Michigan Golf Journal October 2021

the Michigan Open at Grand Traverse. It allowed a short trip over to Leelanau to which I published a short story in the July edition. This is a paraphrase of some of the comments I made mid-summer that still hold very true: There is always hesitancy when someone in marketing or in the media uses words like ‘breathtaking views’ or ‘incredible vistas’ to describe any golf course destination. With that fair warning I can honestly say a course I’ve never heard of before, fits those exact descriptions – the 20-year-old Bahle Farms Golf Course – nestled on high ridges of central Leelanau County. Of the courses I have played in Michigan, this little-known course is easily in Michigan’s top 5 courses of those laid out across so many drastic elevation changes and rolling hills. The tee boxes at No. 10 and 11 (cover photo) are easily 100 feet above the fairways below. They are the most severe drop offs on this course and the photos from the tee boxes look like they are taken by drones – but literally every hole except the par 3 Hole No. 4 over a pond and No. 13 (which cuts through the heart of a cherry orchard) is built on land that goes uphill or downhill Continues on page 14>> 18 th Green 13 October 2021 www.michigangolfjournal.com