LOCATION: Pierson, 30 minutes north of Grand Rapids, U.S. 131 north to exit 110, west 1 mile to Newcosta Avenue north 4 miles to course ADDRESS: 11401 Newcosta Ave., Pierson, MI 49339 YARDAGE: 4,771/7,065; 4 sets of tees ARCHITECT: Kris Shumaker and Mike DeVries YEAR OPENED: 1998 PHONE: (888) 533-7742 WEB SITE: www.pilgrimsrun.com

We all have our favorite golf course. And we don’t like to be pinned to having just one. We want the freedom to have several favorites.
There’s our favorite “resort” course, or “links” course, or “private” course, or “local” course, or “upscale” course. Then there are holes that aid our memory of a favorite course; memorable par fives, fours and threes.

Pilgrim’s Run has remained a favorite of mine. It must be my prejudice for the opening hole: the quite, ambling, par 5 that measures a shade over 500 yards from the third set of tees. I’ve birdied it once but it’s given up its share of eagles to better golfers than me. Looking down that fairway from the tee box; seeing the flag wave in the distance; taking in the towering pines that line the borders, just sets my mood for an enjoyable round of golf. It’s a setting unique to Pilgrim’s Run, not unlike any of my other favorites, albeit for different reasons.

Pilgrim’s Run has an intriguing history in its design, too. While Mike DeVries is the noted architect who seamed all of the holes together, sculpted the greens and gave the course life, the owner empowered six people involved in the course’s construction to design three holes each. The radical approach resulted in a must-play venue and earned the course a top ten placement among Michigan Golf’s Top 50 Public Golf Courses ranking.

Jeff O’Malley is the only Director of Golf Pilgrim’s Run has employed. He was there when two-time U.S. Open Champion Lee Janzen carded a 65 from the 7,100-yard gold tees. O’Malley quips about the course having “shot-value” and notes the courses’ “playability” as factors for being a public favorite. Price has a lot to do with where you rank a course among your favorite places to play. While upscale, greens fess at Pilgrim’s Run during peak season will be considerably less than you’d expect on a course of this caliber.

During the summer months the aroma of outdoor grilled, brats and burgers waft across the course. Inside you’ll find the best half-pound hotdog known to golfers.

Each hole at Pilgrim’s Run is a verse in a poem of holes that culminate in a risk-reward par-4 unlike any you’ll play; from elevated tees on No. 18 you look out over a small lake to an elevated green 250 yards in the distance. A lot of folks go for it. Most walk away with double-bogey or worse. Each proclaims they’ll return and give the opus another go.