Indianwood Golf and Country Club and the Orion community will be back on national radar, as the club and the United States Golf Association announced Thursday their agreement to stage the 2012 U.S. Senior Open on the old course.
‘This has been a long time coming,? said course owner Stan Aldridge. ‘When we bought Indianwood back in 1981, it was our objective to get a major championship in here.?
The course previously hosted the U.S. Women’s Open in 1989, and again on short notice in 1994.
The notion of hosting a senior open became a possibility after the Ford Senior Players Championship (a longtime major on the Senior, and then Champions, Tour) left the TPC of Dearborn after 2006.
‘The USGA was really honest with me and said with the TPC here, it probably wouldn’t happen,? Aldridge said.
But the morning Ford dropped the event, Aldridge got a call from USGA Executive Director David Fay that started the wheels in motion.
‘We’re delighted to come back and bring the U.S. Senior Open to the Detroit area,? said Jeff Hall from the USGA.
The event will be held July 12-15, 2012, with the weekend draws expected to come close to, or even exceed, 25,000 spectators.
The event at Indianwood will come just one year after the senior open is held at Inverness in Toledo.
‘We could probably put on a tournament next year if we had to,? Aldridge said, alluding to their hosting of the ?94 women’s event.
Similar to that tournament, Aldridge’s daughter, Kelly, will serve as tournament director.
Tickets will be released in August of 2011.
‘Indianwood and Canterbury Village (also owned by Aldridge) I always look at as great drawing points, so this will be great for the township,? Township Supervisor Jerry Dywasuk said. ‘It’s nice to have people like [Aldridge] that are dedicated to the community.?
For the USGA, the course has everything they are looking for in a major venue.
‘What really made an impression, after going out on the course, was the natural setting,? Hall said. ‘It’s obviously not links land, in the purest sense of the term, but it sure can play that way.?
Many of the holes will be lengthened and Hall said the course will play somewhere in the neighborhood of 6,900 yards as a par-70.
In today’s game, that is still considered to be on the short side.
‘Length is not the issue,? Hall said. ‘That’s not what Indianwood is about. We can challenge the best players in the world without a long golf course.?
Other aspects, particularly the greens, which will have that signature USGA touch, will more than make up for it.
‘The putting greens are going to be a challenge to manage here,? Hall said. ‘That’s certainly the strength of this golf course.?
Other alterations and modernizations will include long rough and making sure bunkers are located in the drive zones. Aldridge said his son, Kevin, would lead work on the course at the direction of the USGA.
‘We do want to test every aspect of the greatest golfers in the world,? Hall said. ‘We know it will be a wonderful test and it will be embraced by the players.?
Hall added that the USGA is excited about the landscape of the area from a logistical standpoint. Having a second course on the property will help, as will the course’s strong history with similar events.
In the past, the course has also played host to many Michigan Opens and Michigan PGAs, as well as the 1930 Western Open (won by Gene Sarazen) and a U.S. Open qualifier.
It was opened in 1925 and has drawn comparisons to many other great U.S. courses, such as Shinnecock Hills.
Indianwood could possibly play host to a qualifier prior to the event, but the issue has not been resolved yet, as the course will need six-to-eight weeks of preparation before the tournament.
That will all be worth it when play begins.
‘We know there will be galleries out there to watch, and on the Champions Tour, that’s not always the case,? Hall said.
The club is equally excited, as Hall joked that Aldridge signed the contract to host faster than anyone else ever has.
‘This is what I wanted when I bought Indianwood,? Aldridge said. ‘To get it on the national scene.?