Two Michigan Courses Are Finalists In USA Today’s Top Public Courses Vote

Two Michigan Courses Are Finalists In USA Today’s Top Ten Public Courses Vote

USA Today is holding a “Reader’s Choice” vote to determine the nation’s best public golf courses.

Two Michigan courses are on that list: Black Lake (pictured above) and The Cardinal At St. John’s (photo below).

I have long argued that Black Lake is a top ten course in Michigan and is in the conversation for best public course. It’s a little off the beaten track, though, and only the more knowledgable Michigan golfers know of it. You can read my Black Lake golf course review at the link.

The Cardinal at St. John’s is Michigan’s newest course. A Ray Hearn design, it is built on the bones of the old twenty seven at St. John’s resort in Plymouth, Michigan. You can read my review of The Cardinal at the link.

(I’ve reviewed nearly three hundred Michigan courses. See all of GolfBlogger’s Michigan Golf Course reviews.)

Black Lake and The Cardinal really are in two different categories. Black Lake is an epic Northern Michigan layout, with all of the stately forests, elevation changes and gloriously isolated holes that characterize the region. The Cardinal is more cozy; the sort of friendly neighborhood course that will keep people coming back time and again.

For what it’s worth, the LIV golf tour is coming to play at The Cardinal August 22 – 24, 2025. Depending upon how one feels about LIV, that may be either a plus or a negative.

These two are on a list that also includes Pebble Beach and Pinehurst No. 2. Rarified air indeed.

In addition to the Michigan courses, I’ve also played and reviewed four others on the list: Bandon Dunes, Caledonia Golf and Fish Club, Pinehust No. 2 and Tobacco Road.

Caledonia is one of my favorite courses of all time. The Mike Stranz design is endlessly creative, and yet very playable. Tobacco Road also is a Stranz design and while even more creative than Caledonia, I think is somewhat less playable. I love Pinehust No. 2 (who doesn’t?) but my favorite at Pinehurst was actually No. 4. Similarly, Bandon Dunes was fantastic, but I liked Pacific Dunes more.

The complete list is below. Vote for your favorites at USA Today.

• Arrowhead Pointe, Elberton, Georgia
• Bandon Dunes, Bandon, Oregon
• Black Lake, Onaway, Michigan
• Bully Pulpit, Medora, North Dakota
• Caledonia Golf & Fish Club, Pawley’s Island, South Carolina
• The Cardinal at St. John’s, Plymouth, Michigan
• Chaska Town Course, Chaska, Minnesota
• Edgewood Tahoe Golf Course, Stateline, Nevada
• Grizzly Ranch Golf Club, Portola, California
• The Highland Course at Primland, Meadows of Dan, Virginia
• Leatherstocking Golf Course, Cooperstown, New York
• Mammoth Dunes at Sand Valley, Nekoosa, Wisconsin
• Oakcreek, Sedona, Arizona
• Paako Ridge, Sandia Park, New Mexico
• Payne’s Valley at Big Cedar Lodge, Hollister, Missouri
• Pebble Beach Golf Links, Pebble Beach, California
• Pinehurst No. 2, Pinehurst, North Carolina
• Redlands Mesa, Grand Junction, Colorado
• TRJ Golf Trail At Ross Bridge, Hoover, Alabama
• Tobacco Road Golf Club, Sanford, North Carolina