Otsego Club (The Classic)

Overview: The Classic is Otsego Resort’s approachable 18-hole course in the Sturgeon River Valley near Gaylord. William H. Diddel’s layout measures 6,267 yards at par 72 from the back tees, but its interest comes from the way woodland, water and changing ground shape the choices rather than from raw length. The resort describes it as a course suitable for beginning golfers as well as experienced players, and that balance is visible in the scorecard’s choice of tee positions. It is a useful northern Michigan round for a group with mixed abilities, especially when paired with The Tribute at the same resort.

History: Otsego was established as a resort in 1939, then expanded its golf offering after Alan L. Gornick acquired the property in 1955. The Classic became the founding golf course of the Gaylord Golf Mecca, carrying Diddel’s design into the resort’s later four-season identity. The Tribute arrived much later as a contrasting championship layout, but The Classic remains the older architectural anchor. Its history is therefore tied both to Diddel and to the transformation of Otsego from an alpine retreat into a destination with golf at its centre.

Did You Know? The Classic is the course that gave Otsego its place in the Gaylord golf story. The resort’s later courses expanded the destination, but Diddel’s 1955 layout is the original golf foundation of the property.