One of the greatest golf architects of the 20th century, Alister MacKenzie, designed the University of Michigan Golf Course, which opened in 1931. Renowned for letting the natural landscape guide his designs, MacKenzie once said, “The chief object of every golf architect or greenkeeper worth his salt is to imitate the beauties of nature so closely as to make his work indistinguishable from nature itself.”
Just steps from the Big House and nestled in our own backyard, the University of Michigan Golf Course is considered one of the best collegiate courses in the nation. MacKenzie, its famed architect, also designed some of the world’s most preeminent courses — including Augusta National (home of the Masters Tournament) in Georgia; Cypress Point in Pebble Beach, Calif.; and the West Course at Royal Melbourne in Australia.
Ranked third in Golf Digest’s 2023 list of “America’s Greatest College Courses,” the 18 hole, 6,730-yard U-M Golf Course serves as the home course for Michigan’s varsity golf and cross country teams. While the city views are a delight, the course’s fairways and undulating greens are lined with mature fir trees, rolling hills, tall native fescue grasses, and steep elevation changes that are not for the faint of heart. The course is far from easy, but that’s part of its appeal and reflects MacKenzie’s vision of combining strategic play with enough challenge to keep players engaged. The 537-yard, par-5 third hole is considered one of the most demanding, with a putting surface that Sports Illustrated described as having “ripples like ocean swells.”
Historically reserved for students, staff, alumni, and invited guests, “the Blue”— as it’s affectionately known — opened to the public in 2015. Now, unaffiliated guests can enjoy the course Monday through Friday via one-day packages — a rare opportunity to play a MacKenzie-designed gem and a true bucket-list experience for golf history buffs.
In May 2017, Michigan Athletics dedicated and opened the Richard L. Postma Family Clubhouse, a 23,000-square-foot facility that serves as a retreat after a tough round of golf. It also features an impressive pro shop to help players gear up and strategize for avoiding the course’s well-placed, sandy bunkers their next time out.
The University of Michigan Golf Course is a rare opportunity to play and walk fairways shaped by the creative mind behind Augusta National and is a living piece of golf history, right here in Ann Arbor.
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