A coarse grain model for phospholipids was systematically parametrized to mimic structural properties obtained from an atomistic simulation of a dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine bilayer. The model semiquantitatively reproduces the cross-sectional structure of a preassembled phospholipid bilayer obtained from an atomistic simulation; a property that was not directly fit. The model is sufficiently fast to permit the simulation of the self-assembly of the bilayer starting from a random configuration.