-easy access, well-designed 18 hole course in a multi-use park
-decent flow & navigation, which was nice for a first timer
-tee pads & baskets were clearly marked & in good shape
-great use of the natural features (elevation, trees, water) in the design

-some of the holes were quite short...#16, in particular, was only @80 feet long
-course layout requires a few janky trips to the next tee, but the course map helped a lot

Got out to play Bryan Pk DGC this morning and I'm glad I finally got to play a Virginia course! I really enjoyed my round- nice mix of holes that require virtually every shot in the arsenal, some challenging approaches, and an overall nice course set in a park right in Richmond. Definitely worth a look if you're in the area- and I got to meet one of the course designers as I was finishing my round!

Beautiful park with large old growth trees, good challenging lay out with what they had to work with

Lack of tee signs made it hard to navigate and some fairways cross each other

This is a fun beautiful course. With 2 tee pads you can make it what you want it to be.

I have played here many times over the years in my opinion it's the best course in Richmond..open course with obstacles in a well-maintained park.
Looking at the other reviews there's not much I can say that hasn't already been said so I will focus on the cons a little bit

The blue tees are fantastic

The yellow tees are just dirt pits.
Mandatory on Hole 2 doesn't really make sense.
Hole 8 is a tweener
Hole 17 is a tweener

Nice park setting, pavers on blue tees,it was freshly mowed , overall decent course, would play again when in Richmond,

Needs better signage directing to next tee,several paint marks on baskets led me astray

Water shots were fun play not too much disc loss danger

Good variety, with a lot of wide open fairways, some slightly more technical holes, and water in play on several holes. The paver tee boxes (usually only on one distance/hole) are nicely done.

You have to be very aware of the mixed-use nature of the park, because often the non-DG crowd is completely unaware. Hole 9 can be a real circus in this respect.
The two holes that go across water (16 and 18) are often left unplayable because someone is fishing.
For the front nine especially. if you don't have a big arm, some of the holes are tough to reach(hole 2 and especially 3 come to mind as par 3s, and hole 4 as a par 4). I don't consider this a negative; I just keep it in mind and try to manage the course and have patience.

Signage leaves a little to be desired. I played three rounds there before I had it completely figured out.

A "nice to have" would be more than one paved tee box per hole.

I like to warm up by throwing in the field next to the tennis courts before playing. It's usually pretty empty, with the rare exception of Saturday afternoons when the Greater Richmond Cricket club is there.

Dual tees with 18 baskets over nice scenic rolling elevation, creek, pond and waterfall and has some nice par 4s. Most the course is shaded by huge hardwood trees, but the course is fairly wide open and a little longer than average. Two 9 hole loops back to parking lot. Navigation was decent. Well maintained park just off I-95. Restrooms with water.

Mostly natural tees(looks like they are in the process of upgrading the tees to rubber pads). No real tee signs, but it's not bad if you have a map. Hole 4 and 11 cross fairways right off the tee but I don't think it's much of an issue. Hole 18's tee area was muddy/slippery, and the green across the creek is fast for roll-a-ways into the creek. Lacks variety in that there are no tight technical wooded fairways. Decent chance to lose disc in the water. Plays close to park roads in places. Other people in the park/course.

Set near the heart of Richmond, I had a blast playing at Bryan Park. You get to throw huge bombs over some great elevation changes. My first shot went in the creek OB on hole 1, I could see it, but couldn't retrieve it. Hole 11 and 14 were my favorites. Hole 16 across the pond was also quite fun. There's not a whole of challenge here other than raw distance, some water and a few trees. Wind can be a big factor here. This is great course for anyone that likes to watch their discs fly and a nice stop if traveling through Richmond up /down I-95 or across I-64.

The scenery at this course is second to none. The park is filled the old oak trees that provide a tranquile feel throughout the entire course. The layout uses the unique characteristics of each tree to pose a challenge on each hole even when the fairway is predominately wide open.

This course is a Birdiefest! The par 4s are short in overall distance and you will have a birdie putt on nearly every hole. That being said, the architects did a nice job of putting slopes running away from you behind many of the baskets causing a risk/reward style of putting throughout the round.

Signage!! This course desperately needs hole signs at each tee. If not for having my smart phone on me and using a course map from the PDGA website, I would not have found a few of these tees. Since the park is mostly open, there are times you may see 3 or 4 baskets from a tee box so the map is key to navigation.

I was impressed by how well the course flowed once you knew where to find the next hole. You realize you are weaving back and forth within a park and are seeing much of the same surroundings multiple times, but the character in the trees and lakes makes you feel as though you are going for an endless stroll with plenty to look at.

Hole #14 is truly incredible. It is a downhill par 4 with a slight dogleg left, but with a neighborhood street far right and water to the left, it really gives you all you can handle. Forcing you to throw your drive on a rope to avoid a line of trees and allow for an open shot to the basket, the tee shot requires full concentration. Although the hole is not long, the basket is well guarded by water and wasteland so a birdie is not a guarantee even after a perfect drive. Definitely a signature hole!

I look forward to playing this course again soon.

Layout - The course flows through a large park that is mostly lightly wooded or just open on some holes.

Multiple tees on every hole, usually two but sometimes three. The different tee changed the shot completely sometimes, sometimes it was just a longer shot.

There's a good balance of long and short holes, every time you play a longer hole you get a few shorter ones afterwards. Half of the holes are over 300' and let you get some big drives in.

Most of the holes here were designed pretty well. There were multiple routes and the longer holes had a lot of visual appeal off the tee.

Risky greens and elevation change was a huge plus to this course. There were baskets perched on hills and near water.

The course uses the elevation very well in the design by making you throw long shots around obstacles, down hills or over valleys where fading out to soon or turning over leaves you in a bad spot.

A few holes where going long can you leave you in the water. Two shorter water carries included where coming up short can cost you a disc.

The course flows well in most parts, there's no super long walks but in a few places it is a bit confusing without a map. The course is done well so that you don't really interfere with any other park activities.

Atmosphere - It's a great looking park, seems to be used by a lot of people. Big rolling hills and giant trees sprinkled about the park. There's a great large creek running through the park that is used well in the design. There's small man made waterfalls in a few places and the holes really showcase off the beauty of the park.

Equipment - Course map at #1 and the baskets are in good condition. The tees are marked by colored wooden markers, for the most part these have the hole # and distance listed.

Layout - My main gripe about the layout is the holes get a bit redundant. A lot of straighter shots through a few trees. You don't need to shape many shots here that much.

Some of the shorter holes are just fillers, thrown in between some great longer holes. While a few are designed well some are just boring.

There's not much technical golf here if that's your thing. The only holes that make you really be accurate are the longer ones if you have distance for it to matter.

One hole (#13) does cross a road so be careful. Holes #4 and #11 cross fairways which is kind of confusing.

Atmosphere - There's a lot of trash in the park, for some reason people just leave there bottles and cans all over the place; often half full.

Some downed trees, and big limbs barely hanging on that need to be taken care of.

Equipment - I can not stress enough how badly this course needs concrete tees. I don't know if the course is allowed to have them or if the funding isn't there but it NEEDS pads.

Some of the dirt pads are okay but on some of the longest holes the pads are completely uneven and full of roots and rocks. It only makes getting a good drive in very difficult but it's a safety hazard.

Tee signs are also needed here, in some places it's kind of confusing which basket you're going to and the distances on the markers seem to be very inaccurate in a few places.

I really enjoyed my round here, so much that we played it again from the shorts after doing round one from the longs. It's a bit of a walk but a lot of fun if you love to drive discs in big open spaces. I encourage everybody to make this a priority stop if you hit Richmond.

#9 is my favorite hole, a gorgeous long downhill shot with a waterfall in the background. #15 is great because you tee off beside the creek where it gets rocky.

This course probably deserves a 4 but with the state of the tees I just can't give it out. When you're throwing 500'+ and have 3' of semi level space to work with because the rest is big roots and rocks you've got a problem. If the course ever gets any type of decent level pads I'll go back and bump it up.

I played this, Dorey and Sunnyside all this weekend on a visit to Richmond and on the way back up North, and this was probably my favorite out of the 3.
- The park itself is huge and pretty well maintained.
- Good mix of short and long holes, left and right turns.
- Couple of throws over water
- 2 tee boxes per hole.
- Crossed a few people, even thought it wasn't crowded, and they were all extremely nice and pleasant.
- Alternate tees for shots that are over water for shorter throwers.
- Parking lot right next to #1 tee, #9 basket and #18 basket, so easy to go to the car in between 9s, and not have a hike when the round is over.

- Navigation from basket to tee is somewhat of a guess. Luckily I had a map from this site on my phone, otherwise I could see it being a problem the first few times you play.
- Some baskets you couldn't see, so it was somewhat of a guess from the tee until you got a little closer for your second shot.
- It's right near the freeway, so some of the holes the traffic is a little loud.
- The fairway of #1 and the basket of #9 and tee of #10 are a little close, so could make for so sticky situations on an errant throw.

Many of the reviews on here were saying that it was very crowded, and luckily on the day I went out, it wasn't at all. There were a few groups out, but we were never waiting and only had one guy that played through. He joined up with us on 11 and played the rest, and was really friendly and was a big help with the navigation, so that was a plus. But there were a couple groups of "bros", so I could see how that could be annoying if it were a crowded day.

Shot my first round ever under par here!!

Good elevation change, bathrooms on site. This place has some great features...nice LONG holes where you can really cut loose with those long, booming drives. There is a low chance of disc lossage, providing you can keep clear of the water. Trash cans are placed in the parking lot, and the park is well maintained. There were no tee signs, but the course flows well enough that they aren't entirely necessary. There aren't really any tight, wooded holes, but this is a great place to work that arm out and show off some serious drives. As always, free to play is always a plus. Also, multiple bathrooms with trashcans and water fountains.

There aren't any tee signs, but the course flows well enough, and I was shooting with a "repeat offender," so we worked it out. A couple of the holes require that you shoot across water hazards, which was difficult for the women in our group. There aren't any trash cans out on the course, but it didn't seem to matter. For the most part, there isn't any place to hide trash on the majority of the holes. The tee boxes are eroded, and can be compared to a horseshoe pit devoid of sand.

The course was pretty busy, but it's big enough that it can handle multiple groups without issue. The long holes proved challenging for the shorter drivers amongst us, but everyone still had fun. All things considered, proper tees with signage are about the only thing that could improve this course. We DID lose two discs on 18, as the chicks couldn't clear the canal...but we found them shortly after by swimming around and dragging our feet. This is a great course to shoot if you are in the area...we regularly play this and Dorey as our Richmond rotation. I like Dorey a little better, but only because the large layouts and treeless-ness of Bryan get kind of monotonous to me, as they are not very challenging. It also takes a considerable amount of time to shoot with players that lack a long drive.

Good deal of elevation change, open layout and just the right amount of water

Lack of signage to direct you to the next tee, tee boxed not really kept very well.

Played this course while I was in Richmond last week. It had a good combination of short and long holes with some fun elevation changes. If I lived in the area I would probably hit this course up regularly. I would however ask the local club to but an indicator on the pins that show the location of the next tee. Quite a bit of tree damage form the recent storms, but crews were out and about clearing the debris.

Bathrooms across from the parking lot, variety in distance and elevation, painted directions on baskets to the next tee, multiple tees, good use of water hazards, benches throughout the course

Not many trash cans, no tee signs, crowded at times, dirt tees

Bryan Park is an open course with no tightly wooded holes, but enough trees and vegetation to make each hole unique. The holes range from about 150' to 700' and can vary greatly in elevation depending on which one of the dual tee locations you play from. There are plenty of chances to air out your drivers and a few holes allow for more technical shots. Each basket has yellow and blue painted rungs to lead you to the following tee location. The tees themselves are marked by painted wood blocks and a dirt tee pad, however the tee locations are moved occasionally when they become overly worn (most recently hole number 6). There are no signs at each tee, but distances are painted on the blocks and, with the exception of the longer holes, the baskets are pretty well visible. The park is hilly with a few streams running to and from a pond that all come into play at some point in the course. Holes 16 (pro tee) and 18 are actually across the pond. And of course around the the pond there are plenty of geese to add even more obstacles (If you see one with a limp tell him I'm sorry).

Holes 9 and 18 both end around the first tee and parking lot for the course which has a practice basket as well as bathroom facilities across the street (though they aren't open year-round). The park can be crowded at times, which not only means waiting at tees, but also avoiding other park users. From my experience, metal baskets and wooden blocks seem to make great picnic locations. If you do wind up having to wait for other groups, there are benches and picnic tables placed around the course. Unfortunately there are not enough trash cans for the amount of usage the park gets as it can become littered from (hopefully) non disc golfers.

Overall, Bryan Park has a great disc golf course, but it does have room for some improvement.

Coming from Florida, I enjoyed the challenge of lateral slopes on many of the holes. There is good variety in the holes, and some will be tough for even the best pros.

Several holes had huge elevation drops that cancelled out their length. On several holes the hills provided more assistance than challenge. The course could also use better pads and garbage cans.

A really good design for the piece of land. The course uses elevation well for the most part, and it provides some challenges for great golfers while offering some easy holes for beginners. Some are too easy from the pro tees.

Nice mix of open and wooded holes. Some wide open holes you can just crank on.

Needs concrete pads and maybe some bag posts.

Love this place, I live a mile away. And it just looks beautiful out there every time I go.

Very well-maintained large public park with long, gently-flowing hills and very large hardwoods scattered about. Bathrooms, water fountains, other activities available. Close to I95.

Practice basket. Two nine-hole loops. Easy-to-see baskets. Near water on several holes. Probably a good course for glo.

Dirt tees. Very few turning shots. Holes four and eleven cross fairways - maybe simply switching their tee positions would avoid this, and still leave long/interesting holes.

Many opportunities to let it rip, as several of the fairways and baskets were fairly open, and long. From the blues, about 1/3rd of the holes were 450'+, topping out at #11 at 700'. Most holes will have some change of elevation - up, down, up-down, and down-up. Large trees will also come into play on every hole, but only #15 would be classified as a bit tight.

Online map made the course fairly easy to navigate - and necessary, too, as the tee markers are very low. Distance also available at tees.

Two throw-across-pond holes, but only need to clear 175'~200', so not too far. Couldn't find non-across-water options as suggested by the map.

Favourite hole: #14, 520'. Small woods to the left, scattered trees with long branches narrowing the fairway from the right. Up a small rise the first 1/3rd of the distance, then down a moderate slope the remainder of the way.

Beautiful park, well kept. The park itself has a lot to offer (tennis courts, picnic areas, azalea gardens, and more) It's on the National Register of Historic Places.

Practice basket by the parking lot & info sign.
Yellow and Blue tees for your difficulty level. The Yellow (easier) tees are still challenging.
Long and short shots (Yellows range from 150' - 690', Blues from 202'-701')
Elevation changes.
Water hazards for everyone. There is one hole for each tee color where you have to tee off and throw over the water (for blue it's 16, for yellow it's 18) and everyone has to get over the canal on 11.

The park smells good. Something must always be in bloom somewhere on the grounds, because the place just smells good.

I love the colored spokes on the top of the baskets pointing you in the direction of the next tee (except the basket for 5 has been moved a bit, and the spokes aren't quite going the right direction to get you to 6)

Not enough trash cans or benches.
Natural tees.
Crossing fairway. 4 & 11 cross each other. These are two of the longest holes on the course (11 is the longest), so I would imagine the crossing here can really cause bottlenecks on the front and back nine on a busy day.

Every shot is straight. Where are the doglegs??

The ice-cream man. That's right; the ice-cream man drives in a big circle around the outer park road. Over and over again. And as if the song the truck plays isn't bad enough, it also says "hello" in a voice that's like a cross between Curly from the Three Stooges and a parrot. Obnoxious.

If your disc goes in the water at 16, I hope you've got a retriever of some sort. Signs are posted "No swimming, or wading".

I kinda want signage and I kinda don't. The par and distance are marked on most of the tee blocks and the painted spokes on the baskets point you to the next tee. And since every shot is straight, you don't really need a diagram sign. That being said, sometimes the tee blocks are hard to spot, and an actual sign would be easier to see. Which is also why I don't want the signage, this park is beautiful and multifunctional. It's not just here for the sole use of disc golfers. Signs sticking up all over the place may take away some of the beauty of the landscape. Maps are available in the links section here. I recommend printing one out, at the very least it will make it clear when you need to cross the road for your next hole.

About the multifunctional park...I've played Bryan twice now; once on a Saturday afternoon, once on a Tuesday evening. On Saturday the park is crowded with people oblivious to discs. I had the fear that I was going to hit someone. And like I said, they are oblivious, you may yell "Four" or "Heads up" but they may or may not realize you mean them. Be Careful! On Tuesday evening, the park was much less crowded, mostly disc golfers and dog walkers. Way more conducive to throwing a round.

I like this course. It's beautiful. But if you've got distance, if you can "grip it and rip it" there's not much challenge here for you. This course is made for people who can throw far and straight. Yes, there are trees to be avoided, but it is a very open course. And it is relatively easy to recover from an errant throw, or evil tree bounce.

If you find yourself in the Richmond area, Bryan Park is definitely worth a stop. And since it is just off of 95, it's easy to get to even if you're just passing through.

This is the best park in Richmond. If you are driving through and are looking for a quick round stop by. It has easy access right off of 95. Free to play and easy parking. The primary pros for this course are its visual beauty and variable length. While it is indeed very open it is not a pure grip it and rip it course. Most of the 400 plus holes require a stylistically altered drive. Some uphill, some downhill, some over water, some through or around big trees(hopefully around). These holes are peppered with birdie holes and solid par holes.

The elevation changes from hole to hole cause pause for the first time player before his/her drive. The few water holes are not overbearing but the possibility of lost discs is very real.

The course is well maintained, although more permanent tees would be nice. For the most part it is easy to navigate. Painted bars on the baskets highlight the direction of the next tee. There is very little rough to speak of so most lost discs come to rest at the bottom of a body of water.

Most baskets are visible from the tee and therefore big drives are a beauty to watch. Gold and blue tees are situated so as to create a new hole rather than just a longer one making Bryan really 1 1/2 courses.

Again, visual beauty makes this course what it is. It has good length but players with less distance can compete on most holes with consistency and accuracy. This course pulls the absolute most out a picturesque setting. You will walk a lot, which I think is a good thing.

There are very few truly technical holes on this course. Big trees can and do create obstacles but should for the most part be easily avoided by the experienced player. Does not have the perfect mix of open and wooded holes as do elite courses.

The tee pads, while constantly under improvement, are natural and often muddy or root ridden. Also, there are no signs, only distance indicators on the tee pad markers.

As the sport grows and this course is discovered by more people it will become increasingly overcrowded. Already, it is getting to the point where the serious player should avoid it on nice weekend afternoons. I would like to see an expansion to alleviate some of the pressure. But hey, its free and we want the sport to grow, right?

I can burn myself out on this course and will make a day trip to Dorey or Spotsylvannia to mix it up. But with a group of friends this course allows for a great day of discin.

While the hardest holes are to be found on the back nine, also therein lie the most birdie opportunities. Many sloping greens can lead to three putts. This course can get really windy with its openness. Watch out for clueless pedestrians and cars passing through the many park roads.

This is my home course and I hold it dear. It will only improve over the years as the river city disc golf club coalesces and grows. Come out for doubles on Saturdays at 11. This may change to Fridays at 6 as the days lengthen and the weather softens.

Casual run down of holes:

8-11 is a brutal stretch

1. Short, avoid trees to right and water to left.
2. Slightly uphill, short, with trees and water.
3. Long, straight and slightly uphill.
4. Hate this hole, long, curvy, with trees I always hit and a second shot I haven't figured out yet.
5. Elevation change makes it play longer than it looks.
6. Just don't hit a tree on the drive and you'll be alright. Easier said than done.
7. First must have birdie opportunity.
8. Long, just don't end up behind the big tree and you should par it.
9. Love this hole, long and straight and beautiful to watch drives
10. Uphill and challenging. Usually requires a long putt to par.
11. This is the signature hole, very long. Try to get over the creek on your drive.
12. Deceptively hard must have birdie hole.
13. Another birdie, don't hit the greenhouse.
14. Very hard blind drive from blue and beautiful shot from yellow. Stay out of tress on left.
15. Another deceptively long birdie hole uphill. Great for forehand drives. The rocks will always stop your disc.
16. Get it over the water and get a birdie.
17. Most technical hole on course with an elevated basket. Easy blow up hole.
18. Uphill shot over the water. A good drive makes for an easy birdie but a poor second shot leaves you with a hard par.

This is a beautiful park that is well maintained. There is good parking and bathrooms available.

The course is a drivers paradise with many long drives through open areas or just a few very large old oak trees. There are several baskets where water comes into play. One has the water on the left the entire length of the fairway. The second basket has it but the throw would have to be way off to make it a factor. On nine you won't see the water until you get close to the basket but its behind and down the hill behind the basket. You'd better pray it doesn't role. Then on 11 its a 690/701 drive with a 20 foot wide canal halfway down the fairway. Throw it over the canal or short it up to it because if it goes in have fun trying to get it out. Then 15, 16, and 18 will give your disc a bath with an errant drive or bad putt.

My favorite basket is 4. Its a long way and a challenging drive. It is also the most peaceful basket.

The way they use the ribs on the tees to show the direction of the next tee is great.

This course suits those who love to drive and can drive long but it is has only a couple of holes that would considered very technical (unless you count the water hazards). The dirt tees are dangerous with roots and craters in them. On 13 be careful because you are throwing across a road.

The trend for courses now seems to be big and long and this course is it. Those of us who are better technicians or just good average players will enjoy the course but your score is going to be up there.

Fun course, lots of open, rolling park land, with lots of large, old trees scattered throughout. Lots of legnthy open holes, that challenge the best players. A couple of water holes.

CROSSING FAIRWAYS! There is too much room out there for this to happen. Tees can be tricky too.

Great little chunk of heaven right in the urban jungle.