Stonebridge Golf Club Review
Overall Grade: A-
Value: B- ($36-$60, depending upon time and day of the week)
Walkability: B
Course Conditions: A
Course Design: A+
Practice Facility: A+
Food: B+
Teacher’s Comments: A nice course in a lousy setting.

I’ve been struggling with writing this review for some time now because I’m really undecided about the course. From tee to green, Stonebridge is a fine track, with plenty to offer every skill level. At the same time, I absolutely hate that this fine course winds through a community of McMansions of the nouveau riche.

Designed by Arthur Hills, Stonebridge has made a number of Detroit area Top Ten lists and the design certainly warrants it. Largely open, the challenge comes from strategically located bunkers, marshlands, ponds and swales. It’s a course that would be right at home on a coastal plain.

Stonebridge measures 6481 and plays to a 71.5 from the whites, and plays 6932 to a 73.6 from the blues. I played the whites to a good score, but thought that the blues would not be that much more difficult.

One of the nice things about the layout is that it offers a good mix of risk and reward. There are quite a few holes that will tempt players to “go for it” at the risk of an inflated score.

Ypsilanti, Michigan
Overall Grade: B+
Value: A+ ($15 - $30)
Walkability: A
Course Conditions: B
Course Design: B
Practice Facility: NA
Food: C - nothing fancy.
Teacher’s Comments: An interesting, enjoyable and affordable course.

It would be easy to overlook the Green Oaks Golf Course. It’s a municipal that’s not located in the best of neighborhoods, and the greens fees are low even by Michigan standards. I will admit that when I started out, I didn’t have high hopes.

But I was pleasantly surprised.. Green Oaks is a fun, and interesting test of golf.

The course is decently long, measuring 6,780 yards from the blues, and 6,172 from the whites. It’s got a good mix of strategic and power holes and ultimately forced me to use nearly every club in my bag. Bunkers—both greenside and fairway—abound. Eleven of the holes have bends that require good tee shot placement. Water comes into the play on eight of the holes. Trees often limit your club choices.

Leslie Park Golf Course
Ann Arbor, Michigan

Overall Grade: C+
Value: A ($15 - $42, depending on time and day)
Course Conditions: C+
Course Design: B
Walkability: C+
Practice Facility: E
Food: B nothing fancy.
Teacher’s Comments: A good course.

2007 Update: I’ve been told by several people that course conditions at Leslie Park are now very bad. One said that he won’t go back. A result of budget cutbacks in Ann Arbor?

Leslie Park is one of two municipal courses in Ann Arbor—and it is by far the better of the two (although the other, Huron Hills, has its charms).

Playing at 6591 yards from the back tees, and with a rating/slope of 71.9/127, Leslie Park has the firepower to challenge better golfers. And yet, bogey golfers need not fear: the course plays nearly 800 yards shorter from the whites.

Rustic Glen Golf Course
Saline Michigan

Overall Grade: C+
Value: C ($21 - $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.”

Pierce Lake Golf Course
Chelsea, Michigan

Overall Grade: A
Value: A ($25 - $45)
Walkability: A
Course Conditions: A
Course Design: A
Practice Facility: D
Food: C - There’s more real food at a 7-11..
Teacher’s Comments: A tough course that will test your skills.

If you want to test your skills as a golfer, look no further than Washtenaw County’s Pierce Lake golf course. The woods, hills, valleys, creeks and swamps—and there are plenty of swamps—require good shotmaking and imagination.. 

The course measures 6917 yards from the back tees and plays to a rating/slope of 72.5/135. Fortunately, there are five sets of tees—the mid tees measure 6152 with a 69.8/127 rating/sl
ope. A friendly word of warning: do not overplay your hand. Use the tees that reasonably fit your game or it will be a very long day (and you will lose a bunch of balls).