The Cedar River at Shanty Creek

About
Shanty Creek in Bellaire is one of northern Michigan's most popular golfing destinations, offering 72 holes of championship golf. The Cedar River Course was Tom Weiskopf's first design in Michigan. It has been ranked as one of the top 100 resort golf courses in the country. The layout closely follows the natural contours of the landscape, providing a wealth of unique shot opportunities. The dramatic elevation changes define the traditional layout, which gives an excellent rhythm to the course. The course will appeal to low and high handicappers alike offering a mix of generous landing areas and ones that require accurate tee shots and approaches. The 13th and 14th holes are quite unique and located in the most scenic section of the golf course. They play across rolling hills framed by tall heather and fescue as well as strategically placed bunkers and trees.
Tee | Par | Length | Rating | Slope |
---|---|---|---|---|
Black | 72 | 6980 yards | 73.2 | 135 |
Blue | 72 | 6530 yards | 70.9 | 131 |
White | 72 | 5965 yards | 68.5 | 124 |
White (W) | 72 | 5965 yards | 74.5 | 136 |
Silver | 72 | 5397 yards | 66.0 | 116 |
Red | 72 | 5315 yards | 70.3 | 121 |
Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Out | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | In | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Black M: 74.0/138 | 458 | 396 | 581 | 190 | 442 | 357 | 425 | 202 | 559 | 3610 | 532 | 206 | 465 | 297 | 163 | 518 | 401 | 184 | 604 | 3370 | 6980 |
Blue M: 71.7/134 W: 77.9/144 | 427 | 372 | 553 | 170 | 418 | 341 | 383 | 176 | 537 | 3377 | 510 | 183 | 421 | 285 | 144 | 490 | 375 | 164 | 581 | 3153 | 6530 |
Blue/White M: 70.5/131 W: 76.5/141 | 388 | 372 | 553 | 148 | 390 | 341 | 325 | 149 | 537 | 3203 | 510 | 151 | 391 | 285 | 144 | 490 | 343 | 147 | 581 | 3042 | 6245 |
White M: 69.4/127 W: 75.0/138 | 388 | 350 | 508 | 148 | 390 | 317 | 325 | 149 | 495 | 3070 | 474 | 151 | 391 | 272 | 144 | 455 | 343 | 147 | 518 | 2895 | 5965 |
White/Silver M: 67.9/124 W: 73.4/133 | 338 | 333 | 508 | 125 | 352 | 317 | 325 | 126 | 495 | 2919 | 474 | 128 | 357 | 272 | 135 | 455 | 309 | 118 | 518 | 2766 | 5685 |
Silver M: 66.6/120 W: 71.5/128 | 338 | 333 | 440 | 125 | 352 | 273 | 320 | 126 | 444 | 2751 | 441 | 128 | 357 | 265 | 135 | 396 | 309 | 118 | 497 | 2646 | 5397 |
Red M: 66.0/117 W: 70.7/126 | 333 | 330 | 435 | 121 | 346 | 269 | 316 | 122 | 439 | 2711 | 437 | 124 | 352 | 260 | 131 | 391 | 304 | 114 | 491 | 2604 | 5315 |
Handicap | 7 | 11 | 3 | 13 | 1 | 17 | 9 | 15 | 5 | 6 | 12 | 2 | 16 | 18 | 10 | 8 | 14 | 4 | |||
Par | 4 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 36 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 36 | 72 |
Course Details
Rentals/Services
Practice/Instruction
Policies
Food & Beverage
RestaurantAvailable Facilities
Clubhouse, Meeting Facilities, Banquet Facilities, SpaAvailable Sports
FitnessAccolades
Reviews
Reviewer Photos
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Photo submitted by Ritzie89 on 10/03/2023
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Photo submitted by Ritzie89 on 10/03/2023
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Photo submitted by Ritzie89 on 10/03/2023
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Photo submitted by u710191935 on 05/19/2021
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Photo submitted by u710191935 on 05/19/2021
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Beautiful fall day at Cedar River # 14 tee. Photo submitted by Tom9431645 on 02/02/2021
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#9 - Par-5 (Green) Photo submitted by BryanTweed16 on 08/02/2020
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#5 - Par-4 (Approach) Photo submitted by BryanTweed16 on 08/02/2020
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#7 - Par-4 Photo submitted by BryanTweed16 on 08/02/2020
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#12 - Par-4 Photo submitted by BryanTweed16 on 08/02/2020
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#14 - Par-3 Photo submitted by BryanTweed16 on 08/02/2020
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#18 - Par-5 (Approach) Photo submitted by BryanTweed16 on 08/02/2020
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3rd hole fairway Photo submitted by HOTSPOTTS on 06/13/2018
This is one of the best courses in Northern Michigan.
We have played Cedar River at different times throughout the years and it is always in pristine shape. The course is great for players of all levels. Most favorite of all is the beautiful scenery.
Cedar River GC
Amazing day! 4.7🌟 course. Conditions we’re perfect; pace of play was amazing finishing under 4 hrs.
Layout of the 18 holes ia optimal for all golfing levels.
Disappointed the grille wasn’t open. 1/2 way house was open.
Really enjoyed the day! Staff aurora friendly and welcoming.
A “must” play.
#5 pace of play in 2022.....not this year!!!
I've lost count of how many times I've played Cedar over the years. In fact it's one of my favorite courses to play - Weiskopf designed fabulous fun golf courses didn't he?
It was the weekend but 112 bucks (guest rate of member) is pretty ridiculous....most I think I've ever paid for Cedar since it opened. You get great service and smiles all the way around but for pretty much the entire day we were stacked up on the tee box with the group in front of us. I guess when people are spending that much to play golf (course was packed to the gills) they feel like they can do most anything including play slowly. We had a guy in front of us who threw his club helicopter style at least three times in anger. Both groups in front of us were first timers - the 5th hole is a bottleneck and on the back nine the 12th hole brings pace to a crawl.....so how the heck Golf Advisor ranked Cedar #5 in 2022 for pace of play is beyond me. It's at least a 4.5 plus hour round on weekends.
Range to warm up on which is on the way to the first tee box. Greens were in great shape, traps were just ok and Shanty owners should have them refurbished especially for the amount of coin they now charge. Halfway house is credit card only. You can visit it after #2 and #9. Abnormally dry early season weather has patches of fairwaybrowning out. With the amount of rounds this course gets there are quite a few sand filled divots in the fairways.
Always a solid 4 star plus experience....except it's getting to be a bit too pricey and three are courses just as good nearby that charge far less.Recommend however your wallet will be much lighter.....Cedar isn't a $100 plus experience.....charging that you should expect perfect conditions as well as no pace of play issues..
Rock filled sand traps
Course was in great shape. Major problem are the sand traps which contain lots of small rocks. There are also many holes with blind shots. At what they charge, $169, I would expect pristine sand traps and better design to eliminate blind shots. We won't be back.
What a wonderful course. Don' t miss the chance to play
Must Play
AWESOME COURSE, a must play if your in the area. Challenging but fair. Was here the week before Labor Day and had the course to ourselves. Can’t wait to play it again.
Must Play Course
Cedar River is an amazing golf course you definitely have to play in Northern Michigan. It has very unique holes that make you reconsider your shoot. I personally think this is the most beautiful golf course in Shanty Creek because of the condition it is always in and the design . The fairways are also wider then the fairways at The Legend so you have more room for error.
Favorite course
Favorite course up north. A Challenge but fair. Great greens.

Thank you for taking the time to review us. Your feedback is valuable, and we look forward to delivering you excellent service again soon. The Cedar River at Shanty Creek thanks you!
Favorite Course at Resort
Shanty Creek is my favorite course at the resort. Course was in above average condition for my fall round - some issues with leaves, but that is to be expected this time of year.
The layout is one of the best in the area. The elevation changes and green sites are some of my favorite in northern michigan.
Hello. We appreciate the review. You rated us 3-stars which means there is room to improve on your recent experience at The Cedar River at Shanty Creek. Let us know, in the comments, how and where you would like to see changes from the course. Thanks for the feedback!