because of these, more than once, I aimed at and hit what I thought was a landing zone only to find greenside rough.

The second design feature are large number of bunkers and their irregular, unkept look. At first, I thought it was just a lack of grooming, but later decided that the intent was to add to the character of the course. The course is in the wilderness, so perhaps it’s appropriate that the bunkers look a little wild.

Black Forest has five sets of tees. It measures 7,044 yards from the tips with slope of 147, and 6,129 with a slope of 127 from the whites (men’s forward tees). I played from the whites, and found it a tough, but fair test. It’s a cliche, but I think the course really calls for you to use every one of the clubs in your bag. If you simply bang the ball into the distance, you’re going to get into trouble with bunkers, or with a bad angle for an approach shot.

That’s good course design in my opinion. Tom Doak forces you to think your way around the course. To paraphrase Yogi Berra: Golf is 90% mental; the other half is physical.

There are many outstanding holes on the course but my favorite was the eighteenth (top left). It’s by far the most picaresque, but also, I think the most fun. The tee box is a good hundred and fifty feet above the fairway, and a well struck shot will soar long and far into the distance. Bunkers abound to the left, but there’s plenty of room on the right. Your second shot needs to put the ball on the left foot of a hill upon which the green is perched.

I also really enjoyed the tenth, which is a 532 yard par five that starts on an elevated tee, then sweeps down and left to the hole, tucked in the trees.

Toughest on the course has to be the 238 yard par 3 fifth. It’s uphill across a ravine to another of those smallish greens. Brutal.

The one negative for the course is that it was very slow on the day I played. The round took a completely unacceptable six hours. My advice: get an early tee time and get ahead of the crowds. I can’t recommend a late morning or early afternoon slot.

Rolling Meadows Golf Course
Whitmore Lake, Michigan

Built in 1978 by the Fielek family, Rolling Meadows is a friendly course: friendly to the pocketbook and friendly to the player. It has just enough variety and interesting holes, to get me to go back, in spite of some relatively poor course conditions.

The front nine begins with a short dogleg par four, a short straightaway par four and a relatively easy par three. But don’t give way to disappointment, because from there the holes become much more interesting.

I liked the fifth, a slight dogleg par four that slopes down to the 150 marker and from there left back uphill to the green. Treelines will catch a slice or hook, but a good straight blast will give you a chance to hit a lofted iron that will stick to the sloping green.

The eighth is a 145 yard par three over a depression at an elevated green. The treeline on the left will play on your mind and make you think about staying right. But a large solitary tree there hides sand trap trouble. If you’re not confident in your target golf, aim for the wider area in front of the green and then pitch up and on.

On the back nine, the par five 11th is a lot of fun. Rip a driver off the tee to corner of the dogleg left. Then hit a wood and a wedge straight at the flag.

The 14th probably could be called the course’s signature hole, as it calls for a couple of strategic decisions. It’s a dogleg right par four with a pond guarding the front of the green and light woods on the inside of the bend.

From the tee, you need to decide how close to the right you want to cut your shot. If you can keep it close without going into the woods, you can probably take a direct shot over the pond at the green for your second shot. If you swing it left to the far corner of the bend, though, you may find the approach shot too far for comfort. Laying up short of the pond may be a better decision. I like holes with this sort of risk-reward. 

The 14th is rated as the course’s toughest, but I’d actually vote for the 231 yard par three seventeenth. It’s a downhill shot that needs to be threaded between trees over a pond, while keeping it to the left of a bunker. Madness. (photo, top left)

Fom the back tees, the course measures 6474 with a slope of 119. The whites are 6048 with a slope of 119.

Course conditions on the day I visited were not so good. Tee boxes were in poor shape , and there were bare spots in the fairways. The greens were all in good condition, though.

Another complaint I had was a lack of yardage markers.

Be sure to bring mosquito spray, especially if you are playing in the morning or evening.

You can see more photos and a course walkthrough here.

Rustic Glen Golf Course
Saline Michigan

Overall Grade: C+
Value: C ($15 - $37)
Walkability: A
Course Conditions: C+
Course Design: C+
Practice Facility: B
Food: B - nothing fancy.
Teacher’s Comments: You won’t mistake this for a premium course, but it’s fun nonetheless.

I had fun at Rustic Glen.

There aren’t any particularly memorable holes. Course conditions were merely adequate. And the routing can sometimes be confusing. It is frankly, not a great course.

But I had fun. And if you’re looking for a cheap and relaxing round of golf, I think you will too.

Rustic Glenn is a farm course, laid out on land adjacent to US 12 six miles west of Saline. The original nine were constructed some thirty years ago; the second in 1999.

The course has a good mix of holes. Some take you across open fields, others through thin woods. There are uphill and downhill tee shots and forced carries. Some require target golf; others are “grip ‘em and rip ‘em.”

Tullymore Golf Club
Stanwood, Michigan

A trip to Tullymore is not so much a round of golf as an exploration. Carved from western Michigan pine and hardwood forests, and passing through wide expanses of marshland, it exudes a sense of adventure. And Jim Engh’s design offers so many options—so many approaches—that even those who play there on a regular basis must surely make new discoveries each time out.

Tullymore has drawn rave review from golf writers, and Golf Digest has ranked it as the number 14 public course in the country. My experiene with top 20 golf courses is limited to just one other (#18 Forest Dunes), but I have no trouble imagining that Tullymore deserves its place on the list.

I also have a hard time imagining just how special some of the others must be.