It’s the mystery of the week \u2013 who (or what) is fouling up the putting greens in Ann Arbor?<\/p>\n
On the morning of Thursday, July 16, the University of Michigan Golf Course<\/a> sent an email to the public about an “unexpected issue” with grass discoloration on its course. And though the email doesn’t detail the extent of the problem, it takes a dark turn before asking for help.<\/p>\n “Over the last few days, we have experienced an unforeseen and highly unusual decline in the coloring of our putting surfaces,” the email says. “Our grounds team is actively monitoring the situation and developing an action plan for moving forward.<\/p>\n “At this time, we suspect that foul play may be involved, and we are working closely with our partners at the Department of Public Safety to complete a full investigation.”<\/p>\n [ 5 golf courses in Michigan I can’t wait to play for first time in 2026<\/a> ]<\/p>\n In 2022, Golfweek ranked the track on its best campus courses list<\/a> and the Detroit Free Press ranked U-M the No. 1 public course in metro Detroit golf<\/a>, bringing some of The Masters to Michigan with the original design by famed English architect Alister MacKenzie.<\/p>\n We checked out the course<\/a> Thursday afternoon, and all nine greens we saw on the front were affected; specifically the fringes were burned out, though pockets of greens were also quite brown. They still rolled decent, but prices for a round were slashed by the course due to the greens. Tee boxes and fairways remained lush.<\/p>\n U-M GC declined further comment due to the “active investigation,” referring all requests to the Department of Public Safety.<\/p>\n U-M GC asked its community to share information on the situation if they have any \u2013 though if U-M needs some help with its greens, maybe it should ask the experts at Michigan State<\/a> for help, specifically MSU’s “Sultan of Sod” who is the World Cup turfgrass whisperer.<\/p>\n Anyone with information related to the incident should call the Department of Public Safety at 734-763-1131.<\/p>\n You can reach Christian at cromo@freepress.com.<\/p>\n