Five things to know: Detroit Golf Club

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Need to Know

Written by Jeff Eisenband @JeffEisenband

Detroit is Motown, Hockeytown and now for four years running, Rocket Mortgage Classic-Town. This week, the PGA TOUR makes its penultimate stop of the Regular Season at Detroit Golf Club. While the event’s history might not yet span a half-decade, the golf course’s lifespan is spread across three centuries.

When Donald Ross designed the track more than 100 years ago, he might not have considered the likes of Cameron Davis and Tony Finau attacking its terrain.

1. Technically a composite course

Detroit Golf Club opened in 1899 during the William McKinley administration. The initial course had six holes and annual dues were $10. Three more holes were added in 1900.

In 1913, after the club purchased some more property, it requested the services of Donald Ross, who was just a few years removed from designing Pinehurst Nos. 1, 2 and 3. In Detroit, Ross felt he had enough room for two 18-hole courses. The North Course, a par 72, would ultimately become more daunting than the South Course, a par 68, with the North Course now roughly 870 yards longer.

In 1914, Ross’ brother Alec was made head club professional, a post he maintained for 31 years. Alec, an accomplished player, won the 1907 U.S. Open.

The Rocket Mortgage Classic layout is comprised of 17 holes from the North Course and one from the South Course. The PGA TOUR layout begins with holes 8 and 9 serving as Nos. 1 and 2, followed by hole 1 from the South Course serving as No. 3. The course then plays holes 2-7 of the North Course as Nos. 4-9 before the standard North Course back nine makes up the final nine for the championship.

2. Who’s who of Detroit

Detroit Golf Club established itself roughly four years before the Ford Motor Company incorporated. The Ross renovations were apparently enough to convince Henry Ford himself to join, as he became a member in 1915. His son Edsel, who served as Ford’s president from 1919-1943, also was a member.

Since its start, Detroit Golf Club has brought together a who’s who of Detroit. Original Ford Motor Company stockholder and philanthropist Horace Rackham funded the initial $100,000 to pay for Ross’ 36 holes. U.S. Senator James Couzens, who sold his Ford Motor Company stock to Henry Ford for $30 million in 1919, was a common presence on the course, as was Fred Wardell, the founder of the Eureka Vacuum Cleaner Company, based in Detroit.

In more modern terms, athletes have made up much of Detroit Golf Club’s celebrity base. Justin Verlander, Jerome Bettis, Jim Leyland, Jim Schwartz and Vinnie “The Microwave” Johnson have been among those to call Detroit Golf Club their golf home.

On the arts side, famed poet Edgar Guest was an early member, while Kid Rock is a more modern member. Aretha Franklin owned a home near the seventh hole in which she is believed to have recorded her 1998 album “A Rose is Still a Rose.”

Of course, prominent golfers have called Detroit Golf Club home. After Alec Ross stepped aside from his post as head club pro, he was replaced by another major champion, two-time Masters winner Horton Smith, who held the job from 1946 until his death in 1963. Adding to this club pro legacy was Walter Burkemo, who won the 1953 PGA Championship at nearby Birmingham Country Club.

Meanwhile, in 1986, Detroit mayor Coleman Young made history when he became the club’s first African-American member. While not a golfer, Young applied for a non-golfing membership and hoped his admittance would open the door for more African-Americans in the city. Dennis Archer, an associate justice of the Michigan Supreme Court, who would serve as Young’s mayoral successor, followed as a member. Detroit Golf Club has had three African-American presidents since 2003.

3. A flat challenge

Two weeks removed from a trip to Scotland, the PGA TOUR is far from those contours and now visiting the plains of the Midwest. When Detroit Golf Club entered the PGA TOUR rotation in 2019, its standard deviation of terrain change stood at 2.18 feet, edging TPC Louisiana (2.23) as the flattest course on TOUR.

For reference, the highest point at Augusta National Golf Club is 318 feet (No. 1 green) and the lowest point is 170 feet (No. 11 green). That’s a change of 148 feet. The elevation change at Detroit Golf Club from highest point to lowest point is roughly 43 feet.

While Donald Ross did apply some undulation to the fairways, the greens do not present the same runoff as Pinehurst No. 2. A century later, Detroit Golf Club holds up as a beautiful piece of property, but it has had its challenges holding up against the best PGA TOUR players in the world. The 2019 event’s cut line of 5 under was the PGA TOUR’s lowest since 2016. Nate Lashley won that year at 25 under.

Golf course superintendent Jake Mendoza, who had stints on the staff at Winged Foot and Medinah before taking the Detroit Golf Club gig in 2018, mentioned in 2020 the green speeds might have been conservative in 2019 and expressed an interest in speeding up the surfaces in 2020. The winner’s score dropped to 23 under in 2020 and 18 under in 2021.

Detroit Golf Club’s original starting hole, as designed by Donald Ross in 1916, provides players an opportunity to get off to a fast start. Players that manage to avoid the two bunkers that guard the left-side of the fairway on their tee shots will be left with a wedge into the green. The oak located to the right side of the tee box was bent by Native Americans to mark the trail they used when traveling from Detroit-to-Saginaw. At the base of the oak sits a bronze tablet memorializing this part of Detroit Golf Club’s celebrated history.

Accuracy off the tee is critical on the second hole, with out-of-bounds, bunkers and trees lining the fairway. Players will be left with a mid-to-short iron into the green depending on club selection off the tee, with many players opting to not hit driver.

The third hole is the only one on the South Course that will be used for tournament play. Players will need to avoid having too much spin on their approach shots into the green, which slopes dramatically from back to front. Any player finding themselves putting from above the hole will need to be careful should they wish to avoid the dreaded three-putt.

The longest hole on the course, the par 5 fourth will test big hitters should they attempt to reach this green in two. Players that opt to lay up will need to have an accurate approach shot to this contoured green should they wish to walk away with a birdie.

The tee shot on the uphill par 3 fifth plays slightly longer than the yardage to a blind green. Any back pin location has the potential to produce difficult putting conditions with a spine running across the back area of the green.

Accuracy off the tee on the sixth is at a premium. To have a clear approach to a two-tiered green, players will need to hit their tee shots down the left-side of the fairway while avoiding the fairway bunker. Any player that makes a birdie here will likely be picking up a stroke on the field.

Another tight driving hole. Accuracy off the tee on the seventh is at a premium for players trying to reach this par 5 in two. Players that don’t find the fairway will have to negotiate a challenging layup.

On the shortest par 4 on the course, club selection off the tee will be important as players look to avoid fairway bunkers and out-of-bounds. A two-tiered green also features a significant drop-off on its left-side, posing an interesting challenge.

The ninth is a long, beautiful and slightly downhill par 3 that plays about half a club shorter than the yardage. With multiple tee complexes stretching the hole between 175 to 207 yards, players will be faced with a challenging tee shot into a difficult and undulating green closely guarded by out-of-bounds. A birdie here will be a bonus.

An opportunity to get off to a quick start on the back nine. A solid tee shot on the dogleg left 10th leaves players with a short iron approach to the green. Birdies should be plentiful.

The 11th is the longest par 3 at Detroit Golf Club and features a large tee complex that allows the hole to be played anywhere from 180 to 233 yards long. Players will need to manage a green that looks deceptively simple from the tee, but which has a front bowl as well as several potential challenging hole locations.

Par is a great score on the long and difficult par 4 12th. Players managing to find the fairway will be left with a mid-iron into an elevated green which features a false front, causing any approach shot that comes-up short to roll off the green and down a steep slope.

The dogleg par 4 13th requires a precise tee shot. Many players will opt for a fairway wood or long iron off the tee to set up a short iron into the elevated green. Spectators should see lots of birdies on this hole.

A classic risk-reward par 5. The 14th will see a majority of players approaching it as a two-shot hole with long hitters only having a mid-to-long iron approach shot into this two-tiered green guarded by water in front. Those who elect to lay up on their second will need to control the spin on their shots due to a false front on the left side of the green.

A classic Donald Ross designed par 3 that plays longer than the posted yardage. The 15th features large bunkers protecting the front, left and right sides of the green.

Players will need to place their tee shots on the 16th short of the fairway bunkers that guard the landing area, leaving them with a mid-iron approach to the green. Many will face challenging birdie putts on what is one of the more underrated putting surfaces at Detroit Golf Club.

Fans can expect to see excitement on the reachable par-5 17th. Players will favor the right side of the fairway off the tee to set themselves up for a clean look at the green. A generous opening into the green will allow many to chase their second shots onto the putting surface. Coming down the stretch on Sunday, an eagle here could decide the tournament.

A great par 4 finishing hole. The 18th features a shallow ditch running the entire length that will dictate strategy from tee to green. With a fairway bunker and a large Sycamore tree on the left and bunkers on the right, a tee shot in the fairway will be critical, leaving just a short iron into the green. Once on the green, players will be faced with possibly the most difficult putting surface on the course. A par here very well may be all that is needed to win on Sunday.

4. Traditional test

Many old-time American golf courses present some easier holes on the front nine to help guide players into the round. Detroit Golf Club provides scoring opportunities early but also requires players to execute with precision when choosing to be aggressive.

The first side of the card is marked by a heavier tree line, with Nos. 6, 7 and 8 representing a trademark stretch on the course. These holes (4, 5 and 6 on the member layout) demand tee shots into tight fairways with undulation running balls off the sides of the short grass. Two-tiered greens await, as well, setting a fine line between one-putt opportunities and three-putt fits.

“We don’t have a lot of elevation change out here,” Mendoza told The Detroit News in 2019. “But there’s no flat lie anywhere on those three holes.”

No. 4 should also present some theatrics, as the par 5 is listed at a whopping 635 yards. Two precise woods are needed for a chance at reaching the green in two, and an errant tee shot into the trees could have even the longest hitters scrambling for par.

Nos. 17 and 18 represent a tale of two mindsets, as the 577-yard, par-5 17th played as Detroit Golf Club’s easiest hole in 2021 (4.6), while the 455-yard, par-4 18th ranked as the second most difficult at 4.1. In total, the front nine played to a 35.0 average last season, with the back nine playing to 35.5. Both nines play to par-36 for the TOUR field.

5. A forgotten Cinderella Ryder Cup

In 1937, the U.S. Ryder Cup Team, led by non-playing captain Walter Hagen, went to Southport and Ainsdale Golf Club in England and defeated Great Britain, 8-4, winning the final four singles matches behind Gene Sarazen, Sam Snead, Ed Dudley and Henry Picard. Two years later, World War II began in Europe and the Ryder Cup would not return until 1947.

At least, not officially.

Teams on both sides had actually been selected for the 1939 Ryder Cup, with Great Britain canceling two months before the competition. As the story goes, Hagen, who had been captain for all six Ryder Cups and was slated to be captain a seventh time, was bragging at an exhibition in Toledo about how his team would have defeated Great Britain again. Gene Sarazen, who at age 37 was slated to miss the Ryder Cup team for the first time, called out Hagen, saying he could put together a team that could knock off Hagen’s roster.

Hagen accepted the challenge and in 1940, Sarazen brought a team of challengers to Oakland Hills, near Detroit. With Ben Hogan, Jimmy Demaret and Craig Wood on his roster, Sarazen’s team fought gamely but ultimately lost, 7-5.

In 1941, this time at Detroit Golf Club, Sarazen bulked up his team, convincing amateur legend Bobby Jones to play. Jones ultimately served as a difference-maker, propelling the challengers to a stunning 8.5-6.5 win. In his highly anticipated singles match, Jones, who retired from all non-Masters majors after 1930, battled Picard, who had recently won the 1938 U.S. Open and 1939 PGA Championship. Jones won, 2 and 1, essentially adding one final legend to his name.

Remember D3: The Mighty Ducks, when Gordon Bombay and Ted Orion led the Eden Hall JV hockey team to a win over the varsity team? That’s basically what this was like.

This adjusted Ryder Cup format continued in 1942 at Oakland Hills and 1943 at Plum Hollow Country Club, also in the Detroit area, with the U.S. Team defeating the challengers on both occasions. Hagen, who missed out on the reselected team in 1942, actually played with the challengers those two years.