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The West at Forest Akers Golf Course
Rating Snapshot
About
The West Course at Forest Akers is one of two 18-hole courses owned and operated by Michigan State University in East Lansing. The West is the premier tournament layout for the Spartan golf teams and also hosted the Division III Women’s National Golf Championship in 2021. The rolling and forested layout was originally designed by Bruce Matthews but was extensively renovated in the 1990s by Arthur Hills and received further updates in 2010. In the early 2000s, a new clubhouse and hotel was built on property that altered the routing of the golf course. There is also an extensive practice facility across the street at the East course and accessible to the public. The West Course is considered one of the Midwest’s finest, public-access campus courses and one of the best layouts in the Lansing area.
| Tee | Par | Length | Rating | Slope |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black | 72 | 7013 yards | 75.3 | 141 |
| Black (W) | 72 | 7013 yards | 81.9 | 154 |
| Green | 72 | 6412 yards | 71.7 | 137 |
| Green (W) | 72 | 6412 yards | 77.8 | 140 |
| White | 72 | 5694 yards | 68.6 | 127 |
| White (W) | 72 | 5694 yards | 73.6 | 134 |
| Fossum | 72 | 5307 yards | 66.5 | 127 |
| Fossum (W) | 72 | 5307 yards | 71.3 | 129 |
| Silver | 72 | 5012 yards | 65.5 | 114 |
| Silver (W) | 72 | 5012 yards | 69.8 | 126 |
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Out | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | In | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black M: 75.3/141 W: 81.9/154 | 423 | 592 | 426 | 322 | 338 | 436 | 202 | 546 | 184 | 3469 | 214 | 414 | 227 | 494 | 415 | 394 | 427 | 514 | 422 | 3521 | 6990 |
| Green M: 71.7/137 W: 77.8/140 | 381 | 562 | 389 | 294 | 316 | 394 | 174 | 495 | 163 | 3168 | 165 | 384 | 213 | 460 | 385 | 366 | 399 | 477 | 385 | 3234 | 6402 |
| White M: 68.2/130 W: 73.6/134 | 340 | 472 | 372 | 279 | 276 | 344 | 145 | 451 | 138 | 2817 | 154 | 346 | 182 | 431 | 356 | 334 | 304 | 428 | 342 | 2877 | 5694 |
| Fossom M: 66.5/127 | 310 | 472 | 322 | 270 | 276 | 290 | 112 | 451 | 114 | 2617 | 154 | 346 | 153 | 431 | 317 | 295 | 304 | 428 | 269 | 2697 | 5314 |
| Fossum W: 71.3/129 | 310 | 472 | 322 | 270 | 276 | 290 | 112 | 451 | 114 | 2617 | 154 | 346 | 153 | 431 | 317 | 295 | 304 | 428 | 269 | 2697 | 5314 |
| Silver M: 65.5/121 W: 69.8/126 | 310 | 406 | 322 | 270 | 252 | 290 | 112 | 420 | 114 | 2496 | 140 | 258 | 153 | 404 | 317 | 295 | 294 | 371 | 269 | 2501 | 4997 |
| Handicap | 11 | 9 | 1 | 15 | 17 | 3 | 7 | 5 | 13 | 18 | 4 | 8 | 14 | 16 | 10 | 6 | 12 | 2 | |||
| Par | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 36 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 36 | 72 |
| Handicap (W) | 9 | 1 | 7 | 11 | 15 | 5 | 13 | 3 | 17 | 14 | 6 | 10 | 2 | 16 | 18 | 8 | 12 | 4 |
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Reviews
Reviewer Photos
Fun Day on the Spartan's Home Course
If you find yourself in the Lansing area make the West Course at Forest Acres your choice for round of golf. This was my first time at the MSU facility. I found the course in great shape. The greens rolled true and were very receptive to approach shots. The fairways were well kept and in equally soft condition. The course layout will challenge golfers of a wide variety of skill levels. The starter was friendly and helpful. Pace of play was great no waiting overall a great 1st experience. Go play it!
Great course that will test your skills
The course itself is always in great shape and a pleasure to play. Will test your skills on every hole. The worst part is the pace of play everytime I play here. Tee times scheduled only 8 minutes apart from each other and no ranger ever deals with groups that are beyond slow. Be prepared for 5+ hour rounds.
Tough and Tight Narrow fairways...
I'm a 3 handicap and wanted to have a nice wide open course to play since I'm traveling through and had been on the highway for 10 hours the day before. Tried to get on the easier East course but there were no tee times so I played at the West. Tight from the very first hole. In fantastic shape with great greens, but lots of dog-legs into tight spots... I think if I played this course five times I would have it figured out and score well, but playing it for the first time was a bit frustrating. Maybe I just need to learn to hit the ball straighter like Dottie Pepper who played college golf here!!
Enjoyable Place
My son and I played the West Course on a picture perfect day and it was in great shape.
Course was in great condition
Really enjoyed the course, was setup very well. The greens were in excellent condition, rolled true!
Great fairways
Course was nice. Greens were fast with some slopes. Great day.
Poor people skills
Booked online , I’m handicapped. Drove 35 miles there and when I arrived I was told cart path only!!! No exceptions. I asked why they don’t notify these online websites so it can be conveyed to us golfers. They instructed me it wasn’t something they felt they needed to do and if I had a problem with it I needed to deal with the booking company(golfnow) since I had already paid for my golf I asked if they would at least give me a 9 hole rain check since I could not play the 18 I paid for plus the 35 miles there and 35 miles back. I was told absolutely not they did not feel they had any liability in letting us golfers know in advance, they were very snotty about it actually. . I’ve also had 2 cases where I booked tee times with them only to drive there to be told they were closed for tournaments. Again they were not willing to do anything for us golfers, not even offer some free range balls or anything, their customer service stinks to put it mildly!!
Hello Michael, thank you for taking the time to review us. We apologize for any confusion or misunderstanding regarding your recent reservation. If you have any questions regarding your GolfNow reservations in the future, please do not hesitate to contact their customer service team at 1 (800) 767-3574. We value your feedback and hope to welcome you back for another round soon.
Forrest Akers West
I course was in excellent condition, quite wet but that couldn't be helped as its rained five days in a row. Greens were smooth and rolled well. I live five miles away so play here all the time. I enjoy it every time as it's a challenging.course.
Great walking course ...
Course was in great shape for early season. Greens were a little slow ((#16 was COVERED with 'helicopters') and the rough was thicker than normal, indicating an upcoming collegiate competition possibly.
This is a great course to walk. Our threesome walked it inside 4 hours, on a Friday, and never waited or pushed anyone. Only oddity is the back-to-back par 3's (#9 and #10) and a string of 4 par three's in 6 holes all placed between #7 and #12. This course is sneaky hard ... very much a parkland style course that looks easier than it is.
Great value
The young lady that checked us in was very nice and helpful. The course was in excellent shape for this time of year and we moved along quickly at a nice pace. The value for the price was great.
Great course.
I used to hate this course but the more I play it the better I like the layout. It’s tough but rewards great shots. Greens always in great shape and roll true.
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You really got a thing for Dottie Pepper