Branstrom Park - Fremont, MI

[tacimala]

Being up further north in Michigan it is a tough call as to what course to play when the chance arises so on Friday while the weather was nice I found myself weighing out all the options. I ended up selecting the course closest to my location at the time, which was Branstrom Park in Fremont. Geographically, you are looking at about an hour and 15 (to 30) minutes N/NW of Grand Rapids.

I was playing by myself and pretty much had the course to myself as well. The only other people I saw out there that were playing were leaving as I was teeing off. I couldn't believe that from the weather that we were having, but maybe a lot of people were afraid of being shot due to hunting season.

The course started off  with a few really tight routes through some wooded areas and then wound it's way through some more open holes (open for northern Michigan) that still required some very good placement. There were a lot of deuce opportunities but at the same time you could turn those into 4's and 5's with a little bit of error. The best holes were the very wooded holes with the elevation changes. I think there were 3 holes like this, but you would throw from the top end of one hill, go down 50-80 feet, over a few rocks crossing the creek and then back up another hill. Needless to say you didn't want to hit a tree early and have to throw uphill. These made for some VERY cool throws and it was nice to take a step back and enjoy the view and weather.

I ended up shooting 5 up there on 24 holes, but I have nothing else to compare it to really. A friend of mine said that under par there is a great score. He also mentioned that they do absolutely nothing to advertise the course's existence and to get more players there, which surprises me as it is a really fun course with a good variation of shots and difficulty. For those that make the trip, make sure to be aware of the tee signs that show the direction of the next tee and the stakes scattered around between holes. It can be tough at times to find where you are going. This course is in my top 10, but maybe not quite top 5.