Decent variation in holes. Dog legs, tunnels, some wooded, some not wooded.

On a couple of holes, the direction where to go is not marked well - specifically in the 12-14 range.
No long holes.
The one hole is nearly flooded if it rains.

Edward Medard definitely has a bit of a split personality. A majority of the holes are typical county park holes, fairly open with easily navigated lines playing along the park's roads. # 5 is the one exception, a 261' fish hook of a hole where the basket is tucked way back on your left. A spotter would be welcomed on this hole.

The course's persona totally and completely changes beginning on # 9 when you begin a stretch playing through this truly unique area which is listed on the map as, " The Hills." This hills area is kinda hard to describe but it consists of several green, brackish ponds, an incredibly rugged interesting landscape which I believe has been caused and eroded by yearly floods and enough trees to bat your perfect drives down and send them into green waters, never to fly again. Tricky basket placements such as # 13's sitting on a steep little hill with the pond scum waters just 6' behind it. Miss your putt and watch your disc sink below the green surface. Better players will welcome this challenge. Wimps like me wisely skipped # 14, where a small scummy pond lurks 30-80' feet before the basket and is completely hidden from the tee. # 12 is a very cool little Ace run of 202' to a a basket set in the rough Hills area.

There is a $2 fee to enter the park and you're handed the same exact map that I printed off DGCR. The first tee starts next to the first parking lot you come to. There is a small kiosk there with information on the Saturday morning tournament. The concrete tee pads are very adequate. There are bag holders, benches and garbage cans everywhere. The colored wooden signs have routered in numbers, distances and a basic map. There is a single chain basket down the first fairway but I don't think that's the primary basket. But that's a strange place to set a practice basket. The baskets are Gateways heavy duty models. The information on the inside post is wearing off. There are next tee signs scattered about.

Some holes have two pads.

Great chance of losing a disc in the scummy, green waters.

# 5 hole definitely deserves a spotter.

I thought # 13 was a little dangerous throwing down the park road. Take away the road and I liked this hole a lot. Cool basket placement up the small hill and If the basket was set back another 25 to 50' in the gnarly area, the hole would play much tougher. And there are many spots up above for an epic basket placement.

The Hills area is so unique, so rough and treacherous, that you just gotta love it even as your favorite disc sinks into the green soup like the Titanic. # 13 and 14 are such special holes, you can't help but love em as you're hating them. But this whole Hills area, holes 9 to 15 is a delectable smorgasbord of disc golf delights.

I see the appeal here for almost any golfers past rank beginners. Us rec players might want to exercise our due diligence around the water. If your not a straight shooter or if you're too attached to some of your discs, you might just want to skip these holes. It definitely takes away from the experience when you're so concerned about losing discs that you play everything so extra cautiously.

A large Oak tree has fallen on on the tee pad area on # 17. It's currently resting on the bench there. I think it's very interesting the way it is and I hope someone can figure out some way to incorporate it into the course design. Maybe carve some benches out of the fallen tree's large trunk or how about some bag holders cut from it's limbs. It's just far enough away that it doesn't affect the tee pad.

(3.669 Rating) A challenging par 54 with unique natural terrain.
- UNIQUENESS - Although an all par 3, the course offers just about all the shot layout elements. There is some elevation and water elements in play. The layout also features pocket shots, window shots, tunnel fairways, a 90 degree par 3 bender, skip plays and bomb it opportunities for those that max out at 400. But, what I found most unique about Medard, was the terrain on the back 9. This part of the course plays thru an area called so aptly named "Sacred Hills"
- ELEVATION - A nice amount of elevation changes for a South Florida course. A few up shots and a few down shots. However, the max elevation change on any one hole is about 20 feet, so many parts of the country would consider this course flat.
- SHOT SELECTION - I probably played 70% backhand and the rest flicks. Most drives need to be well thought out and placed, especially on the holes thru the Sacred Hills.
- CHALLENGING - One of the more challenging courses I've played. Holes 12-15 plays thru a mixture of swamps and mounds, which is a disc golf terrain I've never seen before. Missing your shot on these holes can easily end up water OB and likely also a lost disk. Be wary of hole 13, this temping 150 foot ace run of a basket is on a ridge and has water on 3 sides, right, front and back.
- CHARACTER - There is seating and adequate hole signage throughout the course. Most of the tees are shaded well and there are two tees for pros and ams at several the holes. There's a good amount of trash cans and a few bag holders. There is a practice basket and picnic table by #1 as well.
- TEE PADS - Adequately sized concrete tee pads that are in good shape. There should be no footing issues on a typical day, except 13, which appears to be a temporary tee.
- SPACING - Pretty good, There's really no shot of ending up in another fairway. Tees are generally separated well from the prior baskets but not annoyingly far, except for the journey between 12 to 13 which backtracks a bit.
- NATURAL BEAUTY - The raw beauty was well above average. Most courses I've played it's just an afterthought... not here. Several of holes run thru a part of the park called the before mentioned Sacred Hills, which is quite an enchanting backdrop I must say.

Just one moderate issue about Medard and a few ticky tack things.
- LOST DISC OPPS - If you're the type of player that likes to keep their discs (I fall in this category) you're going to be sweating bullets on holes 12-15. Some of nastiest swamp water calls its home here on these holes. A player will have to be pro like accurate to avoid the trees on 14. A shot that misses an 8' wide lane 200 feet down fairway could very likely smack a tree, and then its 50/50 whether it falls on dry land or into swamp water.
- OVERGROWTH - In addition to the swamp water, the overgrowth is quite extensive through-out. Although I didn't lose a disc in the overgrowth, I did however spend significant time searching.
- TIME PLAY - Course is not a quick play for a par 54. Plan to be here 2 1/2 hours or more for a group of 4 to complete 18 holes.
- SKILL LEVEL FRIENDLY - This is not a beginners course. The odds of losing a disc here is exceedingly higher than normal. Beginners best to stick to holes 1-9 or plan to go home empty handed.
- PAY TO PLAY - $2 for your vehicle to enter. I however, would gladly pay this numerous times if I lived nearby.

Having played just about all the courses in the Tampa Bay region, I can say that this is definitely one of the better ones. Although not my personal favorite, it is tops for several friends of mine. For out area players, you should definitely consider playing this course. Its right up there with the other big 4 courses (Taylor, Picnic, Cliff and Cypress)

I learned Disc Golf on this course and we call it "Home Course" because it's the closest to Lakeland FL. It's a challenging course and you're sure to get a work out! I am usually over par quite a bit on this course where as I'm closer to par on other courses.

Prepare for Florida swamp land at its finest! The front 9 have an open fairway plan whereas the back 9 are swampy and wet. Bring bug spray! Bring floaters! If the area has had a good rain recently, prepare for at least 3 holes to be underwater (2, 7, 8)

This is one of the hardest courses I have ever played if you are up for the elements and a good challenging course. . .this is the one for you!

don't let the hole length fool you, this place is challenging. (or should i say it is challenging when there is water all over the place). the hills and the land in general are put to good use and require a variety of shots to score well.

the water...the nasty, swampy, steal-your-disc water may not be all that deep but it sure has a way of holding on to your plastic and not letting it go without extensive search and rescue. I was there mid-week, so i didn't have to deal with any non-disc traffic.

12-15 can be scary if you value the discs you are throwing, so you can a) bring discs you don't care about b) search for your plastic or c) make the shots! I made some and had others roll into the water and spent 1/2 hour looking for one on #11 in 6 inches of water. If it were dry when I played there, I'd probably only give it a three because it wouldn't have been as intense

The course has great flow utilizing placement, strategic basket positioning, and plenty of trees to navigate thru while blending in the perfect balance of length and smart planning on your approaches. To me the signature holes are 5 which is a nasty dog leg left in some thick brush (grab a spotter), and 9 and 16 which both have elevated tee baskets that can be punishing.

Hole 14 sucks the life out of the course and is just plain stupid and unenjoyable. Even the proest of pros should admit the hole is a joke.

Just be careful as the park is busy with people not paying attention or have a clue what disc golf is and the course hosts shotgun tourneys on Sundays.

This course got me at the tee signs. A wooden pole. A map of the hole carved and painted onto it. Very accurately, I might add. I've seen more informative signs but I prefer these to any others that I've encountered.

Going forward, I loved the course through twelve or so holes. I was thinking in my head, "this is a four star course." The holes were occasionally close to other parts of the park, but they were constructed so as not to be an issue.

For the most part the holes were both challenging and fair and I would love to have another shot a bunch of them. It starts out with a few open holes, that require some distance. Then it goes into the woods. Now those are some fun holes, with danger and high rewards. Especially five. The U shaped hole. I could see a bunch of different ways to play that. I also loved nine. You exit the woods to bomb one across a field, trying to place your shot to give access to the nook, where the basket lies on a steep hill. The best part: from the tee, there are two nooks which could possibly hold the basket. I don't even want to spoil because it was fun to play it unsure.

The flow is also fantastic. One hole transitions seamlessly to the next. Into the woods. Out of the woods. Under a tree. Around a sharp and short dogleg to the right. Even when you do have to backtrack from eleven to twelve, there is a nice trail carved outside of the fairway. Going on the last few holes, I was as happy as could be.

However, at around thirteen, the course design takes a turn for the worse. Some of the holes just seem arbitrary. I think its fourteen that offers no real path to the basket that doesn't mean you have a good shot of a tree knocking you into brackish water. (Although it did allow me to successfully try out my new retriever)

Sixteen uses the same trick that I liked on nine, with the open shot leading to the basket tucked on a ledge but to a far lesser effect.

And then it fizzles on seventeen and eighteen, two of the blandest holes on the course. There is something to said for finishing strong. That doesn't happen here, which is sad because of the expectations the first 2/3 of the course had built up in my mind.

To be fair, a couple of those holes might play better when the waters lower, but that doesn't fix the end problem. Finish with one more hole of the caliber of 5-8 and Medard is a gem.

-Hills! This is the only Florida course I've played that actually has "hills", by that I do mean Florida hills. It adds a lot of fun to a very flat state.
-Balance. It has left finishing (1,2,5,10,15,16), right finishing (6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 18) and straight (3,4,12,13,14,17) finishing shots, 14 and 17 both finish a little right but have a long straight fairway. Such a good balance of shots.
-Distance. This course has hard distance, not long distance. By that I mean most of the distance shots have a catch, except for hole 9 and 16 which are both a blast over an open field, yet the basket it still tucked under a tree at the end.
-Variety. This course has open shots, wooded shots, blind shots, water shots, it has it all.
-Challenge. This course is a monster. I would say its one of the 5 most difficult courses in Florida, especially if you don't know the "local shots", meaning the high % routes that might not be obvious.
-Teepads/Signs. Very good shape. Most of the holes have benches and trashcans as well.

-Other park traffic. This seems to be the curse of Florida. If you come on a Saturday there is usually a game of cricket happening in the fairway of hole 9 and someone grilling or playing catch next to the baskets of 1 and 2. This is a serious problem. This park also contains "florida hills", so kids will often be sprinting through the fairways and climbing on the baskets of the back 9. This is the only reason I knocked this course down from a 4, but I think that having a non-dedicated disc golf course is a serious detriment to a course's rating. I have had to go politely ask many kid's parents for my disc back.
-Climate. During the summer time the course floods really badly and the mosquitoes are brutal, even for Florida. The water hazards are made up of some of the most foul liquid you will ever experience (hole 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 all play by water) and it is often downhill from the basket, meaning a roll-a-way could mean the end of your disc. The reason I listed the water as a con is because I feel that it adds difficulty, but not in a skillful manner. The water is more frustrating than it is challenging, it is almost exclusively a result of a bad bounce.
-Fairways. Some of the holes don't have clearly defined fairways. Hole 11 is the prime offender, but 14 isn't much better either. You may say this isn't a con, but some of the holes make me feel like I'm just hucking it into the woods and hoping for the best, and I don't like that.

-$2 to get in!

I wish I could give this course a higher rating, but like many Florida courses, the other park traffic keeps this course from being a top tier course. I also wish they would do a better job of cleaning up some fairways and making them more clearly defined. I love this course but I just can't give it a four. I would highly recommend trying to go early in the morning on a weekday if you want to play. I'd also discourage you from going around holiday or celebration times, meaning end of the semester or any major holidays.

Well maintained and signed. Very unique landscape in the woods with the tree roots and such. Fun to play, good balance of left/right open/wooded. Park is nice and would lend well to bringing the family out, grill up some food and enjoy a nice day.

I understand its more a geographical thing than something that can be controlled, but the course in late may had bugs everywhere. I was constantly swatting flies, mosquitoes, brushing spiders and webs off myself. In the back 9 there were some holes that had huge green ooze pits of some sort, some littered with trash. I skipped over a few holes for fear of loosing discs in the ooze pits. Those pits are probably dried up in other parts of the year.

While the wood carved posts showing the hole layout is a very nice touch and looks great, they are worse than most at depicting the scale of everything. I think early on taking them too seriously really confused me. I started walking the entirety of almost every hole before starting (luckily I was the only one)

Offers sum challanging holes that are great for left and right handed players. The new signs being put it are very nice... No water hazards to loose a disc but plenty of bush and trees.... 1 water hazard but not big will dry up if doesnt rain lol.... no mando on course but doesnt really need it, not to many ways to go for sum holes. sum short holes that are acually still challanging and sum holes longer that are just as challanging. Elevation in really awsome especially for a Central FL course, offers even more challanges

Concrete pads not down yet but they will be soon i found out level with ground and they will b like Cliff stevens pads 3ft wide and like 10ft long i believe..

not much to do to acually improve the course, they keep it maintained well and kepted up, great course to play if u in or out of the area, if visiting, FL u should deffinately try to make it..... you will b happy...