Greystone Golf Course Review

Greystone Golf Course Review

Greystone Golf Course
Washington, Michigan
Grade: B
Teacher’s Comments: A fun and interesting — but quite challenging design.

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Greystone’s claim to fame is its self-declared “best finish in Michigan Golf.” The three-hole stretch around an abandoned, water-filled quarry certainly is striking — especially for southeast Michigan. Unfortunately, on the day I played, everyone was starting on the back nine, so I missed the finishing effect.

Built in 1982, Greystone is a Jerry Matthews design. In character, it lies somewhere between parklands and links. Much of the course is open, with plenty of mounding; at other times, trees line the fairway or restrict a tee shot.

There are a lot of carries over rough off the tee, but the landing zones tend to be wide, so it is generally safe to swing all out for that vital first shot. Even better: a lot of the tee shots are from elevated positions. The routing is clever in that respect.

From the back tees, Greystone reaches nearly 7,000 yards and has a slope of 140.

Tee	Yardage	Rating	Slope
Black	6, 913	73.8	140
Grey	6, 556	71.8	134
White	5, 920	69.1	129
Gold	5, 033	69.7	126

It is important to play Greystone from the correct tees, because it is tough. The starter recommended playing up.

My favorite hole at Greystone was the 524-yard par five fifth. The tee shot is tight through a narrow opening in the trees, but from there it opens up to a decently sized landing zone. The second shot is slightly uphill, leaving a nice downhill lob into the green.

I found this hole interesting for the way it opened up the closer I got to the hole. The longest and generally least accurate club had the tightest shot; as it progressed, the landing expanded. It played counter to a typical hole that has a large zone for the tee shot and which narrows toward the green.

The finishing holes — which I played as 7, 8 and 9 — also were interesting. Sixteen (see the photo at top) is a downhill par 3 reminiscent of many in Northern Michigan.

Seventeen is a shortish par 4 that starts on an elevated tee, wraps around the lake and then rises again to the green. Eighteen is a tight shot along a ridge with an interrupted fairway. The approach shot is over a finger of the lake to a large, double tiered green.

Conditions on the day I played were good. The fairways were thoroughly covered in grass; greens and tee boxes were in good shape.

Peak season rates at Greystone were in the $50 to $60 range in the 2022 season.

I had fun at Greystone and would play again. My only complaint is that they don’t allow walking; I think it’s a pretty walkable layout.

The post Greystone Golf Course Review first appeared on GolfBlogger.Com. It is based on notes and photos taken on a round played in the summer of 2022.

A photo tour of Greystone Golf Course follows: