GAYLORD, Mich. -- The view from the sixth tee is the one most talked about spots on the Masterpiece golf course at Treetops Resort, but in reality, the scenery doesn't stop for 18 holes.
The story goes that architect Robert Trent Jones Sr. told former Sylvan Resort owner Harry Melling that he should call his resort "Treetops" because all Jones could see were the tops of trees from the elevated perch of that now famous par 3. In fall, it's even more beautiful.
All this scenery, though, masks a dangerous 7,007-yard layout fraught with peril, where drop-offs lurk around every twist of the fairway.
The Masterpiece, which opened in 1987, is the toughest of all the golf courses at Treetops, from the daunting opening tee shot over a ridge on a great par 5 to the final approach shot over a narrow neck of fairway to the 18th green. In between, Jones delights golfers with five par 3s, a peninsula green on the par-4 eighth hole, an island tee on the par-4 ninth hole, a Herculean hill to climb on the par-5 10th hole and a hidden ravine crossing the 14th fairway.
It all adds up to great fun, as long as you don't take your score too seriously.
Treetops - Masterpiece golf course - hole 6
The par-3 sixth on the Masterpiece golf course is what earned Treetops Resort its nickname.
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Treetops - Masterpiece golf course - hole 7
A look back from the elevated seventh green shows the beauty of the Masterpiece Course at Treetops Resort in Gaylord, Mich.
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Treetops - Masterpiece golf course - hole 4
The fourth is one of three par 3s on the front nine of the Masterpiece Course at Treetops Resort in Gaylord, Michigan.
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Treetops - Masterpiece golf course - hole 2
The 181-yard second hole is the longest par 3 from the blue tees on the Masterpiece golf course at Treetops Resort in Gaylord, Mich.
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Treetops - Masterpiece golf course - hole 15
The short par-4 15th hole on The Masterpiece Course at Treetops Resort can be reached off the tee, depending upon tee placement.
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Treetops - Masterpiece golf course - hole 14
A deep ravine guards the green at the 14th hole on the Masterpiece golf course at Treetops Resort.
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Treetops - Masterpiece golf course - hole 13
A ridge dissects the 13th green on The Masterpiece Course at Treetops Resort in Gaylord, Michigan.
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Treetops - Masterpiece golf course - hole 8
The peninsula green on the eighth hole of the Masterpiece Course at Treetops Resort is tough to hit.
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