I have an inordinate affection for short, tight, but fair wooded courses, and Hoffman Park fits the bill. The course offers a balanced mix of straight, right, and left-turning holes with distances range from 125' to 223'. Hole #7 even has a dual fairway, which is pretty impressive for a 145' hole. No dramatic elevation changes, but moderate slopes add interest to a few holes.

White-banded DISCatcher baskets, each marked with the hole number. Post-mounted tee signs are easy to spot and include hole number, distance, and par (but see cons).

Yellow "next tee" arrows mounted on basket spokes, and ground-mounted "next tee" signs where the route is not obvious. Round "Ace Place" markers (looks like a CD pegged to the ground) indicate tee position. Low chance of disc loss, unless autumn leaves get thick.

Course is a quick spin 5 minutes off I-68 in western Maryland.

Tee signs do not include a map, baskets were occasionally tricky to spot, and at least once I threw down the wrong "fairway." This should only be a problem for first-time players.

No long holes, if you are into that sort of thing. I played with two putters and a mid.

Natural teepads were sometimes uneven, but this should not be a problem for such a short course.

I would love to have a course like this near me. Anyone who plays here regularly should quickly become a master of the tricky 150 – 200' approach shot. I have seen lots of very good players bleed strokes on this type of approach.

This is a lovely little small-town park, featuring a softball field, pavilion with restrooms, bocce court, horseshoe pits, playground, and an amphitheater.