MANISTEE, Mich. -- Michigan architect Gary Pulsipher designed only a handful of courses in Michigan. His first was, no doubt, his best: Canthooke Valley at Manistee National Golf & Resort.
The 6,517-yard par 71 opened in 1994, ambling through a secluded forest. The par-3 ninth hole is the only one visible from Grant Highway. The rest disappear into the trees.
Pulsipher found some creative opportunities in this natural setting. The green of the par-3 fourth hole not only sits beyond a pond but behind a giant tree guarding its left side. The par-3 17th hole plays over a pond, too, although it's shorter and more scenic.
Two risk-reward par 4s highlight Canthooke Valley's back nine. The 14th and 18th tees call for some tough decisions. On the 340-yard 14th hole, players can either hit over a large waste-bunker toward the green or lay up to the fairway on the right, setting up a narrow approach through the trees. The finishing hole doglegs hard left around more water, forcing players to bite off as much as they can chew, whether that's a blast to the green or at a wafer-thin fairway. Those who make birdie walk off the course smiling. Those who hit a couple in the drink, well, that's an unhappy ending.
Manistee National is also home to the Cutters' Ridge Course.
Manistee National - Canthooke Valley golf course - 18th
The finishing hole on the Canthooke Valley Course at Manistee National Golf & Resort is a fun risk-reward short par 4.
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Manistee National - Canthooke Valley golf course - 5th
The par 4 at no. 5 on Manistee National's Canthooke Valley golf course is rated the highest handicap hole.
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Manistee National - Canthooke Valley golf course - 6th
A wetland encroaches on the par-3 sixth hole on Manistee National's Canthooke Valley golf course.
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Manistee National - Canthooke Valley golf course - 7th
Hit your drive up the right side for the proper angle to the seventh green of Manistee National's Canthooke Valley golf course.
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Manistee National - Canthooke Valley golf course - 8th
The par-5 eighth hole on Manistee National's Canthooke Valley golf course plays fairly straightforward.
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Manistee National - Canthooke Valley golf course - 1st
The 10th fairway provides a nice view of the first hole on Manistee National's Canthooke Valley golf course.
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Manistee National - Canthooke Valley golf course - 11th
The woods provides the shade on the 11th hole on the Canthooke Valley golf course at Manistee National.
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Manistee National - Canthooke Valley golf course - 14th
The short 14th hole on the Canthooke Valley golf course at Manistee National provides two choices: Hitting driver at the green or laying up the right side of the fairway, leaving a wedge into the green.
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Manistee National - Canthooke Valley golf course - no. 4
A tree blocks the left side of the green at no. 4, a cool par 3 on the Canthooke Valley golf course at Manistee National.
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Manistee National - Canthooke Valley golf course - no. 15
Trees surround the par-5 15th hole on the Canthooke Valley golf course at Manistee National in northern Michigan.
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Manistee National - Canthooke Valley golf course - no. 16
The 16th green on the Canthooke Valley golf course at Manistee National falls off on multiple sides.
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Manistee National - Canthooke Valley golf course - no. 17
It's a pretty setting on the par-3 17th hole on the Canthooke Valley golf course at Manistee National in northern Michigan.
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