Best public golf course in Oakland County offers all the solitude in the world
This is the sixth and final entry in a series looking at the best public golf courses in the six-county metro Detroit area.
There's simply no getting around the massive advantage Shepherd's Hollow Golf Club enjoys. It sits on 350 acres of undulating, wooded terrain in Clarkston that sits next to a park-like retreat for Jesuits priests and brothers.
Advertisement
There isn't a more beautiful and serene setting for a golf course in metro Detroit, if not the entire state, and that's why we're picking it as the Free Press' Top Public Golf Course in Oakland County
If the mere setting was all that Shepherd's Hollow offered, it still might be enough to earn it scores of accolades. But Shepherd's Hollow is so much more than a setting.
A round here is a holistic, luxe experience that starts from the winding drive through the tall pines onto the property. It lasts until the final bite of seared scallops grenobloise and truffle fries paired with Moet and Chandon champagne during a post-round meal in the handsome white clubhouse reminiscent of South Carolina's Low Country estates.
MORE GOLF: Michigan's best 20 public golf courses rankings
Advertisement
Between your arrival and departure, you get an exquisite taste of some of the prettiest 27 holes of golf anywhere in Michigan. Like very few other courses in metro Detroit, the scenery, undulating topography and secluded nature of the entire property make Shepherd's Hollow feel like a true facsimile of playing Up North.
Any combination of two nines stretch past 7,000 yards. That's long enough, but when you factor in plenty of hilly terrain, the length often feels like more than enough challenge. Yet it's never too much because of the sheer straightforward beauty of Arthur Hills' classic, minimalist design. There are generous fairways and large greens that make it eminently playable for anyone, as long as they stick to the right tees, because the course can also play shorter than 5,000 yards.
One of the keys to the isolated serenity is the expansiveness of the property. Shepherd's Hollow claims another 27 holes could have fit on its 350 acres. But instead of crowding golfers, the course's ample space has bestowed up on players the benefit of solitude. If you stay on pace, and off your phone, there are times you feel the world doesn't exist beyond this tranquil forest of solitude.
Being located on the second-highest point in Oakland County also offers Shepherd's Hollow the distinct advantage of providing plenty of elevated tees and dazzling views of the course. Of course, what goes up must come down, so there are some blind shots that force you to face a green mound as you imagine that lovely scenery and, hopefully, the well-placed shot you just hit.
Advertisement
The two holes I most often think of at Shepherd's Hollow are the first and 18th, among the 27. The first is a long par-4, dogleg right that quickly puts the course behind you and requires a tricky approach to a tricky green that plays 50 feet downhill from the fairway. The 18th could be considered the course's signature hole: A par-5 that bends to the right along the shoulder of a pretty lake.
If you come to Shepherd's Hollow, make sure you aren't rushed. Give yourself the time to enjoy the experience, in totality, of what this course offers and the exquisite manner in which it does so.
Contact Carlos Monarrez: cmonarrez@freepress.com. Follow him on X @cmonarrez.
The rest of the series
MACOMB COUNTY: The Orchards
Advertisement
WAYNE COUNTY: The Cardinal at St. John's
MONROE COUNTY: The Legacy by Arthur Hills
LIVINGSTON COUNTY: Moose Ridge
WASHTENAW COUNTY: U-M Golf Course
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Shepherd's Hollow is best public golf course in Oakland County
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
21 hours ago
- Yahoo
The Orchards is the Free Press' pick for Top Public Golf Course in Macomb County
This is the second in a series looking at the best public golf courses in the six-county metro Detroit area. We're always in such a rush. And that's often true of our experiences at golf courses we play regularly. No need to soak in the ambiance. Drive in, grab your clubs and shoes, slam the trunk, pay the greens fee and get to the first tee with five minutes to spare — and that's on a good day. Advertisement I mean, who wants to waste precious time practicing a little before a round? Hey, that's why the golf gods invented breakfast balls! But the Orchards deserves a second look, and a lingering one at that. While the beautiful, challenging and varied Robert Trent Jones Jr. course in Washington Township could easily stand on its own without any accompaniment, it's all the little touches that truly elevate the experience and make it the Free Press' Top Public Course in Macomb County. RANKING THE PRIVATE COURSES: Alister MacKenzie gem still No. 1 From the attendant who takes your bag and puts it on a cart when you pull into the parking lot to the handsome clubhouse that's exactly just enough (a strong menu, indoor and outdoor seating, a nice locker room, a full and expansive practice area with grass tees) and even the nice touch of having a bag of practice balls ready instead of dealing with a loud dispenser. Advertisement The entire experience feels upscale, even urbane, but without any hint of stuffiness. That's is a hard trick to pull off in the public-golf sphere. The Orchards likes to tout its motto of being 'Your club for the day,' and it has stayed faithful to that principle since it opened in 1993. As for the course, there are prettier ones and nicer settings. But the exceptional layout makes it feel more like a tournament-caliber course than any other public track in metro Detroit. That's probably why it regularly hosts the Monday qualifier for the PGA Tour's Rocket Classic. The 11th hole at The Orchards Golf Club in Washington Township. A round here practically guarantees you'll need every club in your bag. You'll need a draw and a fade if you want to score. You'll be playing uphill and downhill, hitting a few blind shots and enjoying the majestic sweep of the course with views from the 11th and 16th tees. Advertisement One of the most enjoyable parts of the course is that if forces you to think. You can often let it rip off the tee, but how much do you lay up on the seventh hole with a hard dogleg left? Do you go for the green on the sixth hole with a long bisected fairway? How much do you lay up front of the water-guarded 16th green? And how do you avoid disaster on the 18th hole by avoiding a downhill lie to a green guarded by sand and a huge pond? Maybe that's why I've never been frustrated at the Orchards, even after I've played poorly. The course gave me so much to think about and appreciate that I didn't have room in my thoughts to blame anything more than my strategy and execution. The rest of the series WAYNE COUNTY: The Cardinal at St. John's Advertisement MONROE COUNTY: The Legacy OAKLAND COUNTY: Shepherd's Hollow LIVINGSTON COUNTY: Moose Ridge WASHTENAW COUNTY: U-M Golf Course Contact Carlos Monarrez: cmonarrez@ Follow him on Twitter @cmonarrez. This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: The Orchards is Free Press' Top Public Golf Course in Macomb County
Yahoo
21 hours ago
- Yahoo
Best public golf course in Oakland County offers all the solitude in the world
This is the sixth and final entry in a series looking at the best public golf courses in the six-county metro Detroit area. There's simply no getting around the massive advantage Shepherd's Hollow Golf Club enjoys. It sits on 350 acres of undulating, wooded terrain in Clarkston that sits next to a park-like retreat for Jesuits priests and brothers. Advertisement There isn't a more beautiful and serene setting for a golf course in metro Detroit, if not the entire state, and that's why we're picking it as the Free Press' Top Public Golf Course in Oakland County If the mere setting was all that Shepherd's Hollow offered, it still might be enough to earn it scores of accolades. But Shepherd's Hollow is so much more than a setting. A round here is a holistic, luxe experience that starts from the winding drive through the tall pines onto the property. It lasts until the final bite of seared scallops grenobloise and truffle fries paired with Moet and Chandon champagne during a post-round meal in the handsome white clubhouse reminiscent of South Carolina's Low Country estates. MORE GOLF: Michigan's best 20 public golf courses rankings Advertisement Between your arrival and departure, you get an exquisite taste of some of the prettiest 27 holes of golf anywhere in Michigan. Like very few other courses in metro Detroit, the scenery, undulating topography and secluded nature of the entire property make Shepherd's Hollow feel like a true facsimile of playing Up North. Any combination of two nines stretch past 7,000 yards. That's long enough, but when you factor in plenty of hilly terrain, the length often feels like more than enough challenge. Yet it's never too much because of the sheer straightforward beauty of Arthur Hills' classic, minimalist design. There are generous fairways and large greens that make it eminently playable for anyone, as long as they stick to the right tees, because the course can also play shorter than 5,000 yards. One of the keys to the isolated serenity is the expansiveness of the property. Shepherd's Hollow claims another 27 holes could have fit on its 350 acres. But instead of crowding golfers, the course's ample space has bestowed up on players the benefit of solitude. If you stay on pace, and off your phone, there are times you feel the world doesn't exist beyond this tranquil forest of solitude. Being located on the second-highest point in Oakland County also offers Shepherd's Hollow the distinct advantage of providing plenty of elevated tees and dazzling views of the course. Of course, what goes up must come down, so there are some blind shots that force you to face a green mound as you imagine that lovely scenery and, hopefully, the well-placed shot you just hit. Advertisement The two holes I most often think of at Shepherd's Hollow are the first and 18th, among the 27. The first is a long par-4, dogleg right that quickly puts the course behind you and requires a tricky approach to a tricky green that plays 50 feet downhill from the fairway. The 18th could be considered the course's signature hole: A par-5 that bends to the right along the shoulder of a pretty lake. If you come to Shepherd's Hollow, make sure you aren't rushed. Give yourself the time to enjoy the experience, in totality, of what this course offers and the exquisite manner in which it does so. Contact Carlos Monarrez: cmonarrez@ Follow him on X @cmonarrez. The rest of the series MACOMB COUNTY: The Orchards Advertisement WAYNE COUNTY: The Cardinal at St. John's MONROE COUNTY: The Legacy by Arthur Hills LIVINGSTON COUNTY: Moose Ridge WASHTENAW COUNTY: U-M Golf Course This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Shepherd's Hollow is best public golf course in Oakland County
Yahoo
06-06-2025
- Yahoo
Donald Trump's travel ban is more 'sad news' for immigrants in Michigan
President Donald Trump's travel ban that restricts people from 19 nations is being criticized by immigrant advocates and two Congresswomen from Michigan. The ban, which goes into effect Monday, June 9, is aimed at several countries, most of them in the Arab world and Africa. "It's very unfortunate, sad news," Abdulhakem Alsadah, president of the Dearborn-based National Association of Yemeni Americans, Behavioral Health & Community Social Services, told the Free Press Thursday, June 5, the day after Trump signed the executive order banning entry. Alsadah said he wasn't surprised, that he "knew it was coming" based on Trump's earlier statements he would issue another travel ban like he did during his first term. But "it's still a headache" for many in Michigan, he said. Trump's ban, announced late Wednesday, June 4, prohibits people from Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. It also partially restricts and limits the entry of people from Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela. Yemeni Americans — who are the largest Middle Eastern group in Detroit, Melvindale, Coldwater and Hamtramck, census data shows — already face challenges because of the war in Yemen that led to the shut down of all U.S. embassies and consulates. Trump's travel ban "will only add to this misery," Alsadah said. Metro Detroit, which has the highest percentage of Arab Americans among regions in the U.S., became an epicenter for challenges to Trump's first travel ban, often referred to as the Muslim travel ban since most of the nations were Muslim-majority nations. Nabih Ayad, a Detroit attorney, filed a federal lawsuit in Detroit in January 2017, shortly after Trump's first ban, on behalf of Muslims unable to travel to the U.S. to be with family members. There were several rallies held by Muslims and progressive groups in Michigan, including one at Detroit Metro Airport in Romulus. A federal court ruled in their favor the following month and they got a federal injunction blocking the ban, which was later rescinded by then President Joe Biden in January 2021 shortly after he took office. "I think its sends the wrong message, that America is not open to democracy and freedom," Ayad, the founder and board chairman of the Dearborn-based Arab American Civil Rights League, said of Trump's latest travel ban. It also violates the constitution and will impact families in metro Detroit, he said. More: Border Patrol arrested a Detroit student on a field trip. He now faces deportation. In making his announcement of the travel ban, Trump started his remarks by talking about the firebomb attack in Boulder on June 1 that injured fifteen people taking part in a rally for Israeli hostages. The suspect, Mohamed Sabry Soliman, is an immigrant from Egypt who overstayed his visa; he was charged June 5 with 118 criminal counts. "The recent terror attack in Boulder, Colorado has underscored the extreme dangers posed to our country by the entry of foreign nationals who are not properly vetted, as well as those who come here as temporary visitors and overstay their visas," Trump said from the White House. "We don't want them. In the 21st century, we've seen one terror attack after another carried out by foreign visa overstayers from dangerous places all over the world. ... In my first term, my powerful travel restrictions were one of our most successful policies, and they were a key part of preventing major foreign terror attacks on American soil. We will not let what happened in Europe happen to America." But critics said Trump's reasoning has more to do with which countries the U.S. favors in its foreign policy rather than protecting Americans. Ayad noted that the man who carried out the June 1 attack in Boulder was from Egypt, which is not included in the travel ban. "It has nothing to do with national security," Ayad said. U.S. Rep. Rashida Talib, D-Detroit, said the travel ban is rooted in racism. 'It should come as no surprise that Trump's racist travel ban overwhelmingly targets Black and brown people from countries in Africa, the Middle East, and the Caribbean," Tlaib said in a statement. "These policies are rooted in white nationalism and will only increase hate, xenophobia, and Islamophobia in our country." More: Taylor Police Department is first agency in metro Detroit to sign agreement with ICE Tlaib described Trump as 'the white-supremacist-in-chief" who "has once again issued an unconstitutional travel ban" around the time that Muslims are celebrating a major holiday on Friday, June 6. "This comes as Muslims in our communities and around the world prepare to celebrate Eid al-Adha," the Detroit Congresswoman said. "It is a shameful expansion of his hateful Muslim and African ban from his first term." U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Ann Arbor, who used to live in Dearborn, also released a statement, saying "Trump's renewed travel ban will not make us safer, it will create more division. It's based on bigotry and xenophobia, just like the last one. U.S. policy should not be guided by hatred. This travel ban should not stand, and we must fight against it." Under Trump's latest travel ban, there are exceptions to the restrictions. People who are still allowed from the 19 nations include: permanent residents of the U.S. known as green card holders, some immediate family members of U.S. citizens, "ethnic and religious minorities facing persecution in Iran," Afghans who helped the U.S. during the war with the Taliban, and athletes participating in the "World Cup, Olympics, or other major sporting event as determined by the Secretary of State," the order reads. The latest order is more detailed in its rules, which is helpful, but the problem in many cases is implementation, advocates said. Individual officials may not understand the details of the ban and apply a broad brush. Some officials "are not well trained, especially overseas at embassies in specific countries," Alsadah said. "So it's going to be hard for everybody." Christine Sauvé, the head of community engagement and communication for the Michigan Immigrant Rights Center, agreed with Tlaib that the ban is discriminatory. "The ban again targets Black, brown, and Muslim people who have recently fled places experiencing insecurity and strife," she said. "Many Michiganders have ties to the affected countries and it will sadly affect thousands of innocent people who are trying to reunite with loved ones, travel for college studies, or visit family for the holidays." Sauvé said the ban is the latest move by the Trump administration that cracks down on immigrants in Michigan and other states that is hurting communities and affecting local economies. USA TODAY contributed to this report. Contact Niraj Warikoo: nwarikoo@ X @nwarikoo or Facebook @nwarikoo This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Donald Trump's travel ban to impact immigrants in Michigan
