
Orchard Lake Course
Orchard Lake Country Club

About this course
Orchard Lake Country Club occupies rolling terrain northwest of Detroit in one of Oakland County's most established residential enclaves. The course was designed by Harry Colt and Charles Alison during their influential North American tour in the 1920s, a period when the British partnership brought strategic design principles honed at Sunningdale, Pine Valley, and other notable projects to courses across the United States and Canada. The routing takes advantage of natural elevation changes and mature tree corridors characteristic of southeastern Michigan's glacial landscape. The design reflects Colt and Alison's preference for strategic variety over penal difficulty, with fairways that reward thoughtful positioning and greens that feature subtle internal contours rather than extreme undulation. The property's wooded character and proximity to the lakes that define the area provide both scenic backdrop and occasional strategic influence on hole corridors. Several holes move through tighter tree-lined passages while others open to broader playing corridors where wind and angle of approach become more significant factors. The club has maintained a traditional private membership since its founding, with a clubhouse and facilities that reflect the community's long-standing social and recreational traditions. While Orchard Lake does not host professional tournaments, it represents the kind of thoughtful golden-age design work that Colt and Alison produced throughout the region during their brief but productive period of American collaboration. The course remains a well-regarded example of their approach to routing and green complex design adapted to Midwestern topography.
Quick facts
- Location
- Orchard Lake, MI, USA
- Access
- Private
- Year built
- 1926
- Holes
- 18
- Designer(s)
- Harry S. Colt, C. H. Alison
- Par
- 72
- Length
- 6,919 yards
- Difficulty
- 73.4/123
- Course Vaults score
- 8.5
Getting there
Most visitors to Orchard Lake Country Club arrive through Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (DTW), a straightforward thirty-minute drive northwest into the wooded enclaves of Oakland County. The route traces the outer rim of metropolitan Detroit before slipping into the quieter, lake-studded terrain of Michigan's upper-middle-class heartland, where Orchard Lake itself - one of the state's deepest natural bodies of water - has long anchored a discreet community of established families and private institutions. The final turn off Orchard Lake Road delivers you to the club's understated gates, where the noise of the city gives way to the rustle of mature hardwoods and the glint of water through the trees.

FAQ
Common questions about Orchard Lake
Ratings, design, and course details pulled from Course Vaults.
Orchard Lake has a Course Vaults score of 8.5 out of 10 based on 39 logged golfers.
Orchard Lake was designed by Harry S. Colt and C. H. Alison.
Orchard Lake is listed as private on Course Vaults; guest access is typically restricted.
Par at Orchard Lake is 72.
Orchard Lake plays 6,919 yards from the back tees on Course Vaults.
The slope rating at Orchard Lake is 123.




