Detroit Golf Courses & Tee Times in Ohio

Who runs public golf in Detroit

Three public systems cover most of the metro. The Huron-Clinton Metroparks run seven regulation courses and a par 3: Hudson Mills, Huron Meadows, Indian Springs, Kensington, Lake Erie, Stony Creek, Willow and the Lake St. Clair par 3. Some of them sit inside parks that need a Metroparks entry pass. Seniors 55 and up and juniors 20 and under get reduced fees all day on weekdays. Oakland County Parks runs Glen Oaks, Lyon Oaks, Springfield Oaks and White Lake Oaks, all 18 holes, plus the 9-hole Red Oaks executive course. Seniors 62 and up, veterans and golfers with disabilities get discounts. In 2026, juniors 17 and under paid $10 for nine and $15 for 18 on weekdays and weekend afternoons. The City of Detroit owns Rouge Park, Chandler Park and Rackham, and Troon Golf runs them under the Golf Detroit name.

Public courses worth knowing in Detroit

• Rackham Golf Course: Donald Ross design finished in 1925. Joe Louis's home course and site of the Joe Louis Open in the 1940s. Ben Davis was head pro here from 1952. Par 71, 6,555 yards, no water.
• Rouge Park Golf Course: In Detroit's largest park. The nines opened in 1928 and 1929, and the Rouge River comes into play. It is not on the Donald Ross Society's list, and the designer has never been documented.
• University of Michigan Golf Course: Alister MacKenzie and Perry Maxwell, opened in 1931. The par-5 3rd and the horseshoe 6th green are MacKenzie's changes. Restored in 1992 for $3.3 million.
• Shepherd's Hollow Golf Club: 27 Arthur Hills holes in Clarkston on land leased from an abbey. Most players rate holes 10 through 27 as the best 18.
• Chandler Park Golf Course: City of Detroit course, short and quick to play, run by Troon Golf as part of Golf Detroit.
• Kensington Golf Course - Metropark Golf: One of seven regulation Huron-Clinton Metroparks courses. Book up to 14 days out, and pay online for weekend mornings.

Booking tee times in Detroit: the local rules

The Metroparks open tee times 14 days out, online or by phone at 1-800-234-6534. Weekend and holiday times before 2 p.m. have to be booked online and paid in advance. Cancel at least 24 hours out to get a refund. Oakland County Parks opens times seven days ahead, online or by phone to the pro shop starting at 7 a.m.

Why tee times in Detroit are hard to get

Golf in Detroit follows the seasons: spring openers and fall weekends are the busiest stretches, and summer mornings fill before afternoons.

Most public courses open their tee sheet a set number of days ahead, often 7 to 14, and many municipal courses give residents or card holders an earlier window. The best weekend-morning times usually go the day they're released. Leagues and outings take blocks of the sheet before the public ever sees them.

When tee time cancellations happen

Booked-up doesn't mean gone. Plans change: groups cancel ahead of the course's cancellation deadline (often 24 to 48 hours out), players drop when the forecast turns, and a group that shrinks leaves an open spot. Those times quietly come back on the booking page, usually for minutes, not hours.

How to get a tee time in Detroit

Doing it by hand? Here's what works.

1. Know the booking window. Find out how many days ahead each course releases times, and whether residents get an earlier window. Be ready the morning it opens.
2. Look again 24 to 48 hours out. That's when most cancellation deadlines pass and spots come back.
3. Be flexible on group size. Singles and twosomes fit into gaps a foursome can't.
4. Try twilight and weekday afternoons. They're the last to fill and often cheaper.

Read the full guide to getting a tee time when everything's booked