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Chains Edge - Green reviews
12
0
Short but Sweet!
Reviewed:
Played on:Oct 1, 2023
Played the course:5+ times
Pros:
The three courses all start at about the same place. I'm sure this makes for a really fun start for events with everybody gathered together. The campsites are neatly laid out, and I saw several stacks of wood. It just felt welcoming!
The signs are clear about which course starts where. The signs on the teepad tell you the number, and there are probably a couple of spots where you could accidentally jump from one course to another, but they're well spaced that this seems unlikely. I also enjoyed seeing all the names of the sponsors and people who had aced holes and the like. Again, it provided a very strong community feel that I enjoyed.
The baskets are *beautiful* and catch well, and it's wonderful that each course has baskets that correspond to the course color. (Red baskets on the red course, green baskets for green, blue for blue.)
Use of Elevation - Out of all 3 courses on this property, this one uses elevation change in such a fun way. While you mostly throw down hills, it doesn't mean that it makes the holes easy. With many of the holes being so, so short, having to take juice off of your putter from the teebox is a funny feeling and makes for some hilarious (terrible!) throws.
Scenery - This course plays towards and around the lake which makes for some really lovely views. The pavilion on hole 10 overlooking the lake is quite majestic.
Layout - At 24 holes, all short, the course plays as long as 18 on a "normal" course. The green course is actually listed as being slightly longer than the blue course which has several par 4s and an 800+ foot par 5!
Overall design - While not all holes are amazing, there are some really fun holes with some neat designs. It's not so hard to get within 50 feet of the basket which really separates the wheat from the chaff when it comes to putting. It can be quite tricky on several holes to park it, and you do see the occasional "that's not what I was trying to do" shots land by the basket. Super fun.
Teepads - Not all holes have concrete/brick teepads, but many do. Like the other teepads on the property, they're in great shape. Even the natural teepads are well-denoted and have benches to sit on.
The care and attention was evident everywhere. All of the paths were very obvious. The little signs on the baskets pointing you in the right direction, even when it wasn't necessary, were great. The landscaping wasn't over-the-top but added to the experience. Not even a cigarette butt on the ground. Just fantastic.
The signs are clear about which course starts where. The signs on the teepad tell you the number, and there are probably a couple of spots where you could accidentally jump from one course to another, but they're well spaced that this seems unlikely. I also enjoyed seeing all the names of the sponsors and people who had aced holes and the like. Again, it provided a very strong community feel that I enjoyed.
The baskets are *beautiful* and catch well, and it's wonderful that each course has baskets that correspond to the course color. (Red baskets on the red course, green baskets for green, blue for blue.)
Use of Elevation - Out of all 3 courses on this property, this one uses elevation change in such a fun way. While you mostly throw down hills, it doesn't mean that it makes the holes easy. With many of the holes being so, so short, having to take juice off of your putter from the teebox is a funny feeling and makes for some hilarious (terrible!) throws.
Scenery - This course plays towards and around the lake which makes for some really lovely views. The pavilion on hole 10 overlooking the lake is quite majestic.
Layout - At 24 holes, all short, the course plays as long as 18 on a "normal" course. The green course is actually listed as being slightly longer than the blue course which has several par 4s and an 800+ foot par 5!
Overall design - While not all holes are amazing, there are some really fun holes with some neat designs. It's not so hard to get within 50 feet of the basket which really separates the wheat from the chaff when it comes to putting. It can be quite tricky on several holes to park it, and you do see the occasional "that's not what I was trying to do" shots land by the basket. Super fun.
Teepads - Not all holes have concrete/brick teepads, but many do. Like the other teepads on the property, they're in great shape. Even the natural teepads are well-denoted and have benches to sit on.
The care and attention was evident everywhere. All of the paths were very obvious. The little signs on the baskets pointing you in the right direction, even when it wasn't necessary, were great. The landscaping wasn't over-the-top but added to the experience. Not even a cigarette butt on the ground. Just fantastic.
Cons:
Green Baskets - Chad, the designer, has said this himself: "Green baskets weren't the best choice." They can be hard to see in the woods. I appreciate the aesthetic, but I think if he simply put bright orange flags on top that it would solve the problem. Many courses do this, and it would completely eliminate this con for me if he did.
Some holes are just too easy - I imagine it's very difficult to make a course with 24 short holes that are all quite challenging. It's quite hard to bogey any holes on this course. When it happens it's usually because a putt clangs and rolls or because your approach hit the first tree and you're essentially throwing the same shot again. If you're going to use a "birdie bag" for this course, you might indulge on every other birdie instead of every one…
Repetitive feel - Honestly the holes are all pretty different, but 24 shorties in a row does create a kind of Groundhog's Day feel. Since you're only throwing putters and mids (roc, buzzz, wombat for me) off the teebox there aren't many choices to make. Leave your drivers in the car, you won't need them.
Can't get off the ride - All 3 courses are out-and-backs, meaning you don't get back to the parking lot until you finish hole 18 (or 24 in the case of green). With such short holes and the repetitive feel, the green course would be ideal to set up as two 12's or, man, even as three 8's. I see on uDisc there's a 9-hole option. However, if the course is busy at all you're guaranteed to be disrupting the other groups if you do that.
Natural teepads - This course has the most natural teepads on the property. I didn't count, but I'd guess it's about 7 or 8 holes out of the 24. You honestly don't need a runup on all or almost all of the holes, but it's still not ideal.
Some holes are just too easy - I imagine it's very difficult to make a course with 24 short holes that are all quite challenging. It's quite hard to bogey any holes on this course. When it happens it's usually because a putt clangs and rolls or because your approach hit the first tree and you're essentially throwing the same shot again. If you're going to use a "birdie bag" for this course, you might indulge on every other birdie instead of every one…
Repetitive feel - Honestly the holes are all pretty different, but 24 shorties in a row does create a kind of Groundhog's Day feel. Since you're only throwing putters and mids (roc, buzzz, wombat for me) off the teebox there aren't many choices to make. Leave your drivers in the car, you won't need them.
Can't get off the ride - All 3 courses are out-and-backs, meaning you don't get back to the parking lot until you finish hole 18 (or 24 in the case of green). With such short holes and the repetitive feel, the green course would be ideal to set up as two 12's or, man, even as three 8's. I see on uDisc there's a 9-hole option. However, if the course is busy at all you're guaranteed to be disrupting the other groups if you do that.
Natural teepads - This course has the most natural teepads on the property. I didn't count, but I'd guess it's about 7 or 8 holes out of the 24. You honestly don't need a runup on all or almost all of the holes, but it's still not ideal.
Other Thoughts:
I typically don't like to review a course until I've played it at least a few times, but with only 6 reviews at the time of writing, I think it's worthwhile to add my two cents.
With this lovely short course on the property, it's hard not to play this one first as a warmup before jumping onto the red or the blue. It really makes me wish it had some short loops as per my con, but it's still a fun course to start on. Out of the 3 courses, I like red the most (easily) and green ekes out blue. If blue is a 3.5 (good course), I don't think green is a 4 (excellent). I think it's a 3.6 or 3.75. I'm giving it a 3.5, though, because I'm a stingy butt.
Playing on a private property course can be hit or miss. Chad has really put his heart and soul into this course. Chad told me he used to work at Blue Ribbon Pines until he got his hands on this property. The style and grace of BRP is very evident on this property. He's typically welcoming people, collecting his $8 (what a steal!), shooting the breeze, or on his ATV cruising around working on teepads and the like.
I like to end my reviews by imagining what kind of a player I would be if this were my home course. This is a tricky question to answer since there are three full courses on this property. Focusing just on the green course: With such short holes, I'd obviously have 0 long shots. Even with a putter in hand, I wasn't ripping it on most holes. Accuracy is king here, and there's no doubt that I would eventually be able to hit the wings off a fly from 100 feet. I think my long putts would really surge, too. On average of my rounds on the green course, I'd guess half of my putts for birdie have been outside circle 1. I'd also save a lot of money on plastic! It's hard to lose discs when you're only throwing 200 feet and can see the whole fairway every time.
This is an incredible piece of property. I visit my mother-in-law down in Cambridge (about 30 mins away) about once a year. I will definitely return. For those of you who don't have a reason to be so close, I strongly recommend setting up a trip and playing all the courses on the property. The camping looked like a good setup, so an overnight could be a great time.
With the blue course at a 3.5 for me, the green a 3.75, and the red a 4.5, I think I would give the entire property and experience a solid 4.25. That's more than the average of the 3 courses. At $8, it's such a good value to be able to have such different experiences on a well-maintained course. I solidly recommend Chain's Edge.
With this lovely short course on the property, it's hard not to play this one first as a warmup before jumping onto the red or the blue. It really makes me wish it had some short loops as per my con, but it's still a fun course to start on. Out of the 3 courses, I like red the most (easily) and green ekes out blue. If blue is a 3.5 (good course), I don't think green is a 4 (excellent). I think it's a 3.6 or 3.75. I'm giving it a 3.5, though, because I'm a stingy butt.
Playing on a private property course can be hit or miss. Chad has really put his heart and soul into this course. Chad told me he used to work at Blue Ribbon Pines until he got his hands on this property. The style and grace of BRP is very evident on this property. He's typically welcoming people, collecting his $8 (what a steal!), shooting the breeze, or on his ATV cruising around working on teepads and the like.
I like to end my reviews by imagining what kind of a player I would be if this were my home course. This is a tricky question to answer since there are three full courses on this property. Focusing just on the green course: With such short holes, I'd obviously have 0 long shots. Even with a putter in hand, I wasn't ripping it on most holes. Accuracy is king here, and there's no doubt that I would eventually be able to hit the wings off a fly from 100 feet. I think my long putts would really surge, too. On average of my rounds on the green course, I'd guess half of my putts for birdie have been outside circle 1. I'd also save a lot of money on plastic! It's hard to lose discs when you're only throwing 200 feet and can see the whole fairway every time.
This is an incredible piece of property. I visit my mother-in-law down in Cambridge (about 30 mins away) about once a year. I will definitely return. For those of you who don't have a reason to be so close, I strongly recommend setting up a trip and playing all the courses on the property. The camping looked like a good setup, so an overnight could be a great time.
With the blue course at a 3.5 for me, the green a 3.75, and the red a 4.5, I think I would give the entire property and experience a solid 4.25. That's more than the average of the 3 courses. At $8, it's such a good value to be able to have such different experiences on a well-maintained course. I solidly recommend Chain's Edge.
