CaddieTrail Guide
Michigan is home to some of the finest golf in America — Crystal Downs ranks among the country's top ten, and the Lake Michigan corridor rivals any resort destination in the country. These are the courses serious Michigan golfers pursue.
Twenty courses across Michigan — Crystal Downs and Oakland Hills (South) anchor the top tier alongside Arcadia Bluffs, Kingsley Club, and Lost Dunes. Forest Dunes, Greywalls, and The Loop represent northern Michigan's best modern designs. Detroit-area private clubs including Bloomfield Hills, Franklin Hills, Orchard Lake, and Meadowbrook round out a trail that spans from the Upper Peninsula to the metro suburbs. Completing it requires connections across some of the Midwest's most exclusive clubs.
#1 on trail
Crystal Downs Country ClubFrankfort, Michigan
MacKenzie and Maxwell's 1929 collaboration on Michigan's glacial dunes ranks among the most strategically demanding designs in the country. Consistently placed in America's top 10.
#2 on trail
Oakland Hills Country Club (South)Bloomfield Hills, Michigan
Donald Ross original, redesigned by Robert Trent Jones for the 1951 U.S. Open — where Ben Hogan famously declared "I'm glad I brought this course — this monster — to its knees," giving rise to the nickname "the Monster." Hosted six U.S. Opens and the 2004 Ryder Cup.
#3 on trail
Arcadia Bluffs (Bluffs Course)Arcadia, Michigan
Clifftop public layout by Warren Henderson and Rick Smith, perched above Lake Michigan with forced carries and wind-exposed holes that demand shot-shaping throughout.
#4 on trail
Kingsley ClubKingsley, Michigan
Tom Doak design in northern Michigan, opened 1993. Minimalist routing over rolling terrain with naturalistic bunkering. One of his most celebrated early works.
#5 on trail
Lost Dunes Golf ClubBridgman, Michigan
Private 18-hole layout in Bridgman, MI, set among Lake Michigan's coastal dunes. Rugged sandy terrain defines every hole, rewarding precise shot-making over power.
#6 on trail
Forest Dunes (Weiskopf Course)Roscommon, Michigan
Tom Weiskopf routing through northern Michigan's forests, opened 2002. Generous fairways give way to firm, contoured greens. Public access resort play in Roscommon.
Ten public courses in Michigan — Arcadia Bluffs (Bluffs and South), Forest Dunes (Loop and Weiskopf), Belvedere, Bay Harbor, Greywalls, American Dunes, Tullymore, and Harbor Shores. Every course is public or resort-bookable. Michigan has some of the finest public golf in the country.
#1 on trail
Arcadia Bluffs (Bluffs Course)Arcadia, Michigan
Clifftop public layout by Warren Henderson and Rick Smith, perched above Lake Michigan with forced carries and wind-exposed holes that demand shot-shaping throughout.
#2 on trail
Forest Dunes (Weiskopf Course)Roscommon, Michigan
Tom Weiskopf routing through northern Michigan's forests, opened 2002. Generous fairways give way to firm, contoured greens. Public access resort play in Roscommon.
#3 on trail
Arcadia Bluffs (South Course)Arcadia, Michigan
Dana Fry and Jason Straka's 2018 design plays on open, flat former orchard land set back from Lake Michigan, with persistent wind and a geometric, strategic layout inspired by C.B. Macdonald and Seth Raynor. Public access. A younger companion to the original course.
#5 on trail
Forest Dunes (The Loop)Roscommon, Michigan
Tom Doak's reversible design plays 18 holes in two directions—Red and Black—on the same land. One of only a small number of reversible courses in the U.S., it remains a rare and celebrated format. Public access in northern Michigan.
#6 on trail
Belvedere Golf ClubCharlevoix, Michigan
William Watson's 1925 design winds through northern Michigan's rolling woodland terrain above Lake Charlevoix. Hepner's restoration preserved the classic character of its tree-lined fairways and subtle, contoured greens.
Seven exceptional public and resort courses along Lake Michigan's eastern shore — Arcadia Bluffs Bluffs Course, Arcadia Bluffs South Course, American Dunes, Bay Harbor, Belvedere, Stoatin Brae, and Harbor Shores. Every course on this trail is fully bookable with no private access required. The core of the trail concentrates in the northern Lower Peninsula resort corridor, completable in a dedicated 4–5 day northern Michigan trip. Book summer tee times well in advance. One of the most scenic and accessible signature trails on the platform.
#1 on trail
Arcadia Bluffs (Bluffs Course)Arcadia, Michigan
Clifftop public layout by Warren Henderson and Rick Smith, perched above Lake Michigan with forced carries and wind-exposed holes that demand shot-shaping throughout.
#2 on trail
Arcadia Bluffs (South Course)Arcadia, Michigan
Dana Fry and Jason Straka's 2018 design plays on open, flat former orchard land set back from Lake Michigan, with persistent wind and a geometric, strategic layout inspired by C.B. Macdonald and Seth Raynor. Public access. A younger companion to the original course.
#3 on trail
Bay Harbor Golf Club (Links/Quarry)Petoskey, Michigan
Carved from a former shale quarry along Lake Michigan's Little Traverse Bay, this public-access layout combines dramatic elevation changes with coastal exposure. One of northern Michigan's most visually striking tracks.
#4 on trail
American Dunes Golf ClubGrand Haven, Michigan
Jack Nicklaus–designed public course built on the site of the former Grand Haven Golf Club in Grand Haven, opening in 2021. Proceeds benefit Folds of Honor scholarships for military families.
#5 on trail
Stoatin BraeAugusta, Michigan
Links-style public course from Renaissance Golf Design, opened 2017 in Augusta, MI. Firm, fast, fescue-lined fairways reward ground game over aerial approaches.
#6 on trail
Harbor ShoresBenton Harbor, Michigan
Jack Nicklaus-designed public track along Lake Michigan's shoreline in Benton Harbor. Host of the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship, with water and wetlands shaping many of the course's holes.
CaddieTrail is the pursuit platform for serious golfers.