This park 9 hole course is in a rectangular park along a popular trail in Carnation. It is about 1/2 in a tighter cedar grove and 1/2 around a field with fairly thick roughs or fences to private property. Early on a weekday there were no other golfers but a fair number of people on the trail.

Port-a-potty by parking lot, much appreciated since it took a bit to get to Carnation.

This seems to be a popular trail and 2 or 3 of the holes either cross it or throw along it, you will need to be alert and on a busy day may need to skip holes. Signs are adequate but missing on many holes and numbers on the pins are very small which led me to throw at the wrong hole on 1. I didn't realize this can be a double 9(2 tees per pin) until 5 so didn't try, only saw 1 other well marked alt tee and 2 possibilities. Would be difficult to do without guidance from someone that knows the course until marking/signs are upgraded.

The carpet tees were saturated and slick enough that I threw beside or behind them after slipping badly on the 1st one. Not uncommon, there were places well set up for doing this.

More cons than pros listed but it really isn't a bad little park course. Very shady so would be good on a hot day. Really didn't have much to work with in this space, did pretty good with what they had.

Nothing really stands out but if you are traveling through the area it is worth stopping and throwing a quick round.

The baskets are pristine. Navigation is simple. Good use of the land provided. A good amount of challenge even though eight of the holes are well below 400 feet. Not too much rough but plenty of tight windows through the trees. The designer did a great job here.

The signage is temporary and won't survive the fall if my own experience of being a teenage boy was any indication (if you know what I mean). The signs rotate easily too, so it can be difficult to navigate if you aren't being alert. Elevation never comes into play on this course, but one can't quite call that a con when the piece of land provided is completely flat.

I really did enjoy this course. I didn't mind the natural tee pads because the course was so new. The designer made use of the gravel roads several times in place of tee pads, which is a great idea. As Carnation is isolated from the greater Seattle area, I don't expect a ton of play that will ultimately turn the teepads into obstacles like the ones at Sunnyside Park in Pullman. I would place this one right behind Howling Coyote in Bothell as the best 9 hole that I've played. Word is that there's sponsor money sitting out there waiting to be used too, which could turn into better signage and something other than white bricks in the ground to mark a teepad. Although I wouldn't drive all the way to Carnation just for this course, it's worth a look if you're in the area or heading up to Spirit Ridge.

Loutsis Park is a fairly small, narrow, flat city in the quaint little town of Tolt or Carnation. Even the name is an interesting story. Save that for another day. This is another typical city park Rec course. It plays 4 holes out, 1 across and then the last four back to the parking lot. There is a nice mix of open, tight technical and lightly scattered mature treed holes. This mix of holes does give you a chance to use a variety of shots providing your best drive is about 280'. I found a roller worked well on # 9.
The pads are natural and are marked by two white painted bricks. Only one brick has disappeared thus far. The baskets are brand new out of the box DISCatchers. The tee signs are very simple little plastics. So far, they haven't been marked up or vandalized.

Like most of these Rec courses, the challenge isn't there if you are a serious intermediate player or better. There is some serious rough around # 5. Best to Advoid it.
I don't know that I think this course will ever see enough play to really do much damage to the teepad area. I think they're (the way they are) fine here and putting in pavers or concrete would amount to overkill. With enough players using this course, the pad areas would become problamatic over time aad then I think pavers would be a great solution but until that times comes, don't worry about it.

A solid beginners/Rec course. I hope the youth of Tolt/Carnation take up the cause, buy a few a discs and play the heck out of this course. Then they can graduate to Spirit Ridge, the big boy course up the road a spell. You see, I'm learning to talk just likes the loggers around here, ya'll.

*Established in 2011, Loutsis Park is a fairly technical nine hole course located in the quaint city of Carnation, WA. Best suited for recreational and intermediate players, it is quite enjoyable for more experienced disc golfers as well. The designer Getty did a nice job utilizing the area he had to work with. What the course lacks in length it makes up for in creativity! Both the beginning and end have players throwing through tight lines of tress where holes #3-7 are more wide open. However, on the more wide open holes there is punishing rough and many of the pins are heavily guarded. Holes range in length but most range from 180-250 ft with the exception of hole #3 which breaks 400 ft.

*Flow to the course works well with the first five holes playing away from the parking lot, hole six playing perpendicular, and holes seven through nine playing back toward hole one. Navigation is easy for first timers thanks to tee signs, although basic, which are easy to locate from fairways and near the pins. Distance and par is given, and a few obstacles and the ideal flight line are listed although I am not sure how accurate that info is. Baskets are all DISCatchers and are in immaculate shape. Port o' Potty located near tee one.

Note: Since the last time I played there has been nine additional tee pads added (blue) which add more variety and some length to the course. Hopefully they will add more pin placements as well in the near future.

*Favorite hole/s: Hole #5 and Hole #8

*Loutsis Park although small, is ideal for those learning the sport or for more veteran players wanting to hone in on their skills. What the course lacks in length it makes up for in creativity! The largest issue is just how isolated this course is from the greater Seattle area. Fortunately, there is also Spirit Ridge, a wonderful little private course, just miles away which makes the combination of the two courses well worth the trip.

*Although the tee pads are natural, they really don't seem to have a negative impact on the course with the exception of hole #3. Considering it is the only hole that allows players to air it out, it is essential that there is good footing. Loose gravel and dirt along with uneven footing results in poorly executed throws and perhaps injuries.

*Over time as the fairways become more developed and the tee pads are installed, I could easily see my rating bump up .5 to 1 full point. As with any course, nothing is built in a day as it takes a lot of work to properly install and upkeep any course and this course is well on its way.

*Least Favorite Hole/s: Hole #4

*For those traveling to the area for the first time and looking to get in multiple rounds at both Loutsis Park and Spirit Ridge, I highly recommend getting in touch with Ron Werner to schedule a round. He not only is an avid disc golfer, but also designed and maintains Spirit Ridge, and will guide you during your visit.

This is a fairly technical short course that is a lot of fun. The starting and ending holes (1,2,8,9) are under a canopy and there are skinny, single trees all over the fairways that you weave your way through. These are my favorite types of holes because of the endless possibilities of routes and types of throws that can get you that birdie. Holes like these can be played over and over and not throw the same shot and/or line the entire time. The other holes that have obstacle challenges again have tight lines and low ceilings. The fun factor here is high with the birdie fest and easy to follow lay out that loops back around to the parking lot. This is an excellent course for newer players honing their skills, locals and passer by course baggers like myself. The course designer (Getty) has done an excellent job turning this little property into something fun.

The park is just too small to support any holes that are long enough to be challenging and most of the time you will be using your putter for these holes. Tee pads have rumored to be on the way and it really only affects the long, open hole three as it is hard to get distance with a bumpy tee pad. Even poor tee shots that hit trees are still able to get a three fairly easily, I would like to see the rough be more punishing; I wouldn't be a fan of clearing it. Really there are few cons here, just a couple of nit picky things, the big con is that the course isn't challenging.

This is a decent little option in Carnation if you want to kill some time. If you can, I would get a hold of Ron Werner who created the Spirit Ridge DGC and try and schedule a round there while you are here, it is an amazing experience and when added with this makes for a really fun day of golf.