The Cornerstone of BOYNE Golf is a National Reclamation Property
By Tom Lang
Milestones and anniversaries are always good reminders of where we’ve been and offer a chance to celebrate all the accomplishments.
This is especially true for Bay Harbor Golf Club, the cornerstone of the BOYNE Golf properties near Petoskey.
Bay Harbor sits at a location that for over 100 years prior was an old quarry and then a cement processing plant that sat dormant for many years, before blossoming into a prime area for luxury accommodations, pristine golf and one of the largest land and environmental reclamation projects ever in North America. Now Bay Harbor Golf Club is celebrating 25 glorious years in 2021.
“Looking back on this milestone brings back many very positive memories and great personal satisfaction for all of us,” said Stephen Kircher, CEO/President of 
Boyne Resorts. The challenges of working a route through the former abandoned cement plant and balancing design with the real estate development needs were certainly monumental.”
“But we struck a balance and created a golf experience like no other. At the time, the Links course was the most expensive nine-hole course ever built, but the end result was worth every penny, the course looks like it was always meant to be there. A testimony to the skill and commitment of the team involved. Having three distinct nine-hole experiences separates Bay Harbor Golf Club from any other 27-hole facility in the country and in the decades ahead will prove to be one of its biggest assets.”
The first time I ever played the Links Course – risking my tie to an old 1980s phrase – I was blown away. I still get the same feeling of excitement any time I can return.
Perched on cliffs atop the Little Traverse Bay, The Links is reminiscent of Ireland’s famous seaside courses. Miles of shoreline create a backdrop of unsurpassed beauty, with undulating fairways and green complexes framed by scrub-covered dunes. The cliff-top, par-5 seventh hole has been named one of the world’s 500 best holes by GOLF Magazine.
The Quarry winds its way through an immense, abandoned shale quarry. Notable gorges surrounded by stone cliffs, natural ponds and a gentle waterfall are 
hallmarks of the experience. Whether one makes birdie or bogey, the drivable par 4 sixth is sure to dominate post-round conversations.
The Preserve features many northern Michigan hallmarks like stately trees towering over native grasses, wildflowers and wetlands, yet the closing par-3 ninth hole emerges from the forest to a breathtaking coastline setting on the bay that leaves a lasting impression.
As outlined, the three nines each have their own unique personalities and settings, which when combined provide arguably one of the country’s best in variation and beauty for playing golf on one piece of property. The blend is Michigan’s only Gold Medal for Overall Excellence ever handed out by GOLF Magazine during the 20-plus-year history of the award. Bay Harbor Golf Club is the cornerstone of BOYNE’s 10 premier golf courses spanning three resorts in northern Michigan – “America’s Summer Golf Capital.”
Another distinction is that resorts like Pebble Beach, Pinehurst or Kohler, require an overnight stay onsite. A BOYNE Golf experience does not – yet if you chose to, the most luxurious of Boyne Resort’s accommodation offerings is the waterfront Inn at Bay Harbor, named a Top Resort and Top Spa by readers of Conde Nast Traveler.
Across the street and a wonderful part of the Bay Harbor golf experience is Crooked Tree Golf Club. Perched on the bluffs above Lake Michigan, the front nine is carved from an old orchard while the back nine offers wonderful views of Little Traverse Bay.
The other two resorts within the BOYNE experience include the original Boyne Mountain property to the south of Petoskey, and Boyne Highlands to the north. From its furthest edges, the three distinct resorts are less than a 45-minute drive of each other.
Boyne Highlands:
This furthest-north Boyne location was named by Golf.com readers as the best U.S. Golf Resort for Value. In addition to the 9-hole under-the-lights Cuff Link course, the Highlands also features activities like zip lines, biking trails, horse-back riding and the Young American’s Dinner Theatre.
Boyne Highlands is the home of the original destination course that began the overall Northern Michigan golf resort evolution in 1966 – The Heather – home to several historic Michigan Amateur Championships, including in 2020, a year after it was voted National Golf Course of the Year.
After opening The Heather, Boyne Highlands added three more 18-hole courses. 
The approach to the 11th hole, a lengthy par 5, begins a three-hole ascent on the Arthur Hills Course that culminates with a magnificent view from the 13th tee, one of the highest points in the region. The course also showcased Big Break X: Michigan, Golf Channel’s popular golf travelogue.
The Donald Ross Memorial is, in essence, a “greatest hits” compilation of Ross classics. To ensure authenticity, yardages and elevation changes from tee to green are identical to the originals, giving players a chance to experience hand-selected holes from courses that have hosted three Ryder Cups, eight U.S. Amateurs, 11 PGA Championships and 14 U.S. Opens.
The Moor is regarded by many as the most challenging of BOYNE Golf’s 10 tracks thanks to its diverse collection of numerous dog leg holes, most tightly framed with tree-lined fairways.
Boyne Mountain:
When I think Boyne Mountain, much like the Highlands I think families. Two excellent golf courses for starters in The Alpine, tough enough it hosts the annual PGA Michigan Tournament of Champions – and The Monument, which begins after a long cart ride to the top of the mountain on a layout that meanders downhill on the back side of the famous ski hills.
Yet for the non-golfers there is also a ton of activities like the grand Avalanche Bay Indoor Waterpark, a new grab-and-go Detroit Style Coney Island hot dog stand, shopping area, and a wonderful spa my wife called the best she’s ever tried.
Overall Accommodations:
The “Great Escape Golf Vacation” package began over 30-years ago as a way to entice golfers to visit northern Michigan on extended-stay golf trips. Over the decades, it evolved and became North America’s best golfing value and a great destination for a buddies’ golf trip, couple’s golf getaway, or simply a golf escape with friends.
The Great Escape includes five-nights lodging at Boyne Highlands Resort or Boyne Mountain Resort (Sunday check-in/Friday check-out), welcome reception, gift package, breakfasts and dinners daily, and unlimited golf on seven of BOYNE Golf’s championship courses at Boyne Highlands, Boyne Mountain, and Crooked Tree plus an optional round on one of the Bay Harbor Golf Club courses.
With so many options spread across three all-inclusive resorts of BOYNE Golf, traveling golf enthusiasts cannot go wrong.
