The Other Augusta’s Best Golf Course

This week, I found out a beautiful golf oasis in the city of Augusta. No, not the one particular in Ga. This is Augusta, Michigan. And it is a find – in both of those senses of the phrase. You’ll usually see roadside signals for most well known golf classes, as you get nearer. But in the scenario of Stoatin Brae, awarded the 2021 Nationwide Golf Program of the Year by the Nationwide Golfing System Homeowners Affiliation, you’d much better use GPS. Situated about 10 miles from I-94, the closest interstate in Southwestern Michigan, this gem has no indicators leading you to it. But boy, is it well worth the effort and hard work.

Component of the 6-training course, family members-owned Gull Lake View Vacation resort, the just about six-year-previous layout problems golfers at 6,742 yards from the strategies. It’s large open, exposed to all temperature features, and particularly lush. I acquired to engage in it just two months after wintry weather, and it was deep eco-friendly, rolling easy, and on the lookout like it was in mid-summer season condition. The finest way to describe it: It melds the finest of Scottish links courses and upscale American place golf equipment. There are no h2o dangers. And lots of greens are topped or at least have wonderful undulation, and operate true. If you study a putt and feel it will break five ft, it does. Can’t come to a decision which way it deviates? Just roll your ball at the cup. You won’t be far too much off. The day I performed, the tough – which includes a great deal of inexperienced-aspect heather – was slash limited. But locals notify me that heather can develop lengthy in the summer months. Most likely the very best factor of all: The course is reasonable and playable for all ability ranges.

“Just appear all-around at the runoffs about the greens, and you can perform nearly any sort of shot into every environmentally friendly – higher or low,” says Dean Kolstad, the resort’s PGA director of golfing and former Countrywide Hockey League participant. “We hosted a PGA tournament very last year, and many of the gamers claimed it’s good for absolutely everyone simply because there’s so a lot space to participate in from if you do not strike the green. And there are no compelled carries. Almost everything is appropriate in front of you. You can operate the ball up if you really do not want to hit it higher or just can’t strike it considerably. And you’ll still have a whole lot of fun.”

The training course also sits at the maximum point in Kalamazoo County, so you will see some amazing panoramic sights. No surprise the system identify is Gaelic for “Grand Hill”. Lying involving Kalamazoo and Fight Creek, it’s also about 2.5 hrs from both equally Chicago and Detroit. Golfers push in from equally destinations, as nicely as from Columbus, Indianapolis, Cincinnati and Toronto. It visually resembles a considerably flatter model of Northern Michigan – surrounded by a good deal of farmland and Midwest hospitality. Tom Doak’s Renaissance Golf Style and design staff users beloved sculpting this gem on the house, gushing more than its location, carefully rolling land, and indigenous grasses. The par-3 holes are framed by distinctively rugged bunkers the par-4s offer enjoyment, challenging placing surfaces and the par-5s toy with you by giving strategic danger/reward cases, applying the ground and angles to develop entertaining techniques.

Set it this way: It takes a great deal for a class to impress me the initially time I play it. And Stoatin Brae effortlessly crossed that line. I instantly wanted to perform it once more, imagining option means I would play many of the holes. Taking part in with a lousy back again and constrained mobility, I however scored decently, hitting photographs shorter distances than regular. It genuinely is welcoming for each and every ability amount.

Afterwards, I stayed on home back at the most important resort in a brand-new still modest cottage. It had four queen-sized beds, two bedrooms, kitchen area, dwelling room, fireplaces and 3 huge-display screen TV’s. I imagine it would be a excellent area to deliver my buddies back again for a golfing vacation. But I’d want to keep a few nights and enjoy all 6 programs on the residence. I glimpsed 4 of the other five layouts, and they all looked equally inviting and in immaculate issue. Gull Lake Look at is billed as a blue collar golfing resort for ordinary golfers, largely because of its reasonable pricing — environmentally friendly fees are normally less than $100. The usa demands much more of this unbelievable golfing value and top quality at a quite reasonable value.

On my way out early the up coming early morning, I was reminded of the rural Midwest spot: Had to wait for a household of a few turkeys to cross the street in entrance of me. I’ll get that over a targeted traffic jam anyday. As prolonged as I have the instructions back to the freeway.