BOYNE MOUNTAIN IN Boyne Falls Michigan has golf season going on for a few more weeks, it’s not too late to go enjoy Pure Michigan Golf, see Boynegolf.com. Down in Indiana, a celebration in French Lick continues. Frenchlick.com #DonaldRoss100years  _____________________________________________________________________

THE GOG BLOG by RORY SPEARS, Editor and Director of Content. Follow Rory on Facebook, Linkedin and Twitter @GogBlogGuy and to Belvedere Golf Club in Michigan.

The Belvedere Golf Club in Charlevoix Michigan recently celebrated 95 years of being a golf club.

The re-dedication ceremony of the club included more than 125 of the clubs members in attendance.  Only 12 of the clubs 200 members live in Charlevoix.

This recent re-dedication was in honor of some renovation work done to the Willie Watson classic, after a set of original plans were found during the demolishing of an old building in the town of Charlevoix. The club does have some aerial photo’s from the 1930’s, but there had be no documentation of the parkland course until the recent finding of original plans.

The plaque near the first tee from the recent dedication.

Bruce Hepner was the consulting architect for the project, who worked alongside the clubs superintendent Rick Grunch. Grunch part of Belvedere for 25 years, lives alongside the golf club in a neighboring farm-house.

Hepner, who formerly worked under Tom Doak, has done restoration work of courses by Donald Ross, AW Tillinghast and now Watson to name a few.

Grunch’s knowledge of the course, and study of the newly found plans and photo’s was critical to the renovation. The work included building new bunkers, the reshaping of contours to tie in with existing ground conditions and flow of the property. Area’s of the green complexes were expanded back to the original size to allow strategies of playing the course to return to what Watson originally intended.

The first hole on the right, from the elevated first tee box.

“The restoration was a labor of love for me,” said Grunch. “To return the golf course to what Watson originally envisioned was a special gift, The Belvedere is my life.”

Belvedere has been played by 36 major champions of professional golf, who have over 100 major champion wins between them. Only Oakland Hills in the state of Michigan has had more major wins play the course.

Belvedere has been home to the state of Michigan amateur for over 40 years. The Michigan Golf Association will bring the amateur back to Belvedere for the clubs centennial year in 2022.

For more information on this semi-private club see Belvederegolfclub.com.