Sanctuary Lake Golf Course

Golfing in Michigan after November 1st is a true blessing, especially for a Floridian like myself. I arrived in Troy, Mi a few days earlier and the temperature was in the mid to high 30's. No thoughts or chance for a round of golf, then the holiday miracule happened. Two day later as predicted the temperature in the area rose to 58 degrees, and it was off to the golf course for me. I arrived at Sanctuary Lakes Golf Course on a sunny day with a light breeze, and a temperature of 48 degrees to start my round. By the 7th hole the temperature had reached a pleasant 58 degrees, and I'm feeling really good about my game.
     Sanctuary Lakes Golf Course is a local favorite in the city of Troy. The course was in surprisingly good condition for this time of year, and the greens were relatively fast. Sanctuary Lakes is an 18 hole, links-style, par-71 golf course. The course is short by today's standards (6,555 yrds from the championship tees), but it is loaded with several unique features that make it difficult, challenging, and fun to play. It has severe elevation changes, with rolling, manicured fairways that are generously wide and treelined at different places. The rough varies in length and type of grass, which makes it brutal at times. The bushes are natural to the area, they vary in height and density, and are well placed. There are several marshy areas and forced carries to enhance the challenge and beauty of the course. The small, undulating, and fast greens makes scoring a unique challenge for weekend warriors. There are 80 sand traps on the course, which half are there to save you from losing a ball in the marshy areas and ponds, while the others are to test your bunker skills. There are a few holes that require you to hit over water, which is mind boggling at times. The real excitement comes in the form of the short par 4s that are reachable from the tee box. Of course, there is the small matter of Risk vs. Reward, but hey, you will never know unless you try. There are a few signature holes that will make you smile and are quite memorable. Take a deep breath, enjoy the view, then focus. I mean really focus on your shot, because you really don't want to mess this one up.
     Sanctuary Lakes Golf Course reminds me of a Michigan Wolverine. These animals are cute, small, fierce, rugged, and downright mean at times. This course is best played with someone with local knowledge or the second time around. It was chilly the day I played, so I moved up one tee box to the blue tees, which are 6,123 yds with a slope rating of 69.6 /127. My favorite holes are #9, #12, and #17. I should mention that there are a few blind shots designed into the course. Hole #4 is the perfect example, so beware of the dogleg even if you are a long ball hitter. The par 5, 18th is an excellent closing hole. The trouble on this hole can easily balloon your score and blow a good round.
     I really enjoyed my round. After the round, I stopped in the clubhouse and dined in the Piper's Grille. The food was good with value pricing. The atmostphere reminded me of the hit tv series Cheers; "Where everyone knows your name." It should be noted that the course has a driving range and practice putting and chipping green. I recommend this course for true and serious golfing fun.

One Happy Golfer
H. Bell (Golf Enthusiast/ Freelance Writer)

Visited: Nov 2017
Troy, MI

There is a lot of ground under repair.
The greens were in good condition.
It was worth the $45

Had a very good time playing with fellow golfers. Course provided some challenges, like hole #14 where there is water on the left and a tree line on the right.

The course was in good shape for February. The fairways have dried up a lot. Greens were not bad had a good speed to them.

The course is not bad. It's definitely overpriced for what it is though. Its ususally overbooked and pace is usually pretty slow. I've played there for 3 years now and I've never seen a ranger on the course and/or manage the pace of play. Costs should be cheaper for a city course, tee times need to spaced out appropriately and a ranger needs to manage pace of play. If they made those changes it would really improve things.

For being February the course was not in bad shape. Little wet in a few places. The greens were nice

This is a great course. Everything u need and a very challenging layout.

Such a nice course and so unenjoyable. Wait at ever hole, every time out.

It's not a little slow, it's dreadfully backed up all the time. If you get your round in in 5 hours it's a success