Kingsley Club in Northern Michigan is adding a second golf course designed by Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw as part of a $40 million investment that also includes a new clubhouse.
Kingsley Club
Kingsley Club, one of the most acclaimed private clubs in the Midwest U.S., has begun construction on its second 18-hole course as part of a $40 million, multi-phase expansion at its Northern Michigan property.
The long-rumored new course, designed by Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw and stretching to 7,200 yards, will be located on a recently acquired 520-acre parcel southeast of the club’s existing land about 15 miles south of Traverse City, Michigan.
Limited preview play is anticipated in late 2028, with a full opening planned for the 2029 season.
“With this land and Bill and Ben’s expertise, we believe Kingsley Club will soon offer one of the game’s most fun and architecturally compelling 36-hole golf experiences,” said David McDonald, the President of Escalante Golf, which owns and operates Kingsley along with other luxury golf properties across 17 states.
In addition to Kingsley, Northern Michigan is home to high-end private clubs such as Crystal Downs, High Pointe, and True North as well as resort properties like Arcadia Bluffs, BOYNE Golf, Forest Dunes, Grand Traverse Resort, and Treetops Resort.
“This is a rare opportunity to create a very special course in a region renowned for superb golf,” added McDonald.
Trees were cleared for the new golf course at Kingsley Club in early 2026 and construction is underway.
Kingsley Club
Bye Hole and New Clubhouse
The new course will stay true to Kingsley’s minimalist spirit, with a walkable routing defined by fescue playing surfaces, native grasses and – in keeping with Coore-Crenshaw’s design ethos – little disturbance of the existing land. The new addition, which will join the club’s existing Mike DeVries-designed layout that’s been ranked among the Top 100 courses in the U.S., will feature a 19th “bye hole” that returns to the clubhouse after the first six holes.
And that clubhouse will also be new.
In conjunction with the golf course work, Escalante Golf, which acquired Kingsley in 2022 from its original owners, has broken ground on a new clubhouse that will replace the retrofitted construction trailer that welcomed club members for more than two decades.
The first fairway at Kingsley Club in Northern Michigan.
Kingsley Club
Expected to open in Spring of 2027, the new clubhouse will occupy the same location as the previous structure behind the ninth green and feature 4,000 square feet of indoor space along with an 850-square-foot covered patio. With a design and understated architecture inspired by the English Cotwolds in west-central England, Kingsley’s new clubhouse will have indoor and outdoor dining, a full-service bar, an expanded pro shop, and upgraded locker room facilities.
“This project is about evolution, not change,” said Kingsley Club General Manager Justin Mack. “We’re committed to honoring what has always made Kingsley unique while thoughtfully investing in its future.”
Clearing and construction are underway at the new 520-acre plot adjacent to Kingsley’s existing course.
Kingsley Club
Coore and Crenshaw recently worked with the Escalante team on the reconstruction and redesign of the Pines Course at The International outside Boston.
“We are excited about the potential of this highly individualistic site, the Kingsley Club in general and being able to create a course in a state with such a rich golfing history,” said Coore.
The second course at Kingsley continues a busy stretch for Coore and Crenshaw, two of the most accomplished architects of their era who this year opened Rodeo Dunes (CO) and Anson Point at Palmetto Bluff (SC), and are also working on Pinehurst No. 11 (N.C.), Crazy Mountain Ranch (MT) and Torch Cay in the Bahamas.