A SINGLE PLT DIVERTED TO A CLOSED ARPT; M37; AND LANDED AS A PRECAUTION DUE TO ENCOUNTERING UNEXPECTED IMC.

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I AM A PVT PLT WORKING TOWARDS MY INST RATING. I LEFT CLEVELAND WITH CURRENT WX AND DID NOT RECEIVE ANY DISCREPANCIES ON WX. MY FLT TOOK ME TO TUSKEGEE; AL; (06A) AND THEN ON TO TUSCALOOSA; AL; THEN BACK TO CLEVELAND. UPON MY RETURN; A LARGE SQUALL LINE HAD FORMED AND WAS MOVING TOWARDS CLEVELAND. I DID NOT FEEL THAT CONTINUING ON AS A VFR FLT WOULD BE WISE; SO I TURNED AROUND TO FIND THAT THE STORM HAD BUILT AROUND ME AS WELL. IMMEDIATE LNDG WAS NECESSARY AND THE CLOSEST AIRFIELD WAS RULEVILLE-DREW (M37). THE ROTATING BEACON WAS LIT AND I MADE MY APCH. I SAW SOME TYPE OF FABRIC THAT HAD BEEN BLOWN AROUND AT THE END OF EACH RWY; NOT ON THE RWY ITSELF; BUT IN THE GRASS 30-40 FT OFF THE RWY. ONE OF THE PIECES OF FABRIC FORMED AN X. THE ROTATING BEACON WAS OPERATING AND I HAD NO TIME TO DIVERT TO ANOTHER ARPT. ANY CONTINUATION IN THE FLT WOULD HAVE CAUSED AN EMER. I MADE ONE PASS; AT PATTERN ALT; TO SURVEY THE FIELD AND SAW NOTHING WRONG WITH THE LNDG STRIP ITSELF. CONSTRUCTION WAS BEING DONE ON THE S END OF THE RWY RUN-UP AREA. I LANDED AT THE FIELD AND FOUND OUT LATER THAT THE FIELD WAS CLOSED. I FEEL THAT A MORE VISIBLE WAY OF SHOWING A CLOSED ARPT COULD HAVE BEEN USED OTHER THAN MATERIAL THAT COULD BE BLOWN AROUND BY THE WIND. I ALSO FEEL THAT AN OPERATING ROTATING BEACON GIVES THE IMPRESSION THAT THE ARPT IS IN USE.