Detroit
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Greens: Bentgrass

Donald Ross designed and routed Oakland Hills' South Course in 1916 — it opened in 1918 and immediately became a US Open destination. Robert Trent Jones Sr. famously toughened the course for the 1951 US Open, which Ben Hogan won with his 'Monster' quote. Rees Jones modernized the bunkering in 2006. In 2021, Gil Hanse and Jim Wagner completed a full restoration that reverted the green complexes, bunker shapes, and short-grass areas to the original Ross intent while maintaining championship length. The course will host the 2024 US Women's Open and the 2034 US Open.

The South Course at Oakland Hills is the most decorated championship venue in the metro Detroit area — host to six US Opens, three PGA Championships, the 2004 Ryder Cup, and the upcoming 2034 US Open. Gil Hanse's 2021 restoration brought the Donald Ross routing back to championship form.

Greens: Bentgrass

Detroit Golf Club was founded in 1899 and is the oldest private club in the city. Donald Ross routed both the North and South courses; the North was completed in its current configuration in 1922 and has hosted the Rocket Mortgage Classic on the PGA Tour every year since 2019. The North layout is a classic Ross parkland routing through Palmer Woods, with rolling fairways, push-up green complexes, and the most photogenic clubhouse in Detroit.

Detroit Golf Club's North Course is the most-visible classic-Ross routing in the city of Detroit, host of the PGA Tour Rocket Mortgage Classic each summer. The club's 36-hole property in Palmer Woods is a National Register-listed historic district.

Greens: Bentgrass

Country Club of Detroit was founded in Grosse Pointe Farms in 1897; the current course at Lake Shore Road was designed by Harry Shapland Colt in 1914 — making it the only Colt golf course in the United States. The club hosted the 1915 US Amateur (won by Robert Gardner) and the 1954 US Amateur, in which Arnold Palmer won his first major title. Tom Doak and Renaissance Golf completed a full classic restoration in 2018 that returned the green complexes and bunker shaping to Colt's original intent.

H.S. Colt is the only Colt routing in the United States. Hosted the 1954 US Amateur (Arnold Palmer's first major title). Tom Doak's 2018 restoration is widely considered one of the finest classic restorations in the country.

Greens: Bentgrass

Plum Hollow Country Club in Southfield was founded in 1921 with a Wayne Stiles design — one of the earliest Stiles routings outside New England. The course hosted the 1947 PGA Championship (won by Jim Ferrier defeating Chick Harbert) and the 1968 Carling World Open (won by Billy Casper). Arthur Hills completed a series of updates in the 1990s. The course remains one of the great pre-war Detroit privates and is consistently ranked in the top 10 in Michigan.

Host of the 1947 PGA Championship, won by Jim Ferrier. Wayne Stiles design with subsequent updates by Arthur Hills. A historic pre-war Detroit-area private with member-friendly conditioning.

Greens: Bentgrass

Indianwood's Old Course in Lake Orion opened in 1929 — designed by Wilfrid Reid and William Connellan in an explicit heathland-links style with fescue rough, gorse, pot bunkers, and large undulating greens. The course hosted the 1989 US Women's Open (won by Betsy King) and the 1994 US Senior Open (won by Simon Hobday). Bobby Weed completed a full restoration in 2015 that re-established the original fescue and bunker shaping. The most authentic links experience in Michigan.

Heathland-style design from 1929 — one of the truest links-style routings in the Midwest. Hosted the 1989 US Women's Open and the 1994 US Senior Open.

Greens: Bentgrass

Rackham Golf Course is a Donald Ross municipal opened in 1923 on land donated by Horace Rackham just north of the Detroit city boundary at 10 Mile and Woodward in Huntington Woods. The course is owned by the City of Detroit and currently operated by Vargo Golf, who has invested heavily in conditioning, irrigation, and historic-routing fidelity over the last decade. The Ross routing remains largely intact and represents the best public-access Donald Ross experience in the country at the price point.

The most accessible Donald Ross course in the United States — a Detroit municipal owned by the city and operated under contract. Just south of 8 Mile, walkable, well-conditioned.

Greens: Bentgrass

Rouge Park Golf Course is a Donald Ross municipal that opened in 1923 along the Rouge River corridor on Detroit's west side, anchoring the city's largest park. Owned by the City of Detroit and operated under contract by Vargo Golf, the course features Ross's signature push-up green complexes, riverside routing, and walking-friendly grade. The annual John Shippen Invitational Pro-Am — celebrating Black golfers in professional golf — was hosted at Rouge Park in 2023 and continues to use the course in its rotation.

Second of Detroit's pair of Donald Ross municipal courses — runs along the Rouge River corridor on the city's west side. One of the great urban-affordable Ross experiences in the country.

Greens: Bentgrass

TPC Michigan in Dearborn is the only Tournament Players Club facility in the state — a Jack Nicklaus signature design built in 1990 on rolling former farmland near the Henry Ford Estate. The Nicklaus routing features signature stadium-style mounding around several green complexes, water on 10 holes, and a championship-length 7,058 yards from the tips. The course has hosted the Senior Tour Buick Open and remains the metro Detroit Nicklaus signature.

The PGA Tour Network's only Michigan property. Jack Nicklaus signature design in Dearborn. Hosted the Buick Open Senior Tour stop in the 1990s.

Greens: Bentgrass

Forest Lake Country Club in Bloomfield Hills is a Donald Ross routing from 1926 that has largely flown under the radar of Detroit-area Ross enthusiasts. Arthur Hills completed renovations in the late 1990s; the green complexes and bunker placement remain faithful to Ross's strategic intent. The course's location in Bloomfield Hills, away from the highway corridors, gives Forest Lake a quiet, traditional Detroit-club character.

Underrated Donald Ross design in Bloomfield Hills — one of the lesser-known Ross routings in the metro that remains an excellent representation of the architect's style.

Greens: Bentgrass

Franklin Hills Country Club opened in 1926 with a Donald Ross design that has been preserved with minimal modification over a century. The course hosted the inaugural 1949 LPGA Championship — won by Patty Berg — and continues to receive consideration for major-amateur and senior events. The Ross routing is largely original with subtle modernization for current playing distances. One of the great preserved Ross designs in the United States.

Donald Ross design in Franklin, just north of Detroit. Hosted the 1949 LPGA Championship, won by Patty Berg in the inaugural year of the event.