Portage Golf Course

Portage Lake Golf Course is a Top Rated Course in MI

Portage Lake Golf The Portage Lake Golf Course at Michigan Tech University is rated one of the top 18 hole courses in the Upper Peninsula by “In Pursuit 1000 Golf Courses”. This is an 18 hole course on 160 acres that has beautiful views of Portage Lake, rolling hills, and plenty of woods. This course opened in 1920, measures 6278 yards from the longest tee box, has a slope rating of 126, and a USGA rating of 69.8. It has a beautiful clubhouse that includes a large pro shop, locker room, and a restaurant. The course has a good driving range and there are two practice greens that are top-notch.

Course Review for Portage Lake Golf Course

There is a big difference between the front nine and the back nine. The front nine goes deep back into the woods and really only the 8th and 9th hole comes into play with each other. Teeing off the first hole has out of bounds along the entire right side. It is a very imposing first tee as there is no safe play to the right.

The second hole is my favorite of the front nine. It is a large Par 5. If you can get the large pond in front of the tee box out of your mind you will have a couple of safe shots up to the green.

The third hole is just pure “Intimidating”. Out of bounds on the right and left, and very little safe play up the entire hole. Your approach shot is very tricky with the green guarded by bunkers and if you go long over the green you find your ball down a hill.

The fourth hole is a short par 4 but the tee box is way below the green. You can see a flag up the hill but a two-tiered green means a good shot could roll right off.

The fifth hole brings the large pond from the second hole back into play with woods on the right. Drive the ball too far off the tee box will put it deep into a gully. It is safe to play from here but makes the approach tricky.

The 6th hold is a deep par 4. Lots of safe play off the tee box but the angle of the tee box to the fairway can play with your head. A good shot off the tee still leaves a long approach into a slightly raised green guarded by a big bunker.

The seventh hole is a deep par 5 dogleg right. This hole always seems to go on forever.

The eighth is a long par 3 into a green that loves to spit the ball off the back end.

The ninth is all about the tee shot into a green guarded by a small pond.

The back nine is much more compact with multiple holes playing up against each other. This helps with wild drives as there is far less out of bounds to worry about. The 10th starts out nice and straight, there is some out of bounds on the right hand.

However, the eleventh comes down the left-hand side yet is guarded with a long row of pines. Beautiful green guarded by sand is a treasure to open up the back. The eleventh is all about the tee box. There are two placements you can find. One placement makes the hole nice and straight the second gives the hole a wicked dogleg with trees guarding the left and right. There are no out-of-bounds on the hole but the approach shot can be tricky if you are not on the fairway.

The twelfth hole is super fun but don’t fly the green or go short. There is little room in the back with the woods and a gully in the front.

The thirteenth is a super short par 4 and can be driven with a well-placed drive. However, a missed place shot off the tee will leave creative chips.

The fourteenth is a short par 3 in which you have to cross a gully into a raised island green.

The fifteenth is another par 3 but long. It has woods to the right that are out of bounds and a road to the left that you can certainly hit off the tee box. The green is below the tee so it is easy to roll the ball off the green on a nice shot.

The sixteenth is a straightforward par 4 yet a row of pines on the right makes the second shot tricky if you have a slice.

The seventeenth and eighteenth are both par 5s and butt up to each other. On the seventeenth, your approach shot is downhill to a green you probably won’t be able to see.

The eighteenth is uphill all the way and makes the hole seem much deeper than it really plays.