There’s no way to sugarcoat things here; the North Course at Detroit Golf Club is one of the easiest layouts on the PGA Tour rotation. It’s a traditional parkland venue with tree-lined fairways and flat topography. The Par-72 layout comes in at 7,370 yards, and without the penal areas off the tee and on approach, scoring opportunities will be plentiful. With the season entering the home stretch and the FedEx Cup Playoffs fast approaching, we’re seeing a stronger-than-normal field in Detroit, with 14 of the OWGR’s top 40 teeing it up with the hopes of securing a win along with the bump in points that come along with it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Since the course does not penalize poor shots, there is little separation between great and below-average tee-to-green play. We’ve seen a wide array of golf styles compete at this event, so there’s not a perfect golfer archetype to hone in on this week. I’m leaning heaviest on strong wedge players (150 yards and in) with above-average form off the tee. Distance is a plus, though not a prerequisite, if a player shows strong wedge form and\/or putting skills. The winning score has ranged between 18-26 under par in its short history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For more course details, check out Ron’s<\/a> course preview<\/a>. It’s the best in the business, bar none. Here are a few interesting nuggets about Detroit Golf Club:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Fairways are generous and wider than average at over 34 yards, making them the 15th widest on Tour. With only one water hazard on the entire course, there are literally no forced layups or “danger” areas off the tee. Players are free to blast away with driver, which is evidenced by 78% of drives hit over 280 yards. Those with extra length will have wedges and short irons into greens on almost every par 4. Also, the softer conditions, thanks to the recent rainfall, will only lengthen the course.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Over 46% of approach shots come from under 150 yards, which is one of the highest wedge\/short-iron rates on Tour. Thanks to a full set of par 5s and two longer par 3s, 21% of approaches also come from over 225 yards which are 4% higher than the average course. Even with the 12th smallest greens on Tour, these greens have one of the highest GIR rates anywhere.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
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