GAYLORD, Mich. -- Among four 18-hole, championship golf courses at the Treetops Resort in Gaylord, Mich., the Tom Fazio Premier represents the acclaimed architect's first Michigan design.
Treetops Resort's Fazio Premier Course opened in 1992 at the new Treetops North facility, home to three of the four golf courses as well as the nine-hole Threetops Course.
The resort doubles as a ski resort in the winter, so the Fazio Premier -- as with all golf courses at Treetops -- features a great deal of undulation, elevated tee boxes and downhill shots. It winds through thick forest, with no parallel fairways and just a handful of homes.
The par-4 opening hole, as resort-friendly as golf gets, includes a wide fairway, straight downhill. A second steeply elevated tee shot comes on the par-3 eighth hole. The course plays 6,832 yards from the championship tees, with four sets of tees from which to choose.
Fazio Premier golf course - Treetops Resort - hole 1
The par-4 first hole on the Fazio Premier course at Treetops Resort tumbles downhill all the way.
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Fazio Premier golf course - Treetops Resort - hole 3
The uphill, par-4 third hole ranks as the No. 1 handicap hole on the Fazio Premier course at Treetops Resort.
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Fazio Premier golf course - Treetops Resort - hole 7
The seventh hole on Treetops Resort's Fazio Premiere course is a short, straightaway par 4, but the green is significantly elevated.
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Fazio Premier at Treetops Resort in Gaylord
The Fazio Premier is one of three 18-hole golf courses at Treetops North, in addition to the nine-hole Threetops course.
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Fazio Premier golf course - Treetops Resort - hole 8
The par-3 eighth hole includes the most dramatic downhill shot on the Fazio Premier course at Treetops Resort.
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Fazio Premier golf course - Treetops Resort - hole 10
The par-5 10th hole on Treetops Resort's Fazio Premier course features a small, well protected green.
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Fazio Premier golf course - Treetops Resort - hole 11
The par-3 11th hole on Treetops Resort's Fazio Premiere course requires a shot over water.
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Fazio Premier course at Treetops Resort in Gaylord
The Fazio Premier is Tom Fazio's first Michigan golf course design.
Brandon Tucker/TravelGolf