Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
USA Today Sports Media Group
USA Today Sports Media Group
Sport
Jason Lusk

Photos: Feast your eyes on every hole at Belvedere, a step back in time in Michigan

CHARLEVOIX, Mich. – The past several weeks at home in still-steamy Florida have me dreaming of golf in different climates and some of the cooler places, both literally and figuratively, I have visited in recent months. In my mind, I keep hitting on the spots that offer a classic vibe, a great course and just a perfect atmosphere for golf.

Belvedere Golf Club in northern Michigan ticks all those boxes. Nestled inland between Lake Michigan and Lake Charlevoix, its nines divided by a two-lane road, Belvedere is a step back in time with a central ridge that keeps balls rolling up and down hills the entire round.

Built by William Watson and opened in 1927, the layout was restored by Bruce Hepner starting in 2016. Hepner and longtime course superintendent Rick Grunch (who has since retired) received a blessing when Watson’s original drawings were uncovered in an old building nearby, giving them the blueprint for a restoration. The greens were returned to their original dimensions, their internal contours paired with frequent runoffs to keep players on their toes.

The back nine at Belvedere Golf Club in Charlevoix, Mich. (Golfweek)

Belvedere ranks No. 6 in a very stacked Michigan on Golfweek’s Best list of top public-access courses in each state, and it also ties for No. 192 among all classic courses built before 1960 in the U.S.

Rankings aside, it’s just a very cool place to spend a day. There’s the right-sized clubhouse, its pro shop lined with photos of top professionals who have ambled through. It’s a private club that accepts some outside play, and it’s the type of course that surely makes every guest ponder a membership application. The peak guest green fee for walkers is listed as $125 in 2023, and the offseason rate is half that – a bargain for the experience.

I was lucky enough to play it for the third time this summer, and the experience was too good not to share. So here goes: photos of every hole at Belvedere, with multiple shots of some holes.

No. 1 at Belvedere Golf Club (No. 1 is also pictured atop this story) is a…
No. 2 at Belvedere Golf Club, a 447-yard par 4, plays over a creek off the…
No. 3 at Belvedere Golf Club, playing into the morning sun, is a 434-yard par 4…
No. 4 at Belvedere Golf Club, a 230-yard par 3, has a bunker well short of…
The view from closer to No. 4 green shows the contours prevalent throughout the course. (Golfweek)
No. 5 at Belvedere Golf Club, a 537-yard par 5, doglegs left before crossing the creek…
No. 6 at Belvedere Golf Club, a 383-yard par 4, doglegs hard right and over the…
The approach to No. 6 at Belvedere climbs a hill to a green sloped severely from…
No. 7 at Belvedere Golf Club is a straight, 460-yard par 4 that tees off through…
The green at No. 7 at Belvedere, as seen from behind the putting surface, is unbunkered.…
No. 8 at Belvedere Golf Club is a 162-yard par 3 that plays to a green…
No. 9 at Belvedere Golf Club is a 478-yard par 5 (pictured from behind the green)…
After crossing Marion Center Road, No. 10 at Belvedere Golf Club is a 527-yard par 5…
No. 11 at Belvedere Golf Club parallels No. 10 in the opposite direction, a 394-yard par…
No. 12 at Belvedere Golf Club is a 424-yard par 4 with a fairway tilted from…
No. 13 at Belvedere Golf Club is a 414-yard par 4 with a tilted fairway that…
No. 14 at Belvedere Golf Club is a 200-yard par 3 with three bunkers guarding a…
No. 15 at Belvedere Golf Club is a 465-yard par 5 that plays straight for its…
No. 16 at Belvedere Golf Club (pictured from behind the green) is one of the best…
No. 17 at Belvedere Golf Club is a 179-yard par 3 with no greenside bunkers but…
No. 18 at Belvedere Golf Club is a 456-yard par 4 that bends slightly to the…
Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.