Best Golf Courses in Michigan: Great Lakes Golf
Michigan golf is northern Michigan golf — the stretch of Lake Michigan shoreline from Traverse City north through Petoskey and Charlevoix that contains one of the highest concentrations of quality golf destinations in the American Midwest. Arcadia Bluffs, Forest Dunes, Belvedere Golf Club, Bay Harbor Golf Club, and the courses of the Boyne Mountain and Boyne Highlands resorts within an hour's drive of each other make northern Michigan a legitimate golf destination for Great Lakes region golfers.
Arcadia Bluffs Golf Club — Arcadia
Arcadia Bluffs is the finest course in Michigan — a Warren Henderson design perched on 250-foot bluffs above Lake Michigan south of Frankfort, with views of the lake from virtually every hole. The wind off Lake Michigan affects every round; the course plays fundamentally differently in flat-calm conditions than on windy days, which rewards repeated visits. The routing uses the bluff terrain to create dramatic elevation changes and forced carries that most Great Lakes courses can't provide. It is a public course.
Forest Dunes Golf Club — Roscommon
Forest Dunes is the most architecturally significant new course built in Michigan in the 21st century — Tom Doak's original routing through the sandy, duneland terrain of Roscommon County, supplemented by the Loop (a second Doak routing that plays the same holes in reverse, creating effectively two courses on one piece of land). Forest Dunes demonstrates that links-like sandy terrain exists in northern Michigan's interior as well as on the Lake Michigan bluffs, and Doak's design exploits that terrain as effectively as any contemporary American design.
Belvedere Golf Club — Charlevoix
Belvedere Golf Club in Charlevoix is the oldest quality course in northern Michigan — a Walter Travis design from 1925 that has been preserved in its historical character while remaining competitively interesting. The course overlooks Lake Charlevoix and provides a classic early American parkland experience in a setting that has changed minimally since the 1920s. It is a private club with visitor access on weekdays.
Bay Harbor Golf Club — Bay Harbor
Arthur Hills designed Bay Harbor Golf Club on the shore of Lake Michigan north of Petoskey — three nine-hole loops (Links, Quarry, and Preserve) that can be combined for 18-hole rounds. The Links nine plays on the lake bluff terrain that characterizes northern Michigan's most dramatic golf; the Quarry nine plays through a former limestone quarry that has been transformed into a genuinely unusual golf landscape. Bay Harbor is accessible through the Bay Harbor Resort properties.
Planning a Northern Michigan Golf Trip
Traverse City is the logical base for a northern Michigan golf trip — centrally located within driving range of Arcadia Bluffs (south), Forest Dunes (east), Belvedere and Bay Harbor (north). June through September is the primary season, with July and August providing the warmest weather and the highest green fees. Early June and September offer lower prices with only slightly less ideal conditions.
FAQ
What is the best golf course in Michigan?
Arcadia Bluffs Golf Club in Arcadia is most frequently cited as Michigan's finest course. Forest Dunes in Roscommon is the most architecturally significant recent addition to the Michigan golf landscape. Both are public courses.