Shepherd'S Hollow Golf Club

Arthur Hills, working with associate Steve Forrest, routed all 27 holes across former Capuchin monastery retreat land in Clarkston, opening the first nine in 2000 and completing the full layout in 2001. Rather than crowd the rolling, sandy property, Hills spaced the holes generously through stands of towering pines and oaks, giving each corridor a secluded, up-north feel unusual for suburban Oakland County. The course earned quick acclaim as one of the era's best new public courses, and its second and third nines held a place on Golf Digest's America's 100 Greatest Public ranking from 2003 through 2010. Bentgrass tees, fairways and greens, wide landing areas and large contoured putting surfaces reward strategic positioning, while the pine-lined seclusion remains the course's defining signature and a regular fixture on Michigan best-public lists.