Loon Golf Course Review

Loon Golf Course Review

Lazy people
Level: b-
Teacher’s comment: Happy, challenged from the rear t-shirt, but not particularly memorable.

Loon is the same name course for the three golf courses (Loon, Lakes and Ridge) in the Loon Resort series.

Loon is a park and Woodland, built in 1994 and designed by famous coach Butch Harmon. Loon was designated as the “Butch Harmon Signature Course,” but for my research, I could only find another course designed by Harmon – the third nine hole in Florida. In this case, my Google-Fu may have failed me.

LOON is located on the east side of I-75 north of I-75 south of Gaylord; a second hole can be seen from the highway. The eighth can be seen from the MDOT lounge area in Loon Lake.

The sides of the course are relatively flat, with the first nine looking more like a park and the back nine trees more forested. The wooded sections of the back nine have a lot of houses on one side, but they shouldn’t work.

The individual holes of the lazy are pleasant, but none of them are particularly memorable except for three shots. There are no bad holes, either. Workers and the like may be the best description.

In fact, workers and the like are a good thing. Harmon didn’t try to force anything. There is no tricky stretch, and it doesn’t seem to move a lot of unnecessary dirt.

Indeed, from a certain point of view, the worker-like course is exactly what a person wants. A round of exaggerated or difficult course design can be beneficial, but to get people back to the resort year after year, players need to walk away and say “I have fun”.

The staff aren’t saying it lacks interest either. Six puppies of varying degrees have increased their species. The water lurks in 11 holes, although it actually only works in three-pole poles, the third hole and the plastic shaping hole. There are also some fairway bunkers in surprising places.

My favorite hole is the fifth shot and the fifth shot.

Starting with a slight rise, the hole surrounds the swamp/pond to the right. The safety game here is on the left side of the fairway, but this will surely make the hole longer.

The fairway dips a little from the tee and then rises to the high point at the apex of the curve.

From the apex, the lazy man’s fifth downward flows, and then a sharp turn downward at about a hundred yards. Finally, the green rises again, and the green perchs on the hills.

Two things I like about Kong: one is the decision on the tee. I always like to make me think about how many dangerous loopholes I can challenge.

Another is the decision about how far the second shot is. Finding a flat position will mean leaving longer shots in the green. Further flights can lead to clumsy downhill lies.

Another notable hole is (very) 4th stroke 17. At 241 yards away from the skill, many players can drive. However, it is also very tight, and the branches are waiting for the clip (don’t ask me how I know). The green back rolls down to the woods and a truck road, and the long shots are also terrible.

Finally, I also like the “Iconic Hole”, which is the fourth 398 yards. It’s a hole where players can take heroic seconds on the water or play the fairways around the pond safely.

From the rear t-shirt, laziness extends to 677 yards and works at a rate of 72.0/140.

The conditions of the day I played were mixed together. From T-shirts to green, some holes are in very good condition. Others have sparse fairways and green yet have meaningful damage. On average it, I said it’s OK.

I played the course using the card from the first tee player in Northern Michigan and paid $39 with the cart for just $39. It’s a very walkable route, but for some reason they don’t want anyone to walk.

I had an interesting conversation with the guy behind the counter and talked about carts and walking.

Me: Can I walk?
Guy: Cart prices are included
I am fine. I’m paying for it, skip the cart
Guy: But it’s part of the package
Me: I understand. But I would love to skip the cart.
Guy: The parcel says it includes a shopping cart.
Me: Hotel package includes a swimming pool, but I don’t have to swim.
Guy: You don’t pay extra for your shopping cart.
Me: OK. I give up.

I took the shopping cart, but the course would be more enjoyable.

Loon Golf Course Review was first published on March 4, 2025 and was taken in a round of photos that were played in the 2024 season. For a list of all Michigan golf course reviews for GolfBlogger, please visit the link.

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