Old- Crystal Golf Course. Crystal, MI (Little Crystal Lake) Let me first state that this course had zero architectural merit. A 9 hole, par 33 executive course located on an old farm. There was, maybe, a foot of elevation change on the entire property. The most interesting hole was the par 3 7th, which was about 160 yards with a gigantic oak tree directly in front of the tee, leaving the player the option of either attempting to hit a sand wedge over the tree (before lob wedges) and the, if successful, keep that club handy because it will be used on the approach shot. Or hooding a mid iron around said oak in hopes of hitting a 40 yard hook where, if successful, would inevitably end up in a barren bunker fronting the green. Or using ones putter off the tee. The conditioning was "rough", with greens cut slightly lower than standard shag carpeting, which was popular in the day. It also had a very short par 3 course and a putt putt course, whose conditions were somehow even worse than the executive course.
So why is this course my choice? Simple. My parents owned a cottage on the lake and we spent many summer weekends there. The course was about 3/4 of mile from our place, which was just short enough for a 6 year old and his brothers and cousins to walk. $2 allowed us to play all day and have a hot dog, chips and a Town Club Pop in a 700 sf cinder block clubhouse. It's the place where a 6 year old was introduced and fell in love with the game. It's also the last course my father and I played together.
A family owned the course and after the patriarch died, he left his two sons as equal partners. After a few years, one of the brothers wanted to cash in on this piece of land and it was put on the market......for $2,000,000. They only way it could be worth that much is if oil was found on the property. It fell into a state of disrepair until a couple years ago, when one of the "lake" families bought the clubhouse and turned it into a wedding reception facility.
New- High Pointe. I've not followed the progress of the "new" High Pointe, and I'm sure that if I ever get back up that way, it most certainly will not disappoint, but boy, I LOVED the old High Pointe. The lake cottage I had was only about a 20 minute drive and I started playing there 30 years ago. In fact, I played there on the day of my wedding. Before playing my 1st round at High Pointe, I played in both Ireland and Scotland, but never really understood the brilliance and nuances of those courses. Slowly, by repeated plays on High Pointe, it afforded me the opportunity to notice certain details and multiple strategies that were presented on each hole. Which led me to compare to other courses. Which led me to purchasing a copy of The Confidential Guide in HP's clubhouse, which really opened by eyes and curiosity. It's the place where I fell in love with GCA.