Renowned golf course designer Arthur Hills passed away May 18. He was age 91.
A graduate of both MSU (science) and Michigan (landscape architecture), Hills excelled at golf as a member of the MSU Spartan golf team. He formed his golf course architecture firm in the 1960s and went on to design more than 200 courses and renovate another 150.
His Michigan works include two award-winning layouts at Boyne – the highly-esteemed Bay Harbor Golf Club, and The Hills at Boyne Highlands. He also created Red Hawk near Tawas and renovated MSU’s Forest Akers courses.
An environmental pioneer, Hills designed the first Audubon Signature Sanctuary courses in the United States, Mexico and Europe. The late Pete Dye dubbed Hills “the Mayor of Naples” for the number of private country club courses that he designed in and near that coastal Florida location.
Other Michigan gems include: Shepherd’s Hollow in Clarkston, Fox Hills in Plymouth, Stonebridge in Ann Arbor, Fieldstone in Auburn Hills, The Moors in Portage, Lyon Oaks in Wixom, Oakhurst in Clarkston, Hawks Head in South Haven, Egypt Valley in Ada, Lakes of Taylor, Glacier Club in Washington Township and Pine Trace in Rochester.
