Bloomfield Hills Country Club
Designed by Harry Colt
History
Bloomfield Hills Country Club traces its founding to 1909, a period when Detroit’s rising industrial fortunes were seeking expression beyond the city limits, in the rolling countryside of Oakland County. The club took its place among a wave of exclusive retreats built for a membership that wanted golf grounds befitting their standing, situated far enough from the smoke and clamor of the automobile capital to feel like a proper escape.
The membership secured Harry Colt to lay out the course, a choice that placed Bloomfield Hills in the company of some of the era’s most respected designs. Colt, the English architect whose reputation had already spread across two continents by the time he took on American commissions, brought a discipline honed on courses like Sunningdale and Muirfield. His work in Michigan reflected the same instinct that guided his projects abroad — an eye for using the natural contours of a site rather than imposing artificial drama upon it. For a club situated on Michigan farmland transitioning into suburban estate country, his involvement lent the course an international pedigree uncommon among its regional contemporaries.
Over the following decades, Bloomfield Hills Country Club settled into its role as one of the enduring private clubs of the Detroit area, its membership drawn from the same industrial and professional class that built the surrounding community. The passage of more than a century has brought the expected refinements common to clubs of its age — updates to conditioning and infrastructure that accompany any golf ground still in active use — though the course has remained under private ownership throughout its history, a continuity shared by relatively few clubs of its vintage.
Playing Notes
Expect rolling, wooded terrain typical of Oakland County's kettle-and-ridge landscape, with elevation changes that put a premium on club selection more than raw yardage. The tree-lined corridors demand accuracy off the tee, and mature hardwoods mean shot shape matters as much as distance — a slight miss can find you blocked out rather than just in the rough. Greens here tend to be firm and quick, so bring a solid short game and be ready to factor in subtle breaks that aren't always visible from the fairway. The course walks reasonably well for those who prefer it, though the terrain has enough movement that carts are commonly used. Bunkering shows up in the areas you'd expect around traditional greens, so distance control on approach shots will save you strokes. Pack layers if you're playing in shoulder-season weather, as the exposed ridges can funnel wind differently than the sheltered, tree-heavy stretches.