28 DETROIT GOLF CLUB Hands up for Detroit At the recent Rocket Classic, PGA Tour players waxed lyrical about the renovated North course at Detroit Golf Club. By Design reports on the work by Tyler Rae, ASGCA. It’s one of the best re-dos I’ve ever seen, maybe ever in golf course design.” High praise from two-time U.S. Open champion Wyndham Clark, for the work of Tyler Rae, ASGCA, on the North course at Detroit Golf Club. The course hosted this year’s Rocket Classic on the PGA Tour, and drew great admiration from spectators, sportscasters and players alike. “They’ve made some cool changes,” added Cameron Young, one of many players who spoke glowingly about the results. The North was originally built by Donald Ross in 1915. When Rae was appointed in 2024 to lead a renovation, he told Golf Course Architecture that he would “incorporate many facets of Donald Ross’s bold original design, including hummocks and mounds, angled drainage ditches and perched greens.” The first phase of the project was a crucial undertaking. Between November 2024 and April 2025, contractor NMP Golf Construction installed new mainlines and valves, rebuilt all greens to their originally intended scale and height, installed new drainage, brought in new bentgrass and added a rootzone mix. “We also custom-manufactured 60 unique 36-inch drain basins with multiple pipe connections, ranging from 12-to-48 inches in diameter, and installed at depths of up to 25 feet to tie into the existing city’s storm system,” says Darryl Bartlett, chief development officer for NMP. With the new infrastructure in place, Rae could focus on the course’s design. The second phase began in June 2025, straight after the 2025 Rocket Classic, and covered all course features, with the new “ Greens have been expanded, while greenside bunkering is now more prominent and deeper Photo: See Jane Play
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