Hilltop Ski Area - Main reviews
4
1
Disappointed 2+ years drive by
Reviewed:
Played on:Jun 27, 2013
Played the course:once
Pros:
Hole 18 is fantastic
Course owner spends a lot of effort mowing fairways (told me 40 hours each time to mow it)
Baskets, tees, and signage is perfect
Views are fantastic
Bugs aren't too bad (still need bug dope)
Course owner spends a lot of effort mowing fairways (told me 40 hours each time to mow it)
Baskets, tees, and signage is perfect
Views are fantastic
Bugs aren't too bad (still need bug dope)
Cons:
This course has three major assets (elevation changes, space, and trees), and uses none of them well due to poor design. A redesign could easily make this the best course in the state, especially given the amount of effort obviously being put in to have a snack shack, mow the course, keep it in nice shape, and charge you $5 to play.
This is a mountain course, make no doubt about it. Like many mountain courses I've played at other ski resorts, it is easy to lose discs, especially on long downhill holes and it feels more like a hike at times than a round at the local park. Unlike other mountain courses, your $5 doesn't get you a ride up to the lift. At most mountain courses, you ride up a lift, then play down back to the bottom. As a result, you play something like 14 downhill holes and 4 uphill holes. Maybe one or two flat holes. At this course, I swear you play 12 uphill and 6 downhill holes, which really makes it a drag, because any 300 or 400 foot uphill hole is really just the same thing. You throw the disc twice as hard as you can, and maybe have a chance at a long putt. There's little finesse to an uphill, wide open hole. You not only hike the entire elevation of this ski area once, you do it about three times. I'm exhausted after my three hour round (and there were only 2 of us). I'm way too tired for the amount of fun I had, especially given the amount of time I spent looking for discs. Not only do you easily lose them in the partially mown fairways, but if you leave the fairway, you'd better have an eagle eye on it.
The space was poorly utilized as well. For some reason the course designer felt like he needed to stretch out 18 holes to make sure he used the entire ski resort area. It's okay not to use a run. It's more important to have a fun disc golf course. This meant long walks between holes and holes that were way too long to be fun. A 1000 foot hole is fun, but only if it is steep enough that you actually have a chance to reach it in one throw. Par 4s are very tricky to design well, and the 4 (using the posted pro par) on this course were all fails. No one will eagle them. Few will ever birdie them and few reasonably good players will ever bogey them. I could play it 100 times and it would be a par 98% of the time. That's just not fun.
There were lots of trees at the resort. But I didn't hit any of them in an entire round, except once when I left the fairway (run.) They should be brought in to play more. By clearing out some alders and playing through the forest between runs you could have a mix of sweet tight holes and wide open long ones. Instead, it's just one long hole after another. I'm not a wuss. I can throw 400 feet on the flat (and overthrew the 518 foot 18th hole with a buzz), but 1000 feet down a gentle downhill and 400 feet uphill is just too much, especially when you're doing it every hole.
This is a mountain course, make no doubt about it. Like many mountain courses I've played at other ski resorts, it is easy to lose discs, especially on long downhill holes and it feels more like a hike at times than a round at the local park. Unlike other mountain courses, your $5 doesn't get you a ride up to the lift. At most mountain courses, you ride up a lift, then play down back to the bottom. As a result, you play something like 14 downhill holes and 4 uphill holes. Maybe one or two flat holes. At this course, I swear you play 12 uphill and 6 downhill holes, which really makes it a drag, because any 300 or 400 foot uphill hole is really just the same thing. You throw the disc twice as hard as you can, and maybe have a chance at a long putt. There's little finesse to an uphill, wide open hole. You not only hike the entire elevation of this ski area once, you do it about three times. I'm exhausted after my three hour round (and there were only 2 of us). I'm way too tired for the amount of fun I had, especially given the amount of time I spent looking for discs. Not only do you easily lose them in the partially mown fairways, but if you leave the fairway, you'd better have an eagle eye on it.
The space was poorly utilized as well. For some reason the course designer felt like he needed to stretch out 18 holes to make sure he used the entire ski resort area. It's okay not to use a run. It's more important to have a fun disc golf course. This meant long walks between holes and holes that were way too long to be fun. A 1000 foot hole is fun, but only if it is steep enough that you actually have a chance to reach it in one throw. Par 4s are very tricky to design well, and the 4 (using the posted pro par) on this course were all fails. No one will eagle them. Few will ever birdie them and few reasonably good players will ever bogey them. I could play it 100 times and it would be a par 98% of the time. That's just not fun.
There were lots of trees at the resort. But I didn't hit any of them in an entire round, except once when I left the fairway (run.) They should be brought in to play more. By clearing out some alders and playing through the forest between runs you could have a mix of sweet tight holes and wide open long ones. Instead, it's just one long hole after another. I'm not a wuss. I can throw 400 feet on the flat (and overthrew the 518 foot 18th hole with a buzz), but 1000 feet down a gentle downhill and 400 feet uphill is just too much, especially when you're doing it every hole.
Other Thoughts:
Redesign the course! If you can't get the lift open in the summer, then at least don't put in two uphill holes for every downhill hole. Use some of that elevation gained to put in 2 or 3 shorter downhill holes where there are ridiculously long downhill holes now. Consider hole 14. It's an 830 foot downhill dogleg right par 4. Your first three shots are blind (including the 150 foot upshot from the dogleg). What kind of a hole is blind on your THIRD shot when you're playing it well?
This course is worth playing by relatively advanced players, but it's a "once a summer" kind of course, rather than a three times a week kind of course. I would call and make sure it had been recently mowed before going.. If it hasn't been mowed in the last week or two, I'd skip it- seriously! If the weeds are more than a foot high it will be very painful. If you don't have a rating, you're not going to enjoy this course very much. It is NOT beginner friendly. It seems like it looks at the downside of the other two hillside courses (Service and Hanshew- their short length) and tries to make up for it by making the holes and the entire course ridiculously long.
I hope to enjoy a better designed course on my next trip to Alaska.
This course is worth playing by relatively advanced players, but it's a "once a summer" kind of course, rather than a three times a week kind of course. I would call and make sure it had been recently mowed before going.. If it hasn't been mowed in the last week or two, I'd skip it- seriously! If the weeds are more than a foot high it will be very painful. If you don't have a rating, you're not going to enjoy this course very much. It is NOT beginner friendly. It seems like it looks at the downside of the other two hillside courses (Service and Hanshew- their short length) and tries to make up for it by making the holes and the entire course ridiculously long.
I hope to enjoy a better designed course on my next trip to Alaska.
