Macatawa Legends GC in Holland, MI

[larrybud]

Got to play this course for the Michigan Net Am this past weekend. I went with a buddy on Saturday for a practice round, and tournament was on Saturday and Sunday. I'm not clear on whether or not this is a private club. I believe it was going to be private, but due to the Michigan economy, they've made it public.

 

I have to say, for all the big talk, I was NOT impressed. This was one of the most boring courses I've ever played.

 

First the positives: The staff was great, and gave us an excellent deal on the practice round of only $30. After we played 18, we went in and asked if we could play another 9, and the pro just let us go for free. The course is in excellent shape. The greens are super smooth, and IMO, too fast for their design, but more on that later.

 

Range balls are also complimentary. I think the regular rate is $90 here. The cart guys gave us some really cool yardage books (they're not for keeps, however). They were plastic with all the yardages you want. There was only one time that I was surprised by some water that cut in near the green, but everything else is right in front of you.

 

The range is nice with excellent grass tees, a short game area, and a big practice green that mimics the greens on the course. The balls are very good pinnacle practice balls.

 

Now, the course... the condition is excellent, but the layout is absolutely BOR-ING. The course is only a couple of years old, and the trees that are planted are no more than 12-15 feet high. Basically saplings everywhere except for one tree, on #6. The terrain is flat, with a little bit of roll to the fairways. There are fairway bunkers that don't give that much of a fit, and the rough isn't difficult at all. I was hitting my 4-wood and 2 iron hybrid out of it all day without a problem. There are a couple of lakes on the property, but the fact that you can literally aim 100 yards away from the water takes them out of play for the most part. About the only water that comes into play is the approach on #2 (par 5), and on #18.

 

There is no OB to speak of, except for the 11th hole which is probably 50 yards left of the FW, so you'd really have to jack one. I'm sorry to say, but there aren't any memorable holes on this course. I'd say the best holes were the par 3's, with large bunkers that had fescue growing in them. The local rule was to play these as waste bunkers, but in the tourney we had to play them as regular bunkers.

 

As easy as this course plays from green to tee, it's equally difficult on the greens. The day we played they stimped at around 11-12 and they are REALLY sloped. They are big greens, and they were borderline unfair at that speed. Several players had 5-6 foot putts downhill that barely trickled by the hole, only to end up 10 feet under the hole. Kind of a joke, if you ask me.

 

The only other complaint I had was that the green do not hold. I'm sure this is due to the fact that they're only 2 years old, so give it another couple and they should be better. I can't recall one ball that backed up, and that was even after it rained each night.

 

So that, coupled with really fast greens made it nearly impossible to get a ball close to a front pin location, since the fairways were VERY soft from the rain, and you could not bounce one up if you tried.

 

Maybe in 20 years when the trees grow a bit this course might be something, or if they grew up the 2" rough, but for now I would not recommend it for the $90 they get.

 

However, if you're in the area, we played a course south of this one in New Haven called "Hawks Head" that I would REALLY recommend. When I get some time I'll write up a review of it and post some pics.