A really good beginners course. Fun to play. Pretty well laid out and easy to navigate. Short and long concrete tee pads. An intermediate player can probably play the whole course with a putter and midrange disc from either the long or short tees. The short tees are very easy. Step back to the long tees for a little more of a challenge. Most of the holes are open and don't require much thought but there a few holes in the woods that require your disc to hold a definite line. A good place to work on your control.

There is also a football field on the property that is usually not being used and serves as another good place to practice.

This isn't really a bad thing but it's a pretty easy course. Even if you hit a tree or go off the fairway it's still easy to save par. Advanced players might find this course a little boring.
It can get very crowded at times. Usually on weekends it gets backed up with very new players and a round that should take 45 minutes can drag out to an hour and a half. When it's not crowded it's easy to get in a couple of quick rounds.

This was the first course I ever played and still like going back there. I look at it as a practice course. Somewhere for me to practice approach shots or long long putts with some trees in the way. It's also a great place to warm up before a round on Elon Long which I think is an awesome course.

Short fun course to start off at. Many birdie holes out there and possibly an ace.

Can get very wet if recently rained. Some holes are just too easy even for beginners.

1st course i ever played which is where i recommend for newbies because it is not very challenging

Great concrete tees and cool, artsy tee signs done by 5th graders on the short tees and by more talented artists on the longs that have a very surreal, avant garde kind of feel. It's like discing in Greenwich Village except without all the lame hipsters. Most baskets are visible from the tee which is nice because the "hip" tee signs don't tell you anything about the hole except the distance and what hole number it is, and sometimes that's kind of cryptically concealed within the art itself, so it's like playing the Da Vinci Code while you disc. The course is moderately wooded, you're in the shade most of the time but the fairways are pretty forgiving, not super tight or anything. It's pretty easy to get around the course also save for some hiccups, and there's a map available in that main building at the end of the road.

Playability: Pretty good, more fun than challenging. Lots of birdies and ace runs for the more seasoned disc golfer, could lead to some tight cards in competitive matches. The variety is pretty good in terms of mixing it up Left-to-Right, the distances are a little repetitive but not a whole lot. Overall, just a really fun, enjoyable course.

I have some safety issues that hurt the rating a smidge. Hole #1's pro tee has some early tree danger that could easily kick a drive into someone's windshield because the parking lot is immediately to the right of the fairway.

Hole #7 I believe, which is tricky to see at first (after you hole out at #6, go towards the main park building) actually has the long tee right behind a pretty busy park road and there was also a field of kids trying out for football on the immediate right past the building that are also within disc's length.

Hole 15's pro tee forces you to hyzer over the pond, a la Buckhorn. This is fine because it is pretty short (~165'), but the window of foliage for your disc to enter safely without being branched into the drink is pretty small right now during the summer so even some good throws could get punished, and you can't see this from the tee.

This is a solid, solid course. It's not flashy and it's not going to blow you away with difficulty or unique holes but it's like a role player on the team that does all the intangibles right that don't necessarily show up on the stat sheet. A great course for people just getting into DG b/c it'll crank up the addiction fun factor all the way to eleven.

This course is a great begginer course.
-some short holes
-some very short holes
-two sets of tees
-very nicely maintained
-also the site of the not so famous angry beaver course too.

-slightly compact
-sometimes not enough parking usually on saturdays
-some holes are a little to short to call them holes (my opinion)

great place for the family to come and also short enough for a round during lunch on a work day (maybe).

Very good course for the intended skill levels (beginners/kids). Shorter holes. Fair fairways. Stroller friendly. Stays near parking lot for the first few holes, for those abbreviated rounds with the kids. Lots of fun ace runs for the more advanced player, without being total pitch-and-putt. The long tees provide enough challenge to keep mid-level players interested.

No place for big-arms, and not even many "driver" holes for mid-level players. Fire ants.

Design/Terrain (2.5/5)
================
Shot Shape (3/5) - Reasonably good mix of left-turn, right-turn, straight, and even a couple "thrower's choice" holes with multiple fairways in the woods. Most shapes are fairly tame, with no huge curves required.
Tight v Open Variety (4/5) - Good mix. 11 open-ish and 7 woods holes. The fairly open ones border woods, and have a few mature trees to negotiate. The woods holes have a good mix of fairway widths.
Shot Length Variety (3/5) - Overall a really short course from the shorts, and pretty short from the longs, but still a good mix of shot length for the
intended skill levels. Short tees have 5 shots under 160 feet, but only 3 over 230 feet. Long tees have 3 shots under 180 feet, and 4 shots over 280 feet.
Elevation (3/5) - Holes 9,10,17,18 have a significant, but not huge, elevation change. Holes 2,3,14,15(short),16 have enough elevation that you notice it.
Layout/Flow (3/5) - Course loops back after 3 holes and 6 holes, and can be played as 9-holer by playing 1-7,17,18. Starts and ends near the parking lot. A couple road crossing aren't ideal but aren't bad. A couple spots you could make a wrong turn if you don't pay attention and don't have a map.
Water Shots (1/5) - Really only 1 water shot from the short tees, and that's behind the pin, not throwing over water. From the long tees, 1 shot over water and 1 hole where you can kick into water.
Multi-Shot Holes (0/5) - For the intended skill level (novices/kids), some holes are obviously multi-shot. But for the vast majority of "regular" players, every hole is reachable on the drive.


Basics (3.5/5)
===========
Number of Holes (5/5) - 18 holes.
Tee Signs (3/5) - Each sign has hole number, distance, and par. As of Dec 2009, tee signs only on the short tees. Unique tee signs - contain art created by local school kids. Neat.
Tee Pads (4/5) - Concrete, brushed surface. Maybe just a tad shorter than perfect, but doesn't impact you much.
Targets (4/5) - DISCatchers. A couple are slightly bent.
Map & Scorecard (4/5) - Map and Scorecard available on dgcoursereview and on course website.
Multiple Configs (2/5) - Two complete sets of tees. The two sets are different enough to be suitable for different skill levels.


General (3.5/5)
===========
Maintenance (3/5) - Pretty good maintenance. Mowing is kept up. A few muddy spots in rainy times. A little trash. A few stumps.
Lost Disc Potential (4/5) - Not likely to lose a disc. Only one or two water shots, and not too much underbrush.
Shared Use (4/5) - Almost exclusively used for disc golf. Only an occasional walker or dog-walker in the woods.
Beauty (3/5) - Great middle-age forest. The open areas are less appealing. The whole woodsy setting is pretty neat, but not too many real stunning views.


Amenities (1/3)
============
Benches (0/3) - None on the course. A picnic table at the start of the course.
Trash Cans (1/3) - Three trash cans available, with one serving two spots (holes 9 and 16).
Restrooms (1/3) - Available in the Rec Center when it is open.
Practice Facilities (1/3) - Practice basket on the edge of the parking lot.
Message Board (1/3) - Nice message board, but not used much.



Overall (57/100) == C == (3/5)

The course flows smoothly, A good number of the holes are Ace-able.

-Sometimes can be very busy, and parking is lacking during these times.

-Some of the catchers dont have the inner chains for some reason. (Not a big deal just saying)

The course has mulch piles on alot of the holes that havent been spread yet, i think next time i go ill bring a hard rake and spread a pile or two.

- Excellent course for short-game practice. Trees and other obstacles are laid out nicely to provide challenges without making the course impossible to play.

- I actually thought most of the long tees provided a nice contrast compared to the short tees. The long tees on some holes add obstacles (trees), while on others they actually open the fairway up better by providing a more natural flight for the disc. Some holes have ace opportunities from the short tees while the long tees are laid out so that par isn't even a given. It's definitely worth it to play the tees from both locations.

- The course has a good mix of open and wooded shots.

- It can't be said enough how dire the need for disc golf was in this part of Charlotte. This course is easily accessible for folks in the south Charlotte/Ballantyne area and even the Fort Mill area.

- The concrete tee pads are woefully short for taller players such as myself. This was particularly problematic on the #3 short tee, which is raised by a good 2-3 inches off the ground. That makes for an impossible run-up onto the tee pad. On many holes you don't need much of a run-up with the shorter distances, but it's nice to have the option just in case.

- The long tees don't (yet) have tee pads, although that isn't so much a bad thing when taking the short tee pads into account. I do think the long tees could use better signage/markers though.

- The day I played, there was considerable construction going on around the holes beside the pond. That can't really be helped - and should be a good thing in the long run - but it made a couple of holes unplayable. I believe #9 from the long tees was blocked by a huge truck, so we had to adjust by throwing a little behind the short tees.

- To echo other comments, the course did look muddy in some areas and it hasn't even rained lately. One hole has wooden boards laid out as a walkway over a muddy area between the short tees and long tees, so I take it that area stays muddy all the time.

- I feel like Elon is a course with potential, but some of it is still untapped. It's still young, though, so I'm guessing it will continue to be improved with time.

Fun short course can be played very fast if you're in a hurry
Good Elevation Changes
Fair mix of open wooded
Course in good condition for how new it is
Fair risk reward

Tee pads were not all finished when we played
Signs were not up yet when we played

First time wife and i had played course. Played once from each set of tees. It is what it is meant to be...a fun, short, beginner course. Would recomend playing.

What I personally like and how this course stacks up:
1) Holes with good risk/reward -- B+
2) Holes that have rewarding birdie opportunities -- B-
3) More wooded than open - lots of variety of shots required caused by hole shape and topography -- B+
4) Natural beauty (Appalachian beauty preferred) and seclusion -- B
5) Multi-shot holes with defined landing zones, good risk/reward and multiple options to play them -- NA

I ranked this course subjectively based on my own personal enjoyment factor...more accurately my "personal addiction factor". Since I have played a decent number of courses (115 18-hole, 50 9-hole as of early 2009), my hope is that players/explorers who have similar tastes will find my ratings list helpful as they chose courses to play and explore.

Over time, I expect to fill some of my reviews in with more descriptive verbiage...if what I say adds anything to what has already been written. For now, my list is more important to me than the verbiage of my reviews.

I fully expect others with different tastes/philosophies to disagree with me. See my profile for my rating philosophy.

- Multiple Teepads
- Nice scenery and clean park
- Easy to navigate.
- Tight fairways keep the short tees challenging.

Only Cons would be lack of Teesigns and natural teepads. Work is still being done on course so both of these should be resolved soon.

Have been hearing good things about this course so decided to take a trip to check it out. Very glad I did. For a pitch and putt course it had some very tight holes and accuracy is a must. For even more of a challenge the long tees up the difficulty considerably. This is a great new course in Charlotte that will only get better as some of the upgrades are finished.

Great variety. The shorts were designed for beginners while the longs will test anyone. The course record on the shorts is -16 while the course record on the longs is -13. The longs play to the same baskets as the shorts but have longer fairways (50-150 feet) and play much tighter. The course plays very fast and can be finished in under 45 min. Good mix of open and wooded. Some elevation changes (but is very easy on the body).

-Natural tee pads (not for long)
-Sometimes a little slick and muddy.

This is the newest course to the area. Probably the best course in the city to learn how to play on. If you want to teach some friends what disc golf is about, bring them here!

Also, the master plan for this complex is to add a "pro" course that will be around a par 64-68. This course will be very difficult and will have lots of elevation along with some long par 4's and 5's.

A good mix of hole types with open, wooded, water (doesn't really come into play on the short tees but the presence makes you think *see note below*) and woods-on-one-side holes make this a good beginner's course. The tight wooded holes are short to keep the frustration factor low but will challenge even experienced players. Practice basket and maps are found at the edge of the parking lot. All 18 holes have 2 concrete tee pads (long and short.) The difference in difficulty between the long and short tees is surprising given the relatively small difference in length. Paths in the woods are bordered by tree trunks. Rest rooms are located inside the rec center which has been re-opened after mold and mildew problems were cleaned up. Trash cans are located by the rec center, parking lot and at the #9 short tee.

Some low areas are muddy no matter what the weather. Be aware that fire ants abound.

The first three holes loop back to the parking lot as do the next three so, if the kids are getting antsy, escape is easy. The twelve remaining holes form another loop back to the parking lot. This course is located in a sports complex with ball fields, indoor gymnasium and fishing lake. It is a great course to introduce new players to the sport and is challenging enough for experienced players to keep their skills sharp. Sunsets over the lake are magnificent.
*Note* I wrote this review in Nov of 2008 and since then, I've sent 3 (now 4, uh, make that 5) discs to a watery grave in the lake and 3 others that I recovered for a total of 6 (now 7, thats 8) in the water that "doesn't really come into play". (A friend recommended I simply advise bringing a Dragon.) Karma?