Ah, Mackinac Island, one of my all-time favorite places to be. The island is really a step back in time with horses and bikes as your only means of transportation. Why do I go to Mackinac Island? The beauty, the history, the relaxing nature, once out of downtown, fudge of course! But what about golf? Golf on Mackinac Island? But of course, with a good dose of history thrown in!

It's in the center of the island, and a bit difficult to get to, but  Wawashkamo Golf Club, affectionately referred to as “WaWa,” is 122-years old, the oldest golf club in Michigan, and on the sight of the Battle of Mackinac Island between the British and American's in 1814!

Wawashkamo Golf Club
Wawashkamo Golf Club
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When you tee of on the elevated 1st tee, history begins with a replica cannon from where British cannons roared on August 4, 1814.

One of very few American courses laid out in a links style that remains substantially unaltered, Wasashkamo was named one of America’s Historic Golf Landmarks by Golf Digest in 1996, and is the only nine-hole course among the dozen in the United States to have been so designated.

Wawashkamo Golf Club
Wawashkamo Golf Club
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Even the club house is steeped in history. Patrick Doud constructed the clubhouse in 1898 for Wawashkamo. He and the club founders agreed on a vernacular, one story, cottage-type structure, built Mackinac-style on a foundation of cedar posts.  It was adorned with a columned porch wrapped around the north and east sides overlooking the 9th fairway and green. And, it still stands today. Back "in the day," 1898-99, it cost a whopping $1,217 to build, a handsome sum in "the day!"

To schedule a tee time at the Wawashkamo Golf Club, call them at 906-847-3971.

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