Fazio Premier at Treetops Resort

Many people believe that Treetops Golf Resort in Gaylord put Northern Michigan on the map as a great golf destination. Although there are several golf resorts in the area with multiple courses, Treetops emerges each year as one of the most recognizable golf resorts in the state. With 81 holes of spectacular golf at two locations (Treetops North is about a 7-minute drive), 226 guest rooms and suites, a spa, a salon, and more than 25,000 sq. ft. of meeting space, it’s easy to see why Treetops Resort is a popular venue for golf getaways, weddings, and business conferences.

If golf’s not your game there are plenty of other activities including mountain biking, fly fishing, tennis, disc golf, and horseback riding. When the white stuff starts to fall, Treetops transforms into one of Northern Michigan’s top ski resorts, with 23 expertly groomed ski runs, and 14 kilometers of cross-country skiing and snowshoeing trails.

Over the years Treetops has received its share of accolades from the golf world. Golf Magazine awarded them its Silver Medal Award as one of the finest resorts in the United States, 7-times. In 2002, Treetops was ranked #32 on Golf Digest’s list of “America's Top 75 Golf Resorts”, and in June 2000, Conde Nast Traveler recognized them as a “Top 50 International Resorts.” Pinehurst and Pebble Beach were the only two golf resorts ranked higher that year. Year in and year out Treetops is awarded at least 4 stars by Golf Digest’s Places to Play. And with courses designed by three of the industry’s top golf architects – Tom Fazio, Robert Trent Jones Sr., and Rick Smith – you’re sure to be challenged.

For my money, there are two other qualities necessary for a golf resort to earn consideration (besides exciting golf): good dining and comfortable accommodations. On either point, Treetops does not disappoint. Treetops offers three restaurants on the main property that are all located within steps of each other: Legends on the Hill, Hunter's Grille, and the Sports Bar. The food is outstanding and, in many respects, unique. Hunter’s Grille offers an ever-evolving menu of eclectic cuisine and spectacular views from the top of the ski hills. Legends on the Hill has a pasta dish that features a giant elk meatball and handmade herb pappardelle pasta covered in a rich tomato sauce and served with shaved Parmesan, and garlic toast. There’s also fresh Michigan rainbow trout and a Sous Vide Pork Chop that is incredibly delicious.

At the Sports Bar, you can indulge in your favorite made-to-order pizza or enjoy a hot and spicy Nashville Hot Chicken Sandwich. The Southfork Ranch Steak Sandwich is delicious too; 8oz of prime rib, sauteed onions, fresh spinach, and garlic aioli, served on fresh rosemary Herb Bread.

The Jones Tavern at Treetops North is open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner from 7 a.m. – 8 p.m. It’s primarily a grab-and-go menu with items like a Signature Burrito, Smith Breakfast Sandwich, the Fazio Grilled Ham and Cheese, and the Traditions Southwest Wrap.

Bar 81 is located on the main floor of the lodge just past the reception area. There are several TVs, making it a perfect spot to relax with your friends, recap the day, and watch your favorite sports teams. They even offer a light menu, something to snack on between sips of your favorite adult beverage.

As far as the rooms in the lodge go, the rooms are some of the largest I’ve stayed in. Each room is equipped with a refrigerator, microwave, and coffeemaker as well as a large flat-screen TV, and bathrooms with huge walk-in showers. In the lodge, you’ll find an indoor pool, hot tubs, and a fitness center as well as the Treetops Spa.

The newest addition to the Treetops lodging collection is the Jones Cottages, located on the 4th hole of the Masterpiece. Each cottage sleeps eight people comfortably, making them perfect for small groups and outings. All are outfitted with modern amenities and the two-floor layout provides added space and unbeatable views.

The Premier Course at Treetops Resort is the only Tom Fazio-designed golf course in Michigan and is as challenging as it is forgiving. It’s a very player-friendly course with many wide-open and rolling fairways, some of which are bowl-shaped, which helps to correct errant tee shots. You’ll find significantly less undulation than Masterpiece or Signature, yet there are still plenty of challenging breaks on the greens. Although the course features several doglegs, it is still player-friendly regardless of how good you are.

Treetops Resort is located about 5 miles east of Gaylord and only 10 minutes from I-75. With great golf, fantastic dining, and spacious, comfortable rooms, you won’t go wrong in choosing Treetops as your next golf getaway destination.

This course is my favorite at Treetops. The views were awesome and the course conditions were perfect. The course is very fair if you choose to play the right tees for your skill level. I had a blast playing this course because of the slopes throughout the course. I played with my buddies that are high handicappers and they felt the same way.

Dead or blighted grass nearly everywhere. Really bad condition this June 2021. Other courses at Treetops were in much better shape. Hopefully this is a short-lived problem.

The good:
Awesome course, cool layout and not overly challenging. Fall colors were fantastic. Greens were 5/5, very few blemishes and rolled great.

The fair:
Bunkers. No sand in them.

The bad:
Pace of play. Granted it was a Sunday round on a beautiful fall day, but 5hr 20mins is too long.

I usually get out to Treetops once per year and I always try to play Premier. I have seen people bashing Treetops recently due to conditioning issues, so I wanted to provide some info.

It has been 90+ in Gaylord with close to no rain for about two weeks and you can see some of those effects on the Premier, but it's still in very good shape. The greens are still perfect (although a little slower than usual) and the fairways are also in very good shape. There were a few dry and brown spots in the fairways, but nothing that affected play. The black tee boxes were in rough shape as many were totally brown and dead. You're teeing it up anyway, so while it didn't look good, it also didn't really affect anything. The bunkers seem like they need some new sand because a lot of rocks have worked their way to the surface.

Overall, you can see some effects of the heat and lack of rain, but it is still an awesome golf course. It has all the great Treetops features like huge elevation changes, scenic views, interesting green complexes, and unique hole design. It is also not as difficult as Signature or Masterpiece.

I've played the Treetops courses a few times now and Premier is consistently my favorite. They are all great courses, but Premier is the best combination of all the great Treetops features. It has multiple huge drops from tee to green/fairway, the views are fantastic, and the course is in perfect shape. It is difficult, but not overly punishing like some people feel about the Masterpiece. If you're going to play one course at Treetops, I'd recommend Premier.

First I like playing Premier very challenging course and excellent layout (second the amount is not correct since we paid past part of package). I would say Management needs to review the sand traps and have relined/repaired. They have large stones in them which too me is unacceptable for course of this quality and with how much they do charge. Second we had an encounter with Ranger saying we were 25 minutes off pace (hole 9) and we were 4 holes behind the next group, in addition there were three groups waiting on number 8 the hole we had just previously played.. Some minor protest by us we continued and sped up our play (which wrecked our game for awhile). After review we looked at our approximate start tee time and 4 hour 35 minute of pace of play we were off pace maybe few minutes. If we used the Ranger's time we were perhaps maybe at most 5 minutes off pace. In regards to the 3 groups waiting on the 8th hole that was false as our second group said no one came up on them when they were teeing off (which would be required if groups stacked up). We also waited for our second group on 18 and no one came on the tee why they were on the green or as we added up scores. We also spoke to group that played the Signature around the same time and received the same information word for word. My recommendation is mark your start of the first ball you hit on your scorecard and when you see them getting after you about pace of play you can in whatever politeness you would like to use tell them to leave you alone. If I play this course again and receive the same treatment I will let the Ranger know to leave and stop bothering us (I may consider slowing down). I may not be very kind with my rebuttal the next time approached by Ranger at Treetops with off pace of play if not off pace.

My golfing experience at the Fazio Premier course was outstanding. The condition of the course was excellent with a variety of different elevations and challenges to enjoy during the 18 holes. The course is fair, not tricky, and pays dividends for good shots. Like many Fazio courses, all of your attention is on the hole that you're playing with no distractions from other holes. The layout is beautiful with some really outstanding par 3's, in particular. I can't wait to play it again!

The Good: Eye-appealing, elevation changing resort layout from Tom Fazio is arguably the most playable layout of the four 18-hole courses at Treetops. Superb conditioning, especially the slick greens that have less undulation compared to The Signature and Masterpiece. Excellent mixture of par 4's (including the awe inspiring opener), risk-reward Par 5's and very challenging downhill Par 3's. Good on-course amenities that include restroom areas and half-way houses. One of the best resort practice areas in the midwest includes a cool putting course. Strong service and good clubhouse with mini-restaurant. Great value for upstate Michigan resort golf at $100 with cart and range balls.

The Bad: No GPS is a bummer. Sand complexes are a little rocky in spots. Practice green is so undulating that it doesn't provide true perspective of greens.

The Verdict: Many consider The Premier to be their favorite at Treetops and is perhaps the best overall golfing experience at the resort. Great for the mid-handicapper.

Best Hole: The Par 4 9th requires a precise right to left tee ball to an uphill green enveloped by sand. Very challenging hole!

Given that it was October 4 and raining, the course was in great shape. Good variety of holes and the views can't be beat. Don't miss A chance to play here.

took my wife out for a round and found a great deal on the one when we got there we were both wowed loved the experience i got to share with my wife want to come back and do one of the other four courses

my buddy wanted to play Treetops this weekend and I'm glad we did. We were able to leave before tee time by 15-20 minutes ... this keep us ahead of the twilighters... we had a 4:00 pm tee time scheduled. The course was in magnificent condition and the greens played fast. The only issue we had was there was no food at the turn.... they closed the grill at 5:00 pm, thought that was odd though it wasn't a full house. I did have the cart girl hooked me up with a bloddy mary full of vegi's, took care of the rumble in my stomach for the time being. We will be back again, though, maybe we'll pick up some food before we get there next time. Call ahead to be safe.

Simply a terrific course. Beautiful tree lined holes. Challenging layout. Greens in great shape and OH MY! some extremely challenging breaks!

If you make it to Gaylord, you MUST play Treetops.