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Go to an alphabetical by state & golf course listing of each course we have played. Previous Trips |
This Months Featured Golf Destinations
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Featuring golf packages and golf vacation information on over 150 golf courses covering 20 states and the Bahamas! |
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2007 Michigan by Moe Miller Every summer the wife and I go spend some time (and money) in northern Michigan. This summer it was better than usual because we missed some 100+ degree weather at home. We stayed two weeks on Lake Mitchell in Cadillac, and golfed 6 times. On the way up we stopped at Grand Oak in West Harrison, Indiana. This course is just west of Cincinnati, Ohio, and about ½ mile into Indiana. It is a 1988 Michael Hurdzan design. Cincinnati had the same drought conditions as Kentucky, and the course was crispy. It is a subdivision course with no houses in play, and there are shocking elevation changes. It is almost a mountain course. Only 6528 yards from the tips with small (slow) greens. I gave the course 2 excellent and 16 good holes for design, which is outstanding for $34. It is not a manicured course like the others we played on this trip, but it is an interesting bargain. The next day was the highlight of the trip, and Moe's golf highlight of the year. We met my friend Chris Wilcznyski, and his boss Arthur Hills for lunch and a round of golf at The Inverness Club in Toledo, Ohio.
Art, Moe and Chris We walked with caddies and played from 6400 yards. Small greens, mature trees, and rolling terrain, in sunny 83 degree weather with my idol. It don’t get better then that ! Art is a very nice guy and still competing at 76 years old. I had 86 to his 92, but I had to give him 7 strokes, and he won the money. We talked about golf courses, trees on golf courses, and Persimmon Ridge....how they are having financial trouble up at Red Hawk in East Tawas, Michigan, because the Detroit people haven’t been traveling up there much this year. Art blamed the high gas prices. The next day we drove further north and played Buck’s Run just east of Mount Pleasant. It is a 2000 design from Jerry Matthews, with mature trees, water, and sand in abundance.
The 17th at Buck's Run The fairways were very nice and the greens were medium speed and a little bumpy. I gave the $80 course 3 excellent and 15 good holes for design. At Buck’s Run the special feature is an 18 hole all grass putting course that you can play while you wait for your tee time. Think miniature golf with no clowns or windmills. We got to play 9 of the 18 holes before tee off and I was 4 under par. The bad news is that the grass is completely different from the real course, and therefore does not actually help your putting at Buck’s Run. It was just free fun. Buck’s Run is just east of the Soaring Eagle Casino for you gambler types, and in that casino I can recommend the Water Lily restaurant for you fine dining types. We meant to play St. Ives on this trip, but one time the weather, and the other time an event kept us from accomplishing that goal. On the day of the St. Ives event we replayed Tullymore. Tullymore is a 2001 design from Jim Engh that I give 4 excellent and 14 good holes for design. I lost that receipt, but it was around $80. It also has some of the greenest grass you’ve seen. Great fairways and smooth medium speed greens. Tullymore and the new True North up near Harbor Springs now give Jim Engh two great courses in Michigan. If you play those two, I feel certain you will want to travel the west seeking out other Jim Engh designs, as I did. Egypt Valley is a private club northeast of Grand Rapids with two Arthur Hills designed courses. Last winter I exchanged e-mails with Steve Pastoor, the general manager, and he graciously allowed us to play the course. We arrived early for our 9 am tee time on the Ridge Course on a morning after a pretty heavy rain. The pro shop staff was very friendly, while we waited for the course superintendent to clear us for takeoff. We were the only group standing by to play the water soaked course. We stayed on the paths, managed to find every hole, (not always easy), and got to play the round at our 3 ½ hour pace. I gave the course 1 excellent and 17 good holes for design, but I liked it much better than that!
Approaching four green of the Ridge Course at Egypt Valley When I thanked Steve afterwards for letting us play, he mentioned that he thought the Valley Course was a better layout, and I think I wrangled a trip around that one for next summer. Now I’ll have to hope that Steve doesn’t move on to greener pastures somewhere. Right before we ran out of time in Cadillac, we played the best of the local courses. The course was designed by Bob Meyer in 1996, and is called Eldorado. They actually have two old cars of that name parked in the clubhouse lobby. The course is a nice layout with lots of forced carries over water or marshland. We played on a beautiful Michigan sunny afternoon, and dreaded the thought of returning to 100+ degree temperatures at home. I gave it 1 excellent and 17 good holes for design. It was $69. And if you’re ever in Cadillac, Michigan, and want a great meal; try Hermann’s European Café. Get the Morel soup and the Jaeger Schnitzel, and you’ll be thanking me for the rest of your life. |
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