Links/Quarry

Par 4 • 437 yards • A steep ride up to the tee will reveal the awe-inspiring vista that Bay Harbor is famous for. Again, there is plenty of room to miss it here, but playing from any of the fairway bunkers or rough make the approach to the green that much more difficult. Get too greedy on a front hole location and the false front will certainly claim you as another victim.

Par 4 • 380 yards • Here is your first real decision of the round. The split level fairway rolls down from the landing area on top right to the bottom of the swale o the left. Longer hitters will often try and either draw a shot off of the hill or make the forced carry on the bottom shelf. Though this will result in a shorter approach, it also makes for a blind shot to an elevated green. Playing out to the right will add a club or two, but the shot is from a similar elevation to the green. A huge bunker in front can be torture.

Par 3 • 178 yards • Soak it in. The view from this magnificent par three is truly incredible. Those that are not completely distracted by the views of Little Traverse Bay will need to play there tee shot to the proper side of a two level green for the best shot at birdie. Be aware of the natural slope that runs through the center of the green, falling from top right to bottom left. Too far left here and it won't matter if you are shaken or stirred... you'll simply be on the rocks!

Par 4 • 351 yards • A sharp dogleg to the right, the fifth hole requires a tee shot over a natural dune to a wide landing area. The further to the right, the shorter the hole becomes, but be careful not to 'handcuff' yourself by getting too close to this elevated green that has one of the most severe false fronts at BOYNE. Play it too safe to the back right part of the green and you may find yourself all the way down to the bottom of a devilish green side bunker. Get stuck in there and your playing partners may have to call for help!

Par 4 • 418 yards • Nothing crazy here... Nothing easy either. A good tee shot will need to fit somewhere between the natural dunescape on the left and the tall fescue grass on the right. The green can be very tricky and will not welcome errant shots kindly. Par here is good news.

Par 5 • 500 yards • Regarded by many as one of the finest golf holes anywhere, the seventh is a par 5 that stretches all along a cliff, high above Lake Michigan. A good tee shot seems to fly out into the water, but never fear, there is plenty of room. What will be a challenge are the moguls and bunkering on the left side of the fairway. An aggressive play to go for the green here is all uphill, but there is enough room short of the green that makes a nice safety net if your shot is not struck well. It is much easier to find yourself below the hole here on this green that slopes from left to right, back to front.

Par 3 • 225 yards • This downhill par three will test your nerve. The green is flanked by a large bunker that stretches from the front of the green all the way to the back left. Prevailing winds can play havoc on your club selection so choose carefully and be very aware of the wind. Many will need to play a driver when the wind is up.

Par 4 • 490 yards • Hugging the hazard as tightly as possible to the right will lead to a far easier approach to this wonderfully contoured green. There is plenty of room out to the left, but you can add 30-50 yards pretty easily, making this long hole even more difficult.

Par 4 • 380 yards • A short starting hole, your tee shot should be negotiated down the left center to prevent the trees on the right from inhibiting your approach. The green has a natural dune area to the left and bunker protecting the front.

Par 3 • 202 yards • A wild par 3 that features huge slopes on and around the green. The only miss here is all the way at the bottom of the slope on the front left. Everywhere else is either hazard or it might as well be. Leaving here in three shots is always a good thing.

Par 5 • 561 yards • Enter 'The Quarry'! This is where things get really interesting. Conservative play is recommended, but with so many visual distractions, the PGA tour star in all of us will be sure to come out and try the improbable. The best route here is to just get something in the fairway and then aim your second shot to finish at the boulder on the side of the hill. There is a collection area at the front of the green that will give you a little room, but is at the bottom of a 30 foot high hill! The green has two tiers that will play further havoc for those that are not on the appropriate level.

Par 4 • 435 yards • Avoid the right hand side fairway bunkers, or hit it way over to the other side of them which is also the fifth fairway. The green has a large pond that will claim anything to the right side. There are moguls to the left and behind the green that can make for a slippery chip shot back towards the water.

Par 4 • 441 yards • From most tees, you will be faced with a forced carry over water. The green will still not be in view for the second shot and the fairway jots to the left of a pond as you approach the green. A giant cliff with waterfall behind the green creates yet another picturesque memory of Bay Harbor. The green has a few different ridges that create a challenge for putts that travel across one or more of them.

Par 4 • 332 yards • The biggest risk at Bay Harbor, the green is a mere peninsula amidst the wetlands of the bottom of the quarry. From the back tees, it takes a blast of 300 yards to reach the green with accuracy being just as important as distance. Pull it off and you could make an eagle. If the wind is not in your favor or you simply want to take the sensible route, position your tee shot down the fairway and set up a short iron approach. But, c'mon you didn't come here to lay up, did you?

Par 4 • 406 yards • Yet again, a forced carry awaits you off the tee. You will see a large bunker that is an island in the center of the fairway. The safest route is to play to the right of this bunker. Some will be able to carry their ball over it and some will play to the left which will leave the shortest shot to the green but also requires the longest carry from the tee.

Par 3 • 172 yards • Bay Harbor's answer to the seventh at Pebble Beach. A downhill par 3 with nothing behind it but an indescribable panorama of Little Traverse Bay. Club selection can vary by up to 3 or 4 clubs more or less than normal depending on the wind. Any balls that miss short will splash straight into a boulder faced pond. Putting to hole locations toward the back of the green will probably have some nasty snap to it.

Par 4 • 391 yards • Take a peek at how far the end of the fairway is from the tee before you select a club. Some may not need a driver. The fairway falls downhill at the landing area, adding yardage to most drives. The approach shot is all downhill to a thin green that is guarded by a bunker on the front right. Most everything on this green will break toward the lake. Just be sure you consider every angle as you should on every putt at Bay Harbor.