Tallahassee, FL

Jack McLean Park

3.485(based on 30 reviews)
Filter course reviews

Filter reviews

Filter reviews

Jack McLean Park reviews

Filter
4 0
Dscgl4
Bronze level trusted reviewer
Experience: 29.9 years 164 played 18 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Some great holes, many repetitive holes 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Sep 5, 2018 Played the course:once

Pros:

I played from the Blue tees so this review is targeted for the long placements. The course is well signed with a handful of creative and challlenging holes on the front ten and last four or five holes. The elevation is used well and the fairways are well defined. There are concrete pads for every hole and I had little problem navigating the course. The first ten holes are generally tight in their lanes but fair and with little undergrowth. The holes are long so strategy comes in to play with many needing a good placement and an upshot to bag the three. A few birdie opportunities. The course appears well maintained and the baskets are in good shape, but it doesn't seem like it gets a lot of play.

Cons:

When I was here the tee pads were damp from previous days' rain and covered with detritus, making them slippery (and many I just drove from behind or off the side). Holes 12-19/20 are generally repetitive and ultimately not a lot of fun. The fairways are around 40 feet wide with deep unpleasant undergrowth off the sides. They are long enough that there's not really a good run, which results in two mid range shots up the middle and a putt for three (hole 15 is a challenging exception). Don't get me wrong, a few of the holes would have been a nice complement to the others, but nine of them in a row quickly becomes repetitive.

I was there when the nearby schools dismissed, so had a lot of foot traffic through the park--not too bad but delayed the game a number of times. Otherwise, the course was empty.

Other Thoughts:

This would be a great 18 hole course if you cut out half of the filler holes. The middle nine might be more interesting from the red tees, but from the blue tees it's a rather humdrum experience. The rough is so rough I lost a midrange XD on what looked like a great shot landing about 40 feet short and to the right of the pin (hole 20). That was the only casualty of the day, but illustrates part of the problem. Early fall the spiders are out and really creepy here--webs between trees that look like they could catch a small child, and a spider the size of my palm was hanging in a web between basket 15 and a near by tree.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
4 3
willied
Experience: 13.1 years 6 played 3 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Decent Course, 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Apr 7, 2013 Played the course:once

Pros:

Lots of holes
Challenging
Signs on most holes

Cons:

Trash everywhere
Some holes lack signs
Amount of trees can get frustrating
Doesn't feel completely safe

Other Thoughts:

The course itself is pretty decent. It's laid out pretty well, and the course is challenging. There are a boat load of trees here, and a lot of the course is somewhat narrow. This did get frustrating for me. A lot of the holes are similar to each other so I would say there is somewhat of a lack of variety, but it's not too bad. A few holes change things up just enough to keep you from going insane. The last 6 or so holes get quite repetitive, though.

The area is a little bit sketchy. There are a lot of run-down houses surrounding the park and there is a lot of trash along the course, much more than I've seen at any other course, which is disappointing. Once we got to a certain hole there were some people sitting around blaring music from their car. The main reason we worried was because we had relatively expensive bikes on the back of the car, although we had a lock on them (not a very stout lock, though).

So all in all the course is decent, but probably not a place I'll be going to again. I enjoy the Tom Brown course more, and the park is much nicer as well.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
6 0
allent
Experience: 14.8 years 39 played 6 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Tough & slightly scary! 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Dec 19, 2011 Played the course:once

Pros:

This course is extremely wooded and difficult, but is a great practice course in that it requires a ton of different shots from the tee, as well as from the woods, and pinpoint accuracy. Unless you are a true pro (and maybe even then) you will hit an early tree at some point(s) and will end up having to throw all sorts of wicked recovery shots that you just don't have an opportunity to throw very often. Playing this course and working on your game on these holes will make you a better player, there is no way around it. Just don't go here expecting to shatter par, especially from the back tees.

Cons:

I love a difficult, tight, wooded course, but this course borders on the insane. It almost feels like you are taking some sort of a final exam to graduate from a year-long anger management course, just to see if you can keep your cool. Some holes have one tee and others have 3...some are very rough concrete, others are different concrete, others are carpet, and 1 was dirt. The signs at the tees didn't seem to be very accurate or helpful beyond helping you know where the tee was located since most were completely covered in leaves. The back tees, on those holes that have them, didn't look like they'd been played in a while, but I guess that's understandable since the front tees (or middle, depending) give you all that you want and then some. I also found it odd the number of people (mostly kids) walking right through the course. I'm not sure why this is, but apparently there must be a school nearby and they use the paths through the course to get to the community center in this park. There was a good bit of trash scattered around and a few holes play right up close to the backyard of some pretty rough looking houses. I would not flirt with darkness on this course. Once the sun sets, be close to your car and ready to get out of dodge!

Other Thoughts:

This course just has so much potential. A few holes need some sort of throwing lane to at least attempt. I will, however, play this course again and recommend it to anyone looking for a challenge. I had to think on this course about my shot and the disc I would throw more than I can ever remember on any course I've played. As I mention, I do believe playing this course, especially developing any sort of proficiency on it, will make me a much better player and make other courses that I thought were tough and tight, not seem quite so bad. But I'll definitely make sure I have someone I know to play with and will be done by dusk.
Was this review helpful? Yes No

Latest posts

Top