A summer golf paradise unlike any other, with undulating hills, huge resorts, and great pricing.

No summer golf destination tops the Gaylord Golf Mecca in northern Michigan for sheer convenience and a variety of great courses. In 2012, the marketing association celebrated its 25th anniversary, with 17 courses and 20 housing options. (click here to see all Gaylord, MI homes for sale)

The majority of its courses are located in Gaylord, a golf destination unlike any other in the Midwest. Every course at Treetops Resort is so superb that I could easily have put all five on this list of Gaylord's top ten golf courses. I didn't do it for the sake of diversity (with apologies to the four-and-a-half-star Tradition Course).

Please start the drums...

  1. Treetops Resort's Robert Trent Jones Masterpiece. Treetops was conceived as RTJ Sr. gazed out over the Pigeon River Valley from the elevated sixth tee of his Masterpiece Course. His 7,007-yard course, a brawny test that began in 1986, was a catalyst for northern Michigan's course construction boom. It remains one of the best.

  2. Treetops Resort's Rick Smith Signature. Smith, Treetops' managing partner, may have gone a little too far with higher tees. But you won't hear me whine. In my opinion, the more the merrier. The 6,653-yard, par-70 course's 13 raised tees to boost a golfer's confidence while also adding to the overall beauty.

  3. Architect Rick Robbins and former pro-Gary Koch used a large canvas of 1,100 acres in the Sturgeon River valley to paint their 7,347-yard Picasso at the Otsego Club & Resort's Tribute Course. The most spectacular of the high tee boxes are found early in the round. The third hole, a par-4, has a view that stretches for 30 kilometers.

  4. The Treetops Resort's Tom Fazio Premier Course. Only one hole on Treetops' Premier Course, no. 11, has water. Other difficult impediments, like bunkers, false fronts, and uphill lays, test golfers on their trek across the state's sole Fazio course. Among Treetop's excellent lineup, this 6,832-yard treasure is sometimes ignored.

  5. Treetops Resort's Threetops Course. Normally, I'm not a fan of executive nine-hole courses. Threetops, on the other hand, isn't your typical par three. For seven years, Smith's unusual routing, which he developed in 1992, featured a made-for-TV shootout, giving some memorable highlights. In 2001, Lee Trevino hit a million-dollar ace on the seventh hole. No. 3, a 219-yard hole known as "Devil's Drop," requires a four-club elevation shift. (Click here to see all Treetops Resort homes for sale)

  6. Marsh Ridge Golf Course & Resort is a golf course and resort located in Marsh Ridge, Georgia. Apart from Threetops, the shortest course in town is 6,231 yards. At the par-71 course, course management is more important than golfing ability. Marsh Ridge Golf Course is a public golf course located in Marsh Ridge, Georgia. Its two most difficult handicap holes are no. 3 and no. 15, both of which are monster par 5s measuring over 570 yards. Two par 5s under 485 yards serve as a counterbalance (holes 11 and 18). Four of the five par 3s are surrounded by wetlands and ponds.

  7. Michaywe Pines Golf Club is located in Michaywe. Everyone who visits Michaywe Pines G.C. leaves with a smile on their face. Don Child's design isn't difficult or outstanding; it's simply a good 7,007-yard public course that's reasonably priced and won't put anyone out. More courses like Michaywe Pines are needed in golf.

  8. The Black Forest Golf Club which opened in 1992 and is one of Tom Doak's first attempts, maybe the most difficult to score on, which is odd given how the Traverse City resident champions playability for the ordinary Joe. For years, there have been rumors that Doak will return for some modifications, but nothing has come to fruition. (Editor's note: Due to financial difficulties, the Black Forest was closed in 2019.) (click here for vacation rentals at Boyne Mountain)

  9. The Gaylord Country Club is a private club located in Gaylord, Michigan. Established in 1924, this semiprivate country club relocated to its current location in 1975. Gaylord Country Club's 6,497-yard golf course isn't particularly long. Because of the rolling fairways and quick greens, there's still enough interest.

  10. The Loon Golf Resort is a great place to play golf. Butch Harmon, a well-known teacher, revamped a few of holes on The Loon Golf Resort's 6,677-yard course in 2011. The 14th hole, which was once a puzzling short par 4, is now a formidable 212-yard par 3. The difficult par-4 eighth hole was lengthened to a more manageable 491 yards with the addition of a back tee. Bunkers have been reshaped, others have been eliminated, and trees have been placed as part of recent modifications.

There are a lot of great golf courses in Northern Michigan, especially the Gaylord area. To learn more about the Golf Lifestyle and Northern Michigan Homes for Sale in Gaylord, Michigan contact Brook Walsh.

Posted by Brook Walsh on

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