The annual transformation every Midwestern golfer lives for is finally upon us. After months of gray skies and a protracted visit from the Polar Vortex, golfers are stashing their winter coats and trading their rubber-treaded boots for a pair of soft spikes. With apologies to the winter holidays, this is the most wonderful time of the year!
That also means it’s time to think about getting away for a golf trip to a neighboring state, either by loading up the car or hopping on a quick flight. CDGA golfers have the luxury of golf-rich neighboring states like Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota for easy escapes to some of the country’s best summer golf destinations. And this year, several of them have new courses and amenities available to visiting golfers.
Here’s a look at some new developments at destinations you may want to consider for a summer golf getaway this year:
The northern part of Michigan’s Lower Peninsula is a summer playground that has transformed from a drive-in market to an international destination. An excellent example is the Boyne Golf collection of 11 courses – now marketed as Boyne’s Magnificent 11 – across three locations, each of which has a distinct vibe.
Boyne Mountain in Boyne Falls is a family-friendly oasis with a pair of solid courses running through ski areas augmented by an indoor water park and the SkyBridge suspension bridge, one of the longest such engineering marvels in the country. Bay Harbor near Petoskey is an upscale getaway featuring a Marriott Autograph Collection Hotel and three nine-hole loops along Lake Michigan that feature some of the state’s best golf views. And The Highlands in Harbor Springs features five courses and a variety of accommodations from luxurious to comfortable and cost- effective.
The Highlands is a highlight this summer, as it is home to the newest of Boyne’s 11 Michigan courses, an enjoyable par-3 layout called Doon Brae set to open this season. Playing horizontally across the bottom of the resort’s ski area, the course is ideal for families looking for a fun introduction to golf – and also for hardcore players who want to use it to sneak in a few more holes at the beginning or end of a day. Doon Brae will be lighted, allowing visitors to enjoy the course at the end of a golf day, and it will soon be joined by the nearby Back Yaird putting course for a fun après golf experience. The Donald Ross Memorial Course is a must-play at The Highlands, with several of the holes based on classic Ross designs from around the country have been renovated and upgraded in recent years.
There are also new developments at another pair of Michigan gems: the high-profile Forest Dunes and Arcadia Blu s resorts. Forest Dunes is a pure golf spot in rural Roscommon featuring a pair of highly rated layouts – its namesake Tom Weiskopf course, plus Tom Doak’s unique reversable Loop – and the fun Bootleggers short course. The resort has comfy cabins and a lodge, and just announced that Gil Hanse and Jim Wagner will soon design a new course, called SkyFall, for their first new course project in Michigan. Meanwhile, Arcadia Bluffs sports a pair of outstanding courses – The Blu s running along Lake Michigan, and the Chicago Golf Club-influenced South Course located just inland – with a new 12-hole course called The Dozen set to open this summer. Of course, if you really want to head north, Michigan’s Upper Peninsula features Island Resort & Casino’s outstanding Sage Run and Sweetwater courses, with the destination’s new nine-hole Cedar Course set to open soon.
If you find yourself in the southern part of the Mitten State, there’s plenty of solid golf for out-of-state visitors. For example, the newly opened St. John’s Resort near Detroit features the Cardinal course that will host a LIV Golf event later this year on the site of an old Catholic Church conference center. On the west side of the state nearer to Chicagoland, Harbor Shores is a longtime host of the Senior PGA Championship and is adding a short course to its list of amenities, while the Jack Nicklaus-designed American Dunes layout fuses strong golf with support for Folds of Honor and our country’s veterans.
No state has taken a bigger step forward into the golf spotlight in the last decade than Wisconsin. From the opening of Sand Valley and the new Inn at SentryWorld to the major championships played at Erin Hills and Kohler’s Whistling Straits and Blackwolf Run, the eyes of the golf world are open the potential of visiting the Badger State.
Sand Valley, the second resort built by the Keiser family after the breakout success of Oregon’s Bandon Dunes, now boasts four full-size courses following last summer’s opening of the Tom Doak-designed Sedge Valley layout to join the Coore/Crenshaw namesake course, David McLay Kidd’s Mammoth Dunes and the reimagined Lido Club layout paying tribute to the golden age of golf architecture. Add the fun Sandbox short course and you can see why Sand Valley is drawing golfers from around the world to a resort that also includes summer activities like grass court tennis and fat tire mountain biking.
An itinerary for Wisconsin golf could include Sand Valley and a number of other resorts with championship pedigrees. Whistling Straits has hosted Ryder Cups and PGA Championships – with three USGA championships on the way – and boasts the luxurious American Club hotel. Erin Hills is the site of Brooks Koepka’s U.S. Open breakthrough and will host the U.S. Women’s Open, May 29-June 1. SentryWorld is a unique all-inclusive high-end golf experience that includes premium food and beverage options on-course, plus a new boutique hotel, and the property just hosted the 2023 U.S. Senior Open.
The Brainerd Lakes area is a fine place to experience the Land of 1,000 Lakes. The popular Cragun’s Resort has invested in a $17 million renovation and expansion and now sports 45 holes of fun and challenging golf out of a single clubhouse. Minnesota golf legend Tom Lehman recently wrapped work on the final nine holes of the resort’s 27-hole Dutch layout, which will be open this summer. The resort’s Lehman 18 boasts tour-level di iculty from the back tees, but is still fun for all skill levels.
Cragun’s offers a variety of accommodations and experiences at different price points. Its location on Gull Lake means plenty of beach and the chance to enjoy boating, fishing and stand-up paddleboarding. Meanwhile, guests can choose from cozy lodge rooms or large cabins, villas and houses that are ideal for hosting larger groups.
Take advantage of the coming long days and warm temperatures to load up the car, set the GPS and head out on a golf getaway to one of our most hospitable neighboring states before Mother Nature turns the area back into a winter wonderland.