Links at Hunters Ridge is Evolving Beautifully
By Tom Lang
There’s been a lot of activity at The Links of Hunters Ridge near Howell the past few years, culminating in some excellent golf experiences for local regulars and newcomers alike.
One of the newbie’s is long-time mid-Michigan newspaper-columnist-turned-radio and TV-host Jack Ebling, who joined me for a round in early June. Now he’s threatening to become a regular.
“The Links at Hunter’s Ridge exceeded my expectations,” Ebling said. “And they were pretty high when I got there. The bottom line? I’ll be back!
“The layout was easy to follow, interesting and just tough enough. Of course, it always helps when you par the first three holes after a 10-month layoff. But reality returned soon enough (to my game.) You could tell they’d taken some extra steps to make the day fun. There was lots of TLC at The Links Course. And I’m sure the people there care about what we think. That’s not always the case.”
High Quality Design:
The Links at Hunters Ridge was designed by Jerry Matthews and Paul Albanese, the latter who was onsite almost daily for two years overseeing the construction in the mid-1990s on the Miesle family farm, dating back several generations of theirs to the 1870s. Within a few years of opening, Hunters Ridge hosted a U.S. Open qualifier.
My favorite stretch of holes on the front nine are holes 4-6. The 4th is a short par four that goes a little uphill and slightly to the right.
The 5th is a downhill par 3 requiring a good poke to clear a marsh, to a thin front-to-back, but wide green. I suggested to the assistant superintendent who joined us that day to add a sand bunker all the way across the front with a ‘beach’ style flow into the pond. It would make the carry from the tee a little less yardage but for those still coming up short they could find their ball but won’t get a free ride out of the sand either.
Then comes No. 6, a long par five that has a creek cutting across and one of the few large trees on course to navigate around.
Perhaps the crowning jewels, though, are the closing holes. The 17th tee is the highest point on the property from where you can see the entire course and drops 45-60 feet to the par three green. Then 18 is a par 5 risk-reward hole with water guarding the right side of the three-tier green complex.
The new owners the past four years have painstakingly paid attention to the details to make improvements as the course approaches 30 years of serving mostly SE Michigan golfers. Albanese has been hired again, to provide a master plan for the next decade or so.
Some new bunkers were installed to create obstacles for golf’s distance changes the past quarter century. All bunkers are full of new sand without any lips, so balls hit toward bunkers have a chance to roll right through and into green grass.
The clubhouse has been freshened up but wasn’t big enough to add a full kitchen, so the owners designed a food truck to their specs to serve all the traditional golf course fare, but assuredly some non-traditional food as well. A highlight for Ebling was the ‘Hunter Burger,’ a half-pound blend of wild board, bison, elk and wagyu beef, topped with fried onions, Swiss cheese and chipotle sauce… you know, your average golf course burger.
“My favorite part of the visit was the people,” Ebling said. “They made you feel like family. Jim (the super) and Jenny (one owner) couldn’t have been better unless Jim had traded scores with mine. And I’d never seen a food truck like that.”
Go to: www.golfhuntersridge.com for more information.
