Host venue for the PGA Championship in 1953 and the US Women’s Amateur in 1968, the course at Birmingham Country Club was laid out by the prolific Tom Bendelow in 1920, four years after the club’s formation.
Host venue for the PGA Championship in 1953 and the US Women’s Amateur in 1968, the course at Birmingham Country Club was laid out by the prolific Tom Bendelow in 1920, four years after the club’s formation.
The first question for most golf course architecture aficionados when looking at a new course is to ask the architect. At Birmingham Country Club, a better question may be “who wasn’t an architect of record?” Tom Bendelow, Donald Ross, William Diddel, Robert Trent Jones, the Matthews brothers, and multiple stops by Arthur Hills have all occurred at this suburban Detroit layout.
One facet that no architect can tinker with is the Rouge River, which flows across the property and provides a fronting hazard for greens at Nos. 2, 10 and 18.
A more challenging opponent across the round will be the rolling greens themselves. Although it would be fair to assume these putting surfaces came from the pen of Ross, the Scot only provided consultation on the course during Bendelow’s design and construction of the second nine, and in fact the front nine (which feature some of the most impressive greens) had already been built. The signature hole is No. 6, which is hugged by a pond on the inside of the corner of the dogleg, and features a rather Himalayan green.
The club hosted the PGA Championship during 1953 and the U.S. Women's Amateur during 1968.
The latest ranking of the Top 100 Golf Courses in the World serves as the ultimate global golf bucket list. Most members of our World Top 100 Panel are seasoned golfers, each playing 20-30 of these courses annually while travelling extensively over decades to form their opinions on others. We recognise that opinions vary—even among our panel members. Rankings are subjective, and there are undoubtedly 50 or more courses in the UK and USA alone that could easily fit onto this list. Links Golf Pilgrimages The rankings
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