The Fox Hills Golf & Banquet Center has always been southeast Michigan’s most unique public facility. The story lines are almost endless.
• First and foremost, with 63 holes, it is the largest golf facility in metro Detroit.
• The course is owned and operated by two sisters, Kathy Dul Aznavorian and Sandy Dul Mily. They are a formidable duo in an industry dominated by white males.
• The Golden Fox, the signature track by Arthur Hills, was one of the region’s first “country club for a day” experiences built for public players, opening in 1989, the same time as Pine Trace Golf Club in Rochester. The success of the pair spearheaded the state’s building boom.
• The construction of the par-3 Strategic Fox, a new breed of executive courses created to help grow the game among juniors and women, helped Fox Hills win National Golf Course of the Year honors in 2002 from the National Golf Course Owners Association and the state’s course of the year in 2001 and 2002 from the Michigan Golf Course Owners Association.
• Fox Hills’ commitment to the environment earned the prestigious “Certified Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary” by the International Audubon Program in 1996, becoming among the first 40 in America (and third in Michigan) to achieve this award. The Audubon status continues today with a review done every two years.
But what struck me during my first visit in years last week was its versatility. I've written about this before, but it was great to see the facility come to life before my own eyes. I saw the stereotypical country club types – guys with the logo shirts carrying big-headed drivers – enjoying the Golden Fox during an outing. I witnessed women and seniors tackling the easier, but no less fun, Strategic Fox and finishing all 18 holes in less than three hours. What a cool concept!
And then, on the 27 holes of the classic Fox with 18 holes that date to 1921, there were golfers of all shapes and abilities and attire. And that’s the ultimate storyline of Fox Hills. There’s something for everyone.
The junior program is thriving with 700 children taking advantage of the Strategic Fox and its separate clubhouse and driving range that encompasses the golf school, staffed by a number of excellent teachers. People like Brian Cairns, Jordan Young, Joal Harding, Top50JuniorTour founder Dan Thomas and Eastern Michigan University men’s golf coach Bruce Cunningham make it hum. Aznavorian says the junior program explodes once school gets out in June, so be sure to sign your future Phil Mickelson up early. Programs range from individual lessons to day and weeklong camps.
I’ve never played any of the holes on the Classic Fox, but the Golden Fox is a solid test. The signature hole (and most talked about) is the 396-yard 15th hole, featuring a blind green hidden behind a giant mound.
Playing the Strategic Fox can be fun for all ages. Envision a foursome of buddies reveling in a par-3 shootout for some cash or a family of four enjoying a day of bonding on the course without the stresses of high scores.
Architect Ray Hearn designed big greens, so beginners can experience that “rush of accomplishment” when they hit them in regulation. Seasoned players should hit every green on the front nine – the longest hole is 163 yards – but the course toughens up on the back with two 195-yard and two 171-yard shots.
Hearn says he gets satisfaction every time he sees pictures of the range of customers using his unique creation. “I’m not here to say it is the total answer (for growing the game), but it is part of the answer,” he says. “We get more requests for (building) these kind of facilities (than full courses).”
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