Warwick, NY

Brakewell Steel / Warwick Park - Wolfe Woods

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3.215(based on 19 reviews)
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Brakewell Steel / Warwick Park - Wolfe Woods reviews

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6 2
Ryal
Gold level trusted reviewer
Premium Member
Experience: 6.9 years 222 played 184 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Water-Riddled Wolfe Woods 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Dec 3, 2018 Played the course:once

Pros:

+ As the title of this review implies, there is water OB everywhere at this course. Ten of the eighteen holes have the player throw over a stream or creek, which makes for some fun risky golf.
+ Most of the course plays within the woods to challenge the players' control and aim through the tight fairways.
+ Both the silver (short) and blue (long) layouts have their own tee sign indicating the distance and par with a diagram of the hole ahead with the next tee direction and any OB specifically marked, and most have their own seating/benches.
+ A few nice elevation challenges add some texture to this otherwise flat course.
+ Short distances so the course can be played in a hurry if a golfer has time restrictions.

Cons:

- As the title of this review implies, there is water everywhere at this course. Some of the fairways were squishy messes during my session in early December.
- Most of the course plays within woods that are not altogether well maintained. A few deadfall trees here and there plus overgrowth in the middle of some fairways subtract from the experience.
- Trash, broken chairs, and discarded industrial equipment visible- especially among holes seven through eleven.
- The tee pads are lumpy rubber. They do not feel sturdy or flat beneath my feet. Some holes have no tee pads at all. Those tee zones are simply rocks or mud behind an embedded plank of wood.
- Some tee signs are missing as well.
- Short distances so the course can be unsatisfying if a golfer has expectations.

Other Thoughts:

My favorite hole at this course would have to be either 15 or 16. It was so nice to play among some evergreen trees after playing through nothing but deciduous trees up until that point. The fairways of those two holes were actual grass instead of mud or rock. I think I liked 16 slightly better because its pin was defended by a bunker and a few guardian trees.
My least favorite hole at this course might be hole 10 because of its combination of winding stream OB and scattered tree-dodging. It felt the least cohesive to me as far as disc golf goes: almost as though the tees and basket were plopped near the water just because they could.

As for the course as a whole, Wolfe Woods is a puzzle.
Everything positive I can think of is negated by that very aspect's downside. The fun water hazards are negated by that very water seeping into the ground everywhere around it and making a muddy mess of the fairways. The challenging wooded holes are negated by their brevity and sometimes under-kept condition.
I did like some of the elevation changes such as the fun downhill of hole 4 and the gentle uphill of hole 11, but I wish that the tee areas had better material (or any material at all for some tee zones) so that I could get more footing to power through them. Most of the streams and creeks are peaceful to watch and listen to, but the rest of the forest is tiny, cramped, and has some garbage plainly visible- especially during the back nine.

This is not a bad course. But it is also not a great course. It is neither dazzling nor dull. It neither invigorates nor nauseates. I neither loved it nor hated it, which is why I feel confident in my rating.
I can still reluctantly recommend this course, however, because I imagine that it will probably be a bit more enjoyable in the hotter months when the ground is not as soggy. I think the tacticians out there would get a lot more enjoyment out of this course than the power throwers, though. The woods are a little bit demanding when it comes to their lines and whether or not they wish to forgive a bad throw.
The short distances for the holes compensate for that, somewhat, with the absolute longest on offer being 425 feet at hole 4's blue (long) tee, so more experienced players might not feel like wasting their time in the first place.

Bottom line: Play at Wolfe Woods as a warm-up for the other course just up the hill and across the parking lot or if you wish to practice throwing through semi-dense forest and over a bunch of waterways.
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7 2
BigAl724
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 11.7 years 178 played 144 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Wolfe Woods - Where's the next hole? 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 17, 2014 Played the course:once

Pros:

Wolfe Woods is a unique course set in a heavily wooded area within Warwick Town Park. It is conveniently located right next to the Brakewell Steel course and provides a quicker, par 3 round as a nice alternative to its big brother. There is a big wooden sign on the left side of Brakewell Steel hole 15's fairway, this is where you enter the course.

The course has quality tee signs and offers multiple tees that do a nice job of changing the hole. It also has Mach 3 baskets in great condition that are easy to spot in the thick woods because they are painted red.

I say that Wolfe Woods is unique because it is set in a strikingly beautiful section of the woods that really has a middle-of-nowhere feel to it. It starts in a moderately wooded section playing over many little streams, and then takes you through a densely wooded area with quality elevation changes in play. The course then finishes with more holes where streams come into play and it loops back to the course entrance.

While being a shorter, par 3 course, Wolfe Woods actually presents a lot of challenges with streams in play on 10 holes and the thick rough that is constantly present. No holes here let you comfortably air it out, each hole requires a more technical approach.

My favorite stretch of holes here were 11-14, which was probably the most densely wooded part of the course. I felt that these holes did the best job of offering multiple fair lines and they had more elevation changes than the other parts of the course.

Cons:

Honestly, this is the worst course that I have played in terms of navigation. To be fair, I didn't have a map, which I would certainly recommend. There are many, many occasions where paths lead to every which way, leaving you guessing to find the next tee. Sometimes, paths even break off from those paths, making it more confusing to re-track your steps once you have gotten lost. The course also plays close to the Brakewell Steel course at times, adding to the confusion even more. I often felt like I was lost in a corn maze.

Tees come in a variety of forms. I'm usually not too concerned about the tees, but this course had some definite problems. Natural tees were sometimes uneven and it sometimes wasn't clear that they were tees.

The rough was also some of the worst that I've seen on a course. It was very thick and nasty throughout the course. I feel that I would like this course A LOT better if I played it when the rough was died down.

I should also mention that navigation can be tough in a literal sense at a few points. Not for the faint of heart, the course is definitely a hike in the woods, crossing on a sketchy bridge or two, as well as through some very tight paths.

Other Thoughts:

Technically, Wolfe Woods is a fun course that I thought was well designed and had a nice balance of shots. While not being very long, the course could be a challenge for even more serious players, with the constant battling of the stream and a few precarious pin positions. With improved navigation and reduction of the rough, I could see myself bumping its rating up .5-1 disc.

The fact that this is located right next to Brakewell Steel is awesome, but I still would recommend playing this course if you have some extra time. It is a good compliment to the beast that is Brakewell Steel with its tight technical holes
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