Football star Cousins buys Clearbrook

By Scott Sullivan
Editor
It’s official. NFL quarterback Kirk Cousins and his wife Julie have bought Clearbrook Golf Course.
The third-year Saugatuck Dune Ridge residents announced, via CFM Capital president Ken Filipini, they’d acquired the 96-year-old, 18-hole golf course at 6494 Clearbrook Drive from longtime owners John and Candy Jeltema, but not The Grill Room restaurant or clubhouse also there.
The 6,546-square-foot, Par-72 golf course boasts pine- and hardwood-lined fairways, slopes, bunkered greens and water challenges, in particular from a clear brook that winds through the area. With it too come a driving range, two putting greens, a chipping green, practice bunker and updated restroom facilities.
Kirk Cousins, a Holland Christian High School and Michigan State University graduate, is starting quarterback for the 7-1 Minnesota Vikings, who at midseason lead their NFC North Division by 4-1/2 games.
“To our Friends in the Saugatuck-Douglas Community,” he and wife Julie wrote in letter released Monday, “our family recently purchased the Clearbrook Golf Course from our friends and longtime owners, Jim and Candy Jeltema. They have managed the course for many years, making Clearbrook a place of connection and fun for our entire community.
“West Michigan is a special community,“ they went on, “and we have enjoyed living in Saugatuck-Douglas since we built our home here in 2018. As Jim reflected on his future, he wanted to keep the golf course in the community.
“As we discussed the history of the golf club with Jim, we agreed it is a community treasure and should remain a golf course for the next generation. Our family would prefer it not become a housing development or summer rental community.
“We want to invest in this great community and see this purchase as an opportunity to do just that, maintaining the life of a golf course in place since 1926.
“There are no concrete plans for changes to the course,” the Cousins’ went on. “We have talked and dreamed about how it might improve and will continue to have these conversations in days ahead.
“We want the course to be a great experience for golfers, so we will begin by making small aesthetic changes such as burying power lines that run overhead and adding some perimeter landscaping. There may be other improvements in the future, but we will consider those possibilities in time.
“For the near future, Jim will continue to operate the golf course business on our behalf. He and Candy will also continue to own and operate The Grill Room, as our family acquires the golf course land and golf business, not the clubhouse or the restaurant.
“We hope our community will continue to use and enjoy the golf course, while continuing to support Jim and Candy at the restaurant, as they have for so many years,” they said.