[Brent Carlson]

A few pictures from these northern Michigan courses.


We played High Pointe after heavy rains in muggy conditions.  Nevertheless the course played firm as it was constructed on sandy soil.  This is Tom Doak's first design (age 26) and it is a very good course in my opinion.  It is easily walkable and the terrain is ideal for golf.  The front nine is across open land while the back weaves through the pines.

A few photos:

# 6 - "Field" - 514 yard downhill 5 par with an excellent view of the terrain



# 10 - "Ben Nevis" - 425 yard 4 par that takes the player into the pines



# 11 - "Summit" - Shortish par 3 to an elevated green



#16 - "Dogleg" - 447 yards down and to the right




Arcadia Bluffs - The architecture of the course has been much debated.  I'll say this - the course is an absolute joy to play.  The conditioning is immaculate and the course plays fast and firm, which was not the case when I played its natural rival Whistling Straits.  In addition it is tough to find better views anywhere.  Here are some photos from my favorite stretch of the course.

#11 - Sweeping dowhill 5 par which drops a few hundred feet toward the lake





#12 - Par 4 over a large bunker that hugs the high bluff



Approach with little framing



Green site





#13 - A challenging par 3 over a ravine



Black Forest at Wilderness Valley - Another Doak course that I recommend in northern Michigan.  This course is cut through very remote forest.  It could be the most difficult course I have every played; especially the opening stretch.  The condition has been better in the past but it is still very enjoyable.  The bunkering is really neat and the greens are smallish and undulating.  Don't expect to shoot a career round at BF.

Approach to par 4 4th



Long par 3 #5 I believe



Bunkering near the green on the par 4 9th



Due to lightning I do not have photos of my favorite hole, the par 5 18th.  Needless to say it is a very fun hole.


I hope you enjoyed the short photo trip through northern Michigan.

[Chip Gaskins]

Thanks for the great pics.  I can't wait to make my first trip to MI

[SPDB]

I think it was at High Pointe that Doak designed a hole modeled
after or inspired by #16 at the Creek ("Valley"). I think its the
3d hole. Tee shot would play somewhat diagonally into a valley
and then back up to an elevated green.

Do you have any pics?

[PCCraig]

Looks awesome.

[George Pazin]

Wow, you are an excellent photographer, thanks for sharing.

[Brent Carlson]

Thank you for the kind responses.

SP - Here is a picture from the tee on #3.  Quite a challenge!

[Adam_Messix]

I too had heard mixed reviews on Arcadia Bluffs before playing there last fall.  I'm glad I took the time to see it because it provided a stern but fun test.  The main criticism I heard before playing was that many of the holes were repetitive and had pretty much the same theme.  When finishing I thought about it and might be an argument on a calm day but those are rare in that neck of the woods.  The 12th hole may be one of the most difficult holes that I've ever played into the teeth of a gale with the hole cut in the same location as in the picture.  13 is the only hole I wasn't a big fan of considering that it can be downright unplayable in a heavy headwind. 

[Jim Tang]

Really nice job on the pics.  I've been to Northern Michigan twice and will be there again later this August.  There are a lot of great courses in that part of the country.  I've played Arcadia twice and I do love the course, even though the course has been debated rather heatedly.  I agree, it is just a fun place to play golf.

I haven't played Black Forest or High Pointe, although it would be interesting to see early Doak designs.

This year we'll see Grey Walls, Forest Dunes, True North, Kingsley Club, Arcadia and Erin Hills and The Bull over in Wisconsin.

Was Arcadia playing firm and fast?  In the past the course has played rather soft.  It would be great to see that layout in firm conditions.

[Michael Whitaker]

Doesn't look like Tom had the cart path thing figured out on his first course! 

I'm visiting Black Forest in a few weeks... third trip. You're correct, Brent... it's difficult!!!

[Ronald Montesano]

I agree with Adam on the 13th at Arcadia.  The green is too unforgiving.  If you hit it, it's hard to hold.  If you miss it to either of four sides, you have no shot (or no ball.)  It should have been a banked green, perhaps even a punch bowl.  Too exposed, requiring too long a ball in.

I think that Whistling Straits has twice the lake frontage that Arcadia has, so that's a point for Straits.  I loved 12 at Arcadia, but I loved 12 at Straits even more.  I liked the Arcadia piece of property more than the Straits property, and the upland holes at Arcadia flow down to the sea incredibly well.  Arcadia is a vertical course, whereas Straits is horizontal.

[Tim Bert]

Brent - Any photos of the 12, 13, 14 stretch at High Pointe?  In particular, I'd really like to see the 13th green.

[Richard Hetzel]

Here are a few from the back 9, not exactly sure which holes though. The last one is #18, tough hole.  Fun course.

[Garland Bayley]

Thanks for the pics.

That Arcadia Bluffs is sure easy on the eyes.

Gnarlad

[Mark Arata]

Re: Arcadia Bluffs:

12 is the best hole on the course IMHO, I didnt like 13 much, I think the bunkering is too much for that hole with the wind conditions.

Arcadia is pretty, and it does have some very nice holes, but I still cant stand 9 and 10, and I dont get the routing at all, I dont know why they have all these cross country walks between holes.

I have come to like it more than the first time I posted about it, but I would still play Kingsley 8-2 in the 10 round test.

[Bill Collin]

You certainly got a chance to play three of our nicer courses.  Please come back and play more soon.  :-)

I'm a huge Arcadia fan and love it for what it is - an amazing golf venue with super conditions.  Authentic enough?  Who cares - its beauty and playability are its strenghts, imho.  High Pointe to me is getting a bit long in the tooth - I wouldn't put it in the top 25 courses I've played in Michigan.  Fine, but nothing special.  I say this having not played it a couple years - I'm probably due for a return trip.

Black Forest is an interesting animal.  I have taken many friends there on trips as I think quite highly of it.  Few that I've played with have liked it as much as me - maybe because its so darned hard - especially from the back tees.  I like the 18th hole well enough and its very generous fairway on the hill makes it quite playable.  My excitement is tempered as I get queasy thinking about 17 from all the way back.  That hole is testing the limits of design/playability with its very difficult elevated green.  Challenging to be sure - but maybe slightly overdone.

[Richard Hetzel]

Re: Arcadia Bluffs:

12 is the best hole on the course IMHO, I didnt like 13 much, I think the bunkering is too much for that hole with the wind conditions.

Arcadia is pretty, and it does have some very nice holes, but I still cant stand 9 and 10, and I dont get the routing at all, I dont know why they have all these cross country walks between holes.

I have come to like it more than the first time I posted about it, but I would still play Kingsley 8-2 in the 10 round test.

Because, long walks = cart revenue!

[Steven_Biehl]

It's the same price to walk or ride at Arcadia, so cart revenue has nothing to do with it.  And, what is wrong with the routing at Arcadia?  There is a long walk from 7-8 when you cross the road.  8-9 is a moderate walk, and 10-11 is a moderate walk.  I can't figure out how those walks are any different than walks on many other courses?

[Mike_Cirba]

Anyone here in doubt really needs to go play High Pointe, as it's one of the almost flawlessly designed courses I've seen.  It can wake the dead.

You can skip the 18th hole, however.

Arcadia Bluffs, much like Whistling Straits, is an experience.   I'll try to write more this weekend, but if any courses I've played this past week (11 courses in 6 days) were obviously great from an architectural standpoint, they would first include HP and Kingsley.

I promise to write in more detail later.

[Philip Spogard]

Are the cart paths at High Pointe part of the original Tom Doak design or have they been added later on?

[Ronald Montesano]

1.  I agree with the walking counterpoint.  The point of walking is...walking.  You saddle your bag and go...it's more of a bragging point when the walks are longer.  The beer tastes better after an even longer walk.

2.  Can't imagine who thought the holes at Arcadia were redundant or repetitive.  Maybe a media person who was angered that he/she had to pay to play.  Arcadia comps no one.  As a result, the 2 PM tee time (when twilight begins) is always filled!  Did you eat on site or did you go to that little diner about fifteen minutes up the road that takes two hours to serve the food?

3.  13 is the black sheep of the Arcadia family.  I sensed a bit of "we're better than they are" when discussing Whistling Straits across the lake.  Doing something to 13 might make the claim a better one.  Fact is, Arcadia may have a better piece of vertical property, but the horizontal at Straits brings it to equal.  Straits has its inland par five to counter the 13th at Arcadia for blah.

[Jim Tang]

Remember that the currenting routing at Arcadia was not the original routing.  This may explain some of the longer cart rides from green to tee.  However, I remember the original routing also had some decent length between green to tee.

[John Kirk]

I agree with Mark Arata.  #12 at Aracdia Bluffs is a great golf hole, both visually and strategically.  Lots of nice holes at Arcadia.  One of the best looking clubhouses in golf.  Very nice place.  Like Mark, I have a few reservations about the course, but it's a very nice place to play.

After all, I only played it once, so I can't fully endorse it.

 

[Jim Colton]

I'm completely embarrassed to be posting this, but if you want to see two mediocre GCA'ers battle it out at Arcadia Bluffs, check this out:

http://www.wegobomber.com/tang00.html

ps. yes, it's supposed to be stupid

[Tom_Doak]

Philip S:  The only cart paths at High Pointe that are original are the brick ones ... little pieces on #4, 5, 10, 12, 13, 14, 15 and 16.  Unfortunately, when the course opened, the fairways were still immature and the owners roped off the fairways and made people drive in the rough ... wearing out the grass ... and then put paved paths where the grass was worn down to dirt!

Lesson learned:  heavy cart traffic and fescue fairways don't work well together.  Unfortunately, that's a lesson that is soon to be learned by Erin Hills, and by various courses in Ireland and the UK, judging from all the buggies I've seen over here the past two days.

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