Manakiki Golf Course (Willoughby Hills, OH) [Revised]

I blogged about Manakiki five years ago, but with its ascension to the top of Golfweek’s Best Public Courses in Ohio list, I felt compelled to revisit it. 

(The view of the eighteenth green with the historic clubhouse in the background that was the summer estate for industrialist Howard Hanna.)

Manakiki occupies a terrific piece of property and Donald Ross did a great job routing a course on it. It’s always been recognized as being one of the best in the city, locals can attest to that, but never given any type of national acknowledgement. This all changed when they restored the bunkers, and equally important, started clearing the hillsides of the canyon holes. They also restored a few tees and added others. All this work gave a facelift to a tired course and made Manakiki the darling of the Cleveland Metroparks. 

(Ross sure knew how to design cool short par fives! The third is only 471 yards, but the player can only drive it 250 yards before it tumbles downhill where a pond sits in the valley. Note the thumbprint green. The pin is in a bowl with the rest of putting surface elevated around it. It’s a birdie opportunity but  long putts can be very difficult.) 

(One of the best par fives in the entire city, the sixth is a 568 yard beauty that plays downhill before rambling uphill to the green. The front half of the green slopes away from the player before creasing and sloping towards him in the rear portion. Birdie is very dependent on pin position, but a five is always a welcome score.)

Manakiki’s best feature are the greens.  They have great variety to them, and give each hole a distinct strategy. Knowing where certain pin positions are dictate how one plays the hole. There are also plenty of sidehill shots to execute, and understanding the ball flight allows one to use the terrain to one’s advantage. It’s old school architecture and Ross was one of the best at incorporating these nuances. 

(The par three eleventh plays 187 yards to a green elevated above the valley. Bunkers short really emphasis that one strikes the ball well. A ridge etching in from the left rough makes a miss in this area a testy up and down.) 

(The second of back to back par fives, the thirteenth is reachable with two strong shots. It’s 495 yards and if the player can turn it over climb the crest of the hill then the second will be almost level with the green. Most will hit short and have an uphill shot for a third.)

Manakiki has proven its mettle hosting the 1953 and 1954 Carling Opens won by Dr Cary Middlecoff and Julius Boros respectively. Between them, they’ve won 65 times including 6 major championships! Middlecoff shot -13 par to win in ‘53 while Boros won with -8 in ‘54. 

(The 403 yard par four seventeenth plays much longer than it’s listed yardage. A uphill tee shot followed by a long iron over a valley to an elevated green makes this a challenging par to secure. I’ve always loved how the green blends in perfectly with its setting.) 

For more recent history, Manakiki hosted the PGA Minority Collegiate Championship in 1994. A young Tiger Woods coming off of three straight USGA Junior Championships was the guest of honor giving a clinic the day before the tournament. Jackson State University would win their fifth straight championship. 
(Look beyond the fifteenth green and notice how much work was done to clear the hillside on the eighteenth. The hillside on the left was also cleared, making this 205 yard par three more playable. Unfortunately, the cart path is ill advisedly placed next to the green. This is one of the holes where the original tee box was reintroduced atop the hill yet a new one beautifully sits back in the hollow. Both are excellent.) 

The Metroparks own both Manakiki and Sleepy Hollow, and the work put into Manakiki has elevated its status. While I think Golfweeks rating is a little ambitious, it’s inclusion as a top five course is solid. On more personal note, I find myself enjoying my round here more than at my home course Sleepy Hollow. I’m sure most people feel the same way. It’s definitely better than I originally rated it. I give it a 6 (very good)(worth driving two hours to play).  

(The view of the eighteenth hole from the tee. It’s only 384 yards and long hitters can blast it past the tightened landing zone, but the green is small and well bunkered in front. Players tend to find themselves long in the rough or back fringe since the elevation change is hard to judge. This is easily one of the most recognizable holes in the city.)