(2.720 Rating) An older hybrid course with a mix of park style and wooded holes.
- HOLE VARIETY - I played both courses during my stop in Kingsley, and if there was one thing that I thought was better here over its glistening new-born sibling, it was the hole to hole variety on the original course. Open shots, heavily wooded needle shots, touch shots, luck shots, Rec bombs, up shots, down shots, big hooks and pockets. A-men. The only missing elements on this layout are water and multi-play holes.
- CHALLENGING - IMO, the perfect challenge level setting for the first course in the area. It's probably why there are two courses here now. The challenges are not powder puff nor unrelenting. A majority of the shots are Rec level with a few Novice plays and a few Intermediate level shots. I had to really think about the big right bender on (11) and also a couple were just outside my max power range.
- FUN FACTOR - Unlike the Bear's Den layout, I actually felt like there chances here to walk-out with an ace. Hole (8), is a straight putter run down a gap of evenly spaced pines. There are several tight technical lines on the last third of the layout as well. I would guess that aces occur on this layout at a 5 times greater clip than Bear's Den. In addition, the birdie potential on this layout is much greater too. It just feels fun overall and the odds losing a disc is low.
- BASIC - The essentials of tees and baskets are adequate. The pads are generally concrete and a touch smaller than average. The baskets are older Chainstars, but still in good shape. There are also a couple benches sporadically spaced on the layout.
- NATURAL BEAUTY - I scored this aspect as average. I really liked the raw wooded appeal of the last 7 holes and that was the main reason I included this attribute in the pros. Hole (8) looked neat too with its uniform tree spacing. The only holes that lacked appeal were in the beginning as they were more open and had minor spacing issues.
- BEGINNER FRIENDLY - Not perfect for beginners but very much doable. A much better option when compared to Bear's Den.
- QUICK PLAY - Less than an hour for this quick solo. I'm thinking quick groups can tackle this one in under 90 minutes.

A typical course yearning for some polish.
- NAVIGATION AND SIGNAGE - This aspect could really use an overhaul. It wasn't terrible, but it is very much sub-par when compared to Bear's Den. Tees only have a simple numbered post with distance and line shape of the fairway. The post on (4) was missing on my play. I don't recall seeing any navigational cues between holes and there was no course map posted either. The journey between (11) and (12) will be tricky without a navigational app.
- AMENITIES MAINTENANCE - It appears all the new love is going to Bear's Den. In addition to the signage, the baskets, tees and benches are all inferior when compared to the sister course. I would have had this course at a low 3.0 had the amenities been at the same level as Bear's Den.
- MULTI USE HAZARDS - Players are likely going to have to wait to throw on a few holes to let walkers pass. Holes (1) through (6) all sort-of have some sort of interaction with the built environment, especially walking paths and park access roads. Nothing major, just not ideal. I think (9) and (10s) fairway are too jammed together as well.
- FINISH FROM PARKING - A 300 foot walk back to the parking area after finishing (18)

The DGCR rating for this course is spot on IMO. This is your typical small town course that had enough room to put in a respectable 18 hole course. It's worth checking out for sure if you live in the Traverse City area or a 30 minute travel range for that matter. Beyond this distance there are likely better course options that are closer. The bonus here at Kingsley however, is the fact that there are two courses here and that's the reason I ended up here instead of one of the other dozen or so courses I flagged when researching the area. I think most trusted reviewers are going to score this one a 2.5 or 3.0. If the course were to ever get an amenities overhaul, I think this course moves up to a low 3.0 caliber course for those that went with a 2.5. If we didn't rate courses of multi-course destinations individually, I would give the combo of the two courses an easy 3.5 rating. For those that only have time for one course, i would hit Bear's Den first, unless their max arm power is sub 275.

Aesthetic-- plays through a large multi-use park but plays mostly along the edges and through one larger field. non-discers could be an issue here so throw carefully.

Teepads and signs-- concrete pads, nicely sized and in good repair. the signage is basic but effective giving you a basic line to follow BUT I do question some of the lengths being listed as shorter than they actually are.

Baskets--ChainStars. All in good repair. hard to see in some of the woody holes and could really use some increased visibility. Some holes are just straight blind (the huge turnover on #11).

Upkeep-- I was at this course very early in the morning and the park (on-site) caretaker greeted me and gave me a course map which was much better than the one provided on here. I posted a pic of it. There was nary a bit of garbage here and the grass was all nicely cut.

Routing-- this course is easy in places and really really difficult to follow in some other places. #1 is all by itself with a long walk to #2. there are other places that aren't so obvious as well #11-#12.

challenge/risk v reward-- none really to speak of. there really isn't a chance of losing a disc here (with the exception of #11) and the challenge factor is mostly encompassed by the thick foliage on the woody holes.

Basket placement-- some of the basket placements here is really really bad. I hate 90 degree turns out of the woods. they really just don't make good sense. you will always over throw these and have to throw back to the basket...

Variety-- either it's wide wide open or it's wide wide shut... not much in the way of variety here.

I wasn't overly blown away by this course. it was fun, but nothing to write home about.

-This is a nice little course. Well maintained with extra necessities like concrete tees and good signs.

-Coming here I expected a lame little course just to throw in on our way back from Hickory Hills, but it ended up being better than I thought. I especially liked the variety with the woods on the later part of the course. Also moderate to minor elevation is a factor on a few holes.

-The first holes are very bland and can get you bored with the course at the beginning. It would be nice if the course was mixed from hole to hole better, rather than having the first half wide open and the second half super technical.

-There's no map or signs to direct you to the next hole. Also a couple holes can be confusing on which basket to throw to.

-Overall CCS is a fun course. It's definitely not the main attraction, but it's a good side show for the other courses in the area, and it's good for the people who live around it to have.

-the addition of cement pads was very nice
-the wooded holes are all a lot of fun and require some precision
-a few fun, blind shots, so make sure you check out basket locations before throwing or you can lose a disc pretty easily
-good layout, but a very average course overall

-very dry/dusty
-lots of mosquitos
-even with the tee signs this course can still be difficult to follow, so make sure you have enough time to walk around and find your way (this really only comes into play in the middle of the course, the beginning/end are pretty easy to follow)
-because of the simplistic signs and some baskets being close together its more than likely you'll throw at the wrong basket once or twice

the tee signs are very simplistic wooden 4x4 posts. other than being able to spot the next tee from a distance, they don't do very much to help you when you're actually on the tee.

not too much in the way of elevation, but regardless this course will make you think about each shot