From twisting, tight wooded holes to downhill open bombers, the Foothills disc golf course in the J.B. "Red" Owens Sports Complex offers plenty of variety. However, the flavors don't always blend succinctly and while there are a few tastes of delicious design, the overall course is similar to an "everything bagel" that is tossed together.

Significant elevation is in play on about half the holes, both uphill and downhill. This was the fourth (and final) course I played on the day, and you'll definitely get your workout here. Some of the baskets, including the opener, are positioned on hills with rollaway potential, so upshot placement will be crucial. If you like holes that involve tossing your disc down a hill, you'll be pleased by the opportunities to do this several times.

The front nine features a couple of nominees for most memorable holes. Hole #3 (which use to be Hole #4) is a narrow, downhill run of about 285 feet. However, there's a swamp beyond the basket, so be careful of running the pin. Hole #9 is about 800 feet and includes throwing from an elevated pin over a wide-open athletic field and then turning back into a narrower (but fair) path to the basket.

The concrete tees were in good shape when I played.

Despite being in a public park, there aren't many areas on the course where you're likely to interfere with other park-goers.

There's definitely a high potential for score variance here. Eight of the holes are under 250 feet, including the last four. But with hills and lots of trees, your scorecard might be filled with birdies and bogeys.

The conditions of the Foothills are so-so. There are numerous areas to avoid with bad underbrush and thorns plus wet and muddy spots, especially after rain. The course is really showing its age. A number of players have complained about Hole #12, which requires a hyzer shot over a swampy area, unless you try for a safer line through the woods to the left.

The signs are old and worn; they are full of sponsorship info and appeared to have been printed on cheap paper and are encased in a non-waterproof holder.

Navigation can be confusing in a few spots, and a number of blind baskets don't help the cause. The transition between Holes #7, 8 and 9 is frustrating for first-time navigation, especially since Hole #8 is just a filler in-the-open hole to connect a wooded section to the downhill, over-the-field bomber that is Hole #9. Also, the most densely wooded section is used by several holes on the front nine, then returns through this area for a few more holes on the back half. Adding "Next Tee" signs would help, as my foursome did a fair amount of wandering around looking for teepads and baskets during our round.

A couple of the wooded holes are "poke and hope" and while the off-the-fairway spots in the woods aren't unplayable, they will force you to invent some lines at times.

Note: The Foothills design has been tweaked since the DGCR photos were taken, so the pictures won't line up with the hole number.

The current Foothills DGC recipe misses the mark. While there are some enjoyable throws, there are too many mediocre holes. As DiscGolfCraig mentions in his review, the course design is "scattered, like it was trying to appeal to too wide of an audience." He's spot on in his critique, especially regarding some of the unimpressive holes.

For me, the crazy combination of holes at the Foothills left an unsettling aftertaste. This day-old-bagel of a course would be greatly aided by redesigning a few holes, updating the tee signs and improving the navigation.

- A moderately difficult course with a lot of elevation and tee shot variety. I've never seen a course with more creative use of elevation and slope. Number 6 is an absolutely fantastic downhill tee shot.
- A beginner will consider this a con - one bad shot could lead to another. This course will force you to be wise and stay on the fairway rather than going for a longer, harder shot, because, if not, sometimes your only shot is to throw 20 feet back onto the fairway.

- Number 3 is missing a tee pad and there are problems with the tee signs - some are partially or fully destroyed and it's hard to find your way around without a map. We spent an extra half hour searching for the holes (so bring a map!) as the holes are organized in an odd way.
- There is a swamp. I went in to get my friend's disc (for I was wearing Chaco's and he, shoes) and found out that it is quicksand. Don't throw your disc in there and don't step in the swamp to get it - use a stick.
- We could not play the long hole across the field because kids were practicing soccer on it. This was really annoying because I was looking forward to that tee shot all day.

NOT FOR BEGINNERS
You will lose discs (in the quicksand swamp) and be frustrated at the harder holes. And the difficulty in finding holes and getting to some of them will make you madder if you are already annoyed at the course.

Requires multiple types of shots to play and the ability to hit lines. It does have one longer hole that plays as a real par 4.

This course really is just another typical disc golf course with the addition of some poorly thought out usage of elevation. Most of the wooded holes are cookie cutter and offer nothing distinctive from anywhere else and most of the "gravity" holes were poorly designed and really wasted. The third hole is a complete joke along with the 90 degree turn hole (I think 14?). It is such a shame seeing baskets discarded on such holes as these.

This one is not really worth a revisit but then again most courses aren't. As usual it could have been so much better.