The next course on our trip was Tullymore Golf Club. Tullymore is in Stanwood, about an hour north of Grand Rapids. The course is a Jim Engh design, which pushed it towards the top of my “must play” list while driving through this part of Michigan. If you’ve followed my page much you’ll know that I usually enjoy an Engh design. He is one of my favorite architects.
It wasn’t busy on another beautiful spring day. We really lucked out with the weather on this trip. My friend and I were able to play at our own pace and made it around in about three and a half hours. As it turns out, that pace felt quite good on this tough layout. I played the black tees and from there the slope is an eye-popping 146. The rating is 72.2 and the distance 6,547 yards. From the silver tees the slope is 150. Don’t see those figures often!
Tullymore is a wooded/wetlands style course and all the wetlands is what mainly makes it so tough. There is a lot of water and lost ball trouble once you get beyond the rough. If you hit a wild shot there is a good chance you won’t find it. I wouldn’t say the holes are overly narrow, but everything looked tighter than it really was. There are quite a few forced carries over the trouble as well. Someone will do well to shoot their handicap here.
Engh’s design style also adds to the difficultly. Unique bunkering, blind landing areas and green complexes with some funk kept me guessing. Like other Engh courses I’ve played the bunkers at Tullymore are designed in a zigzag manner. Some bunkers are deep and definitely a penalty. The green complexes are fun and interesting. Many times I could see just the top half of the flagstick on the approach shots. One of Engh’s signature features are greens that have small (or big) bowls. If the pin is in the right spot the ball can catch a bank and roll close. But, the trick is knowing where the slopes are so you can use them to your advantage.
My favorite thing about Tullymore was its presentation. There aren’t many homes on the course and each hole felt like it was in its own little world. Just golfers and nature. Tee boxes, fairways and greens are framed by pines and hardwoods nearby. There are also risk/reward elements throughout the course with the different lines that can be taken.
There are a number of fun holes at Tullymore. On the front nine my favorites were the 313 yard par-4 3rd and the 186 yard par-3 7th. The 3rd could be driveable and is one of the holes where the green sits in a depression. There are a number of trees that guard the fairway so only a well thought out – and executed – drive will leave a clear approach shot. The 7th plays over a wetlands area to a green that is framed by trees.
On the back nine I liked the 10th and the 18th holes. The 10th is a 414 yard par-4 with a fairway that slopes to the left, towards a pond. The hole looked like one that could be found in the Pacific Northwest. The 18th is a reachable par-5 that could be a birdie chance. My drive landed in the fairway and from there I tried to hit a high hook – around a tree – to go for the green in two. If you know what you are doing (I didn’t) there is a large bank to the right of the green that can kick shots towards the flag.
The green fee was $100 which seemed reasonable. Tullymore is normally ranked among the best public courses in Michigan. I can see that. The course was the lushest of any we played on the trip. Everything was in mint shape. The greens were smooth and fast.
I liked a lot about Tullymore and would recommend it. My only complaint is that there were a number of trees in lines I wanted to take. Tullymore won’t blow you away like Fossil Trace or Lakota Links, but the topography here is completely different compared to those two masterpieces. An Engh course isn’t for everyone, but if you like his work then I think you’ll like Tullymore too.
Course Pictures (click any picture to scroll through the gallery):