For a player with intermediate overall skills but an arm over 60 years old, it was a pleasure to find out this week that a new, casual, pitch and putt disc golf course was just installed in the park woods of a sports complex about two miles from my home. Playing slightly more wooded lines than the new (shortened) Woodland Mound, and having more technical lines and challenges than the wide open Xavier course, the 18 hole Batavia Township Sports Complex disc golf course is a pleasure to throw on a sunny, calm, fall day.

Boasting adequately sized (5x10ish?), level, flush concrete tees and new, white 28 chain DisCatchers, the holes range from 117' to 289', with the majority being intended for your putters and midranges, and easily deuced by moderately experienced players. You should be able to come out here and run for aces (I think I might have the course's 1st on hole 10, 9/30/23?), but still enjoy being knocked around by the mature park trees if you stray too much off your intended line. Can you scramble and save that 3 (or better yet, the 2)? Or get the embarrassing bogie?

The design does set a reasonable level of challenge for novice to recreational players, and offers choices of lines to work around and through the trees. It even has a ridgetop basket placement (on hole 12) to force a second thought for your putt. In its infancy, the clearing is well done (especially for right handed lines: I play with a left hander who would definitely have some suggested trimming!), and they immediately added two culvert and gravel bridges to cross the ditch the weaves through the center of the course. Signage is expected soon, but in the meantime, use the map I've drawn up, and the distances copied from the original Udisc listing.

Keeping in mind I rate courses for 1) Safety, 2) Fun, and 3) Challenge, I would like to reward the course design for the fun factor (maybe a 4 or 5), and then the challenge (3 to 4 for the intended audience), but have some significant safety concerns. This is a very, VERY busy park, with an established paved trail circling the perimeter that comes into play (for the intended novice throwers, especially) on holes 1,6,7,8,9,13,14&15. There is a bolted park bench 20' right of the 13th basket. Joggers can appear suddenly after a throw on 14. Holes 16 & 18 play across the unmarked periphery of two baseball fields. The BUSY driveway is in play on 1,7&18, and there is going to be a vehicle parked 35' past the longest basket 18 that WILL be in play. And finally, the course weaves back and forth across the woods enough that tree kicks WILL put you in adjacent fairways. Disc golfers MUST remain cautious and vigilant about understanding that EVERBODY else has the right of way (if they don't want holes, or the course pulled).

There was little available in terms of elevation (hey: it's cart-friendly), so don't expect that to be much of a factor. That also means (and you can tell from the drainage ditch) that this is a course that may get marshy, muddy, and buggy in season, so bring towels and appropriate footwear. Speaking of water, even though hole 6 is a short ace run, it's very possible for a wayward shot to skip the path and fence left, and be lost in that pond. And don't complain about this being a shortie course. It is what it is: pitch and putt fun.

In all, I'm thrilled to see this course pop up almost out of nowhere. I'll play it a lot. My rating mostly reflects potential (er, probable) safety concerns. I've met a lot of disc golfers, and there are enough guys who feel entitled to throw, regardless of 'civilians' on or near the course, that I worry. I hope the park considers the option of pulling a basket on a troublemaker hole if necessary, not throwing this baby out with the bathwater… In fact, IF troubles arise, I hope they'd be open to a redesign giving them nine safe woodsy holes if need be!