27 seasons of Mulligan Tour golf
From 16 golfers in Belleville to Metro Detroit's longest-running weekend tournament series.
- 1999
The birth of the Tour
Frustrated with 9-hole weeknight leagues, founder Erik Meland set up weekend tournaments at Wayne County courses. The first 16 members came from the Royal & Ancient Golf Club of Harbour Pointe in Belleville.
“Playing professional golf was a dream. But not even a dream, more of a fantasy, really. I was never going to be good enough to play for a living, so I made it my hobby.”
Erik Meland, founder - May 29, 1999
The first tournament
Twelve golfers played the inaugural Pine View Classic at Pine View Golf Course in Ypsilanti. Ron Stuart, a Dearborn schoolteacher, won with a net 68 (4 under) by two strokes. Pine View is still on the schedule.
Bob White, 2004 Strokes on a Rope Challenge - 1999
A season of firsts
Tom Hamilton won the first Tin Cup at Willow Metropark. Mary Petree won the Crazy Brit, the Tour's first woman champion. Lightning stopped the Harbour Pointe Open mid-round and shaped the weather policy still used today. Jim Cwikla won the Harbour Pointe Open and the PLAYERS Championship, and Todd Stuart took the first Money Title with $94.
Jim Cwikla, 2008 Plymouth Open Setting the standard
The MTHI formula was tuned in 2000 and 2001 after too many net scores beat par. Pace-of-play rules arrived: a 3-putt maximum and a quadruple-bogey cap. Membership grew from 24 in 2000 to 34 in 2002 and 55 in 2004.
Steve Gregg, 2003 Match Play Champion A board and a Grand Slam
A Board of Directors formed from veteran players, and the Grand Slam was set as four Majors: the Memorial Tournament (first played in 1995, before the Tour), the Match Play Championship, the Harbour Pointe Open and the PLAYERS Championship.
2004 Harbour Pointe Open Divisions and the Commissioner's Cup
With more than 60 members, the Tour split into Central and Western divisions so no one drives more than about 30 minutes. The first Commissioner's Cup, a Ryder Cup-style match between each division's top eight money winners, went to Central at Lakes of Taylor. West won it back in 2006 at Legacy.
Team West, 2006 Commissioner’s Cup winners East joins, and two new cups
The Eastern Division brought the Tour to Oakland and Macomb counties. The Presidents Cup (27 holes of best ball, alternate shot and scramble) and the Division Bell (four-player division teams, first won by Central at Farmington Hills) both debuted.
2010 Division Bell, the first one New ownership
After 18 years, Erik Meland handed the Tour to a nine-member LLC of Southeast Michigan golfers committed to the same core principles.
Chuck Withey, President of The Mulligan Tour 
The rest of today's board, all playing members →New events
The U of M Open arrived at the University of Michigan Golf Course in Ann Arbor, and Red, White & Blue began at Shenandoah before moving to Taylor Meadows. Commissioner's Cup rosters grew from 8 to 10 per side in 2019.
Mike Prieskorn, 2023 U of M Open A modern handicap
The MTHI adopted World Handicap System ideas, using the best 5 of the last 10 rounds. The multiplier moved from 0.95 to 0.85 in 2021, based on 22 years of Tour scores.
Season 27
90 active members, 37+ courses and 43 events from April to November, with the 28th season coming in 2027.
Chuck Withey, 2015 Animal House Classic
Every champion, every year
Results for every Tour event back to 1999 live in the tournament history, with past winners, money leaders and records.
