West Bloomfield, Michigan
Renovated 2025This course recently completed a major renovation. During this transition, course data may reflect a mix of pre- and post-renovation yardages, hole configurations, or routing. The Caddie Report monitors these changes and periodically reassesses the course as a reliable new baseline is established.
Knollwood Country Club’s recent renovation has re-energized this private Detroit-area classic, blending historical pedigree with fresh strategic interest. Expect a polished, tree-framed test with crisp conditioning, newly expanded greens, and several shot-making decisions from tee to green. Play here if you seek club tradition with a dash of modern design energy.
Pop into the historic men’s locker room to see the 1920s marble showers and fireplace—the club’s proudest tradition.
Knollwood Country Club is a revival of Golden Age parkland golf, where C.H. Alison’s traditional routing now meets a thoroughly modern approach to strategy, playability, and visual appeal. Dave Zinkand’s 2025 renovation expanded and recontoured greens, reshaped bunkers for both beauty and challenge, and removed select trees to revive width and vistas—restoring the playful risk/reward dilemmas that are the soul of classic golf. Today, Knollwood asks for precision off the tee on tree-lined doglegs, bold shot-making on stretched par 5s, and creativity around newly complex greens, all in a manicured estate-club setting with deep roots.
Zinkand’s recent work brings strategic subtlety and freshness, layering in options for every level of player while honoring Alison’s classic club pedigree.
This lengthy par 3 stretches to 228 yards from the back tee, demanding a pure long iron or hybrid to a well-protected, expanded green. Its length and swirling wind create a make-or-break moment halfway through the front nine.
Aim for the center and favor a shot that runs, rather than flying directly at precarious pin locations.
Miss long and you’ll face a delicate recovery; miss short or left and deep bunkering threatens bogey or worse.
Expect lush bentgrass fairways, immaculate tee boxes, and reborn, finely mown greens and surrounds.
Rounds move on a private club tempo; typical pace is comfortable but check for member event days.
Traditionally prestigious, with a friendly, service-driven clubhouse culture.
Standard private-club attire: collared shirts, no denim on course.
Several par 3s are all-carry, with expanded greens that reward precise trajectory and distance control.
The new, larger greens feed subtle breaks and significant runoffs—practice pace and green reading before your round.
Recent tree removals mean some holes now offer new angles; a pre-round stroll helps spot the smartest plays.
With repositioned bunkers, some par 5s and long par 4s now require careful second-shot planning to give yourself the best approach.
Knollwood Country Club founded
Course officially opens, designed by C.H. Alison
Hosts 56th U.S. Amateur Championship
Motor City Open (PGA Tour) played at Knollwood
Hosts 114th Western Amateur
Comprehensive renovation by Dave Zinkand, including new greens and strategic features
When Knollwood was conceived in the Roaring Twenties, the club hired C.H. Alison and spent an unprecedented $10,000 per hole—double the era’s norm—for design, building an elite enclave from the ground up. This commitment to quality echoes across nearly a century of golf.
Knollwood's men’s locker room opened in 1926 as a marvel: an enormous, timber-ceilinged space with 350 steel lockers, marble showers, and a clubby fireplace—a point of pride for generations. Today, it remains one of the great American clubhouses.
The club’s greens have hosted legends, including the 1956 U.S. Amateur where Harvie Ward outlasted Ken Venturi, and a 1962 Motor City Open won by Bruce Crampton. Knollwood’s subtle demands have tripped up future stars and cemented its reputation for championship tests.
In 2025, Dave Zinkand’s masterful renovation opened up vistas, moved bunkers to test modern hitters, and reimagined every green. The result? Strategic interest on every shot, with more options for creativity and recovery throughout the round.
The club reportedly spent $10,000 per hole at opening—twice the era’s average.
Host of the 1956 U.S. Amateur, where Harvie Ward toppled Ken Venturi.
The 2025 course renovation recontoured every green and restored original vistas.
The men’s locker room, built in 1926, is considered a showpiece by historical club standards.
Knollwood is one of the few Michigan clubs to host both a PGA Tour event and a major amateur championship.
Michigan’s most storied championship test—Ross pedigree, major history.
Recent PGA Tour host and city centerpiece with classic Donald Ross bunkering.
Best-in-class public option, varied 27-hole facility for every skill level.
Accessible championship-length resort track, enjoyable for traveling groups.
Top-tier daily-fee experience with private-like conditioning.
Stay in Birmingham or Bloomfield Hills for shortest drives to area standouts
Courses with the most similar DNA profile — matched by deviation shape across all eight playing characteristics.
Why it matches: If Knollwood Country Club is your kind of course, Topeka Country Club is worth a look because it a comparable balance of challenge, variety, and character.
Why it matches: Nob North Golf Course is a natural next stop after Knollwood Country Club: it a comparable balance of challenge, variety, and character.
Why it matches: There is real overlap here. Waverley Country Club a comparable balance of challenge, variety, and character, making it a compelling counterpart to Knollwood Country Club.
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