(3.203 Rating) A wooded Advanced level course that strikes a similar pose.
- CHALLENGING - A perfect course for Intermediates and Advanced level players. Players are going to need a mix of both accuracy and length to finish well out here. There are very few easy gets on this course and the bogey potential is high on poor throws. I am an Intermediate and I finished 2 over while playing halfway decent. According to league data I looked up, even par 56 draws a 937 rated round. Higher skilled players will likely rate this course much higher than those with a lower skill level set.
- NATURAL BEAUTY - It's player versus nature out here. Loved it. Almost a full dose of tunnel fairways with some minor slopes to spice up a few lines. There are zero interactions with the built environment. Basically no sidewalks, building or roads in play or view. Overall, I scored the course 80 percentile, the second highest score I've given among the 11 Michigan courses I've played thus far.
- SIGNAGE AND NAVIGATION - Outstanding navigation once finding tee (1). Descriptive and attractive tee signage. The tee signs have the next tee direction on them and there are next tee signs visible once finishing several baskets. The one caveat to this pro, is that finding tee (1) will be difficult without a navigational app. There was no course map posted at the parking area as of my visit to aid in this endeavor. Tee (1) is about a 300 foot walk due west of the donut shaped parking area.
- BASICS AND AMENITIES - In addition to the signage, respectable concrete tees and Chainstar pro baskets with 3 sets of chains, there are numerous benches (which I appreciated) through-out the layout.

A very solid course that was unfortunately not memorable enough to me. The issues listed below are nit picking reasons of why I didn't score it a 3.5.
- MONOTONY - When I got to about hole (5), I started thinking to myself, "Haven't I already played this one?" If someone told me they really liked hole (8), I would visually have no idea which one they were referring to. This is not to say that a couple holes didn't stand out, cause a few definitely did. It's just that twelve of them are so similar that I already don't remember where any of them fell in the layout. Also, no alternate pin placements to spice an already similarly looking layout.
- SAND - I think this is the first time I've ever used this one as a con. I didn't take off any points for it directly, although it does have a super minor impact on the overall course beauty. So why am I listing this in the cons? It's because constantly walking on loose sand is an energy drain that I was not expecting. My legs were jelly post round and I had to take a quick breather before starting the original course. I could see some inferior cart models being difficult roll around where the sand issue is most pronounced. There are also lots of near flush cut stumps to jam a foot into.
- ONE SET OF TEES - Had there been two sets of tees on this course, I would have given the course a 3.5 without question. This course will not appeal to numerous players. It's just too long, too hard and not unique enough for many lower skilled players to enjoy. Adding short tees to lets say just six of the longest holes out here will add substantial appeal to many players. Plus 350-foot holes to players that can only chuck 250 to 300 suck.
- BEGINNER FRIENDLY - Not beginner friendly at all. I don't subtract any rating score for this.
- PARKING - Tee (1) is at least a 300 foot walk from the parking area and Basket (18) is over 400 feet away.
- TIME PLAY - This one took me well over an hour as a solo. It flows well however once on the course.

I only came up with 4 pros. Granted they are the important ones, but still. I went back and forth on whether to score this one a high 3.0 or low 3.5 and ultimately settled on a high 3.0. The hole quality is definitely worthy of a 3.5 level in my books, but there were numerous things that the makers could have done to improve it's appeal. I don't understand the reasoning behind having a one tee and one basket on a landscape that already has minimal variation to it. There are also zero super-fun short technical ace runs on this course. Even Idlewild and Flyboy have sub 200-foot plays. Add in the fact that the general hole lengths will be untenable to those with recreational arm strength means the thrill of a birdie chance will be limited to one or two holes. Even though I scored this course higher than its older sibling, I think there's a good chance I'd replay the original before this one. If the course ever adds just four short tees to the longest holes, message me and I'll gladly up my rating to a 3.5. Among the 518 courses I've played as of this review, this one is right around 75 percentile on my ledger.

The Bear's Den is one of two courses at the Kingsley Civic Center. It winds it's way through a wooded section on the west side of the park. There's a mix of different types of trees, but definitely leans more heavily on the coniferous side. Very sandy ground throughout. It almost looks like you're in the rockies because of this.

The baskets are brand new red Chainstar Pros. These are some of my favorite baskets. Easy to spot in the woods and they catch great. One pin position per hole.

The tee pads are also top notch. Very large large, level and grippy concrete. These things are exactly what you want a tee pad to be. One tee pad per hole.

The tee signs are some of the best i've ever seen. They're huge by tee sign standards. They have a very detailed hole diagram, Hole #, Par, distance and a next tee marker. There is also a next tee sign near each pin, making navigation a non issue. This course has all the bells and whistles you'd like to see as far as the equipment goes. Nicely done.

The course is free to play and there are numerous benches throughout. Probably not really the busiest course either.

The area was used very well in the design of this course. The flow is pretty seamless from hole to hole for the most part. It starts and ends a little ways away from the parking area, but that ensures that it's an entirely wooded experience. No filler to get you there or back.

The sandy terrain gets annoying after awhile. Especially if you're pulling a cart. But even just walking in the sand get tiresome. It also makes it hotter than just grass or dirt. Your feet start to feel like they're on fire in the sunny spots. Nitpicky I know, but it isn't ideal.

The course starts to feel a bit repetitive by the end of the round. Partly due to the flat nature of the course, but mostly the dead straight shot, slight left turning fairway, dead straight shot, slight right turning fairway, etc. Not much could be done about this, but worth noting.

While I wouldn't say it's easy to lose a disc here, it is very possible. Especially with all the pine trees off the fairway. These tend to gooble offline shots up. A few pines are fine, but there's tons of them. So just pitching out to the fairway can be pretty common.

I haven't had the chance to play the original yet, well 4 holes before a storm blew in today. But this is probably the superior of the 2 courses here, based on those 4 holes. Either way just won't be disappointed if you stop in here for a round or 2. But is it the most epic course in the area? Probably not. I can't say for sure because I've play next to nothing nearby here yet. But I can tell you that I'm sure you can do worse than this place. I'd play it again, no problem.

I kind of waffled on my rating of a 3.5 or a 4, and to be honest it's probably right in between. I settled on a 3.5, which is very good. I just don't think it's quite a 4. But I'd be more than happy to have this course near me.