BOYNE Golf Brings World-Class Resort Golf to Northern Michigan

While you’re dreaming about great golf destinations from Pebble Beach to Pinehurst, why not consider a trip somewhere in the middle—in a land of charming lake towns proffering homemade ice cream and fudge? BOYNE Golf, in Northern Michigan, offers 11 courses and three varied resort experiences on 10,000 acres within an 18-mile radius, all within driving distance of Chicago, Detroit, Grand Rapids, and Sault Ste. Marie. It will give any golf resort in North America a run for its money.

Also of note is BOYNE Golf’s impeccable personal service. In fact, you can’t even book a golf package on its website. The company insists you speak to a human to ensure the best possible planning when choosing between 120 different room types gathered around virtually every resort activity you can conjure.

As for the Royal and Ancient Game, BOYNE Golf offers play amid marshes, woods, mountains, bluffs, dunes, links, a quarry—everything except a chocolate fountain. The golf courses are associated with each of the three resort properties, but the courses are all fully public.

Bay Harbor: Luxury Meets Drama

After waking at the luxe New England-styled Inn at Bay Harbor, with its red roof, light color palette, and beachy vibe overlooking Little Traverse Bay, head for the three nines at Bay Harbor Golf Club. The best 18-hole routing is Links/Quarry, which produces drama from the get-go, heading toward distant ridges and expansive lake views.

Photo: Bay Harbor Golf Club. Courtesy of Boyne Resorts

Early holes play amid windblown dunes and towering bluffs; subsequent ones are lined by “cottages”—a quaint local term for mansions.

The bold terrain exudes a heathland feel, although the slopes are long rather than undulating. Terrain features encourage a ground attack except where hazards must be navigated. Such a forced carry over marshland at the ninth hole provides transition to the back nine, which drops into a former shale quarry ringed by cliffs and pocked by ponds and a waterfall and featuring a forced carry on nearly every hole.

Boyne Mountain: Bavarian Charm, Playable Courses

The Bavarian-style Boyne Mountain Resort offers high luxury in its Chalet Edelweiss, right on what—in Michigan—they call a “ski mountain.” Smaller rooms with Euro touches such as high-end pour-over coffee systems, a sauna and beautiful amenities are closest to The Alpine and Monument golf courses.

Photo: Boyne Mountain – The Alpine. Courtesy of Boyne Resorts

The Alpine, among BOYNE Golf’s most forgiving, presents a wide Bill Newcomb design set in the mountains with views of Deer Lake. Open, playable holes swagger down the hill—they begin at the highest point on property, a 1.2-mile climb from the clubhouse. Big trees, wide fairways and flat greens offer the best of muscular 1970s architecture, as well as the chance to score well on a layout that is always fun, fair and lovely.

The adjacent Monument course features 18 holes dedicated to golf legends like Nelson, Hagen and Whitworth, complete with highlights of their achievements. Architecture is meant to honor designers such as Ross, MacKenzie, Fazio, Dye and Jones. There’s also a Nash car buried under a mound on the 16th fairway, and an island green on the final hole.

The Highlands: Scotland in Michigan

Moving on to The Highlands resort means a swing from German to Scottish themes. Great accommodations await in the ivy-covered main lodge that has been renovated in the style of an English country estate, finished in dark woodsy hues. Rooms are at the center of an active village and close to the Doon Brae short course, created by clever, lovable golf architect Ray Hearn and inspired by some of the world’s best green complexes (including Eden, Biarritz and Postage Stamp holes).

Photo: The Highlands – Doon Brae Short Course. Courtesy of Boyne Resorts

The festive, accessible course sits amid restaurants, shops, bars, kids playing in grassy fields, and guests going about the general business of fun. It will make aficionados want to play the original holes and beginners want to play golf. Hearn also created the adjacent 65,000-square-foot putting course.

The big-pants golf associated with The Highlands takes the form of four courses: Arthur Hills, Donald Ross Memorial, The Moor and The Heather. The property also features a golf academy, Trackman driving range and club-fitting facilities.

Courses That Honor Tradition and Test Skill

The Donald Ross Memorial recreates some of the best holes from Donald Ross’ 400 designs from the golden age of the early 20th century, including many from private clubs such as Seminole and Inverness, plus one hole from Scotland’s Royal Dornoch, Ross’ greatest inspiration. By round’s end, you’ll have played holes that hosted three Ryder Cups, eight U.S. Amateurs, 11 PGA Championships, and 14 U.S. Opens. Greens here lie hidden behind bunkers, so you only see the flag on difficult approach shots. You must be able to hit a ball in the air to fully enjoy this layout.

Donald Ross Memorial Course / Photo: Courtesy of Nile Young Photography

The Arthur Hills course—named for architect Arthur Hills, not the landform—may be the toughest among BOYNE Golf’s offerings, especially around the sly greens, and particularly if you have to putt at any point. The moundy layout does offer grassed access to many of these greens (as well as attractive grass bunkers), and most holes require figuring out the best angle of attack on each shot. Thirteen will surely prove a favorite hole as the back tees sit 32 stories above the putting surface. No doubt you’ll develop a few stories of your own—even if they involve the fate of a sleeve of lost balls.

The Highlands complex’s The Heather course delivers a classic mid-century masterpiece from Robert Trent Jones, Sr. You’ll know from the first hole’s runway tee boxes and straight-mowed fairways that you’re in the hands of a gifted old-school architect. Huge greens and massive flattened bunkers with bright white sand and protruding, almost pouting, lips mean that a back pin could add three clubs to an approach shot. The ninth hole, at 617 yards, is the longest in the BOYNE Golf portfolio. Number 18 demands a long drive downhill toward a large lake. A sign on a bench beside one tee tells you the lake is 258 yards away. But if you know enough to push the bench over, a sign on the bottom reveals that a tee shot hit into the water earns a free drop.