Garland Resort - Monarch Course

Golf Travel Guide To Garland Lodge & Resort

An Interview With Aaron Gentry

By Brian Weis

Looking to plan the perfect golf trip to Garland Lodge & Resort? Planning a buddies trip or a romantic golf getaway can be a full time job not to mention pressure filled to deliver a memorable experience. Below is an interview with Aaron Gentry, Director of Sales who shares some insider information about golfing and traveling to Garland Lodge & Resort, must play courses, a sample itinerary and where you can go for more planning tools.

Give our readers an overview of your destination and why they should consider it for their next golf trip? Deep in the woods of northeast Michigan's lower peninsula you will find Garland Lodge and Resort. Sitting seven miles to the south of the town of Lewiston on over 3000 acres Garland is home to golf at its finest. With three public and one members course the resort offers varied challenges for all styles of play. The main lodge is a stunningly beautiful building that proudly hails as the largest log structure east of the Mississippi. In addition to guestrooms in the main lodge Garland offers a wide variety of villas and cottages throughout the property ensuring that accommodations are available to fit the needs of any guest or group.

What are the must play courses in Garland Lodge & Resort?
Monarch:
Often referred to as "the King of Michigan Golf Courses" you are greeted with wide, generous landing areas that just beg you to let'er rip and at 7,145 yards from the back tees you must do just that. The inward nine is the most picturesque and difficult group of holes in Northern Michigan. You will find this golf course both a demanding test and pleasurable golfing experience. You will probably be able to use every club in the bag. The Monarch course has a slope of 143 from the tips and a slope of 120 from the front tees, which measures 4,904 yards.

Swampfire:
A true shot maker's golf course. Be prepared to use every club in your bag. Trees, bunkers, natural terrain and water on sixteen of eighteen holes will make your golf experience an adventure to remember. Lush, green and flawlessly manicured greens, tees, and fairways bring our guests back time and time again. The Swampfire course measures 6,854 yards from the tips and has a slope rating of 138. The front tees travel 4,791 yards and slope at 123.

What is the hidden gem and/or best value course?
Reflections:
A golf course for all level of players also has a unique combination of six par 5s, 4s, and 3s that blend an unparalleled setting where Pine forest, lakes, streams, flowers and wildlife abound. Reflections definitely proves a course does not have to be overly long to be challenging. At 4,617 yards from the front tees and a slope rating of 118 and stretching to 6373 from the back tees and a slope rating of 132. You will need to bring your course management skills to set that individual low round.

Can you provide our readers with an ideal itinerary for a long weekend?
The ideal weekend would be golf, golf, and more golf. Leave the pro-shop early afternoon Friday to take on your first round of 18, remembering to pick-up a six pack at our Tiki Bar of course. Perhaps start your weekend off breaking out the long ball on Monarch or utilizing skill shots on Swampfire. After your round it is time to grill back at your cottage or villa. Start your next morning off with a full hot breakfast at the restaurant, included complimentary for all resort guests. Then take on the first of 36 holes for the day as the sun rises and the cool northern Michigan morning gives way to a gorgeous warm day. After a day packed with hole after hole of championship golf the group can relax and enjoy cocktails and fine dining at our Tamaracks restaurant. Follow it all up with a final Sunday round before departing for home and that would be the perfect way to spend the weekend in my mind.

After golf, what are the "must do" things or attractions to see?
For the nature lovers Garland is in the heart of some of the state's most pristine wilderness. The area boasts multiple lakes for boating and fishing, the Au Sable river is just down the road for canoeing and tubing, and many parks and trails are available in the region. Onsite, guests can also enjoy massage, indoor and outdoor swimming pools, hot tubs, and multiple locations for dining or just grabbing a drink.

What is the best time to travel?
The best time to travel depends largely on what you want to get out of your trip. Peak season for the resort is Memorial Day to Labor Day when the weather is warm and the days are long. Of course one of the most beautiful times to play is the fall when the leaves change making the property come alive with breathtaking colors.

Anything else you would like to share about the Garland Lodge & Resort?
With all four courses leaving from one clubhouse Garland is a location where you can truly park your car when you arrive and not have to move it until you depart. All you will need to worry about while you are our guest is your next golf shot.

Where can golfers go for more information to research and plan their trip?
The best thing for the golfers to do is visit our website at www.garlandusa.com to plan their trip. When they are ready to book simply call 877-442-7526 and we'll take it from there. Garland Lodge & Resort 877-442-7526
www.garlandusa.com

Revised: 09/10/2014 - Article Viewed 33,922 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.