Rouge Park Golf Course — Local services in Detroit

⛳ Rouge Park Golf Course, Detroit, MI: 👍👍👍👍👍

Experience the charm of Rouge Park Golf Course, one of Detroit’s historic golf gems. This course is part of a trio of public golf courses managed under the same ownership, which includes Chandler Park and Rackham, and playing all three courses in one season is a delightful journey through Detroit’s golfing history.

COURSE HISTORY & LEGACY: Rouge Park Golf Course, established in 1923, is the oldest operating municipal course in Detroit and has been a fixture in the community for nearly a century. It was designed to provide affordable and accessible golf to all residents, and it remains a popular destination for local golfers. The course has also been a vital part of Detroit’s recreational spaces, offering a scenic retreat in the heart of the city. Its historical significance is matched by its beauty, with tree-lined fairways and gentle rolling hills that reflect the natural landscape of Rouge Park.

COURSE QUALITY👍: Rouge Park Golf Course is a well-maintained 18-hole course with a classic layout that features a mix of challenging and forgiving holes, making it enjoyable for golfers of all skill levels. The lush greens, combined with scenic views, offer a relaxing round of golf. Its historic charm is apparent, and the course continues to be a favorite for both seasoned golfers and those new to the game.

SERVICE & HOSPITALITY👍: The staff at Rouge Park are welcoming and helpful, ensuring a smooth and enjoyable golfing experience. The atmosphere is laid-back yet professional, making you feel right at home from the moment you arrive.

AMENITIES👍: Rouge Park offers a solid range of amenities, including a well-equipped pro shop and on-site food options. The facility ensures that golfers have everything they need to enjoy a full day out on the course. While the amenities might not be as luxurious as private clubs, they are well-suited for a public course and cater well to the needs of its visitors.

PACE of PLAY👍: The pace of play at Rouge Park is generally well-managed, and even on busy days, the flow of the course allows for an enjoyable and relatively quick round. Its design ensures that players can complete a round in good time, making it a great option for those who want to get in a round of golf without spending the whole day on the course.

LOCATION & ACCESSIBILITY👍: Nestled within the expansive Rouge Park in Detroit, the course is easily accessible and offers plenty of parking. Its proximity to other city attractions makes it a convenient and appealing destination for both locals and visitors.

In summary, Rouge Park Golf Course is a must-play for anyone looking to explore Detroit’s public golf scene. With its rich history, well-maintained course, and friendly staff, it remains one of the city’s most beloved golf destinations. Playing all three courses under the same management—Rouge Park, Chandler Park, and Rackham—offers a unique and fulfilling experience for any golfer. Highly recommended for those seeking both a challenging and...

Terrible place. We started 20 minutes behind because of other golfers but when we got started (we are beginners and okay with letting anyone play past). We get to whole 4 and we start getting their attendants hovering over asking if there are 5 playing (My boyfriend and his friends are playing, I was a rider and the other girl in our group was a rider). I am an avid birder and I did get out of the cart on a few occasions to use my Merlin ID app and look at the birds myself but I did not play and the other girl in the group did not play. They also came to us with complaints from 4 white males who were behind us and did not ask on any occasion if they could play past us. They just called and complained. After that, 4 other attendants stopped us to complain about our speed even though there was not anyone super close to us and we had caught up to the next group. That same group of white males also hit down on us (saw us at the green and still launched golf balls at us with no warning) almost hitting one of the people in our group. After we were alerted of the complaint, we waved anyone who was behind us to go ahead and play forward while we took our time. I walked in to the store when we took our break at our 9th hole and before anything could leave my mouth, the man who was manning the little outdated store immediately started asking about why we’re taking so long and saying we’re taking too long and we took 3 hours for 9 holes when 1. we started late because of other golfers and 2. we were stopped on at least 5 occasions from their attendants to “talk about our speed” and ask if 5 people were playing when we had answered that on a couple of occasions by different attendants. I would also like to point out that there was an older black gentleman that pulled up to us after the complaint and acknowledged that this is racially motivated. I would like to point out that we were the ONLY all black group playing at the time and we saw no one else have an attendant come up to them to speak with them about their speed pr asking if their riders are actually playing. We will never come back and I hope that a golf course in the middle of DETROIT, one of the blackest cities in America, would not allow a bunch of racists to dictate their business. I would not recommend any people of color to visit this place and again, me and my group of friends, who have been to multiple courses over the past couple weeks and never treated this way, are never coming back to Rouge Park...

Summary:

The rangers are a bit nuts but I especially did not appreciate their attempts to scam me out of golf I paid for.

Course conditions: 3.7 / 5 — In full: 6:16 tee time, solo, Friday night. Was told I would be paired up with 3some. No worries. We are the last card to tee off for the evening.

3some runs 5mins late but it doesn’t matter because the people ahead of us on hole 1 were still hitting drives when we pulled up. (They hit 2-3 drives each…) It takes 10 minutes for the card in front of us to finish hole 1–whatever, slow pace today.

For the first 3 holes, we waited approx. 10 mins on each tee box. So, after hole 4, I recommended that we go play holes 2 and 3 again because we are the last ones out and I’m here to golf. Card agrees.

We go back and make it 2 shots through hole 2 before two rangers pull up and start berating us for going back. It is now 8:05 pm and I had played 21 shots (with the two extra!) in over 1.5 hours.

The rangers first asked us to LEAVE THE COURSE for playing TWO shots on a hole we already played….as opposed to just letting us continue play until 8:30 — the time they originally told us to play until—they proceeded to waste our time and have a silly argument for 5 minutes.

I explained the pace of play issue, that we are the last ones out and this is normal for twilight golf, and that we’ve played 2 shots “extra.” They seemingly did not care (or understand). Eventually they tried to “negotiate” and tell us to finish the hole then leave……

Eventually, they “settled” on letting us play until 8:30-the usual closing time-only after I demanded money back for being asked to leave well in advance of what I paid for and because they overbooked the course.

To add to it, at 8:23 we were preparing to tee off on hole 6 when a ranger came and told us to leave again. We explained it’s not 8:30 yet and he agreed to let us play hole 9 instead and then leave.

So we went to hole 9, and after only one person of our card tee’d off, the other ranger came over and firmly told us to leave. At this point, it was all too absurd and I was too exhausted to argue more, so I left.

Maybe they had Friday night plans they wanted to close early for. Who knows. Either way, quite a terrible way to treat paying customers after THEY overbooked the course and failed to enforce pace of play rules.

I will very likely still be back, but will be certain not to book anywhere...