Richmond, VA

Dunncroft - Castle Point Park

2.845(based on 28 reviews)
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10 0
lee76007
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 4.7 years 112 played 111 reviews
3.00 star(s)

It can be Easy or Difficult 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Aug 10, 2021 Played the course:once

Pros:

-A moderate to heavy wooded course that meanders around a creek. The creek comes into play 8 of the 9 holes. There is upslope, downslope, elevated tee, gaps off tees, and guardian trees for the baskets. A few holes Criss cross the creek in succession.

-Short tees are short in distance, provide plenty of birdie opportunities and ace runs. Long tees have plenty of distance with difficulty off the tee, and challenging. I played both sets of tees two rounds. Both short and long tees are so different on each hole, you feel like you're playing two different set of courses.

-Tees are concrete and in decent shape. Baskets are older, but still catch well.

-Some short tee signs only had a hole number. Some long tee signs had hole number and distance.

-At the time I played the course it would have ranked #1 in difficulty for a 9-holer from the long tees only. It would be replaced by Lake Marshall the Lambs Course 11 days later.

-From both tees threw putter, fairway, and driver.

-Long open field from parking to 1st tee allows some throwing practice.

-Navigation is clockwise with painted rungs pointing to next short or long tee. Foot bridges to cross creek a handful of times.

-Beginner and Recreational will find the short tees enjoyable, the longs very difficult. Intermediate and Advanced will find a birdie festival on shorts and will be challenged on longs.

Cons:

-High lost disc potential with heavy trees and brush. The creek isn't too bad, looking very careful you should be able to find a disc. The brush is very thick and high, lines a few fairways. On other holes just off fairway, rough high enough where you can walk pass your disc.

-On the long tees a few holes are alike. It was the first time on a 9-holer that I found a few holes not memorable a few days later. Holes 3 and 4 were comical.

-Tee signs not consistent some had distance some not, some only a hole number. A few broken. Some painted rungs for direction were faded away. There is no mapping of the course.

-There are walking trails on the course. Had to hold up a few times to let others pass.

-Any sustained or heavy rain very possible the creek could overflow and fairways to become muddy.

-The brush on No. 8 to the left was thick with huge bumble bees buzzing around. Spent a few moments looking for a disc. Gave myself a 30-foot rule no closer to the basket to get away from them. There were flowers in the brush.


Other Thoughts:

Dunncroft-Castle Rock I've had my eye on for quite some time, its mention in my area, reading local comments the course seems to be popular in Richmond, and 12-18 months from now I could be making frequent visits to the course, as I volunteer my time just a few miles from there monthly. So, it was time to check it out. DCR is two 9-holers sharing the same basket or 18 tees and a 9-basket course. Long and short tees have totally different looks on each hole, compared to other 9'ers with two pads. Both rounds were fun and enjoyable, short tees attack the basket and long tees intense staying clear of trouble. A very good mix of disc golf on 2-9er's. The course itself is crustier with some scenery mixed in.

The short tee with the ease of the course would be a 2.0, the long tee with its difficulty latches on to a 4.0. But it's considered to be one course, so with the variety of disc golf, fun factor, enjoyment, ace runs and birdie pickups, difficulty, and that crusty/scenic mix my overall rating is anchored on a 3.5. Both rounds took a total of 65 mins with some disc searching.

Course Humor:

No. 3 and 4 from the longs look alike. Elevated, two pine tree gaps over the creek going back upslope. So, when I got up to the 4th tee at first glance my first thought was "I just played this hole" for a moment I thought I some how got turned around and was back on 3rd tee. I've never seen two back-to-back holes look so much alike in the woods.

Notable Basket Placement:

No. 5 basket is a roller into the creek if the grass is short.

Notable Holes:

No. 6 Par 3 long at 268 feet looks like the fairway has shifted left to right over the years, and used to be a straight away fairway? Straight ahead is heavy brush, trees and the creek running parallel to the fairway with the tee aimed at the obstacles. At about 160 feet the fairway meanders to the right, then angles back to the left towards the basket at 200 feet, at that point are heavy trees with a small fairway of about 20 feet wide all the way down to the basket. Scenic.

No. 8 Par 3 at 295 feet long is an elevated straight downhill until it reaches the creek at 200 feet, then gently doglegs left up to the basket. The fairway going down from the tee is peppered with pine trees in the middle and heavy trees both sides of fairway about 30 feet wide, need to pick a gap from the tee.

Signature Hole:

No. 2 Par 3 at 339 feet long is a downhill throw thru a gap of trees about 20 feet wide then opens at about 180 feet with two pine trees right in the middle where it opens, going either left or right of the two pines, then a downhill drop towards the creek and a slight dogleg right. The basket sits on a slight upslope, the creek is within C1 turning on an angle to the right of basket. Very scenic from both tees.

Trouble Hole:

No. 7 Par 3 at 345 long feet a level straight away from the tee with heavy brush and trees both sides of fairway about 20 feet wide all the way down 220 feet. The fairway opens and has a slight dogleg left. The creek meanders all the way down the left of fairway and crosses fairway at about 275 feet. The basket has guardian skinnies with a dry depression behind the basket about 15 feet. There's an open area 220 feet on the right and is blind from the tee. As a lefty I was able to hit the target after thinking I may have been short in the heavy brush. Righties a forehand would be nice for you. It's a good spot to approach the basket if you don't want to risk the creek.






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8 0
DumfriesLizzie
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 5.6 years 111 played 102 reviews
3.00 star(s)

good neighborhood course 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Jun 13, 2021 Played the course:once

Pros:

Scenic course in a small setting with elevation coming on both sides of a creek with lots of tall grass and bushes.

Because of the elevation and the creek, there is a lot of visual challenge on the short holes.

Course is also very wooded, so flight lines are tight if not over the creek. And the slope is mostly always a factor. These elements give the small course its challenges.

There is a park trail that skirts along the edge of the course, and it has a lot of walkers and cyclists. So one never feels isolated. I played a Sunday late afternoon, and it was not too crowded even though I had to let 2 groups pass.

Cons:

I understand from other reviews that the creek has copperhead snakes. It is also the case that one can lose a disc in that tall grass. So throw bright-colored discs to have a chance at recovery.

You are going down and then up and down and up the slopes through the creek bed over and over, and that repetition does get old pretty quickly.

Not being a strong thrower, I found myself laying up close to the creek and then throwing spike hyzers over the creek.

Both tees of #1 present curtains of trees from the get-go and are not very welcoming. However, it's the hardest hole on the course (in my opinion), so it doesn't get any worse really. Just different and better. At least from the red tees.

Other Thoughts:

By the way, the red tee of #1 is very far from the blue tee of #1. Red is closer to the street at the edge of the cricket field.

To not interfere with the cricket play (or get hit!), take the park trail previously mentioned, which skirts along the edge of that field as well as the disc golf course. There is a spur trail to the blue tee of #1 from the park trail.

You have to come out again to the edge of the cricket field to get to the red tee from the blue tee of no. 1. Walk along the treeline edge. Or walk along the street from the parking lot to the red tee.

As others have noted earlier, it is not a destination course. However, if you are in the area for some other reason, it's a nice diversion and an enjoyable place to play.
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12 0
mshelton
Silver level trusted reviewer
Experience: 22 years 140 played 32 reviews
3.00 star(s)

9 holes that get attention 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Aug 5, 2018 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Nice paver tee pads
Good short tee beginner/practice layout
Bathrooms with water at the parking lot
Area is getting attention with walking stones across the creek and erosion prevention.
Long tees add a good bit of challenge on many holes, not just 60 extra feet.

Cons:

Wish there were 9 more holes
Grass and growth has gotten bad in some spots but it's the middle of an extra rainy VA summer, not a lot that can be done there.

Other Thoughts:

I first played this course back in the early 2000s when it was 18 holes and even though 9 holes were removed for the school construction, the course is in much better shape now than it was then. There's been the work on the tee pads, paths cleaned up and large stones added for crossing the creek. Looks like quite a few new trees have been planted. Park and course have been kept clean also and a nice option if you want to introduce kids to the game.

I like how the short tees set up in that even though most are open shots, they do require the player to hit a landing gap or zone, nice for the newer players that are starting to get 250' power because it makes them shape a shot to an area. A few short holes are 'technical' off the tee and is a good mix/introduction of that. For a 300'+ thrower, the shorts can all be played with a putter and are pretty fun as well great upshot practice.

The longs add a good amount of challenge to the holes adding not only distance but tight gaps and shape control. Off the fairways your scramble game will get a little bit of a work out but not tested too hard.

It's a nice option to have in this part of town which is further away from the more popular Richmond courses. It's also pretty easy to get too off 295 if you're looking for a quick round.

Also the large field between the parking lot serves as a cricket field for some of the Richmond leagues. Pretty fun to watch and there's a good view of it from the first tee. If they are playing you can take the nature path around the backside of the field to get to hole #1.

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2 5
Stud Muffin
Experience: 18.4 years 30 played 14 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Old School...It's Old, by a School 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Aug 29, 2011 Played the course:once

Pros:

> Better than I expected, signs were well dressed with graffiti, but some of the info is actually good, you get the ace accounts, and who is in love with who. That's character people.

>Across a soccer field, which if empty, is GREAT to warm up in.

>A nice variety of length, not all short holes.

Cons:

>Woods, ALL of it. It seems to be a Richmond area requirement of DG for all the courses to be in the woods.

>Natural Tees, always a negative.

>Sometimes confusing to get around.

Other Thoughts:

Not as bad as I have read, not quite on the level of Gillies, but not too far off.
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4 3
cahurley
Experience: 15.7 years 18 played 5 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Quaint Disc Golf Park 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Aug 8, 2010 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

All wooded but still lot of variety, easy to navigate, nice location.

Cons:

Lack of details on tee signs, missing tees, only nine holes

Other Thoughts:

This course is completely wooded but still has variety as it can be pretty technical and does not favor right or left handed players. Our goal was to play white tees and follow up with a round on blues, but many of the holes seem to be missing one color or the other. The course also lacks tee signs with information about length and direction but after taking a quick look, its easy to find your way around. Hole eight is the only hole that's out of the way but if you head right on the running trail its hard to miss. The designers made great use of the creek that runs through the property, as it runs through eight of the nine holes and by the baskets on holes 2 and 7. The course as a whole was attractive, well designed, and enjoyable, but there was still room for improvement.
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0 5
mrjohnahawley
Experience: 21.3 years 19 played 6 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Shorty course in the woods. 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Nov 18, 2009 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Really secluded. Very technical, forces you to work with head instead of your arm.

Cons:

Only nine when it used to be 18, luckily I got to place all 18 once before it got dismantled.

Other Thoughts:

Bring back the old front nine, the school isnt using that area! Who do we have to convince?
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1 5
abdul haqq
Experience: 2 played 2 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Daily Player 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jun 23, 2009 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Less that a half a mile away from my house. I can ride my bike, walk or drive. My children love the play ground and the rest rooms are clean. Nice open field before the course to air out a couple of throws. Great for Aces. I hit hole 6 once and 7 twice.

Cons:

Funky stagnat water in some places. If you step wrong you will get what my children call "Glop Foot" on the second hole.

Other Thoughts:

Give us the other nine holes back they took before the school was built. More trash cans.
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0 8
dmbill
Experience: 17.8 years 29 played 5 reviews
3.00 star(s)

2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Dec 27, 2008 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

Near many places in the west End of Richmond, plays quickly and has ample signage for the most part Great practice course or for first timers.

Cons:

Near a neighborhood where people walk their dogs throughout the course, floods easily.

Other Thoughts:

Favorite Hole: #8 - Great hole way out in front of you with elevation sloping down towards the hole.
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