Michigan is a pretty strong golf state.
You have all sorts of great summer resort courses on the upper peninsula, on Lake Michigan and Lake Huron.
Truth be known there are more than 500 public courses in Michigan, more than any other state. Nice number despite the shrinkage of golf over the past few years, facilities are closing everywhere.
When Rocket Mortgage took over as sponsor of the D.C. event, it was just a matter of time until the Rocket Man himself — Dan Gilbert — brought the show known as the PGA Tour to his hometown. Golf in Michigan was forever tied to the old Buick Open, which joined the golf graveyard after 2009. Buick even signed a young Tiger Woods back in 1999 and we all knew that a 23-year-old millionaire wouldn’t be caught dead driving a Buick, he probably let Earl drive them back then.
Detroit’s in a tizzy this week. Ticket sales have been off the charts and the Detroit Golf Club is all dressed up and ready for the party. It’s a club with history, started before 1900. Horton Smith became the head professional there, later it was one of the tour’s first power-hitters, George Bayer in that slot. This gem is a Donald Ross golf course, which automatically puts it on the list for those of us who admire his work.
The club updated itself and architect Bruce Hepner came on board to update the two courses — North and South. The North Course will host things on Thursday. It was a shade over 6,900 yards and had to be lengthened. They’ve stretched it to 7,300 with a par of 72.
The routing of the North Course has been altered to accommodate the addition of the first hole on the South –a 410-yard par 4, which becomes the third hole in the routing and links up with the fourth hole. The fourth is the most dramatic change. A short par 5 on the North Course has been stretched to 625 yards. The first hole on the North Course, a 305-yard par 4, won’t be used for obviously reasons, you’d have a backup right off the bat.
So the next issue is which of today’s spoiled tour stars will show up in Detroit?
Well, Rickie Fowler will be there, has to be. Rickie stars in those gosh-awful Rocket Mortgage commercials you see during tour events. Wonder if Rickie used Rocket to get a mortgage on that $15 million Loxahatchee River palace that he occupies back home?
After his amazing U.S. Open win, good-guy golfer Gary Woodland is back in action and he’s now a draw. Yeah, let’s go watch Gary!
Dustin Johnson is playing. D.J. hasn’t been all that impressive lately, Pebble Beach wasn’t very kind to him.
Outside of those three, not many names that would make you say “Hey, let’s go watch so-and-so.”
The so-and-so guys are Chez Reavie, Hideki Matsuyama and Kevin Kisner. Oh wow.
Won’t matter. Detroit will turn out.
The tour’s never been there, at least not this modern, traveling circus that throws money around like the U.S. Government.
By the way, can you direct us to the old Motown Studio?
2 Comments
Golfball1346
Yes, they have 500 big, beautiful & time consuming golf courses…problem is they now have the 500 of the wrong one’s for the coming generations who want quick-in, quick-out golf on smaller facilities. With fewer golfers coming, it won’t take long to realize that empty fairways pay no bills!
Things change and so must golf if it wants to adapt to the new lifestyles.
Tom Edrington
Personally, I love nine-hole golf courses but most of those have been plowed under and redeveloped into homes, retail centers and office buildings; I tell folks I don’t have 4-5 hours to play, I can sneak in 1 1/2 if there were more appropriate short courses….the new one up at Pinehurst is a HUGE hit!