- practice "hole" (not just basket, but practice tee too)
- significant rolling hills/elevation change
- nice visible orange baskets in great shape
- composting toilets
- large dual concrete tees for each hole
- good options for different lengths on red/blue tees
- large tee signs with full color maps
- tee signs indicate current tee and next hole direction
- multiple pin positions with current install parked on tee sign
- benches and garbage cans at most holes
- pristinely manicured property with great natural beauty
- multiple cool water hazards - beautiful pond color
- good use of next tee indicators
- good mix of open and wooded holes
- enough technical challenge to force shot shaping despite being a former ball golf course
- ample parking

- some limited interference with walking paths in park
- even red tees are going to be pretty difficult for true novices
- a few places where additional navigation aids could be helpful

I knew going in to New Melle Lakes that some of the top reviewers on this site had given it high praise, but overall, it's still relatively unknown in the arena of "destination courses." While Harmony Bends is a couple hours west and is going to get much more attention, this course is spectacular in its own right. I usually don't care for ball course converts, but this does not feel that way. While more open than a dense wooded course, this course still has mature tree hazards, shot shaping requirements, and tons of challenge and fun.

One of the most notable things setting New Melle apart is the exquisite natural beauty. There is a great mix of deciduous and evergreen trees, as well as multiple ponds/lakes with different water colors, some of which are such a blue/teal it almost makes you feel like you're in the Pacific Northwest. The "Lakes" in the name of the course is legitimate.

It was hard to find many real cons here. The park is pristinely maintained. However, it is definitely not for everyone; even the red tees are quite challenging and make for an average length 18 hole course. The blue tees make for a very long course. It took me over 90 minutes to play the red tees solo, so it is a fairly involved course. When you first roll up, I don't think it looks this way from the parking lot, but beginners will probably get worn out and frustrated. This isn't on the level of the most difficult courses I've played but it does require ability to move your disc in certain ways and control shots.

The equipment here is top notch, with large, dual concrete tees, fantastic tee signs (which indicate which tee you are at, a huge plus), and baskets in great shape. Some don't like the Prodigy baskets, but if you make a good putt it's going in 9 times out of 10, so this has never bothered me too much. The tee signs are some of the best I've seen, indicating the current pin position and the direction to the next hole. I don't recall getting turned around too much here, but a few more navigation aids wouldn't hurt (do they ever?).

This course is more open than my personal preference, but it is such a great blend of beauty, maintenance, and challenge that it ranks very high on the list of courses I've played. Most places there isn't much rough to speak of and finding discs is straightforward. One note about that beauty though - the cool, teal/blue lakes are rather cloudy so if your disc goes in, you better know exactly where, or you aren't getting it back - ask me how I know. :-(

I think my main con here were the walking paths. While the area is mostly devoted to disc golf, it does play over/near walking paths in a few cases which I never like. The park was pretty quiet when I was there but any risk of hitting people with shots should really be designed out as much as possible. This course might be more like a 4.25 for me due to the safety issues and a few other nits, but it's closer to a 4.5 than a 4.

If you are in the St. Louis metro and/or headed to Harmony Bends, this is a must play course. It is another phenomenal free course maintained by local parks & rec and part of what makes disc golf so great. Don't sleep on this one.

New Melle Lakes is an 18-holer located at the park of the same name, on the western outskirts of the St. Louis area.

New Melle Lakes Park used to be a ball golf course, and this became pretty clear to me early on in my round. The open sections of the course are beautifully manicured and had what I can only describe as "that ball golf feel" to them. But don't start to think that this is a boring, wide open course. This course design dives in and out of a wide variety of environments, from wide open fields to tight plots of woods and everything in between. Several ponds are scattered around and used in the course design, along with rolling hills throughout the park. The seemingly effortless transitions between picturesque environments and incorporation of different bona fide water hazards and elevation challenges throughout the round created a truly impressive variety of holes, and reminded me of Maple Hill.

There are two layouts here - a Blue layout that will satisfy advanced players, and a moderately difficult Red layout. I was happy with the Red layout, but big arms will love the Blues. Regardless of layout, there is a nice mix of hole distances (about 275'-625' from the Blues and 200'-400' from the Reds).

Some notable individual holes:
-#3 is a pretty little water carry with the water also on the left side of the green, making this a tricky shot for RHBH players. It's pretty much a pitch across the water and putt from the Red tees, but the Blues increase the challenge by moving the tee pad way back into the field uphill from the pond.
- #10 is a simple little downhill throw that is 200' and open from the Red tee - but right behind the basket is a downslope to a pond! The Blue tee position increases the challenge by making players throw out of a wooded tunnel.
- #12 is another nice water carry of varying lengths depending on pin position and tee choice. This time the water opens out to the right. My favorite hole on the course.
- #15 is a wide open fairway with the basket elevated 8' or so on a huge rock mound.
- #17 plays downhill the whole way, forcing players to thread through a narrow gap off the tee to reach a wider fairway beyond. There is a great view off into the Missouri countryside from the tee. If the basket is in the furthest pin position, there is a scary rollaway hill behind it.

The tee areas are perfect. Each hole has two large trapezoid-shaped concrete pads. The tee signs appear at both tees and clearly indicate whether you are at the Blue or Red tee position. The signs have all of the info you'll need, including the current pin position which is marked with a bolt. The signs indicate that there are 3-4 pin positions per hole. I'm pretty sure there was a high-quality bench at each Blue AND each Red tee.

The baskets are orange Prodigy models that stick out really well in both the wooded and open areas. There is one basket installed per hole. There are also little golf balls sitting on top of each basket. I'm not sure if these were an intentional decoration, or just a fun touch that local players have added over the years of encountering them around the park.

There are a lot of extra touches around that really take the New Melle Lakes experience to the next level. Little pink quills to mark circle 1 around each basket. Not only a practice basket, but an entire practice hole (complete with tee sign) playing uphill from the parking lot towards hole 1's tee. Trash cans at strategic locations around the course. A nice kiosk and restroom structure installed at the parking lot.

I think I may have to appoint myself DGCR's resident navigational signage nit picker at this point. But yeah, I could have used more aids. The direction of the next hole is pointed out on the previous tee signs, and there are a couple more standalone signs scattered around. It seemed like if you bothered to walk back to the furthest pin position, there was usually one posted. But sometimes that would mean extra walking to actually get to the next tee pad.

There were some alternate pin positions that I wanted to experience, but couldn't due to only one set of baskets being installed. I would love to see all of the pin positions get permanently installed baskets, or at least two per hole.

The Red tees are more of a moderate level round here, with a couple of water carries that could be challenging depending on pin position. That's great for experienced rec level noodle arms like me, but just noting that this course does not have an option that I would recommend for true beginners.

The finishing hole 18 appeared to have been recently redesigned as of my October 2023 visit. It looked like the old design may have been a little bit too close to #17 for comfort, and the new hole 18 is a solid finishing hole that plays down and back up a wooded valley.

This is technically a multi-use park, but the main non-DG activity in the park just appeared to be some paved walking trails. I don't recall any places where the trail locations seemed like they would create potential safety hazards.

One of my favorite parts about travelling around to experience disc golf courses, is playing a course that I feel exceeds the current DGCR average rating. Despite the 4.08 average here prior to my review, I almost skipped this one on my trip to Missouri because it wasn't really convenient to my itinerary. But I'm SO glad I carved out the time to fit a round in here. I wish I had the time to play a second round. This is a really good course in a beautiful park that made it onto my short list of Favorites. If you're in the area to play Eagle's Crossing and Harmony Bends, don't miss New Melle Lakes!

Two sets of concrete tees, with good signs at each. Multi pin layout is ultra versatile. Some elevation, and some water in play. New Melle Lakes offers some great risk reward on the waters edge, some woodsy drives and a well maintained park with great amenities.

A couple of free flying bombers on 1 and 15. Really edgy water hazards on 3 and 12. Wooded technical drives on several holes. Ends with a roller coaster that drops downhill on 17 and climbs back up on 18.

I played the long tees. This will complicate strategy on several holes. 2 is a much tougher entry into the trees. 3 is really tough to judge what will leave you a favorable approach. You want a perfect lay up on the waters edge, but it is easy to fall way short, and putting a drive in the water is also very possible. 4 long is just a tough wooded fairway that takes very precise throws. I loved the downhill drive on 6, where a perfect drive will cross the valley and climb the opposite side toward the pin. 7, 8, and 9 are the kind of narrow fairways through very dense trees that can be frustrating, but nailing that drive is immensely satisfying.

10 B is on a berm in front of a pond, you need to place that one fairly carefully. 12 long better be online if you go for the gusto. I threw the Destroyer and it cut just far enough to clear the water by about 10 feet and took a nice skip into the fairway. It wasn't a short approach to get a good look at a birdie on pin C. 13 is more forrest run, and pin A was in my range for another birdie. 14 is open until you near the pin. If the placement is off there are some tough angles on the approach. 15 had the elevated pin on top of a boulder. That turned into a 3 putt for me, but i still liked it on an otherwise wide open hole. 16 dives back into the woods, and I took some lumps to the tune of 3 over par on that one. Still a fun and challenging hole that I would love a few more shots at. 17 falls off the side of a hill, and was an exhilarating drive to say the least. 18 is uphill all the way. Try not to throw your arm out. Really tough closer.

I loved it overall. Just about every shot in the bag is needed. Not a beginners course, even from the short tees. Bring plenty of water, this one can take it out of you.

I can't find a lot of flaws, but I tend to see most disc golf courses through a very favorable lens. There was some construction going on around the sixth hole that didn't impact the game much.

Not for the faint of heart. Super well equipped. Maybe one or two holes that don't meet the top tier quality line, but it's consistently fun, with high degree of difficulty.

I was 4 over par on a 63 layout. Lost 3 strokes on 16. Birdies on 5, 12 and 13, and missed chances on two or three other holes at least. Would have loved to get under par on the first time out here, but still felt good about my play when all was said and done. posting a low score is possible, and I would love to try and do it many times over at New Melle Lakes.

New Melle Lakes is a beautiful 18-hole disc golf course that resides on a former ball golf course turned county park. The course is one of three 18 holes overseen by the St. Charles County Park Department, and is also the youngest of the three. While the other two 18s are also strong courses, New Melle is the jewel of St. Charles County, and among the top courses in the St. Louis area.

The park's location is in New Melle, Missouri, and is about a secluded as you can get while still being considered a St. Louis area course. In terms of directions, the course is about 10 minutes from I-70, and 20 minutes from I-64. Coming from either direction will give you a fun country two-lane highway drive to New Melle, and then you'll turn for a one-minute drive down Foristell to the park. The disc golf course is located at the second entrance. Being a town of under 500, there's not a lot of food or gas options in New Melle, but each interstate junction has some restaurants or gas stations if you need those. What the park's location lacks in nearby food and gas, it more than makes up for with scenery. My 8am round at New Melle made for one of the prettier backdrops I have had while playing a round of golf, despite being played before the leaves grow back in on the trees.

In terms of park amenities, disc golf and hiking trails are the biggest features of this large 400-acre park. New Melle has 3.7 miles of paved trails that go all around the property for park goers to enjoy, as well as additional non-paved trails. Fishing is also available at numerous ponds on sight, including the 25-acre lake at the center of the park. The Landhaus at the other park entrance is available for renting for events. Future planned additions include a non-motor boat launch, a playground, a large dog park, and shelters, all of which will only make this park more popular among the local community as well as disc golfers.

Course equipment at New Melle include 2 concrete tee pads and 2 tee signs for each hole, as well as the second practice hole I've seen among my 83 course credits. The practice hole has a tee sign with distances, a concrete pad, and 2 different baskets that are great distances for shots with putters up to drivers. The view from the tee pad to the furthest practice basket is a little obstructed, so I recommend practicing putts at the shorter basket so other golfers will see you. The baskets on site are bright orange prodigy baskets that still look like they just came out of the box. The tee pads on the course are very generous in size, and include a three-foot fault line zone. I noticed in some tournament coverage that players were using the front of the pads, so I'm not sure anyone uses the pads in this way. Each tee sign includes which pad you are at, a graphic of the hole layout, pin locations and distances, which pin is in use, and the direction of the next hole. There are also several additional signs on the course that help with navigation. There also seemed to be a bench at every tee pad, a huge plus with the elevation this course has. There are a few trash cans you'll pass when you go by pathways too, so keep the park clean.

New Melle's course design offers a mix of open shots along the former ball golf greens and tighter wooded holes. The open fairway shots manage to not fee redundant, which can be a challenge to achieve when you have so many on a course; for instance, hole 5 is open and downhill, while hole 6 is a shot across more of a valley that ends with an elevated basket on a hillside. Meanwhile, the wooded holes offer very challenging fairways to hit. Holes 2 and 11 are especially tight, and require particular lines to be hit to get a good birdie look despite the short distances. The wooded holes also have a good amount of variety in terms of whether a backhand forehand, or straight shot will serve you best, requiring a full arsenal of shots to find success.

The flow of the course overall is very nice and easy to follow; I like testing new courses by not really looking at a map ahead of time, and I found this course to be very easy to navigate. The only exception was when I went to 3's blue pad after hole 1, but hole 2 was a short walk and within site from there. The course also never intrudes on other park uses, with any tee pad and fairway near a pathway facing away from said pathway. Each hole has 3 or 4 pin placements that can make for a very different feeling round each time you play here. Hole 1, for example, ranges from 245' to 504' from the red tee, and also varies in how guarded each pin is with the tree line. This also isn't even the highest variance from short to long pins on the course.

Elevation changes compliment the mix of open and wooded holes to make for 18 mostly unique-feeling holes. There's a real mix of holes that either favor RH backhands, forehands, or offer opportunities for either to be thrown, allowing for good opportunities for a variety of shot types and players dominant in either hand to have a strong round. The blue and red tees also seemed like that offered a good amount of variance from each other in terms of difficulty and variety in their placements. It didn't feel like the blue tees were just planted further behind the red tees with the same line; some offered tighter gaps off the tee, while others add significant distance to the hole they are on.

In terms of course difficulty, this is a course that's accessible to a fairly large range of players. The red tees will make for a fun and challenging round for players ranging from fairly new to more seasoned intermediate-advanced players. The blue tees will offer more challenging rounds for intermediate to advanced players. Newer players should go into a round at New Melle knowing that there are some more challenging or riskier shots on this course, especially with the water carries on 3 and 12.

As for course highlights, 3 and 12 come to mind with the water carries. Hole 3 will punish you if you hit a tree by the water (trust me). Hole 12 offers some nice risk-reward, especially from the red tee, in that you can decide how much you want to try to bite off with your drive. Hole 1 is a beautiful relatively open downhill shot to start your round but has a tree line on the left to be careful of. Hole 15's elevated pin on a rock pile is one of the cooler pins I have seen on any course so far, and makes for a fun challenge with its height. Lastly, Hole 17 makes for a fun downhill fairway and includes 3 pin placements that use former ball golf bunkers. The hill continues past the last pin, making any drive and approach treacherous.

Hole 18 - I have to agree with other folks on this one. Hole 17 is one of the highlights of the course and one of the more fun holes you will find in St. Louis. To then end on hole 18 feels a little off. I think it's the clear erosion issue the land this hole is on that keeps me from overlooking the hole. With how much land that is available to this course, I think putting a short hole somewhere else that doesn't hurt the current flow and making it a "Hole 1A" or equivalent would be an idea worth exploring. I get that 18 is there to get you back to the parking lot. Sure, hole 17 ends a little walk from the parking lot, but it looks to me like you could make a small trail through the woods by hole 18 to the parking lot that would also make the elevation change less significant on your walk back. I think most can agree that hole 18 is far from being a favorite hole on this course; a basic hole elsewhere wouldn't hurt the design of this course. With all of the open areas, a short island hole marked by taller uncut grass could even be an alternative. Cujo has an interesting idea in a different review. Update - It sounds like Hole 18 is getting a redesign. I'll be sure to get an update in once this is complete.

The mud and dampness on site, considering the recent snow melt and rain the previous night, was very minimal. The exceptions were hole 2 and 10, where it was muddy in some spots within circle 1. Hole 10 by the larger tree right of the pin was an especially interesting location to putt from after my drive. Overall though, considering the amount of precipitation the course had received recently, I was impressed with drainage here. Just look out near some of the pins.

The rest of these are preferences others may have and don't factor into my rating.

Poison Ivy and Ticks - My round was in February so these weren't an issue for me, but I can buy that they are present on course. Be careful in the woods and be mindful where you're stepping if you're off the fairway.

Prodigy Baskets - This is the first time I have played a course with Prodigy baskets. I personally did not have a problem with them catching my putts, but I can see how they can lead to spit outs with the cross chains. The chains on these baskets are noticeably stiffer when you hit the inner ring, and discs don't penetrate the chains as much with these baskets. I didn't have an issue with these (yet), but if you don't like these baskets, this course does have them.

Course Design - This course does not loop back at hole 9, with hole 9 being the furthest that you go away from the parking lot. Don't plan on seeing your car again until you finish your round. If you have to leave your round early, it could be a long walk to the car, and this was a rare time for me that I had to think for a second about where I was in relation to the parking lot in the middle of a round. Some of the wooded holes felt somewhat repetitive in design, but I think that the pins that were in use were a big factor in that. Lastly, some of the tee pads placements did leave a little more to be desired. Hole 3's blue tee really does invite the layup for a 3 attempt unless you can absolutely bomb a drive over the lake. Some of the short pads also make for some pretty short holes, though I think the tight fairways make up for this at least a little bit.

Location - This course is off the beaten path, with only a convenience store or two in town. Plan ahead with drinks and food before playing here.

Tim Weigard and the St. Charles County Parks Department have really done wonders with this former ball golf course. St. Charles County in general has some truly amazing and expansive parks, and it's really nice to see the focus they have on disc golf and the upkeep of the courses in their parks. New Melle, Indian Camp Creek, and Quail Ridge really make for an amazing trio of 18-hole courses to oversee.

New Melle is a beautiful park that will only get better as they add amenities. Added amenities might also lead to additional amenities that can benefit disc golfs as well, such as water fountains or additional bathrooms along trails.

It's amazing how worn this course feels considering it's only a couple of years old, and the fairways will only wear in more with age. Seeing some of the large grass areas be dedicated to natural grass while leaving others for picnicking or other uses would be interesting to see and would help even more environmentally. With the quality this course is at already, it's exciting to think about how well it can age potentially. The course has already hosted multiple PDGA sanctioned events, and with Smokin' Aces being rewarded an A tier for their tour, this course will very likely start getting higher level events sooner rather than later, and it deserves it.

I am pretty confident in calling this a top 3 course for the St. Louis area. It'll be interesting to see how The Bunker and Creve Coeur-Hillside turn out once they are complete, and I need to get back to Sioux Passage after an 8 year hiatus. However, looking at the course ratings of courses I have yet to play around St. Louis and considering the courses I have already played, this course is clearly among the very best St. Louis and St. Charles have to offer.

If you are passing through I-70 or I-64, this course is worth adventuring a little off the path for. I'd argue other courses like Jefferson Barracks and Endicott offer more of the "St .Louis Disc Golf Vibe", but this course should be on any St. Louis visitor's short list to play, and on every local's wish list. If you're looking for a full day of golf, Quail Ridge is only 10 minutes up Highway Z and offers a primarily short wooded course to compliment New Melle. if you want the trifecta, Indian Camp Creek is just over 10 minutes north of Quail Ridge, with new Melle really combining the best features of the other two courses. Also, be sure to check out Smokin' Aces Disc Golf while you're in the area. Only 10 minutes north of New Melle, Smokin' Aces is a pro shop with a large selection of discs, bags, and carts, including some smaller brands like Kastaplast, Legacy, and Millennium. The St. Charles County Disc Golf Club is also a great organization to check out on Facebook to see what tournaments and leagues are happening at the courses in the county.

If you're in the area and want to play the best St. Louis, New Melle Lakes would be more than a respectable choice. Come give this course some love - you won't regret it.

I went to the grand opening and was amazed at the 'finished' look and feel of the course. I have helped put in a few courses and this one was the best I have seen on an opening day. The Parks people and the St. Charles Disc Golf Club did an outstanding job of preparing a championship level course, that can also be played and enjoyed by beginners and intermediates.

First of all, it is on the former New Melle Lakes ball golf course so they had a lot of room to work with. The mix of open holes, wooded holes, water, and elevation changes was quite nice. A tremendous amount and creativity went into some of the pin placements - in tree stumps and up on rock piles. The area around the course and the holes themselves are quite scenic. My foursome definitely took a lot of pictures on this course.

I found many of the holes quite challenging. There were benches on every hole and good quality tee signs, as well as great tee pads. There are red and blue tees so depending upon your skill level, pick which you prefer to play.

Since it is a new course, it will need a period of breaking in. There are still a few trees they plan to remove. There were tents and picnic tables near the parking lot at the grand opening - I am not sure if those will remain but I hope some kind of permanent pavilion will be built there. What is also missing is permanent restrooms, although there are porta-potties.

Wow - what a great job by everyone involved! I would not hesitate to recommend this as one of the must-play courses in the STL metro area. I believe this is already one of the best courses in the St. Louis area at present - in the top three for sure. When I say that, I am considering design, challenge, layout, tees, benches, signs, scenery, creativity, and overall experience.