Crystal Lake Park reviews
9
1
Water, Water Everywhere, and not a Drop In Play 2+ years drive by
Reviewed:
Updated:
Played on:Mar 26, 2009
Played the course:2-4 times
Pros:
The first thing that struck me about this course is what good shape all the baskets and tees are in. Dual raised concrete tees on (almost) every hole (3-4 holes use same tee for am & pro) with full color hole map, distance, and par at the short tee. The baskets are all solidly in the ground with 2 ft circular concrete base, which is very important in a park as prone to soggy conditions as this one is.
The whole course wraps around a big lake, in a sorotf low area with some hills and scattered trees surrounding it.
The Pro and Am tees give very different looks. The am tees are quite short, pretty wide open shots, on the whole, really not too interesting.
They really take many of the obstacles out of it.
The Pro tees significantly change things. They usually add more distance, and always add more difficulty, bringing terrain and obstacles into play. While the Ams are positioned to minimize challenge, the Pros try to maximize the difficulty.
The pro tees make reasonably good use of the scattered trees and hills by the sides of the lake. Even from the long tees, several holes are still ace runs, usually with a few trees to dodge. Several holes, even from the long tees, seem mostly open with not too much in the way of challenges.
This course does throw some obstacles at you, forcing you to bend some shots around in several directions, but with only scattered trees, these are mostly small potatoes. A few of the pins make creative use of hillsides to keep things tricky.
The main obstacle here is wind. Especially on the front few holes close to the parking lot, the wind is vicious, making the open lanes seem alot smaller.
This course has a few interesting long tees, including the three that bring the lake into play (I actually managed to land a disc in the water on one), and has a few interesting twists from elevation and trees, and the park is nice and well maintained. Also, the facilities are quite nice. Nothing too amazing here, though, on any counts.
The whole course wraps around a big lake, in a sorotf low area with some hills and scattered trees surrounding it.
The Pro and Am tees give very different looks. The am tees are quite short, pretty wide open shots, on the whole, really not too interesting.
They really take many of the obstacles out of it.
The Pro tees significantly change things. They usually add more distance, and always add more difficulty, bringing terrain and obstacles into play. While the Ams are positioned to minimize challenge, the Pros try to maximize the difficulty.
The pro tees make reasonably good use of the scattered trees and hills by the sides of the lake. Even from the long tees, several holes are still ace runs, usually with a few trees to dodge. Several holes, even from the long tees, seem mostly open with not too much in the way of challenges.
This course does throw some obstacles at you, forcing you to bend some shots around in several directions, but with only scattered trees, these are mostly small potatoes. A few of the pins make creative use of hillsides to keep things tricky.
The main obstacle here is wind. Especially on the front few holes close to the parking lot, the wind is vicious, making the open lanes seem alot smaller.
This course has a few interesting long tees, including the three that bring the lake into play (I actually managed to land a disc in the water on one), and has a few interesting twists from elevation and trees, and the park is nice and well maintained. Also, the facilities are quite nice. Nothing too amazing here, though, on any counts.
Cons:
For a park that wraps around a giant lake, the lake has remarkably little impact on the course itself. Repositioning a few of the baskets a bit closer to the water would've made for several more interesting holes, and made better use of this park's unique location. What a waste.
This park's location in a low valley around a lake means its no surprise to find mud here in the spring, but its still quite unpleasant to be soaked to above the ankle by the end of your round. Fortunately, the tees pads are all still high and dry, but much of the rest of the course is just a giant puddle of varying depths.
Distance seems to be used as a crutch on a few too many holes here, as a substitute for more tunnel shots, blind shots, or water. As a result, many holes seem fairly open, and many holes would be considered "bomber" holes, especially on days without wind. If you prefer a more open type of course thats not very technical, to practice driving for Max D, this is your course. I prefer more trees and more technical holes, so this course gets lower marks for those reasons.
From the short tees, almost every hole is very forgettable, from the long tees many are still fairly so. From the long tees, this course is challenging and will force you to navigate around some obstacles, but I didn't find the holes especially fun or interesting, even from the long tees.
Looking around at this park, there are many unused areas where really cool lakeside holes could've gone, including out onto the long, thin peninsula? But as it currently stands, this is a decent course with good tee pads and signage, so a good place for a casual round, but don't expect anything amazing from it.
This is a hard course to rate, because certain aspects of it are very good, while others are merely passable.
Very good tee pads and signs
Passable course layout & use of available terrain
Poor Drainage, decent overall fun factor.
Overall, this is a Solid course, but I can't quite rank it Good, due to the awful drainage and just ok playing experience. I will probably return to this course eventually but many courses in the area offer a more fun experience IMO.
This park's location in a low valley around a lake means its no surprise to find mud here in the spring, but its still quite unpleasant to be soaked to above the ankle by the end of your round. Fortunately, the tees pads are all still high and dry, but much of the rest of the course is just a giant puddle of varying depths.
Distance seems to be used as a crutch on a few too many holes here, as a substitute for more tunnel shots, blind shots, or water. As a result, many holes seem fairly open, and many holes would be considered "bomber" holes, especially on days without wind. If you prefer a more open type of course thats not very technical, to practice driving for Max D, this is your course. I prefer more trees and more technical holes, so this course gets lower marks for those reasons.
From the short tees, almost every hole is very forgettable, from the long tees many are still fairly so. From the long tees, this course is challenging and will force you to navigate around some obstacles, but I didn't find the holes especially fun or interesting, even from the long tees.
Looking around at this park, there are many unused areas where really cool lakeside holes could've gone, including out onto the long, thin peninsula? But as it currently stands, this is a decent course with good tee pads and signage, so a good place for a casual round, but don't expect anything amazing from it.
This is a hard course to rate, because certain aspects of it are very good, while others are merely passable.
Very good tee pads and signs
Passable course layout & use of available terrain
Poor Drainage, decent overall fun factor.
Overall, this is a Solid course, but I can't quite rank it Good, due to the awful drainage and just ok playing experience. I will probably return to this course eventually but many courses in the area offer a more fun experience IMO.
Other Thoughts:
Wear shorts, and water-resistant shoes on this course. Your pants will get soggy very quickly.
This course has no trash cans, so be ready to pack out your trash.
On hole 1, the Pro tee is closer to the parking lot, across the walking path from the short tee and hole hole sign.
Bring a least some heavier, more overstable discs to cut through the wind in this park, or be prepared to suffer on the front nine.
In evaluating which courses I ENJOY playing the most, this is not super high on my list. Though I admit that it is in a pretty park, well maintained, and has challenge (based on how i scored I suppose), and obstacles in play, including some water, I just didn't find this course that entertaining.
I'd go to Baraboo or UW-Whitewater before I went back here. both of those other courses are not as well maintained, with spotty signage and uneven dirt or rubber teepads, they are both more entertaining, IMO. And they both have better drainage that this muck hole.
This course has no trash cans, so be ready to pack out your trash.
On hole 1, the Pro tee is closer to the parking lot, across the walking path from the short tee and hole hole sign.
Bring a least some heavier, more overstable discs to cut through the wind in this park, or be prepared to suffer on the front nine.
In evaluating which courses I ENJOY playing the most, this is not super high on my list. Though I admit that it is in a pretty park, well maintained, and has challenge (based on how i scored I suppose), and obstacles in play, including some water, I just didn't find this course that entertaining.
I'd go to Baraboo or UW-Whitewater before I went back here. both of those other courses are not as well maintained, with spotty signage and uneven dirt or rubber teepads, they are both more entertaining, IMO. And they both have better drainage that this muck hole.
