Time for a fresh review - lots of the older "cons" weren't evident during my August 2022 visit.




+ Built in 2010, showing its age in the best ways: well beat-in woods holes with clear lines, two sets of tees that really alter the play of most holes, sturdy pavers, good DisCatchers, excellent signage, bulletin board with large course map


+ A park-style course with a layout that takes advantage of every natural feature available: a stream creating great risk/reward decisions on holes 5, 10 and 18; basket 6 up on a mound, significant elevation changes in various hilly sections, and deep woods on 13 and 14. It requires a lot of walking, but the variety of holes is worth it


+ Good mix of left-to-right and right-to-left lines, and hole #15 features a top of the world par 4 with a right turn down into a valley. If you can get the right glide, you'll remember your teeshot for years

- Hole #12 has a crazy steep uphill face that starts right in front of the tee, with a hard right turn at the top to a blind basket. I'm sure regular players learn the hole over time, but it's a bit janky for the first timer


- The course finishes with a couple of short par 3's that aren't bad holes, but they're a little weak as finishers. #17 is very short (though an ace run risks a sidehill rollaway), and #18 is split by a stream with foliage that has grown up considerably more than pictured, making for a very narrow slot over the water. So you might find yourself playing the par 3 closing hole with a fairway layup

~ Condition is immaculate. Between the park staff and several local clubs, the course gets a lot of care


~ Schenectady's Central Park is an urban gem designed by Frederick Law Olmstead (see also: NYC's Central Park) and modernized with tennis, swimming and other activities. The recent removal of the old tennis stadium may cause some changes to the disc golf layout. I understand a new swimming pool is going in, and it will probably require more space. This may require changes to holes 6 - 8. But in the meantime, play and enjoy this course, It appears to be in really good hands for any future changes.

Classic city park layout that mixes manicured lawn & trees with some all-wooded holes. A small creek winds through and creates a lush wetland area on a few holes.

Dual tees (white & blue) on every hole, great signage AND next tee arrows of the same colors on trees will guide you well.

This design allowed a nice variety of shot making with decent elevation on about 4 holes and just enough trees to punish errant throws and cause bogeys. Some of the pins are cleverly placed to cause nasty rollaways also.

Memorable Holes:
#10 - a low ceiling, narrow corridor RHBH shot that needs to turn left late to get over the creek and have a decent birdy run. To me, it seems like a real difficult shot to clear that trouble. Maybe the smart play is to lay up with a FH into the field on the right of the creek and pitch over. I really wanna try it again (and better my 5), which makes it a memorable risk/reward hole.

The rose garden late in the course was just gorgeous and really added to the experience.

From the blue tees, this course was a bit righty dominant - not a deal breaker, but noticeable enough to mention.

The rough was a bit nasty around the creek beds, so be prepared to spot your discs.

The tees had old carpet on them. Less than ideal, but on the dry day I played on, did not present any problems.

An earlier comment about the ghetto seemed unfounded from my POV. The neighborhood seemed pretty nice, actually! The park was well maintained, and although the tennis courts & old stadium seemed to no longer be in use, they did not look ghetto or trashy to me - just old. The people I saw playing, walking dogs, and enjoying the rose garden were not sketchy looking in the least.

Excellent Course. Both Blue and White Tees are fairly easy to find. There were SCORECARD in the box...amazing!!! They were smart to get corporate sponsors - hopefully this will result in a well kept-up course over the years.

This course is straight-up in the G-H-E-T-T-O. There are bullet holes in the Welcome sign. Avoid engaging the locals at all costs. At a minimum this will be a distraction to your game. Tees need to be re-painted.

If you want to play in the Capital region, good luck finding another course.

Full 18 hole course built through a city park. Plenty of parking and other park amenities close by. Long a short pads offer good flexibility for players of different abilities. Good variety in shots needed. There are straight tight shots, lefts, rights, up and downs. course keeps you interested all the way through.

Course plays mostly through woods, requiring good disc control and accuracy. A few holes are a little more open, but even those holes have a few mature trees around to keep you honest. Uses available elevation well, as well as the small creeks that run through the park. Basket positions are mostly used well to add difficulty or different lines of approach to the basket.

All in all, this is a pretty darn well designed course. No major flaws or mistakes to complain about. White and blue signs were even posted throughout the course directing you to the next pad.

Course is in a city park so in a few cases it plays near areas where you might have to deal with other park users. For my taste #7 plays a little too close to the tennis court and fence. Not a huge turn off, but it could be a problem once in a while.

Some transitions between holes are not ideal. It's a walk back across the road from 5 to 6. The walk from 11 to 12 is also a little long. Bring a map to make sure you don't waste too much time wandering around. This is not unusual when you build a new course into a pre-existing park.

Natural tee pads. They were in decent shape given all the rain that had fallen, but hopefully they can get some concrete pads down the line.

Central Park had a nice variety of hole desgins to keep things interesting. #4 is a 525' hole that weaves tightly through the woods. The design is really nice as it has a more than fair landing area about halfway down the fairway for a person to aim for.

#6 is a basic little 285' ace run, but has a good line of tree defense to make it a nice challenge. It looks like a great ace run, but doesn't play super easy.

#10 is a pretty tough 330' hole that has an OB creek on the left and a line of trees to the right. Then your disc must find a way over the creek, and up a short hill to the basket. Just a really nice hole.

#12 is a blind shot up a steep hill and then finishing into the woods. A real errant approach could wind up down the other side of the hole as the basket sits close enough to the edge of the hill to make you think twice on the approach. Good risk/reward shot.

I really liked the fact that this course mixes in very challenging holes, and a few shorter birdie and ace opportunities. It offers a nice balance of shots to keep everybody happy. Go play it when you are in the Albany area.

-those beautifully new baskets.
-proximity to a high traffic area.
-the varying distances. (best ive ever played)

-the signage is really poor (not for long)
-no signage for the amateur tees. my girlfriend played blind for the most part

i was so psyched to see a course so near my childhood home, and i can say that give this course a couple years and it will probably be my all time favorite. the distance variants are simply fantastic, no hole plays the same way, its really great. however, the signage is basically art paper laminated then bolted to a tree somewhere. if this course is to receive the attention it deserves it NEEDS stand up hard posted signs.
otherwise, its a great addition to an already beautiful park. kudos to the guys who got the funding, and kudos to the city for helping it along.

edit-just found out the guys got the funding for new signs. looks like ill have to go home to see my family more often.

Too early to give you all any key "pros" of this course except that there are 18 brand new DISCatchers with two sets of tees. Bathrooms are between 8 & 9. A big playground and swimming pool are also on site for any non-golfers that may accompany you.
The course starts out in a less used, wooded area but eventually winds around the majority of the park near tennis courts, ballfields, and playgrounds. Not much elevation thru the front nine but the back nine makes up for that. Grassy, rolling hills and long, technical holes with mature trees will require a variety of shots.

The wooded holes are yet to be worn in properly. This will undoubtly change in time(soon) because of the growing player base and lack of courses in the area. The multi-use park aspect will mean you may have to be patient with other park goers.

I've been a part of this course for the better part of it's conception and the designers have worked with the park personnel and local residents to try to co-exist with all who use the park. I plan to update this review in the fall of 2010 once I've gotten a better "feel" for the course and it's surroundings. The centerpiece of the park is a 50 year old rose garden with 300+ varieties of roses. See http://www.schenectadyrose.com / for more details.

Local club website is http://discap.net