Grand Rapids Michigan Real Estate Blog

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Wordless Wednesday ~ Winter Daydreaming......

Thousand Oaks Golf Course Grand Rapids MI

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 The authors of the this blog write about Grand Rapids Real Estate, the Greater Grand Rapids MI area, and what it is like to live in West Michigan.  Grand Rapids Michigan is a vibrant, growing metropolitan area with a diverse business community, great medical research & services, numerous universities, plus lively arts and entertainment of all kinds.

 We believe: Grand Rapids is a Great Place to Live!

search for Grand Rapids homes                Find Grand Rapids Home Value                Grand Rapids Relocation Guide

            Westbrook Realty Grand Rapids MI Real Estate

                          Contact Terry   616-292-7263

Playing in the Treetops ~ Thousand Oaks Golf Course, Grand Rapids MI

Once you have played this course, you understand why they named it

 "Thousand Oaks Golf Club". I had the chance to play this course the

 other day and leaped at the opportunity.   What a treat!  Located just a

few minutes north of Grand Rapids at Five Mile near the Grand River,

this course wraps around literally thousands of oak trees. Which makes

 for a gorgeous nature outing this time of year. Golf Digest rated this

Rees Jones designed course one of the 25 best courses in Michigan.

This course is quite deceptive. Because it fluctuates in elevation, you might

 need a few more strokes to get up to the hole, or a little less club if the

green is down hill. All I can say is: don't go in the woods, or you will be

reaching in your bag for a new ball.

What I didn't know is that they have a Golf Academy, where PGA Golf Master

 Instructor, Charles Vandenberg and state of the art facilities can analyze

 your swing or putting stroke and give you a DVD to take home with lesson

plans for improvement.

I took a few pictures so you could get an idea of what the course looks like:

First Hole Thousand Oaks Golf course GR MI

The first hole with the Clubhouse in the background.

 Thousand Oaks Golf course GR MI

An elevated tee with fairway curving into the trees.

Green Thousand Oaks Golf course GR MI

A fairly tight green with trees and bunkers waiting for your ball.

golf academy thousand oaks golf course gr mi

The front entrance to the Golf Academy.

practice range thousand oaks golf club gr mi

The practice range behind the Golf Academy.

Clubhouse/restaurant thousand oaks golf club gr mi

The Thousand Oaks Clubhouse and Restaurant

bronze kid golfer statues thousand oaks golf club gr mi

Bronze statues of children golfing near the entrance.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

 The authors of the this blog write about Grand Rapids Real Estate, the Greater Grand Rapids MI area, and what it is like to live in West Michigan.  Grand Rapids Michigan is a vibrant, growing metropolitan area with a diverse business community, great medical research & services, numerous universities, plus lively arts and entertainment of all kinds.

 We believe: Grand Rapids is a Great Place to Live!

search for Grand Rapids homes                Find Grand Rapids Home Value                Grand Rapids Relocation Guide

            Westbrook Realty Grand Rapids MI Real Estate

                          Contact Terry   616-292-7263

Mark Wilson, Watermark Country Club Pro ~ 2008 Inductee ~ Grand Rapids Sports Hall of Fame

We have known Mark Wilson since the late 1970's, when he first became the

golf pro at Hickory Hills Golf Club or was it Forest Hills Golf? Lots of things have

changed at our course but he hasn't changed a bit, he is still the friendliest,

most professional golf pro we have ever known.

Mark is going to be inducted into the Grand Rapids Sports Hall of fame on

Aug 21, 2008.  An honor Mark has well earned.  He was inducted into the

Michigan Sports Hall of Fame in 2007.

Let me tell you a little about Mark's accomplishments.  He is a Michigan native

and has resided in Grand Rapids since graduating from college. He is also a

Rhodes scholar, lest you think golfers aren't cerebral.

Mark has been fascinated and personally involved in the PGA Rules of Golf for

as long as I can remember.  These days you might see him on TV standing

next to Phil Mickelson or Tiger Woods at any premier PGA event and giving

him some unwelcome news about his golf ball and/or penalty strokes.  You see,

Mark is the Chairman of the PGA of America Rules Committee.  He travels

around the world to PGA golf events to be available for a ruling. Be aware if

you ask a question about the rules, he will quote the page number or decision

rendered about your question.

Members at Watermark have tried for years to stump Mark but we finally have

given up. When you see him, ask  "When was the last time you played

golf?   With all his duties he seldom has the time. Maybe after this year when

his term as chair of the PGA rules expires.

 

An excerpt from the Watermark Newsletter about Mark:

 

Mark Wilson, our Head Professional, has served the

membership of Watermark Country Club for over 25

Years.  He is responsible for overseeing the total golf

operation at Watermark.  His exceptional attention to

detail has produced years of quality and consistency

in both our regular and tournament play.  Mark is

currently the chairman of the PGA of America Rules

Committee.  He has served at all the PGA Tour major tournaments, several

European Tour tournaments as well as every Ryder Cup since 1995. Our

membership is proud to have him as our pro and look forward to many more

years with him in that role.

YouTube Video of Mark's big nite:

 

 

Grand Rapids Sports Hall of Fame

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 The authors of the this blog write about Grand Rapids Real Estate, the Greater Grand Rapids MI area, and what it is like to live in West Michigan.  Grand Rapids Michigan is a vibrant, growing metropolitan area with a diverse business community, great medical research & services, numerous universities, plus lively arts and entertainment of all kinds.

 We believe: Grand Rapids is a Great Place to Live!

search for Grand Rapids homes                Find Grand Rapids Home Value                Grand Rapids Relocation Guide

            Westbrook Realty Grand Rapids MI Real Estate

                          Contact Terry   616-292-7263

West Michigan's Top Ranked Public Golf Courses ~ Tee Time Anyone??

If you are relocating to Michigan, don't forget to bring your clubs and book

a time at one or all of the award winning courses we have to offer when you

 come to take a look around.  We have lots to choose from. Over 75% of our

local courses are public,so there are plenty of great tracks to choose. And for

the southerners, we have sunlight until 10 pm in the summer! Play ball.

 

Today we will highlight the Top 5 ranked courses in West Michigan

 

Pick your challenge:

 

arcadia bluffs golf course arcadia mi

Arcadia Bluffs Golf Course - Arcadia Bluffs, MI

Ranked as the #1 course in Michigan by GolfLink.com

Situated on 245 acres of land on the shoreline bluffs of Lake Michigan with

225 feet drops to the shoreline below, this course has spectacular vistas on a

nationally ranked course. It is a daily fee open to the public course with

 caddies  or golf carts available.

Course Highlights * 3,100 feet of Lake Michigan shoreline * 50 sod-walled

 bunkers

* wide fairways, native grasses and large greens averaging 8,000 square feet

 

                                                    eagle eye golf course east lansing mi

 

 

Eagle Eye Golf Club at Hawk Hollow -East Landing, MI

Ranked # 3 course in Michigan by GolfLink.com

Designed by Chris Lutzke, a MSU Landscape graduate for Pete Dye's Golf

Course Architecture Organization, assisted by Scott Poole and Mike Puckett,

this British-Irish link style layout is as long and challenging as any course you

 can encounter and has drawn rave reviews. The seventeenth hole is a replica

 of the island green at TPC Sawgrass and not for faint of heart.

Eagle Eye was rated the 5th-best new course in America in 2005 by

Golf Digest, and the 4th-best course in Michigan in 2006 by Michigan

Golf magazine.

Eagle Eye will host the 2008 Michigan PGA Championship Tournament.

 

 

            tullymore golf course stanwood mi

 

Tullymore Golf Course - Stanwood MI

Ranked # 7 course in Michigan by Golflink.com

Numerous top awards distinguish this course designed by Jim Engh, featuring

 artistic bunkering wandering over 800 acres of woods and waters near Big

Rapids Michigan. Awarded an Audubon Sanctuary Award, Top 15 courses in

America, Top 50 Women's courses, plus many others put this golf course on

 the have-to-play list.

 

No.83, America's best golf courses by golf Digest 2007-2008

 

 

               le kaufman golf course wyoming mi

 

 

L.E. Kaufman Golf Course - Wyoming MI

Ranked # 10 course in Michigan by Golflink.com

Top rated golf course and municipal links located on 340 maturely wooded

 acres in Palmer Park, featuring 18 championship holes withthe flowing water

 of Buck Creek adding challenge and interest. Designed by W. Bruce Matthews,

it opened in 1965.

 

 

                 pointe o woods golf course benton harbor, mi

 

Point O' Woods Golf Course & Club - Benton Harbor, MI

Ranked # 16 course in Michigan by Golflink.com

This prestigious course was designed by Rober Trent Jones and opened for

play in 1958. Golf legends Arnold Palmer & Jack Nicklaus have played it. It

is consistently named "one of the best courses in the country" and has made

 the top 100 list by Golf Week Magazine 1960-2006, Top 500 holes in the

 World by Golf Magazine.

 

Grand Rapids Ada Real Estate ~ Westbrook Realty 

Copyright 2008 All rights reserved

 

photos & info courtesy of respective golf course websites listed below

http://www.arcadiabluffs.com

http://www.hawkhollow.com/eagleeye.aspx 

http://www.tullymoregolf.com
http://www.accesskent.com/CultureLeisureAndTransit/Parks/golf.htm

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

 The authors of the this blog write about Grand Rapids Real Estate, the Greater Grand Rapids MI area, and what it is like to live in West Michigan.  Grand Rapids Michigan is a vibrant, growing metropolitan area with a diverse business community, great medical research & services, numerous universities, plus lively arts and entertainment of all kinds.

 We believe: Grand Rapids is a Great Place to Live!

search for Grand Rapids homes                Find Grand Rapids Home Value                Grand Rapids Relocation Guide

            Westbrook Realty Grand Rapids MI Real Estate

                          Contact Terry   616-292-7263

Watermark Country Club purchases Crystal Springs Country Club

Would you like to join one golf course and play two for the same price?

That is the offer proposed by Watermark Country Club owners of Cascade Mi

to the new members of Crystal Springs Country Club in Caledonia. There will

be a new club house and a new swimming pool facility constructed at Crystal

Springs scheduled to open in 2009.

 

 

watermark golf course cascade mi

 

Watermark Country Club Owners have committed to bringing Crystal Springs

back to its award winning introduction condition back in 1989 with  an operating

 budget to improve the course. 

The fantastic grounds crew at Watermark is working double duty on

improvements. Until all is done, the Crystal Springs members have limited

play at Watermark and Watermark members have limited play at Crystal

Springs. 

 

Both golf courses have homes & condos surrounding the golf community,

if living in a golf community is interesting to you.

 

Check out the social membership with dining facility member offers at the

Crystal Springs site. They also have specials on the Watermark Pool

Membership for 2008.


How can you get a better deal than that?? Two for one - I love it !

Not that I need an excuse to play golf but playing another course is always

interesting and challenging.  Crystal Springs Country Club will be on my golf

calendar this year.

 

Grand Rapids Ada Real Estate ~ Westbrook Realty 

photo by Bonnie Westbrook ~ Watermark CC ~ all rights reserved

 

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

 The authors of the this blog write about Grand Rapids Real Estate, the Greater Grand Rapids MI area, and what it is like to live in West Michigan.  Grand Rapids Michigan is a vibrant, growing metropolitan area with a diverse business community, great medical research & services, numerous universities, plus lively arts and entertainment of all kinds.

 We believe: Grand Rapids is a Great Place to Live!

search for Grand Rapids homes                Find Grand Rapids Home Value                Grand Rapids Relocation Guide

            Westbrook Realty Grand Rapids MI Real Estate

                          Contact Terry   616-292-7263