Great layout. Excellent for new players to challenge traditional throwing styles and begin to develop other Technics. Love the change in elevation, well marked holes and tee pads. Whomever maintains this course takes pride in their work and I express my thanks.

Maybe could use some more visible / bright colored tees but with excellent tee maps it's ok.

Will go out of my way when in the area again to play.

- Great location. Castle Hayne Park offers not only one of the top 5 best DGCs in the state, it also has plenty for the wife & kids to do if you can't convince them to let you drag them through the woods. It offers covered picnic areas, a nice playground for the little ones, tennis courts, a practice basket, and clean restrooms.

- Lots of events scheduled regularly by the New Hanover County DG Club. Weekly doubles and singles organized by an extremely friendly bunch make me thankful I'm stationed in Wilmington.

- Wide variety of holes: Challenging woodlands coupled with some where you can really air it out. Better bring your a game though; some of the lanes are pretty tight.

- Trails throughout the course. The course looks really dense at first glance, but apparently enough people like me have played and their hyzer turned into an anhyzer that ended up in the thick of it. The trails cut down the density of an otherwise extremely unfriendly forest. This is helpful for errant shots that send you on an excavation for your disc.

- Provides a challenge for experienced players but isn't overwhelming for beginners. The difficulty inspires newbies to improve their game after a 25+ over par game while still offering enough challenge to keep advanced players motivated and their game sharp.

- Very well maintained. Pins are moved fairly regularly and the fairways remain fairly clear, probably due to the high traffic.

- Fairly easy to navigate. For first-time players it might be a bit confusing to find #10, #11, #14, and maybe even #2 (for the seriously navigationally challenged), but the regulars are an extremely friendly bunch who are happy to show you the way, young grasshoppa.

- Little elevation changes, but understandable considering the proximity to the coast.

- Bugs can get annoying sometimes (especially after a big rain), but you can't really complain too much. After all, you're in the woods in SE NC.

- Water supply. No drinking fountains, but the shelters have what look to be well pumps. I do not recommend drinking from those. I was pretty thirsty after a 45 hole day when I ran out of beer on 18 and drank from the "poisoned well," which I immediately spat out. Felt like someone punched me in the mouth and knocked out four teeth; the copper/rust in that water was breathtaking. Unless you enjoy well water -- with its smooth draw, earthy tones, and enough kick to give Tickle's 'shine a run for its money -- I don't recommend hydrating yourself with that mess.

- Finally (and this is a REALLY petty gripe), there aren't any convenience stores in close proximity to the park that you can dip out after a round, grab a quick six-pack to wash the taste of blood out of your mouth after having drunk from the well, and hit the chains again for a second round to redeem that 18-over. But again, that's really stretching the limits of reason considering it's such a great course and you're in the middle of the woods. In short, come prepared, my friends. Semper f-ing paratus.

- No topless Hooters girls frolicking along the #8 fairway.

This course is, by reputation, one of the best in North Carolina -- and that street cred is VERY well deserved. As a relative newbie to the addiction, I don't mind admitting that I don't have a whole lot to go by, but The Castle provides an exceptional blueprint that all course designers would do well to adhere to. If you are a player and will be visiting SE North Carolina in the near future, you will be doing yourself a HUGE disservice by not bringing your discs on vacation with you. The Castle is an absolute MUST PLAY for any devotee of the sport.

Really well maintained. No worries about losing discs in thick underbrush.

Pine needles can give you a great skip.

Not much elevation but what can you do? Really not much tom complain about.

Not the most friendly chains. After watching the 2013 Azalea Open on Youtube, the lead card might agree.

I would like flags or a little more color on the baskets. I had a hard time spotting some of them until I was right on top of them.

This is a must-play if you're anywhere close. I can't wait to go back. You really want to stay in the fairway. Just because you can see through the trees doesn't mean you can throw through them.

This course rewards thoughtful play.

Kudos to the New Hanover DG Club. They've done a fabulous job here.

Well thought out with multiple basket locations and multiple approach angles. Very well taken care of and awesome signage on all of the holes.

Very long for a beginner like myself. It will make you think about shot placement.

Great Layout, challenging. Good signs, tees and baskets.
If you are in the area, a must play.

Not very beginner friendly. (can't say too many negatives)
Hole 12 or 13 (along the railroad tracks) is a little annoying.

Fantastic course! Well worth the stop if you are traveling through and you want a challenging and beautiful course. I'm sure the course gets much harder in the spring when things bloom.

-Meticulously maintained course
-Tight and challenging. When you make a good throw you know it almost immediately.
-5 holes have alternate basket placements, making this tough course even tougher.
-Benches and cans on almost every hole.
-Detailed hole signs showing your ideal throwing locations.
-Shaded by tree cover on most holes, so light rain is no problem
-Very rarely do holes come close to intersecting another.

-Being one of the nicest and best courses anywhere, It can get busy at times. Nothing too bad, but I have seen some 4 group queues before.
-Not very new player friendly. It's quite challenging, so the room for error is small.
-Hole 10 is on the other side of the park from hole 9, and there are no signs, save for a small #10 sign right on the fence to the hole. Maybe something placed near 9 could eliminate this.
-Hole 12 had previously been a signature Par 5 hole here, but has been changed by the removal of stairs down the long hill, as well as ominous warning signs.
-Hole 8's tee shot is brutal. that creek has taken so many of our discs! We usually place someone down there to "guard".

The rating and title for this course is pretty much all that needs to be said. Since this is the course I started on, all other course get compared to it. Almost always unfavorably, haha. You won't a more professional course within a 100 miles. Just don't be surprised when somehow you notice you're 10 over par with 9 holes left to go. Enjoy!

Layout - Castle Hayne is a true test of your technical ability. You'll need every shot in your bag and the ability to perform them time and time again to play well.

The course has a great mixture of short and long holes but make no mistake, there are no holes where you can let it rip out there. Many of the longer holes require precise placement type drives to a spot to set up your next shot.

Not only will you need to place your drive very well but on some occasions you'll be playing through tight early gaps which really increases the difficulty of each hole. Even after a good drive you'll still need to play a great approach shot to set yourself up for a makeable putt.

Huge risk/reward out there; each hole really makes you think about every shot. If you try to bite off to much you'll pay for it. It's a course where you'll have to make a lot of accurate left to right, right to left, and S shots.

There isn't much elevation on the course but where there is it's used extremely well. The greens here are well designed in that they use the small elevation changes to their advantage by sticking them on slopes in some places.

The course is tough but not overbearing, as long as you stay within your game and play accurate shots you can stay within par.

Each hole has an original and alternate basket location that mixes it up and changes your approaches.

Layout is very fluid, no real long walks and it's easy to see where you're going next except for the 9 to 10 change up. The course does loop back to the parking lot after the front 9.

Equipment - Solid baskets in good shape. Large and level with the ground tees. Excellent signs for each hole that really explain the holes well and show you where the next tee is. Benches and trashcans throughout the course. On the longer holes there are distance to basket markers along the fairway that add a nice touch.

Atmosphere - Perhaps the best cared for public course I've ever played on. The locals do a great job of keeping it clean and on keeping the course in top shape.

Once you get in to the woods it's a beautiful pine covered course with a small creek running through parts. Very laid back feel to all of it and makes for a great round. There's usually a good breeze blowing to keep the heat off.

The layout does a really good job of weaving the course through the park and keeping discs away from other park goers.

Layout - Not really a lot you can complain about here.

There's never really a chance to let one rip and I always feel one or two of those holes give a course more balance. There's a few holes where it's possible but you still have to be very accurate.

Not much elevation on the course which is one thing that would put it over the top for me.

The course could be frustrating to new and lesser skilled players.

Equipment - One of the best equipped courses I've ever played so the only thing I can really complain about is the transition from 9 to 10 can be confusing, a sign right after 9 could help that.

Atmosphere - One of the main drawbacks that I can see is that you never get a real secluded feel on the course. Every time you start to feel it you run in to a part where you can see other parts of the park, a railroad track or a park road. At several points you'll cross park roads and even though you're never playing across or near them it ruins that wooded feel.

With the creek mosquitoes and bugs can be a problem out there as well.

I really love this course, I've yet to play it well but I always leave with the feeling that I had fun out there and tested my game.

The things that keep it from being a 5 for me is the lack of elevation and natural OB, the cons I listed under Atmosphere and a lack of a few more open holes.

Beyond that this is one of the best courses in NC hands down and a must play.

Aside from the fact that Castle Hayne Park in Wilmington, NC appeared impeccably maintained and litter was entirely absent, the well marked and well equipped disc golf course would be incredible in almost any condition. I thought the concrete tees were roomy and flat, much to my liking, and several holes had two boxes. I recall a couple of oddball tees on the front nine that were on a pedestal and dug into a hill, but they too were very usable. Only subtle changes in elevation, used to good effect. The tee signs were very good, as were the directional guiding arrows between holes that wound across and around the roads in the beautiful park. The course layout is well marked, but the map is nice and printing it may be helpful. Water in play, but nothing too intimidating. Baskets were in good shape, and most holes had two placements. One pin for hole 10 was on a 3 foot pedestal. Many benches were available throughout the course. So many attributes of this course are the virtues of every great course: Scenic, interesting, well carved fairways of varied length and requiring directional throws both ways,as well as doglegs and straight line shots. Some shorter birdie opportunities with interesting looks, and longer holes with wooded but fair routes and reachable landing zones. Perfect blend of difficulty and entertaining, fun holes.

My main gripe would have to be a small amount of mud, that was really minimal considering the rainy weather preceding my trip to the region. Fairway on the fourth hole is nuts. Wish I could have fared better there. The danger signs along the weird ravine trail parallel to the train tracks on the back nine really through me off, although I was able to save a bogey. Taking a 5 on the par 3 number 18 really bummed me out. I drove it pin high, but 75 feet left of the basket, which forced me to slowly and painfully work through a stand of trees blocking my second shot.

Truly a top notch course at Castle Haynes Park, and the local golfers involved should be commended for keeping this terrific specimen super clean. This is the best new course for me this year, and an instant favorite. Unique in most ways, but if I had to draw a comparison, I would choose The Sinks in Chattanooga, TN (without the sinkholes), or maybe Shaver Recreation Center in Seneca, SC.

Where to start....This course is very solid. it is well beat in and a solid design that is well worth your time to play.

Teepads and signage are great! Garbage cans and benches on every hole

Love the par 4's and the risk reward involved in this course. Maybe you decide to bite off more than you should or you throw one errant shot well you are more than likely in jail with few to no options.

There are few.

Erosion looks like it might be an issue.

Crowded. It is the only course in the area and is 5 min from UNCW which means you will usually find someone on every hole and possibly groups of 5+ taking there time. Great for the sport but still kinda sucks

I love Castle Hayne. It is definalty one of the best courses that I have played so far and probably in a tight battle with Cedar hill to be the best outside of charlotte for me. I would recomend this course to anyone who is remotely close to this course. It is easily the best in the Southeastern part of the state.

Go see if you can handle Castle Payne

- The course is about 5 minutes off the interstate (and prior to any congestion if you're coming down from 95) can't get much more convenient.
- The tee signs are outstanding. On the Par 4s and 5s they show the landing zones to set up your next shot.
- The hole variation is great. It is a longer course for being mostly wooded. The few short holes are not straight ace-runs - there are mando areas that make it a challenging approach. I haven't played a ton of courses - but, this is one of the few that I believe have legitimate Par 5s.
- The wooded fairways are pretty open, and the approaches are defined, with some "purposefully" placed trees to challenge you. The pine needle mulch is sweet.
-The course meanders through the park. You don't feel cramped, and you don't have to walk for ages between holes.

- To be fair, I haven't played the other Wilmington courses, but I suspect that this is head's and shoulder's above them - so it draws A LOT of traffic. I was playing a speed round and played through 4 groups - they were cool, so it was cool, but on a weekend it may be totally stacked.
Just to be picky
- Looks like it could be a little wet with rain (I had great conditions). That being said - with the sandy soil I would think it drains pretty quick, and they have the boardwalks placed in the lower areas, or where runoff crosses.
- There is a walk from 9-10, don't remember if the tee sign for 9 calls out the walk across the parking lot, but it wasn't intuitive for a first time through the course.

- I have driven by several times, but haven't played. The course was awesome - so glad I stopped, and any future trips will (hopefully) include this course.
- The locals all seemed knowledgeable and friendly. Like I said, I played through 4 groups - all were totally cool with inviting me to play through, some nice chit-chat, etc.
- I had an outstanding round - the course is wooded enough that I guess if you have one of those "tree" days, it could really push your scores. I love how the signs call out the lay-up spots, showing how to throw. If you are an advanced player and have a decent day - you have a shot at par.

Almost perfectly cared for course in a nice park. Huge concrete tee pads. Great signs showing multiple basket positions, lengths and lines. Bathrooms near tee 1 and 9. Benches are abundant if you need them.

This course plays as a very nice technical course. Almost every hole is in the woods. You get to see some open grass on 1, 9 and 18, but that is about it. The rest is simply beautifully designed wooded holes.

Holes are technical, but not brutal. There are tight lines throughout the course, but not many places where you look up and curse under your breath. Just lots of well designed lines. The are short and long left and rights. There are long wooded holes. But best of all, there are long wooded holes that require multiple fairway shots. Make a clean tee shot to a fairway landing area, and then make another in order to have a shot at a birdie putt. There are 6 par 4's and 2 par 5's on this par 64 course in the long positions, and 5 par 4's in the shorts for a 63 par. Just great length in a wooded course. And it is all fair and lots of fun.

Not a bad hole on the course. No useless filler holes here.

Some nice basket positions. On many holes the basket is either on a gentle slope or wedged near some trees. If you nail an ace here you earned it.

Posts with footage to basket on some of the holes. Nice touch on par 4 and 5 holes.

None. There was nothing about this course that could be complained about.

If you want something to bitch about, there is almost no elevation or water. But the course is so good you won't care.

Instantly in my favorite list. I love a fair course that offers numerous par 4 and 5 holes. This course doesn't brutalize you physically, but it does force you to play smart golf, and hit your fairways. Get off the fairway, and there is some thick, nasty stuff. The woods can pin you in if you aren't careful.

Lots of good holes to choose from, but I really enjoyed the multiple twists and turns of 4, 8 and 11. All three were long, fun and challenging.

#12 was flat out an SOB for a righty. A tee shot that goes roughly 175-200' before taking a right turn. Then a tight tunnel another 250-300' to the basket. Trees on the right and a ditch on the left. I shot a 5 and felt really good about it.

In its current state this course may never be considered a '5' since it lacks significant elevation or water carries. It doesn't have any of those holes that show up in marketing material. But every hole is designed very well, and there isn't a bad shot on the course. In addition, some of the longer holes could flat out crush you if you get sloppy with your execution or miss a fairway. Do you try to stretch your drive an extra 50' for that great shot, or stay on the fairway? Play this course, and you'll be asking yourself this question all day.

Just a great course. Long, technical and fair. If you head to Eastern NC make sure this one is on the top of your list. It is truly one of the best.

This course is so well cared for it's amazing there are no filler holes this is a must see. There is a nice map to download on this site that will help.

9 to 10 is a tuff find without looking at the map or asking someone 10 to 11 is the same.

Very busy there were people teeing off the whole day while I was there.

where can you start on course like this, very clean quiet park hid from everything. will test your turning skills in every direction. distances can be mean on us "short armed" folks. love this place.

drinking water out of anything here, sinks included is impossible, after a round here in the summer you will drink everything you have on you trek through front 9. stores are about 10 minutes away, just long egnough to cool you down.
bring cooler.

if you have a 10 over day here your first time you did good. playing it for two years now and only shot even twice.
welcome to castle pain

This course was all that I had hoped it was. It was fun to play, but tough and challenging at the same time.

Don't let the open looking fairways or how easy the course looks fool you. Each shot is a test of your skills and placement is key here. Get too aggressive (like I tried at first) and you will be punished. Place the disc right and you are golden.

There are benches at each tee, in case you need a little breather between holes, as well as trash cans at each tee. The course is well maintained and very little trash is found here. The leagues that help maintain the course do a great job.

You get to enjoy a beautiful park and work on your game at the same time. I had so much fun I didn't realize we were on the last hole until everyone started to shake hands and say how much fun they had. What more can you ask for?

If I didn't have a guide, I would have had a hard time finding where hole #10 started. A sign at hole #9 would help the confusion. Also, hole #18 ended in such a way that you may get confused as to where you parked your car. Again, a sign might help.

The pros definitely out way the cons at this course. Go to see a true championship course, but take back some good memories.

-Designed by Harold Duvall to be a championship caliber course.
-benches & signs on every hole
-I've played 50+ courses and CHP has some of the best transitions of any of them, flows perfectly.
-fairways are very defined and fair to teeshots.
-local club keeps entire course well groomed in preparation for April sanctioned event.

-busy course especially on weekends.
-some low areas hold water but club is on it.
-dog crap, dog walkers, college kid 9-somes.

Castle Hayne tests every shot in your bag and emphasizes placement and course management. It's addictive and the Azalea Tournament fills every year.

Pros
-This is Professional course that is the pride and joy of Wilmington Residents.
-Well maintained, landscaped and manicured, as well as very clean.
-Bathrooms at the start, which you will pass again between 9 and 10, and plenty of garbage cans
-There is a practice basket.
-Some holes have multiple pin placements
-This course defines the phrase "It's all about the second shot"
-Concrete Tees, The tee signs were well done with maps and yardage. There are also benches at the tee's.
- All the holes require strategic approaches, and accurate disc placements.
-The course is nicely divided to play 9 holes on the front or back. This is convenient if you are looking for a short quick round. This also allows for a pit stop at the car, bathroom, breather, etc...
-The fairways tight and they are well defined, but they are not too tight. This allows you to work the fairway with either a tight S-Shot, or a flex shot. But don't get too cocky, there are trees on this course that will try to derail your confidence! A bad shot or an errant throw will have you trying to tomahawk out of the woods.
-This course requires accuracy over power. Castle Hayne has a variety of doglegs, bends, and turns that will require a perfectly placed drive. In fact, a drive that is too long can make your next shot a play out of the woods.
-Professionals, Advanced, Recreational and Casual players should all find this course challenging and fun.
-Beginners could struggle to keep up here, especially if it's busy. If you are beginner, make sure you adhere to the protocol of letting others "play through". Of course the people here are nice enough, that they might offer you some beginner tips.
-8 is a 700ft monster that snakes through the woods. Be mindful of the creek off to the side, I was told that it is deep, and it can flood.
For What it's worth
-There is a playground, so if you have kids maybe the other parent will be kind enough to watch the youngins while you take in a round
-Other activities here as well: Baseball, Tennis, Soccer, etc

Cons
DISCLAIMER: I don't believe these actually detract from the course, but I feel they are worth the mention
-No course map. Perhaps a bigger map, that I could snap a picture of with my phone. Of course, this Castle Hayne is busy enough, finding someone to either hook up with, or at least point you in the right direction shouldn't be hard. (Sidenote: After playing here once, navigation shouldn't be a problem)
-Possibly putting a sign or directions to 10 would help, it is rather hidden. Again... Once you played it, you should remember where it's at for the next time. In the meantime, Go to the Links/Files tab and print off the map.
-Course gets real busy. I was really surprised to see that many players out on a weekday afternoon. This isn't a bad thing! This simply means, they need to install another course like Castle Hayne!

This course will let you know how accurate you are with your throws. If you are used to playing in an open course, then this course might require some getting used to. You won't need any big drives here, because it's all about the accuracy. As I said earlier, this course gives meaning to the phrase "It's all about the second shot!" Once you have finished this course, you will feel like you have had an accomplishment, because it will force you to dial back, and consider your shots. Having said that, this course had a fantastic "fun factor" for me! I really enjoyed playing with strategy, and accuracy! I drove an hour and a half to get here, and I felt it was worth the drive! This is a course you would want to drive out of your way for. I look forward to the day I can get back up here to play again.
Bring some Gatorade or water with you, because it can get hot. Also, I preferred my Merrell's hiking shoes, but I don't think that there is any special footwear required to play here. Also, I didn't see any restaurants nearby, so you might want to bring a snack or two. You can work up an appetite here. I will also repeat what Prerube said earlier. If using a navigator, the park is in Castle Hayne, NC, not Wilmington. I just did the intersection of Parmele and Old Ave.
Russ's Final Thought: I think the elevation opinion, depends on where you come from. I'm from Myrtle Beach, and the courses I've played along the coast, here in SC, are flat! (I.e. Trophy Lakes and The Sarge. Both fantastic courses, but they are flat. ...literally.) So, when I played here, I noticed that there was some slightly elevated terrain. But if you are from other areas, I can see where you would say it's flat.

- The biggest strength of this course is it's fairways. It is an extreme fair wooded course that will punish you if you get off it's nicely cut fairways.
- Accuracy is king here. You don't have to have a huge arm here. If you hit your lines and putt well, you will score well.
- Two layouts are used with two pins on holes 1,3,7,10,15. Par 64 or 65 depending on the layout.
- The signage is really nice and the course is really easy to follow minus the walk from 9 to 10.
- A bunch of different shots are needed to score well here. Multiple dogleg fairways, some to the left, some to the left.
- A bunch of great holes. Hole 8 and 12 are both par 5s and probably the signature holes.

- No elevation, but what do you expect at course near the coast of NC. Alt Pin 10 is a raised basket, Hole 4 has a drop off behind the basket, Hole 5 has a lowered tee, ditch on 12 etc, so they do try to make some elevation as best they can.
- The transition from Hole 9 to 10 can be confusing for newcomers.

Must play if you're in the area, especially since there are not any other options at moment. This my home away from home course since I grew up in Wilmington, so I have a soft spot for it.

Beautiful course! Excellent baskets and tee signs as well as tee pads. Great vareity of holes in length and difficulty. The course is very well taken care of and it shows. Restrooms available as well as trash cans at many tee stations.

No practice basket. Long walk from 9 basket to 10 tee-can be difficult for a first timer to find. Other than that, it's all good

This course is beautiful with awesome fairways in the woods. It offers a variety of holes with different lengths (ranging from 240'ish to 700'). But don't be fooled by distances; if you don't hit the right line, a 300' hole will seem like it's 400'.

Going along with the distances and level of difficulty, you will see true par 3's, 4's, and 5's. But only with a great tee shot will you have a look at eagle. Otherwise, if you find yourself off of the fairway, you're going to have to work some magic to get your par. Also included in the course design are many double doglegs and 90 degree turn holes. You will need to pull every shot out of your bag: hyzers, anhyzers, forehand, backhand, turnovers, flex shots, tomahawks, thumbers, etc...you name it, you will probably have to throw it.

The fairways are awesome at this course. They are not too thick nor too open. A lot of the fairways were somewhat tight towards the tee box, opened up in the middle (for a landing area per'say) and closed in a little tigher towards the basket making for many challenging shots. Your shots have to be precise to score well.

This course is very well taken care of and it shows. There are benches at every tee box and the craftsmanship in them is immaculate. The club has done an excellent job keeping the course clean and you can see evidence of the projects they are working on such as cutting out new paths through the woods and leveling off banked slopes by the train tracks.

If you get the opportunity, I strongly suggest you play this course. I heard from a local that the course designer is going to be designing 2 more courses in the area in the near future, so I plan on keeping an eye out for these as should you.

One of the most fair courses I have ever played. Lots of risk/reward shots on a mix of par 3, 4, and 5 holes. Fairways are wide enough to tempt long drives, but the rough is punishing if your drive carries off the fairway. Every shot in your bag will be tested, especially tricky escape shots. The course is designed expertly to demand a variety of throws and reward those that stay in the fairway. Tee signs and benches installed.

Some areas get a little muddy after alot of rain. Wish there could be more elevation, but there is none in Wilmington.

One of the best courses in NC. Do not come out expecting to get many 2s.

What I personally like and how this course stacks up:
1) Holes with good risk/reward -- A+
2) Holes that have rewarding birdie opportunities -- A-
3) More wooded than open - lots of variety of shots required caused by hole shape and topography -- A+
4) Natural beauty (Appalachian beauty preferred) and seclusion -- B+
5) Multi-shot holes with defined landing zones, good risk/reward and multiple options to play them -- B

I ranked this course subjectively based on my own personal enjoyment factor...more accurately my "personal addiction factor". Since I have played a decent number of courses (115 18-hole, 50 9-hole as of early 2009), my hope is that players/explorers who have similar tastes will find my ratings list helpful as they chose courses to play and explore.

Over time, I expect to fill some of my reviews in with more descriptive verbiage...if what I say adds anything to what has already been written. For now, my list is more important to me than the verbiage of my reviews.

I fully expect others with different tastes/philosophies to disagree with me. See my profile for my rating philosophy.