Famous people's places / Detroit – University District

Detroit Golf Club

A private club founded in 1899 with two Donald Ross-designed courses, home course of pro Horton Smith for 17 years and host of the PGA Tour's Rocket Classic since 2019.

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01 / The story of this place

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William R. Farrand and a group of friends founded the Detroit Golf Club in 1899, initially renting 45 acres of farmland at Six Mile and Woodward for a modest six-hole course. As membership grew, the club commissioned famed course architect Donald Ross, who built a 36-hole complex completed in 1918, the first Ross design in Michigan and still the club's layout today. Horton Smith, winner of the first-ever Masters Tournament in 1934, served as the club's head golf professional from 1946 to 1963, and a tournament today carries his name in his honor. The club's North Course has hosted the PGA Tour's Detroit stop, now called the Rocket Classic, every year since 2019, bringing top professional golf back to the city for the first time in decades. Detroit Golf Club remains a private club today, open to members and tournament spectators rather than the general public.

Founded 1899 by William R. Farrand and friends
36-hole Donald Ross design completed in 1918, the first Ross course in Michigan
Horton Smith, the first Masters champion, was head professional here 1946 to 1963
Hosts the PGA Tour's Rocket Classic every year since 2019

Famous Detroiters

Famous people tied to this place 1

Lexicon entries for the people who lived, worked, performed or liked to spend time here.

Horton Smith 1908–1963 · professional golfer
Worked here
The historic private club on Detroit's northwest side where he was head professional for seventeen years; a tournament there bears his name.

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Sources & fact check · Checked: 2026-09-25

An independently written bilingual guide. This collection is not an attendance-based ranking.