The Dunes Club - New Buffalo, Michigan - Photo Golf Gallery By Brian Weis

The Dunes Club, New Buffalo, Michigan, Southwest Michigan

The Dunes Club - New Buffalo, Michigan - Photo Golf Gallery

The Top 9 Hole Course in the USA

By Brian Weis

Nestled along the shores of Lake Michigan in the quaint resort town of New Buffalo, lies one of the most mystical golf courses in the world. The Dunes Club is a private course so hidden and private, the only sign visible from the road is a small no trespassing sign.

Designer Dick Nugent developed the course with developer and owner Mike Keiser, now famous for his masterpieces in Oregon, Bandon Dunes. While the duo has won numerous accolades since opening in the 1990's, some credit must be given to Mother nature who deposited golden brown sandy dunes in a densely wooded area.

The layout of the course is truly magnificent, the greens lightening quick, and conditions absolutely pristine. The one feature that makes this an absolutely rememberable golf experience are the tee boxes. For one, there are no tee markers. So throw out the notion that your going to play a tee color. Rather each hole has up to 8 tee boxes and it is customary for the winner of the prior hole to choose a tee area and position.

The Dunes Club is also a walking only facility. Caddies are mandatory for guests. Not only do they provide a wealth of information on how to play the course but they allow you to soak up the experience.

Most Notable Hole

I failed a few times to get an answer from the caddie on which of the nine is the signature hole. He continued to response with the simple answer, they are all very special. I could not agree more.

He finally shared, hole 8 is the most storied by members. The elevated tee only reveals half of the 513 yard challenge. Big hitters can reach a waste area that splits the fairway. The second shot must be strategically placed to the right to allow for an angle into the dog leg left. The extremely small green is guarded by a steep slope in front and sand guarding the remainder of the sides. Simply put, the hole will make or break your round.

Notable Awards

GolfWorld's Best 9 Hole Courses 2010 - #1
GolfWeek's Best Modern Courses 2007 - #30
Golf Magazine Top 100 Courses 2001 - #76

The course is private so one of the only chances to play the course will be by invitation from one of the 100 or so members. If the invite is extended, jump at the chance to play because it will rival any golf experience.

The Skinny

9 Holes Course - Private
3 Tee Boxes: 6984, 6538, 6250 Yards
Slope/Rating: 142/37.4

10600 Marquette Dr
New Buffalo, MI 49117
(269) 469-5539

Slide Show

Photo Credits: Brian Weis, GolfMichigan.com

Article Tags: The Dunes Club, New Buffalo, Michigan, Southwest Michigan

Revised: 05/23/2011 - Article Viewed 42,856 Times - View Course Profile

About: Brian Weis

Brian Weis is the mastermind behind GolfTrips.com, a vast network of golf travel and directory sites covering everything from the rolling fairways of Wisconsin to the sunbaked desert layouts of Arizona. If there’s a golf destination worth visiting, chances are, Brian has written about it, played it, or at the very least, found a way to justify a "business trip" there.

As a card-carrying member of the Golf Writers Association of America (GWAA), International Network of Golf (ING), Golf Travel Writers of America (GTWA), International Golf Travel Writers Association (IGTWA), and The Society of Hickory Golfers (SoHG), Brian has the credentials to prove that talking about golf is his full-time job. In 2016, his peers even handed him The Shaheen Cup, a prestigious award in golf travel writing—essentially the Masters green jacket for guys who don’t hit the range but still know where the best 19th holes are.

Brian’s love for golf goes way back. As a kid, he competed in junior and high school golf, only to realize that his dreams of a college golf scholarship had about the same odds as a 30-handicap making a hole-in-one. Instead, he took the more practical route—working on the West Bend Country Club grounds crew to fund his University of Wisconsin education. Little did he know that mowing greens and fixing divots would one day lead to a career writing about the best courses on the planet.

In 2004, Brian turned his golf passion into a business, launching GolfWisconsin.com. Three years later, he expanded his vision, and GolfTrips.com was born—a one-stop shop for golf travel junkies looking for their next tee time. Today, his empire spans all 50 states, and 20+ international destinations.

On the course, Brian is a weekend warrior who oscillates between a 5 and 9 handicap, depending on how much he's been traveling (or how generous he’s feeling with his scorecard). His signature move" A high, soft fade that his playing partners affectionately (or not-so-affectionately) call "The Weis Slice." But when he catches one clean, his 300+ yard drives remind everyone that while he may write about golf for a living, he can still send a ball into the next zip code with the best of them.

Whether he’s hunting down the best public courses, digging up hidden gems, or simply outdriving his buddies, Brian Weis is living proof that golf is more than a game—it’s a way of life.