Completely shaded so its great for hot days
very well marked and maintained
good mixed R vs L leaning holes
very wooded
Not a lot of thick underbrush so its easy to find shanked discs

Completely wooded so you are left without any of those wide-open type holes
some holes its very difficult to see the basket from the starting tee so it can be difficult to pick your lines the first time playing through
can get very crowded on weekends

Over all this is an awesome course, best to try and come on non-peak times so you aren't behind three 5 person groups.. but everyone I played through was super nice and accommodating so may not be much of a bother. Hole 17 is insane... very overgrown at the tee and there is a creek about 100-120ft you have to clear or your disc could be VERY difficult to find.. If you can't get a straight shot of at least 130 you should skip this hole..

-Challenging course
-Great scenery
-Multiple tees (Sometimes hard to see)
-Well made tee signs

-Be prepared to hit trees, lots of them
-Occasionally hard to see baskets
-Sometimes holes run close to walking / bike paths

Basil Marella is perhaps my favorite course in the Greater Rochester area. Several people I have talked to do not like it because of all the trees, but that is the reason I love it. This very technical, challenging course is the perfect place to play to work on your flight lines and have a great day of disc golf.

This course is in a heavily wooded area, making a straight shot to the basket difficult. Many of the holes have a clear flight line through the trees, making a good initial throw a must. Since there are so many trees, and since I am still working on my distance driving, I generally use a fairway driver for most of my tee shots. This lets me work on my lines and get a good throw to most of the baskets. If you are a more experienced player, using a distance driver would be just fine. There are a few holes where I can break out the distance driver, but most have a pretty tight fairway through the trees you have to aim for.

One of the best things about this course is the fact that it is in the woods. It really cuts down on the noise from the roads that run nearby and makes for a beautiful day of disc golf in the shade. However, this is a double edged sword as it makes some of the baskets difficult, if not impossible, to see from the tee pad. Hole #5 is the worst culprit of this, as you have to curve to the right of the tee pad. The first time I just had to throw blind and hope I could see the basket from where I landed. Further more, it can make it difficult to find the next tee pad, but if you keep your eyes open, you can see where you need to go. On a few holes, there are also small white signs with a number placed onto the trees to show you how to get to the next hole.

Having multiple tees is also a big plus in my opinion, making this technical course more welcoming to newer players. There are red, yellow, and blue tees on each hole, with most of the concrete tee pads acting as the red and yellow tee boxes. The blue tees are marked by small, painted posts in the ground along the hole. You can easily spot most of them, but they are a bit hard to spot on a couple holes.

Overall, Basil Marella is an excellent place to play. If you are looking to get out and practice your disc control, I highly suggest playing here. Bring a map if it is your first time, and remember to double back to the bridge (You will use it to get to hole 13) to get across the creek when throwing on 17. There isn't a clear path across the creek, so going back to the bridge is your best bet. Just remember where your disc fell.

a good challenge for beginner`s, a lot of trees, concrete tees, metal signs showing you where the disc catcher is as well as a arrow to where the next tee is, a lot of friendly people

garbage, missing bridge to cross after the tee on hole 17

-white discs get lost
-blue like to hit trees
-red like water
-greyish hop
green like to hop and then hit a tree
thats what i recognise from the colors i have used here

Great mix of holes for only heavly wooded area, concrete pads make for great drive surface, very senic, new metal signs added last year for the world real nice,

TREES make it hard for new players and hard on dx plastic disc, can get muddy after a light rain, flimsy brigde that crosses the stream on the back nine, no bridge at 17 to cross back over the stream

very nice to play trought with practice and gets u to pratice your accuracy and not just chuck and pray course , i really recomend a heavy duty plastic if you play here or your disc will be gashed and scuffed up by the end of the round

-Tight wooded design is very challenging and interesting to play - but manages to be friendly for newbies, too
-Concrete tees makes the course playable all year around and fair and safe.
-Varied design - not many big open driving holes, but several long holes and lots of variation between right, left and straight shots
- takes advantage of the hills, valleys and water on the back 9.
-In my opinion it is the most challenging course in the county and therefore your best bet to improve your game
-Brand new baskets in 2011
-Lots of free parking adjacent to hole 1 and 9
-Practice basket adjacent to the parking lot

-By hole 18 you're pretty sick of the trees
-Bridges are terrible and unsafe
-Can get very wet and muddy
-There have been issues in the past with vandalism of baskets and bridges

Everyone gets frustrated with this course - but it's actually one of the best in the area. Play this course a lot and your game WILL improve. Learn to control your discs, get away from throwing fast drivers, learn your overhand and forehand shots, not to mention work on smoothing out your hyzer and anhyzer shots. Gives you a lot of practice on "get out of trouble" shots and forces you to really think each shot through, and how to recover from poorly executed shots, in order to do well.

Surprisingly newbies enjoy it, too - probably because despite all the trees, the course is no more punishing to newbies than it is to seasoned players.

great course for those competetive players looking to better there game. heavily wooded course with skinny paths compliments each hole with its own unique challenge.

lots of trees that can frustrate a beginner. seems like this is a popular course to the locals, so traffic can get pretty heavy on the weekends. garbage such as food wrappers and drink bottles scattered everywhere

some of the smaller sappling trees could go. some signs dont give justice as to where the pin is in accordance to the trees in the fairway. im not a tree hugger or anything but c'mon people throw away your junk. other than that a great challenging course

This course will make you better! Its a really tight, really technical, and really tough course. It will make you work on your tee control big time. The elevation changes on a few holes make it really fun, and there is of course a small stream to deal with.

No solid pads, and bad bridge by 13.

If you are looking for a challenge Basil has it! Wooded course is really amazing! Every hole has a narrow alley, but you have to hit it or off into the brush you go!

All the trees may not be everyone's bag.

Doesn't get any better playing at this course in the summer. You get a break from the sun on this course!

TREES! I'm personally not a big fan of wide open courses (unless they have lots of elevation change).
I had to use every shot i knew to play this course and wish i knew some more.
Played this course during a record heatwave and all the shade was perfect.
The new tee signs were really nicely done.
The little creek added a nice touch.
I liked how the front 9 were flat and the back 9 were hilly, so those that my have trouble with hills (my dad) can just play the front 9.

The bridges could use some work,

All the locals said this was the worst course in the area and complained about the trees, this was my favorite in the area so far BECAUSE of the trees...

Very challenging...
Very Peaceful...
Never the same

Muddy...Muddy...Muddy when it rains

Basil is the first and only place I played for the first 5 years I played DG. It is home for me and will have a place in my heart forever.

18 holes ranging from par 3 to 5. Multiple tee's for each hole. Creek play in 2+ holes. Can easily play front 9 or back 9. Good sized course. Very nice DISCatchers. Easy to navigate even without a map.

Heavily wooded for most of the course. Lots of bee's in the back 9. Very muddy at certain points of the year. No bridge crossing the creek on hole 17. Bridge crossing the other creek is not very stable.

Technical and demanding mature course that rewards precision and mental toughness. Every hole plays through a forest that offers a high enough canopy to work your disc but with tight lanes from tee to basket. The fun here is in hitting your line and bypassing the trees. The short length, just over 5,000 ft plays much longer than it seems as you are creatively negotiating your way through the cracks and crevices in the tree lines. You think you have played tight and unforgiving fairways before. I never played any this tight before....but somehow despite the hardwood punishment the course continued to be enjoyable.
I think the wide enough gaps off the tees to actually drive provided an intial rush and then the ongoing woods were often clusters of treelines and patches of thick trunks that provided ample opportunities to salvage your 2nd and 3rd shots with some miraculously enjoyable recovery. Imagine a fairway that has a wide enough gap to drive but then basically remains that tight for the next 300 feet to the basket. You are bound to find yourself in a mess but I never found myself in schule or had too much difficulty finding my disc.
This is a woods course that offered the fun of driving in the woods with the technical thrill of recovery without the potential of lost discs.
I found myself thinking and then thinking again on the tee and then from my lie and then on my approach..hell I was even thinking on some of my putts. I think if there was a stat for times you pondered your shot this course would be the top in the country. Rarely are you just stepping up and throwing......if you enjoy thought provoking courses this is your Nirvana.
Great tees for a woods course. Overall the footing was excellent on and off the fairways.
The stretch of holes from 12-17 is amongst the best woods golf I have played. The fact that the course seems to rev up and improve is a bonus to me......giving you that Oh boy whats next feeling.
Water in play on 3 holes is a wide shallow stream and not a deep disc eating pond. Elevation is used efficiently to create some interesting approaches and fun tee shots.
A couple of ace runs most notably #9 and #12 though with some combo of luck and skill some other holes could also be aced.
I have never seen a 500 foot straight shot as tight as hole 8 on this course.
In a nutshell theres enough room to drive and theres lines to hit that offer rewarding birdie chances...I played with a local who showed me some of the routes.
That chance at earned success thats often thwarted by thrower error is what makes this an addictive course. I found it to play extremely difficult but fair, barely! This is the Roc course I want another crack at.

Many say it's too lefty friendly
Many say it's too tight
Many long for an open hole
Many have walked away defeated
I prefer woods courses to open courses so I am a sucker for this kind of course...if your more of an open course player feel free to lower the rating some in your mind.
If you don't like a wooded challenge I'd skip this one. If you can't line shape, fear trees, and enjoy reckless bomber golf don't bother coming here.
For a first timer the baskets and lanes are not easily visible due to the thickness of the trees but they are there.(signage is adequate) I lucked out and got a tour from a friendly local...thanks Stetz1010

A few holes every shot I threw ended with treenial and I carded double or triple bogeys but some holes I hit the lines and got par or birdie. It's that kind of course....you can do it but will you?
As you play and your frustration level mounts just remember that the holes on the last 1/3 are better than the first 2/3. Also your concept of what is a fairway will have shifted by that time and your likely to play the final 6 holes better than the prior 12.
Interesting caveat someone got sooooo angry they chainsawed a tree on hole 17s fairway that used to split the fairway. I remarked "Wow an open hole" (it was more of a spot where some sunlight made it to the forest floor) to which my guide commented how some guy ruined the course by cutting down this huge tree that formed a natural bridge over the stream and how it pissed him off cause that one tree was what he used to identify where that one line was that was just to the right of the trunk and without that huge tree in the middle of the fairway he had trouble finding that line........I loved it it's so warped that if you play this course reularly I suppose the trees actually help you find those lines!

I thought this course was pretty short in terms of distance, although very tight windows on most of the holes, very well marked with signs, a variety of looks off the tee and elevation changes

if i wasn't playing with a local guy i would have not known where to go from 9-10, lots of thorns in the brushy areas of the course

unless you have very good accuracy with your drivers i'd say stick to the midranges off the tee, youll be rewarded.

This course is perfect on a really hot day as it is completely wooded. The front 9 seem to be finalized and have hole info with par and map, etc... Cement pads on all 18. Holes are moderate in length and are not over-taken by weeds and such.

The back 9 are not completed yet....they do not have hole info and for a first timer take some guessing as to which trail leads to the next hole.

This is currently my favorite wooded course; as i have not been to parma yet. Although the back 9 do not have any hole info and took a little guessing as to which way to go they do add a bit more difficulty. Be prepared to cross a shotty bridge or stream so wear proper shoes.

fantastic course design
excellent scenery
new concrete tees (installed '08)
double loop design
baskets in good condition
easy to navigate
great variety of shots, lines, distances, elevation
public restrooms
also has football & soccer fields, sand volleyball courts and a skate park
plenty of parking

no trash cans
signs missing on the back 9 (still fairly easy to navigate though, just make sure you cross the stream after 12)
speaking of the stream, there has been a bridge but punk kids destroy it every time it gets repaired and put back up. you can still get across on a path of well placed rocks just before where the remains of the bridge are though.
can get sleazy at the beginning of the spring thaw, tends to be muddy for awhile til it eventually dries out
starts to get a little overgrown towards the fall before everything dies

that's pretty much it other than the lack of extras like alternate tees and pins.

Just a fantastic wooded course. If you're looking to play a round under a beautiful canopy of trees with a creek winding it's way through then this is the place.

First of all, the fun factor at this course is right at the top, presuming that you like playing in the woods with tight fairways. Lots of memorable holes and tons of variety. There is literally not one hole that does something that another already did. Since the fairways are essentially carved out of the woods, care was obviously taken to make each fairway a different path. Fairways frequently shift in direction through the woods, elevation is used to great effect on the back 9 and there is an even mix of lefty and righty holes.

The lanes are extremely tight here but fair. There are very doable lines on every hole, you've just got to be able to hit them. A few have multiple routes and there are even a few with some risky "shortcuts".

The course definitely would benefit from new signs and some trash cans. New bridges would be sweet too.

Play by play:
1. Plays to the right then back slightly left with basket straight ahead
2. Short, tight left to right shot
3. Very, very (VERY!!!) tight corridor, opens up to a clearing with the basket on the right
4. Left or right paths with trees in the middle, basket right in the middle
5. Long left to right corridor eventually opens up to a clearing where the basket is hidden around a left dogleg
6. crazy little beast that goes straight forward then sharp left back to a sharp right then continues down a wide corridor. room to find some interesting routes here. the elbow makes a great landing zone for a hyzer too, then it's straight the rest of the way to the basket
7. tight right to left opens to something of a clearing, a nice hyzer will birdie
8. long shifting fairway, not too tight but slight changes in direction two or three times
9. short blind hyzer shot looks like you're just throwing into the trees but you're really throwing out of the woods. basket right at the edge of the woods.
**exit woods, turn right, second path back into the woods on the right to next tee**
10. straight shot finishes slightly to the left
11. long right to left, then goes straight for a bit. a small ravine drops down then back up to the basket (so the basket is slightly elevate and on a slope). a few small trees in the ravine guard the hole.
12. ace run, straight shot downhill with a creek on the right that wraps behind the basket too
**follow the path away from the basket, cross stream to get to 13**
13. steep uphill grade about 50' in front of the tee with something of a split fairway. then moves into into a well guarded green to the right.
14. long, gentle left to right to a well guarded basket with a drop off just behind it.
15. nice downhill hyzer shot to a partially protected clearing
16. tight split fairway that's tough either way. fairway goes to the right and the baskets backs up to the creek.
**follow the path to the right away from the basket to the tee for 17**
17. tee off directly over the creek to a fairway that curves to the right. (several ways across the creek but there are a couple good stepping platforms near the tee). basket is up on the right on a big slope.
**climb the slope past the basket to the road, go right then make a left at the pull up bars to get to 18**
18. long right to left, slight clearing to the basket


**Like this review? Hate it? Message me and let me know why! I want to make them better!**

Variety of wooded shots with different elevation changes and direction changes. Some more open shots and some more cluttered, some bending and some straight. The back 9 has a LOT more variety with some steep hills both up and down and a really nice shot over a creek. You're never really in danger of losing a disc, even in the water.

This place also has a lot of other stuff going on, so you can find something to do even if you don't want to play disc golf anymore...or if you need to bring a SO that doesn't like disc golf as much as you do.

Also all cement Tees.

There is a broken to heck bridge crossing the creek at hole 13, but there is a footer for a new bridge so hopefully that will be fixed soon.

Also somebody needs to make some new signs for some of the back nine.

I loved playing this course and as soon as I was done I wanted to play it again. My father felt the same way. This is simply a really nice place to be, it's fun to walk around, it's fun to play, and I really want to adopt this course and take care of it.

I found a lot of litter on the course, but nowhere near as much as Ellison, and maybe less than Baker.

They just need to replace some of the signs and it'll be very new player friendly.

its great open all year with the wonderful concrete. ellison should get concrete.

the young punk greece kids dinking beer in the bushes on the back nine

i like this course alot and if your thinking about playing it do it, its fun

A very nice course. The signs are very descriptive and the tees well marked (at least on the front nine). The woods are well broken in: the good shots get through and the bad ones hit trees or fall over hills, but no discs get lost. Great use of the ups and downs of the terrain on the back nine. The front nine and back nine are laid out as two distinct circuits, which makes it easy to just play one or the other, or to take a break in between.

The red tees and yellows (which I'm assuming are am and pro) are IDENTICAL for all of the front nine and most of the back, I felt like the 3 tee concept was a running joke. The back nine shows evidence of late night partying /drinking and destruction of tees and signs. Vandalism is an unfortunate issue with woods courses, and it is evident here.

Even though it is over an hour away, this is one I'll play again.