Ewing is a well-manicured and mature 18 hole course. The hole design is very good with a lot of diversity- woods/open, long/short, left/straight/right, elevation/flat, and some road o.b. Navigation was fairly simple and flow was natural (for 16 holes*). The course consists of two 9-hole loops coming back to the car after 9 and 18. The front 9 plays through a more wooded area and the holes offer choices on the tee with more than one path to the basket around all the mature trees. The back is more open and has the longer holes, but shot placement is still important. By the end of the round you will be forced to throw a wide variety of shots of all lengths.

Each hole has 2 huge tees (pro and am), 2 signs (one per tee), and the baskets are in great shape (with 3 possible locations that appear to get moved often as we saw a guy moving them as we played). The 2 tees are quite diverse, primarily in length, but I really felt like the shorter tees did a great job of not detracting anything from the course as they were still challenging and still put most obstacles in play. The long tees are just that, adding a substantial amount of distance on many holes. (It is possible that the shorts are the originals and the longs were added later.)

The fairways had not been recently mowed in many spots (not too horrible, but not as good as it could have been). The restroom was a port-a-pottie.

Even though I really enjoyed this course, there are some design issues that are really holding it back:

-The road is majorly in play on hole #1, playing downhill, cars have a good chance of getting hit with some force. There is also a walking trail throughout much of the back and many holes play along or over it so be aware.

-There are several holes on the front that are close together and feel a little cramped. #11 to #12 is pretty stupid because you have to backtrack the entire hole to get to 12's tee (which is essentially back-to-back with 11's tee.)

-There was an abnormally long walk from #17 to #18 and then back to the car. I thought #17 was one of the weaker holes and it plays away from the direction of the car at the far corner of the park. (Hello! Only 1 hole left to get back!) Then you have to walk a long ways through the most beautiful section of the park (the arboretum) to get to #18's tee, which is hard to find anyways. Then #18 is super long... It seems after 15, the course should begin back and have 16,17,18 play through the arboretum which just screams "put disc golf holes here!"

Ewing can be really fun for players of all levels- it offers the usual challenges without being too frustrating and there is very little chance to lose discs. Though not too difficult for them, experienced players can still enjoy the shorter tees, or they have the option to play the longs.

I personally really enjoyed playing this course and recommend it to anyone. It does lack that "epic" factor I generally reserve for 4.0-5.0 ratings, and it does have some design flaws, however I still give Ewing a strong 3.5 (Very Good) to me, but I understand why many others have rated it higher than that.

Many ways to play each hole, with three baskets, and two tee pads at each hole. Course looks very beautiful.

Course design leaves something left to be desired. It seemed like there is a lot of wasted space. Especially between 17 and 18.

Overall It's a good course to play on. I would definitely play it again, but I just think they could have done more with it than what they did. I like courses that use the space, creatively, and functionally as well.

- very well thought out tees and pins
- a challenge on every hole
- well paced, good mix of shots
- seems to be fairly clean
- an awesome bomber hole viewable from the parking lot

- new players may find the course too challenging
- the road is a bit close on a couple holes, a bad tree bounce could result in a smashed window

First, let me say that I played the course in the early spring, so the trees weren't full yet.

This course instantly made my top 5, and is a better course than Pickard Park. Ewing doesn't have a single hole that is impossible, but only has a couple sure birdies. The challenge of the course is consistent and manageable without any extremes (easy or hard). Some of the lines are really thoughtful, especially when you play the paths as OB. Again, thoughtful and technical, not difficulty without fun.

I do wish the long and short tees were marked as such. Each tee has a very nice card showing pin positions, but it fails to mention which tee you are at. I don't think this would be an issue on a second playing however. Just print the map, it is fairly well made.

I drove from Minneapolis to play Ewing and Pickard and Ewing made the trip for me. I would say any course I am willing to drive 4 hours for is a good one!

-It is in a very nice looking clean park
-multiple tees and pin locations for each hole
-very easy to navigate with really good signes
-fantastic first 9 holes. They use the elevation well and play though a wooded area but leaves plenty of room for throwing lanes.
-especially the front 9 has alot of interesting throws
-good ues of distance, there are open and very long holes but also some shorter skill shots
-its open enough where you do not lose discs but still wooded enough where there are some challenging shots

-The back 9 get a little long especially from the back tees
-the walk between 17 and 18 is very long and may be confusing if you had never been there before

This course would be good for all skill levels.

-Two nice concrete pads for each hole
-Easy to navigate, especially with a map
-Very nice park, nice surrounding neighborhood
-Very clean with garbage cans and port-o-potties at the parking lot
-Front 9 wooded holes are pretty excellent
-Back 9 has some very long stuff
-Cool basket placements, 3 placement variety

Elevation changes are not great, but the course works with the terrain very well. It feels like a little bit of a longer walk, and some holes are very long (I think 18 was 720' and had trees surrounding). But great course and worth the trip.

Definitely worth traveling to, a great course. The front 9 is awesome. Its a very balanced course with a lot of variety. Drove out from Colorado, and I wish it was closer.

nice mix of short/tight and long/bomber holes with beautiful wild life. I saw some deer and met some locals, If I had more time they suggested II should play the other 2 courses in town. I had fun and nearly lost a disc or two which is always interesting.

The length of fairways where the most challenging part of the course. The mud was bad when playing across the field lowlands (not great drainage).

If our in Iowa near Des Moines you should play it.

Aesthetically beautiful. Elevation changes. Fun shots on every hole. Very challenging. Several par 4's to go with some really challenging par 3's.

Front nine you are looking at some tighter wooded shots (espeically hole 2). The holes are shorter, mostly under 350', with the exception of a couple par 4's. Not too much OB to worry about.

Back nine you get more into the open. Hole 10 you are bombing straight downhill on a 700+' hole. There are several par 4's on the backside, but its not just grip and rip. Some OB with the road at the bottom of the park comes into play and you need to place your shots. 17 and 18 are super long holes coming back to the parking lot. 18 perhaps a Par 5. You need to be able to throw for distance to score well out here. For the very top pros, scores of under 50 are hot. Anything under 54 is very very good. For an advanced amateur, shooting under 60 is great golf.

Awesome pine trees make for a fair course with fantasically designed fairways. Huge air shots, huge rollers, forehands, anhyzers, this course has it all! Extremely well manicured park make playing here an enjoyable disc golf experience. Baskets catch awesome and tees are great.

None. This is one of my favs.

If you have time to play 1 course in Des Moines, hit Ewing Park!

First half of this course is in a nice wooded area and the second half is more open and longer holes. There is some really good elevation use, protected pins, random trees, left and right shots, and long and short holes. The front 9 makes the most of this. There is a bathroom and a few trashcans. There are some nice tee pads and great tee signs here. Navigation is not too bad. Water is available on #8.

There is some walking between some of the late numbered holes. A couple of the holes should be par 4's in the longs. The back nine is a lot of a straight throwing holes that can get repetitive.

All in all, this course is one of the best that Des Moines has to offer. The fun factor here was really good. There was enough to keep you motivated hole by hole. I would play this one again upon returning to Des Moines.

-Lots of variety
-Very few conflicts with other park uses
-multiple tees on each hole
-Good, descriptive signage
-logical flow
-

-inadequate restroom facilities (porta-jon)
-some holes stay sloppy after a rain event
-Safety issue with #1 (see below)

On Des Moines' southeast side resides a huge city park. The portion used for the course has no other active recreation uses, so disc golfers can throw to their hearts' content with no fear of hitting another park-goer. With the exception of Spring, when the park's considerable number of lilacs are in bloom, there is little else to bring non-golfers to this section of the park.

The course has two distinctive personalities in its looping 9 design. Each 9 starts and returns to the park lot, which is a very nice feature for a course of this length.

The front 9 rambles through a more heavily wooded area that is actually an arboretum, containing many different species of trees. The lengths of each hole are quite appropriate for the tightness of the fairways. There are a few legitimate par 4 holes available. My only knock is #1 when the basket it set in its longest or shortest positions (there are 3 for each hole). When set long or short, the basket will be within 40' of Indianola Road, which is a fairly heavily trafficked street bordering the park and you are actually throwing toward the road.

The back 9 starts with the signature #10 which features a huge, open downhill drive to a circle of crabapple trees that surround the basket. This sets the tone for the rest of the course, which is quite a bit more open and long, but still requires control of the disc to get it where you want without hitting strategically placed obstacles.

What the front and back 9s share is a nice rolling topography that the course uses quite well. Each tee features two substantially sized concrete pads and very good, vandal-resistant tee signs that graphically show the shape of the holes with accurate distances to each pin position. What's missing is a system of communicating which position the basket is in as it's not always apparent from the tee.

Overall, it's a fantastic course. Challenging, varied and fun to play. Some minor improvements and a simple re-design to #1 would bump it a half-star. Adding better restrooms and some on-site concessions would put it in the 5-star realm.

Two tees and three pin locations on all holes.
Very well kept/mowed grounds.
The elevation of the hills is used very well, with a couple uphill holes, several downhill holes, a a couple up then down or down then up holes.
Distances range from 160 - 550 (short tees) and 250 - 700 (long tees) depending on pin placement.
Signs at tees showing hole layout.
The front nine requires more controlled shots while the back nine opens up allowing players to throw FAR.
Port-a-potty at the parking lot.
There is a water spigot after hole 8.
Navigation is pretty easy, but for complete first timers it would be beneficial to have a map (check the links/files tab).

There could be nicer restrooms (not a big deal for me).
There aren't many really tight shots, though I feel the majority of the holes require the right amount of precision with respect to the distance.
After rains there are a few places where the ground gets pretty soft/swampy. Not usually in play but there are a couple times you have to go around between holes if you want to keep your shoes from getting muddy (once again, not a big deal for me).

In my opinion, this is the best course in the Des Moines metro.

First few holes are nicely wooded with large trees. Very nice tee signs on nearly every hole with multiple teepads and pin locations. Teepads are nice large cement, no plorblems with these. Fairly easy to navigate. Baskets were in good shape. Lots of longer holes that will give you arm a workout.

Long course! Some of the holes were rather long and they use that as an eay way to add to the challenge of the holes. Some walking required between the holes, especially between 17 and 18. After 17, after looking around for a while I just gave up and headed back to the car and after a while I ran into 18. I just bring your big arm here and let them rip. I feel that on most of the holes as long as you throw a good drive, then par or birdies are reasonable. Most of the fairways are open, up to the last 50-100 feet of the hole then it will tighten up with trees. Therefore your upshot is the more technical throw, rather then your drive.

The first 5 holes really excitied me. Large trees with more skill than just power required. Look at the pictures of the first holes and you will see large trees making a nice canopy over the fairway. More technical shots are required on these. However, after that the course really opens up and just seems kind of boring. Long holes where you just let it rip. Some trees do appear on a few of the back 9 holes that add some interest. Want to throw big then come here, looking for technical shots, then probably go elsewhere.

This is one of my favorite disc golf courses I have played. It has a great variety of hole types. You can practice your skill shots on the front nine, where you play through a lightly forested area where mature trees are the main form of vegetation. The back nine starts to open up and there are multiple 600+ foot holes where you can bomb your drivers without having to worry about losing them. Multiple tee pads make this a great course for beginner and advanced players.

The course can be swampy in the spring in a few spots on the front nine.

This is a beautiful course. Definitely a must play if you are ever in the Des Moines area.

This course is a must play course for all players. The course is laid out over a beautiful hillside with holes going up and down the entire hill, through the wooded tree areas and out in the open as well. Front nine is decently long and plays through the tress for the most part. The second nine you better bring your long drivers because the length is astronomically long and fun. Overall the best if not the second best course I have ever played.

The only cons that I can think off is the fact that you will have to do lots of walking because of the length of the course, but it is entirely worth it.

This course is a gem. The front nine has a good mix of tight wooded holes that range from 250 ft to 600 ft. The back nine is more open a long bomber type holes, with holes bumping up around 600+ ft. The course is fairly well manicured and the signage is pretty good too.

Missing quality restrooms. And that is about the only cons for this course.

If you are in town, this is definitely a course you should visit.

-2 sets of tees and 3 sets of pin locations per hole. Good thing about pin location; go by R,W,B and they pick one of the three for all holes so its still relatively easy to locate.
-Nice variation in everything; distance, amount of trees, elevation.
-Very scenic.
-Not too high of traffic for nice course in bigger city.
-Water pump after hole 8(?) for a refreshing drink.
-Park is big and has other things to do.
-Not alot of places to lose discs.
-Easy to navigate to next tee/hole.
-Nice cement tees.

-Par is debatable. Par 3 for 600+ hole? It may be 3 on one of the other locations but not on that pin location.
-I dont have any other complaints. This is a great disc golfing experience.

-18 holes and a big park make for a long round with a lot of walking.

Beautiful and large park with rolling hills. Well maintained and a host of other activities. Multiple pin locations and dual tees.
Holes 1-9 play through large mature trees, from tight fairways and tunnel shots are common. Shorter than the back nine. Shot placement is favored over distance.
Holes 10-18 open up with some trees coming into play. Distance because more favored over accuracy. Hole 10 is one of my favorites, its a long open hole and the basket is surrounded by a grove of small trees. Hole 13's basket also has mulberry trees around it (makes for a tasty snack mid round).
Overall this course is going to demand a variety of shot types for you to do well. Hyzers-straight-anhyzers are all needed.
There is a port-a-potty at the parking lot were holes 1, 9, 10, and 18 are next to... not a con for me.

The back nine after hole 14 can be a bit confusing to follow especially hole 17 to 18. After 17's basket just head for the parkinglot and you should find what your looking for.

If your in the Des Moines area and you only have time to play one course this is the one I would choose.

Awesome scenery. Wide variety of shots. Fair test of your playing ability. Nice signs and easy flow. Some memorable holes.

Wet areas mean no mowing and tall grass in places.

One of my favorite Des Moines courses

Well groomed fairways, wide variety of shots, difficult but few chances for losing a disc very scenic.

Few amenities, baskets sometimes get stolen.

Definitely worth checking out. Beautiful, fun and challenging course in a park setting.