Nice mix of shots, good mix of open/wooded, flat/up/down. Nice scenery. Has some very memorable holes.

The course pro likes to move the baskets around. This is both good and bad, it means that sometimes your favorite hole gets changed on you. Sometimes it's an improvement.

Lots of the up and down is reasonably steep, so expect a workout. Reasonably difficult.

An excellent mix of short/long, wooded/open, left/right, up/down.
More elevation changes than are usual in mid Ohio!
Very scenic in some spots. Holes 12 and 14 are really nice 'off the bluff' shots.

occasional deer/racoon sightings; it IS a state park.

Plenty of parking.

some of the wooded holes lack any kind of grass; they get muddy quickly.

Watch for poison ivy and ticks in the rough.

The rough on the open holes 12-17 can sometimes be VERY rough. Spotters are recommended for 12, 14, and 17 especially.

New trash cans have been added this summer; they aren't emptied extremely often, though, so bring a trash bag to pack out what you pack in.

This course is one of my favorites. Buck Creek will test every shot in your bag. There are a wide range of required shots, from straight tunnel shots to sharp doglegs; uphill and downhill; wooded and open. Unless you can drive a disc 400+ feet, some holes are nearly impossible to birdie, and a 3 is difficult.

Do be mindful of people just out for a walk, or sitting at a picnic table in 18's fairway, or fishing at the bottom of 12's fairway, or riding horses through the rough on 15-17.

The first nine are really fun, beautiful, forested shots with great use of elevation and trees to add variety and challenge.

I had no problem losing discs in this area as the vegetation wasnt too dense.

The shorter holes work really well in this setting. i could either see the basket from the tee or see it by walking a short distance ahead to scout it out. With the shorter holes, my family would like this course so thats a bonus.

The lake views and use of hills on the last half was really nice.

Flush toilets where holes 11, 12 and 18 meet.

The last half, especially hole 14 and 17 suffer from tall grass that hides discs.

Hole 14 could be a cool shot as it has you throwing a somewhat long shot from a hill, but you throw into all tall grass and only the area around the basket and the walking path are mowed. Good recipe for losing discs.

Hole 17 was a pain due to tall grass. Be sure not to let your disc stray too far left on 17 or you will be hiking down the steep hill through bushes and tall grass.

While the tall grass hides discs somewhat, its not horrible. I was able to find some errant discs without too much trouble. I have seen much worse disc eaters such as tall prairie grass or dense vegetation along the sides of other courses. Still, the pattern on the last half of mowing only certain areas is too common on courses and detracts from the enjoyment.

I would rate this higher if the grassy areas were mowed better. Overall i loved this course!!

Lots of trees, easy to follow course, need to be able to make various shots, a lot of fun to throw here

no complaints

The course is usually open, so you can get in a few games in just a couple of hours. Very scenic place to play

big and open
great scenery
well layed out and designed

big and open
not for the beginner
easy to loose a disc if you aren't willing to really look for a while
LOT OF TICKS at buck creek

great course, thats big and open. play with friends in case you toss a disc into tall grass or the woods or lake. i have spent a to of time at buck creek boating, hunting, camping and disc golfing. there are a lot of ticks so wear bug spray and do a tick check after you play. great course, lots of fun and big enough to not be to crowded.

This course boasts a great deal of variety, from woods holes, to a huge hilltop bomb, to an island green, and everything in between. The most beautiful view comes into play on the downhill hole #12 with views across the marina and lake to distract you from the sweeping left to right shot you need to execute there.

Starting at the kiosk sign in the middle of the marked disc golf parking lot, you'll find level concrete tees, trash barrels and seating where needed on the course, and you'll be shooting at Innova DiscCatcher baskets, where the large yellow band will help spot some of the blind basket positions with a short walk up those fairways.

Some of the early holes are fun temptresses, beginning with the hole 1 drop shot, which could be aced if you thread the perfect line through the tight tree gaps. The basket is up a backstop slope, so you won't run by. In fact, there are very few spots where risk/reward greens cause a huge gut-check (the obvious exception being the driveway circle island green on 17 - as played in tournaments). The summertime rough could be a disc concealer in the woods, and in the prairie grass on the later, more open holes.

An Intermediate to even Advanced disc golfer will find plenty of challenge working the variety of shots at Buck Creek. Early woods holes bring out your technical game, the breezes off the lake and the excellent use of elevation (especially on holes 11 through 14) will get your head in the game, and the bigger arms will get a chance to show off coming down the finishing stretch. There are fairways that demand very precise left to right lines (#6), and just the opposite (#8 in the uphill left pin position).

There are several signature holes here. I like the beauty of 4, 12 and 14. But one of the greatest 'pros' at Buck Creek is the beautiful scenery of this state park around an impressive lake. The wildlife drawn to this setting (deer, soaring birds, and everything in between) are wonderful to experience.

The main issue I have had here is related to the beauty of the site (weird, huh?). There are going to be nature lovers all over this park. There is a lakeside hiking trail which goes from the marina parking lot on around, along the #10 fairway, and folks are tempted to hike up the ravine used for hole 9 and earlier. This is a hazard for the right-turning, blind #9 tee shot. Folks walk up the 11th fairway from the marina lot to the picnic zone (!) on (!) the 18th fairway (an unfortunate circumstance of dual-use space). I didn't see any signs warning non-players that they were entering a disc golf course (as if that would change anything). My last time at Buck Creek, there were maybe ten people in that part of the park total, but I waited for safe clearance four different times.

I have relatively little to complain about with the course itself, except that there are now usually two detailed signs at each tee, for how the holes are supposedly laid out now, and how the 'old' layout looked. These are intended to be helpful, but I thought they were sometimes a little confusing. The tight turners like holes 6 and 8 (upper pin position) aren't at all like either picture. Don't get me wrong, these are fun, tricky holes, but might really frustrate a first-timer.

When your navigation system gets you to the park on North Bird Road / Buck Creek Lane, you've still got a ways to go: turn right on Park Road, and go (slowly: watch for deer) about a mile (half a mile past the sign for the Marina & Restaurant), to the sign for the Disc Golf Course (left). Go to the 2nd parking area on the right (that's marked for the DGC), and you'll see the kiosk at hole 1.

The first pro has to be the scenery. I know this has nothing to do with disc golf but this was definitely a plus to me and my family.
-Concrete tees
-tee signs
-clean park with plenty of facilities
-hole 14 is an epic off the top of the hill shot
-great elevation changes
-great mix of wooded and open holes
This course had some great challenges in the woods but also let you air it out. This seemed to be a well maintained course and we actually met some locals doing some work to one of the holes. We drove 1 hr 45 minutes to play this course and definitely did not regret it.

Very few cons here.
-need a few more next tee signs but it did seem a few have been installed so just a couple more in certain areas would be nice. We just seemed to run into few spots that got confusing.
-rough can be tough but not to bad as we found it to be pretty thorn free
-Open holes have high grass as rough so a spotter is a good option here

This course was not on our radar at all but my wife thought it would be cool place to check out and we are definitely glad we did. This park has much to offer including fishing and boating. We will definitely make this trip again.

Setting:
The front nine is mostly set in relatively dense woods. Success here requires some finesse and a good shot placement strategy. The fairways are tight, but they're there if you look hard enough.

The back nine opens up onto a large hill with a picturesque view of the lake. The holes here are more straightforward, but are considerably longer than on the front. The elevation is used well as you trek up and down the hill. An errant shot could spell disaster on several holes as OBs come into play and as the hill drops off steeply in some areas (i.e. Hole 13).

Equipment:
All holes are equipped with Discatcher baskets that are in good shape. There is also one practice basket near the parking lot with plenty of room for putts.

Course Design:
The course tends to flow well from one hole to the next though it could be improved with better signage (see cons). The variety of holes and the shots needed to play them are a fun challenge. The fairways are tight, but they're there if you look hard enough. The course requires every shot in the bag -- touchy flicks, big hyzers, tommies/thumbers, gentle annys, you name it. The front nine requires some thought into shot selection and placement. Some out-of-the-(tee)box thinking could pay dividends. The back nine will test your wind management skills.

Setting:
The lake is beautiful, especially near sundown, unfortunately you don't get to see much of it since the front is in the woods and the back works mostly away from it.

Equipment:
And the reason I gave Buck Creek a 3 instead of a 4 should be obvious from all the other reviews: The Gravel Tees. There's so much going for this course, but the tees are an obvious black eye. It's oftentimes too deep and moves too much for good, solid footing. Maybe it's just in my head, but the tees do no instill confidence and that's a recipe for disaster on the box.

Signage is also a big problem. There are posts at each tee, but there's no other descriptors. No hole map. No distances. No par. Getting from one hole to the next can sometimes be a problem. There are some signs pointing out where to go, but they weren't the most noticeable.

All that being said, I understand that tees and signs cost time, effort, and money. I don't mean to knock anyone for their efforts and I'm grateful to have this course, but few could deny that the tees and signage are in need of some major upgrades. If and when that happens, I'd rate Buck Creek at a 4.

UPDATE -- Concrete tees were recently installed on all 18 holes! As promised, I've updated my rating for Buck Creek and now give it a 4. This is probably my favorite course in the Dayton/Springfield area.

Overall, this is a beautiful, challenging, and enjoyable course to play. I highly recommend you give it a visit!

Forces you to use every shot in the bag, backhand, forehand, overhand. There is a generous amount of uphill and downhill holes that make the course more interesting. Hole 17 is one of the most interesting holes in central Ohio and surrounding areas.

The biggest con is the GRAVEL TEES! These tees make it next to impossible to have consistent footwork. If I really stretched I could say that the course could be more clearly marked and the old tees taken out..

The first nine holes are extreme skill shots and force pinpoint placement. Even though they are difficult they are balanced with the open holes, making them a great mesh.