After seeing that this course was built in 1982 I thought it might be a lot of shorter more line hitting type holes like many others from this time period. I don't know if these long tees have always been a part of the equation but it's certainly more multifaceted than many older course I've played.

It's a pretty park in general with a cool playground and tennis courts. There are two sets of concrete pads on every hole and are pretty long and have an interesting texture with lines or cross hatching.

The signs are quite descriptive and very nice looking and show all of the pin positions and distances from both tees.

The course is park style and longish from the back tees, some big trees and lines to be hit for sure but not too imposing.

The baskets are red handed Innova baskets and though they don't seem new they are in good shape.

You have several holes that play over little bogs and ponds to add some challenge and there is a good bit of OB around the perimeter. It's a pretty good variety and makes for a fun play.

You have benches on I think every hole and some neat elevated baskets and interesting greens that make this 40 year old course fee fairly fresh.

Most of the things that are not great here are hard to fix. There are a lot of low spots with a good bit of standing water and you can be in bounds on a fairway and ankle deep in water at least with the current weather.

Navigation is mainly pretty easy but there were a couple of spots you could get turned around, the worst offender was 16-17 because if you pick the wrong way you have to walk a very long way around.

The only other thing I didn't like is maybe 80% of holes are blind off the tee. A couple of holes you see a basket and it's maybe marginally farther than you thought it should be, and you would be right, the right one is behind a tree you you just could not see it. I would probably shoot 4-5 strokes better now that I've seen where the real pins are.

I was suggested this one by a fellow DGCR user, and it was hella fun and cool to play an old course that actually holds up.

Heavy recommend and it's got a good variety for many skill levels.

Small seasonal water features only spot you could lose disc
a/b hole locations keep things interesting
Easy to play without a map

Lack of terrain

Overall a nice course in a park that is almost completely dedicated to disc golf. Course in general is well shaded, and weaves through a mature pine forest. Apart from a shelter and a couple tennis courts, it's all discs. You won't be interrupted by others not discing. Located in the city but still easy to get to even from the highway. Definitely worth playing if you are passing through.

Challenging course! Swampy after rain. Makes it fun. They have pro and amateur tee off points. And the water hazards sneak up on you.

im afraid of snakes and the park ranger said water snakes were everywhere.

Sometimes you have to search for pins.

There are dual, concrete tee pads on almost all of the holes. Also, the different tee pads provide a uniquely different view of the hole and bring different trees and obstacles into play (i.e., the longs aren't just 50 feet longer in line). The long tee pads seemed to provide a challenge for the pros; as the best score I saw in the tournament (from the long tees, long pin placement) was a 5 under 49. While the course isn't all that long, around 5,000', the designer made good use of the saw palmetto and most of the pins are guarded or hidden (so that shot placement is needed to get birdies). On many of the holes, a local on our card, had to show us where the pin was; because from the tee pad, you just can't see some of them if you don't know where to look.

There were no water fountains or water faucets to fill a water bottle. Also, one of the tee pads is carpet. Because the course has to make use of available space, there are a few holes where the tee pad is too close to the basket from the previous tee. On a couple of occasions I looked to see a slightly errant tee shot almost hit me. Pay attention when things are busy!

Northside Park is a moderately short 18-hole course that requires some control to score. From the short tees, a solid intermediate player should shoot par (54) or slightly under on this course without too much trouble. I am an 875 player and I shot 59 & 55 during a local C-Tier tournament from the short tees. Someone who regularly fairway drives 325-350' (under control, not just powering up across a field) has the opportunity for a birdie on 80% of the holes. I really enjoyed this course and the local disc golf club does a great job keeping the course in shape.

Challenge factor: One of the best things about this park are the dual tees which really add nice range in challenge level. The short tees are short enough to be gentle on newer players while at the same time exposing them to tight lines and some true 'rough' areas in the form of low bushes or groupings of trees. The longer tees make for a very challenging par three course (perhaps one par four mixed in) for even very experienced tour players. There are many birdies to get out here but trouble usually isn't too far away and poor drives usually result in a scramble to save par.

Dual fairways: My favorite course feature and Northside has several of these - dual options off the tee which are relatively equivalent balances of skill/risk/benefit. Its rather easy to do out here because of the terrain and the way the trees are loosely grouped on many fairways.

Navigation: Navigation is pretty straightforward (other than problems just associated with the construction) - we had to backtrack once to find a hole but that was because we weren't really paying enough attention, not because of poor signage or flow.

Empty: We played on a warm, sunny weekday in January as we were taking a road trip from Orlando up to Augusta, GA and the course was nearly empty with only one other disc golf group and no non-disc golfers in the park. I'd imagine the course might get a bit busier on the weekends, but if you can play during the week, you'll have blissful solitude!

Lack of Elevation: Northside has great variety in terms of shots required off the tee - the only thing missing is elevation. The park is quite flat (its Florida!) with only a few bumps, which the designer has taken advantage of.

Construction: This is just a temporary con but when we visited, the course was under a bit of construction making hole one a bit difficult to find and eighteen difficult to play. The construction looks like it has been a bit rough on the course as well, eroding a lot of turf and replacing with mud. Even without the construction, it seems that this course probably has a few problems with mud, especially where small streams criss-cross over fairways.

Northside is a solid, challenging course which has a very relaxed feel. The course's best feature is its ability to provide a flexible challenge for both advanced and newer players. I'd also imagine that Northside makes for a spectacular tournament course.

Very nice layout. Some of the best tee markers i've seen, though a couple were missing. Even points out location of next tee, so make a mental note. Concrete tees are in good shape. The plethora of trees provide good obstructions and plenty of shade in the florida sun.

Conrete tees were a little short for my run-up, but only slipped off the edge a couple times. Had rained a few days prior so course was a bit swampy in some places, keep the weather in mind. Baskets are slightly hard to see sometimes. Hole 13 was the X on the tee sign, not the tee pic.

Fun course, and there's a couple others nearby so if you want a long day with many holes, hit them all. We went here first then finished at Barr, a 9 hole course that was empty. We were the first ones at northside and it quickly filled up. No issues with the crowd though. And remember to backtrack towards the bathrooms/parking lot for tee 3.

This is a fun and challenging course. Its a great mix of longer and shorter holes. The drainage ditches and water areas and the road keep you in check. Its one of the very few courses in Gainesville and its a good one. It has nice concrete t-pads and most of the markers are good.

Watch out for the water features! Wear your waders after a big rain storm. Also look out for loud, drunk herds of frat boys from time to time... just let the herd pass.

After hole 2, walk in the opposite direction of where you would think to go. The t-pad for 3 is towards the restroom.

-Loved the variety of hole lengths - from over 500' down to ace opportunities.

-Variety of hole design requires a mix of different discs and throws, some open holes and some tight holes

-Challenging course, but includes short tees on most of the holes that would help beginners

-Plenty of tree obstacles to make the course interesting but not much underbrush, so I wasn't afraid to lose discs, except possibly in water

-Tee pads are rough concrete, so they are slip-resistant... although some of them are starting to crack a bit. It's not enough to affect your throw -- yet.

-The signage is very helpful and detailed

-A couple of the tee signs were missing

-Locating the baskets, especially on the longer holes, was sometimes difficult, even with the detailed signs. It didn't help that most of the baskets don't have legible numbers on them. There were several holes where I just trusted the sign and drove in the general direction of the basket. On hole 13, the sign wasn't very accurate (or possibly there are two pin locations?) so I didn't throw at the correct angle.... frustrating.

-The course is almost completely flat, which doesn't help with drainage:

-It had been a damp week and there was a lot of standing water on the course, although almost all shallow. I still had to get my feet wet and spent a lot of time wiping of my discs. Half the fairway on hole 16 was a lake, up to about a foot away from the tee pad.

I used to play this course regularly but that was about 8 years ago. Reading some of the other reviews, I was lucky to go fairly early in the day because it wasn't busy at all for me. I'm used to playing flat courses in Florida, and this one wasn't any different... if they could fix some of the signage problems, that would be the only "con" that actually makes the course less fun. Most of the rest of the items are amenities and don't affect how fun the course was.

This course was designed by someone who appreciates the need for multiple shots. It works you, because you realize without a good shot...every shot, you'll not make par. Okay, this comes from a semi-old guy. But I still like the thought that went into its design.

Uh...low-lying water. Not much beyond that...really.

Gainesville needs another course...surely there must be some land out there.

Course is mostly wide open but still with a good canopy of trees. Two sets of tee pads provide distance that suits both the avid and casual player. Little chance of losing a disc, water only on three holes (if it is a dry season).

Course has a lot of switch backs and is often very crowded. This causes the course to play very slow most of the time. Next tee can be difficult to find if it is your first time (local guide is recommended).

Not a very technical course but each hole is different. Holes vary from long to short and moderately wooded to wide open. Good mixture of dog leg left and right. Park is clean, well maintained, and has adequate facilities.

Beginner friendly course, which I needed. Multiple tees ( I played the pros and I have only played 6 rounds in my life) I didn't do too terribly because it is open enough to have misthrows, but still challenging enough. Nice concrete tees, nice signage (especially liked the arrows on the tee signs telling you where the next tee will be when you get to the basket. Absolutely no overgrowth.

Tough to see the baskets at this park for some reason. I wish the tops were painted so you could see them from a distance.

Absoultely an all around great course, good for beginners, but still challenging with the placement of the baskets near trees. Nice use of the drainage ditches. Nice signage, nice tees. My favorite to date as I said and I will certainly come back every year when I drive to Fort Myers.

This course has two concrete tees for most holes. It makes good use of its surroundings in creating a challenge for the novice, and advanced players. The atmosphere is diverse and the locals are incredibly welcoming and friendly. The challenges in this course range from a couple of easy to make birdie holes to a moderately difficult 500+ foot par 3 that has a grand expanse for the long drive, but the last 100 feet are divided by a wooded area beginning with a heavy wooded line. You want to land your approach drive so you can make it through the clear part of the wood line, as its the only safe part that your disc will slice through.

Absolutely no elevation change. This single fact lowers the challenge of the course considerably, but does add to the casual feel of the course.