East China Township Park reviews
1
2
jmherman
Experience:
6.9 years
15 played
15 reviews
needs work 2+ years drive by
Reviewed:
Played on:Aug 4, 2016
Played the course:2-4 times
Pros:
Challenging wooded course with a lot of variety.
Cons:
This is not cart friendly and you will need to be in decent shape to play this. You have to cross over water by walking on a log. Having a cart on this course is a really bad idea. I don't have any balance and fell in.
Other Thoughts:
This course has so much potential to be a great course. it just needs to be cleaned up and the bridge repaired.
3
1
2+ years
Reviewed:
Played on:Apr 8, 2014
Played the course:once
Pros:
Aesthetic-- plays through a large multi-use park, walking trails criss-cross the course but seems that walkers are minimal.
Baskets-- much nicer than Ira. grippy chainstars, what more could you ask for.
Routing and nav--easy. the arrows help a lot.
Teesignage-- nice and in good repair. Nice to see the second tees in the ground (even with grass tees)
challenge/variety-- a little better here. the lengths are nice to air out your arm and the woods holes are a nice diversion. Hole 9 is stunning visually but a bit of a let down (especially from the shorts)
Baskets-- much nicer than Ira. grippy chainstars, what more could you ask for.
Routing and nav--easy. the arrows help a lot.
Teesignage-- nice and in good repair. Nice to see the second tees in the ground (even with grass tees)
challenge/variety-- a little better here. the lengths are nice to air out your arm and the woods holes are a nice diversion. Hole 9 is stunning visually but a bit of a let down (especially from the shorts)
Cons:
Getting to Tee 1-- we played 4/8 and the gate wasn't open to the parking lot so we had to make the long trek across the park. some signage to the first tee during the winter would be nice.
Teepads-- I would prefer just straight grass pads vs carpet pads. but this is just my preference.
Water-- hole 3-6 are a bit wet with hole 5's fairway with deep water.
Teepads-- I would prefer just straight grass pads vs carpet pads. but this is just my preference.
Water-- hole 3-6 are a bit wet with hole 5's fairway with deep water.
Other Thoughts:
This was the last course we played on a massive six course day. we were all tired but we were not biased by the tiredness. I think the review is fair.
3
1
Very disappointing 2+ years drive by
Reviewed:
Updated:
Played on:Jul 1, 2013
Played the course:once
Pros:
Great baskets!!!
Cons:
Ticks!!!! Be careful and check.
Rough is thick thick thick. It is cut like a maze with 4-5ft high brush like hedge rows. This would make this course the exact opposite for beginners. Good disc golfers will make a few bad shots. Beginners make more. One romp through the nasty stuff and beginners won't wanna play dg for long.
Mosquitoes. Given the thick brush and stagnate rivet, bug spray is a must. It was almost not worth playing with that many mosquitoes.
7's tee sign was missing. 8 needs clearing to make it a fun hole. 9 was unnecessary. This could be an amazing hole. Given the current layout, the tee either needs to be moved or the overhanging tree branch needs to go. There could be potential safety issues during peek soccer season.
Rough is thick thick thick. It is cut like a maze with 4-5ft high brush like hedge rows. This would make this course the exact opposite for beginners. Good disc golfers will make a few bad shots. Beginners make more. One romp through the nasty stuff and beginners won't wanna play dg for long.
Mosquitoes. Given the thick brush and stagnate rivet, bug spray is a must. It was almost not worth playing with that many mosquitoes.
7's tee sign was missing. 8 needs clearing to make it a fun hole. 9 was unnecessary. This could be an amazing hole. Given the current layout, the tee either needs to be moved or the overhanging tree branch needs to go. There could be potential safety issues during peek soccer season.
Other Thoughts:
Glad to hear 18 holes may be coming but given the current layout and land used, I'm not sure it is worth playing. I was very disappointed making the drive from Port Huron.
Holes 7 and 8 stand out here. You are away from most of the heavy mosquitoes and thick rough. They were also the few legitimate ace runs with the exception of 4. This isn't a must but given the terrain the rest of the course was very limited to that "going at the basket mentality."
My suggestions for redesign: Hole 1 tee should be where 3's basket is (actually a little closer to the parking lot). Hole 1 basket should be where hole 3 tee is. Play hole 2 in reverse but shorten it and open it up more to eliminate searching for a disc for hours. Play hole 3 where hole 1 is currently but play it in reverse. Again, open it up or shorten it some. Cut back and play hole 4 in reverse from its current location. Play holes 5 and 6 as is with the exception to shortening up either or both of them. I'd personally move 5's tee shorter and left into the open field. Hole 6 I would cut out a little more brush and open up some viewing lanes to the basket. I actually liked hole 6, but it would be very easy to lose a disc there. Note: The area between 6 and 7 is beautiful with a couple picnic tables if I'm correct. I would of used this area for a hole but I can see that it may have been off limits. Hole 7, with the tee sign post up, looks like a sweet hole. I would clear some overhanging brush and underbrush but otherwise bravo there. Hole 8 needs some lanes cleared and some underbrush cleared but otherwise I like that hole as well. Hole 9 needs a clear launch path to the basket. Remove that overhanging branch or move the tee up to the corner of the soccer field, eliminating the safety concern. (Putting the tee right behind the overhanging branch, throwing underneath it would be super cool)
Again, only my suggestions. The other option for holes 1-6 is to clear out some wider lanes, shorten a few tee boxes, and spray the heck outta that place with mosquito killer. My suggestions for 7-9 are valid and doable in the foreseeable future.
I'm a course designer and understand the frustration with parks departments and such. It takes constant maintenance because we play a sport where the arena we play in constantly grows. My buddy laughs at me and says: Once a course designer always a course designer. That means I'm constantly scrutinizing courses I play. Whether it is clearing brush while I play or looking at ways to improve a hole, I'll always do it. I do it every time I play my own course.
This course disappointed me but given a few tweaks it could be solid. I hope to be back visiting family and play it again, hopefully with changes.
Holes 7 and 8 stand out here. You are away from most of the heavy mosquitoes and thick rough. They were also the few legitimate ace runs with the exception of 4. This isn't a must but given the terrain the rest of the course was very limited to that "going at the basket mentality."
My suggestions for redesign: Hole 1 tee should be where 3's basket is (actually a little closer to the parking lot). Hole 1 basket should be where hole 3 tee is. Play hole 2 in reverse but shorten it and open it up more to eliminate searching for a disc for hours. Play hole 3 where hole 1 is currently but play it in reverse. Again, open it up or shorten it some. Cut back and play hole 4 in reverse from its current location. Play holes 5 and 6 as is with the exception to shortening up either or both of them. I'd personally move 5's tee shorter and left into the open field. Hole 6 I would cut out a little more brush and open up some viewing lanes to the basket. I actually liked hole 6, but it would be very easy to lose a disc there. Note: The area between 6 and 7 is beautiful with a couple picnic tables if I'm correct. I would of used this area for a hole but I can see that it may have been off limits. Hole 7, with the tee sign post up, looks like a sweet hole. I would clear some overhanging brush and underbrush but otherwise bravo there. Hole 8 needs some lanes cleared and some underbrush cleared but otherwise I like that hole as well. Hole 9 needs a clear launch path to the basket. Remove that overhanging branch or move the tee up to the corner of the soccer field, eliminating the safety concern. (Putting the tee right behind the overhanging branch, throwing underneath it would be super cool)
Again, only my suggestions. The other option for holes 1-6 is to clear out some wider lanes, shorten a few tee boxes, and spray the heck outta that place with mosquito killer. My suggestions for 7-9 are valid and doable in the foreseeable future.
I'm a course designer and understand the frustration with parks departments and such. It takes constant maintenance because we play a sport where the arena we play in constantly grows. My buddy laughs at me and says: Once a course designer always a course designer. That means I'm constantly scrutinizing courses I play. Whether it is clearing brush while I play or looking at ways to improve a hole, I'll always do it. I do it every time I play my own course.
This course disappointed me but given a few tweaks it could be solid. I hope to be back visiting family and play it again, hopefully with changes.
Designer response by donnyv
Thanks for the help JBryant. Some of your suggestions were in our original designs but we had to adjust quite a few things to cater to the park's requests. When I get the green light for 18 holes, I'll have to change it up a little anyways to make the flow work with the other areas I'll be allowed to work with. Being a course designer, I'm sure you know of the gives-and-takes that go with building something on public land.
The park dept has been great to work with and understanding, but also has other plans for the park and activities to cater to. Limited budgets and an under-staffed crew makes it difficult to do everything else in the park and help the disc golf course too.
I wasn't supposed to, but I cut-back a lot of the thorny rough you mentioned and made a couple "Flip City" type paths in areas that I couldn't quite cut totally. I did recieve a little heat from the park manager for cutting through the native berries but luckily they appreciate the effort I put in and let me slide this time.
It's slowly getting there and I've seen more and more people playing each time I can get out there to donate my time and money/supplies. They do appreciate the hard work and are doing their best to help us out. The also realize I live a hour away and can only stop by once in a while.
I was a little shocked to see the soccer nets in the way on hole 9 but it was just temporary and they moved them out of the way again just a few days after your visit.
I understand your frustration with the tee areas as well. I was planning for 2 teepads per hole but have to make due until funds become available. It was best to leave the natural tee areas and holes longer for now so we'd have more space to work with when the final tee pads were installed. The tee posts also had to be out of the way for the huge mowers to pass through without hitting them.
Thanks for the input and please don't hesitate to let us know of any other issues so we can address them to the park commission.
The park dept has been great to work with and understanding, but also has other plans for the park and activities to cater to. Limited budgets and an under-staffed crew makes it difficult to do everything else in the park and help the disc golf course too.
I wasn't supposed to, but I cut-back a lot of the thorny rough you mentioned and made a couple "Flip City" type paths in areas that I couldn't quite cut totally. I did recieve a little heat from the park manager for cutting through the native berries but luckily they appreciate the effort I put in and let me slide this time.
It's slowly getting there and I've seen more and more people playing each time I can get out there to donate my time and money/supplies. They do appreciate the hard work and are doing their best to help us out. The also realize I live a hour away and can only stop by once in a while.
I was a little shocked to see the soccer nets in the way on hole 9 but it was just temporary and they moved them out of the way again just a few days after your visit.
I understand your frustration with the tee areas as well. I was planning for 2 teepads per hole but have to make due until funds become available. It was best to leave the natural tee areas and holes longer for now so we'd have more space to work with when the final tee pads were installed. The tee posts also had to be out of the way for the huge mowers to pass through without hitting them.
Thanks for the input and please don't hesitate to let us know of any other issues so we can address them to the park commission.
