The Fields Golf Course Review

The Fields Golf Course
Ithaca, Michigan
Grade: C-
Teacher’s Comments: Flat and straightforward to a fault

The Fields is the former Gratiot Country Club, which dates to 1924. The name is apt, for it is mostly routed in a back and forth fashion on mostly flat land. A smattering of trees between holes gives The Fields a parklands course feel.

There’s really not a lot of variety here.

The Fields is a par 70. From the tips, The Fields rolls out to 6, 441 yards, where it plays to a 66.6/116. The next tees up are at 5, 552 and play to a 66.6/117. The most forward tees measure 5, 209 and play at 63.9/110.

A bogey golfer can have a really good day at The Fields. There is very little to prevent a players from bombing shot after shot.

The first at the Fields is a 245 yard par 4.
A view from the fairway on the first hole at The Fields

My favorite hole was the 245 yard par 4 first. Beginning from a rise just below the clubhouse, it heads straight out before before dipping down into a wash, and then back up to the green. The first had the most interesting complex on the course. There’s a long, rectangular bunker in front of the green to go with bunkers to the front left and front right.

The eighteenth at The Fields is a 288 yard par 4.
A view from the fairway on The Fields par 4 eighteenth

The eighteenth runs in parallel to the first, but finishes on a rise below the clubhouse. The same depression in the land that adds interest to the first also adds interest here.

The thirteenth at The Fields is a 254 yard par 4.
Fourteen at The Fields is a 121 yard par 3.

The Fields also has a couple of odd holes. Thirteen starts in a wooded, swampy area before opening up again to a field. Elevation changes and a dogleg on this hole save it, though.

Fourteen is an out-of-character-for-the-course shot through a tight wood, over a swamp to a large flat green.

In fact, holes eleven through fourteen feel like an afterthought.

Conditions at The Fields were pretty good on the day I played. The greens were healthy, and the fairways grown in. Management takes care of it.

In the end, I really can’t recommend making any significant effort to play The Fields. I understand completely, however, why the locals will like it. The Fields is a pleasant course, with a friendly staff and good prices. The clubhouse looks like it would be a great place to hang out after a round.

The Fields also might be a good place to stop for a round if you were travelling to or from “Up North” along US127.

The Fields Golf Course Review was first published January 28, 2020, from notes and photos taken on a round played September 4, 2020. For all of GolfBlogger’s Michigan Golf Course reviews, follow the link.