Pros:
First I want to give thanks to the people who revamped New Hanover (NH) over the years. Kudos. I seen the results at least twice of their efforts, they do try... but the course also valiantly and viciously fights back.
Unlike a lot of other lower rated niners, it's not because NH is overly easy or boring. Never that, far from it actually. It just has other issues.
Mostly, at its core, #5, 6, 7, 1-2 which are side by side by side, they are long enough, but the small footprint made the fairways laser tight, unrealistically so, I feel. And the brush on the sides thick and unforgiving. Lots of pickers too.
The short distances on paper never matched up to its utter difficulty but yet doesn't attract the advanced crowd either. NH is my #3 course in the immediate area, after Boyertown Community and Kenilworth, but far ahead of Earl Township and Boyertown HS, despite the low points. Yet, I don't come here much, 30x in 7 years maybe? Fundamentally, these aren't enjoyable rounds, especially in summer.
It's a good fit for someone that thinks they have excellent aim and trajectories and wants to really prove it. Others can scramble, although the heavy brush makes it a pain.
It's also that rare course tilted towards LHBH/RHFHers. They will do well on #3, #5, and #9. Even hyzered #1 can be thrown a left trajectory over the parking lot.
If you make par here on advanced tees, unlike most other 9ers, it's a bit of an achievement. Idk if I ever quite reached it. Several holes usually foul it up for me.
+I make an unofficial #10 out of the practice basket near the beginning/end by teeing off from across the street hockey rink.
+Interesting terrain, especially the ravines by #3/4 and valley by #5.
+Park portopotty near start
+No DG crowd.
Cons:
NH has a way of making average days bad and bad days miserable. Maybe it can make good days excellent but I have yet to experience that here. That's just how playing here is and why I don't get to it more often.
#4/5 is most likely where you can lose a disc with bad kicks or simply rolling into the stream.
Shortly after every cleanup, it's like the course wants to fight back with fallen trees and what not. There were several tree trunks on fairways this time. The brush also sucks and a good retriever makes the course far more bearable.
Tees are a joke, concrete the size of a mat, and often badly placed by several feet in terms of angle. I've taken to ignoring them when it suits me. Some tees are more hidden over time but still findable. Some of the advanced ones in the middle are really hard.
Niceties like signs are from the stone age, an arrow and distance on fiberboard. Since a number are uprooted from their original position, complete with a concrete foot at the base, I doubt many accurate with the course changes anyway. Don't expect next basket arrows or a course sign.
-This is a winter only course for me. Playing it end April / beginning May is already too much vegetation.
-Two Discatcher baskets on #7/8, but rest are old DGA that often look abused by falling trees and such.
Other Thoughts:
After #3 tee, I walked out straight back and there is good amount of land on wider trails with no one on them. Easily enough for 3 more baskets. It leaves me wondering why they designed the middle holes so packed next to each other.
Once, on #7, this narrow serpentine hole doing a reverse 'S', my friend chucked a forehand roller from the tee through the tees onto #2 and it somehow curled back to the middle of 7's fairway putting distance from the basket. I just had to laugh since it was inventive but also far farther than I ever got off the tee cause that fairway is not much wider than a bowling lane.