Set within an Ohio state park, the Maumee Bay Lodge & Conference Center on Lake Erie near Toledo is an oasis of outdoor adventures - including tennis, pickleball, basketball, trails and a two-mile wetland boardwalk for hiking and biking (including rentals), outdoor pool, shuffleboard, horseshoes, an Arthur Hills-designed golf course and 57-acre…
The Ann Arbor Marriott Ypsilanti at Eagle Crest overlooks Ford Lake, much like the adjacent Eagle Crest Golf Club, home of the Eastern Michigan University men's and women's golf teams. The hotel offers 40,000 square feet of indoor/outdoor event space. It is minutes from EMU's campus in Ypsilanti and the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. Golfers…
Put-in-Bay, a village on South Bass Island in Lake Erie accessible only by ferry, is known as a family getaway of resorts and lakefront rentals that gets a little rowdy after dark, attracting college students and bachelor and bachelorette parties. The Saunders Cottages and Golf Course sits on the west side of Put-in-Bay far enough away from the…
Toledo, Ohio is located minutes south of the Michigan-Ohio border at the western tip of Lake Erie and located about an hour's drive south of Detroit, Michigan. The city has a storied history in golf. It is home to the Inverness Club, whose Donald Ross-designed course is over a century old and has hosted four U.S. Opens, two PGA Championships and the women's 2021 Solheim Cup. It also has one of the oldest municipal courses in the country, Ottawa Park, which was founded in 1899. The nearby city of Sylvania also has some prestige as a longtime host of an LPGA event at Highland Meadows, which dates back to the 1920s. Sylvania Country Club is also noteworthy as a venue where Byron Nelson and Arnold Palmer have won championships. Off the course, Toledo is home to the Toledo Museum of Art, with its vast collection of modern and Renaissance work. Reflecting the city’s legacy of glass production, the museum's Glass Pavilion showcases thousands of glass works. By the Maumee River, the Imagination Station is a children's science museum with hands-on exhibits. The Toledo Zoo has polar bears, rides and an aquarium. The Toledo Mud Hens are also a AAA baseball team and affiliate of the Detroit Tigers.
Detroit has a rich history of cars, sports and music, from Motown and the MC5, to Eminem and Kid Rock. It's golf legacy is also strong. Walter Hagen was the first head professional at Oakland Hills Country Club, which would go on to host the U.S. Open, PGA Championship, Ryder Cup and many other top events. Donald Ross designed numerous courses around Detroit in his hayday, including a few public courses like Rackham Park and Warren Valley.
After enduring 40 years of one of the most ill-conceived modernizations in championship golf, Inverness Golf Club, storied host of the U.S. Open and other majors, has been restored.
College towns aren't just for football Saturdays. Golfers will find that their mix of nightlife, culture and courses might serve up the ideal golf buddies trip. We look at 10 of the best.