If you like long open holes to bomb away, this course is for you.
- There is a 1000 foot par 5, Hole 17, and it's quite the beast of a hole. You start from along the dam, and continue to throw parallel to the backwater. The more you try to get it long and cut the the corner of the slight bend, the more risk you take on to drop it in the lake. The holes themselves are a fairly unique bunch. There's a few of 4s in addition to the par 5. There's water in play on a few holes. Hole 16, the signature hole, throws from the dam top out over the backwater. There's also slight incline and decline shots. One of the bonus holes, 13b, has a built up pyramid structure with high pole. Really the only thing that is missing is a heavily wooded hole (tunnel shot) and a more aggressive elevation hole.
- As for course character items, the tee boxes are concrete and of acceptable condition, so no worries with footing. There is a great course map at the start and it has hole distance info. (Take a pic, you'll need it.). There are shelters along the layout. Great for the pop-up Texas thunderstorm. Plus you'll be a good mile away from your car at the mid point.
_ The beauty of the course is about average.

I find several issues with Old Settlers.
- The length, its extremely long. It's gotta be one of the longest in the state. It will wipe you out. Seems like 3 to 4 miles of walking.
- There are really no good ace opportunities. My group of 3, managed only one Birdie on a par 3.
- Poison ivy is really bad on bonus hole 13A. Don't throw it right unless you're immune.
- A major issue, when my group played, was adjacent construction. Holes 5 - 10 were pulled. Hopefully it's just temporary but the walk to skip the removed holes was like a half a mile. Hence the importance of taking a picture of the course map. It really sucked in the Texas heat.
- The course maintenance was less than desirable. Several of the first few holes had grass above the kneecaps.
- Getting to the course parking by tee one was a journey in itself. I don't recall any signage ques within the park. General location is just north of feeder creek for the dam. I think it was the first right after the small creek bridge.
- Most of the tees are out in the elements without shade.
- Due to the openness, wind is almost always a factor here. On a side note I broke 400 feet for the first time here. To bad 100 of it was in the wrong direction. Darn wind.

Probably normally a 3.5 star course. However, considering the lack of maintenance and missing holes due to construction, I dock it a half star. The perfect course for those wanting to air it out. For those that prefer the shorter courses, check out nearby Wells Branch or Rivery.

I tried to play this course last year, but quit after a few holes due to the length and the 40mph winds. I gave it a second try when I came back to the austin area and I made to quick of a judgement. Yes, the first 6-7 holes are too long but after that I was actually surprised of how well the course was. Starting at hole 8 where you shoot up the hill all the way through 15 is how the course should be all the way throughout. The alternate holes are included in the holes that I enjoyed by the way. This course has a good map right before hole one( it doesn't include the 3 alternate holes but they are very easy to find so no worries). The tee pads were concrete but seemed a little narrow to me. This course made excellent use of the elevation throughout the park. Most holes seemed to have elevation come into play including hole 16 where you shoot over the pond from the top of the dam. I liked how the course looped around so you finish right by your car, you honestly need that because the course is that long.

The course is way too log. 1000ft holes that are wide open are not good holes. I would rather play 200 ft holes that require technicality than have to throw 3 drives just to see the basket. I think hole 4 could of been broken up into 3 seperate holes. The first to the trees on the right then to the bridge. And, Finally throw from the bridge to the current basket location. After hole 4 you have to walk across the street to hole 5( it is a little difficult to see). Also, after 15 you walk across the damn. Besides that navigation is easy. Hole 17 was absolutely terrible. It took 3-4 drives before you can even see the basket. Also, with the course being so long have the 2nd to last hole be over 1000 ft was just brutal. I was already so tired.

If you are in the area I suggest playing this course and give it a chance past the first couple of holes and you will be pleasantly surprised. The middle holes are excellent just the beginning and end are too long and boring. If I wanted to throw multiple drives to get to basket in an open field I could of just gone to the nearest field, not add this in my road trip from Fort Worth.

Clean, well maintained, not a disc eater like many courses are.

Long. Really long. Really freaking long. In late November through New Years, Christmas light show makes relocation of several tee boxes by players necessary.

My son and I are not real long throwers (around 300') so this was a real humbling experience. With 2 holes over 1000", 1 over 600', and one almost 800' this is a course that isn't good for a quick round after work. You need to plan for an all afternoon round. I'll be back, but on a day when the wind isn't gusting at 35mph.

Good baskets, clean, not many people playing.

ridiculously long holes for some.

I do not have much of a drive so I start at hole 6. There is a parking lot next to the tee pad for that hole at the pavilion. I usually only play 10 holes, starting at 6, when I go since I have my daughter there and I also really do not like the Par 5s.

My personal favorite holes were 9, 10 and 12, which is most of the shorter technical holes that find the trees. The rest of the park is out in the open. 4,5 and 6 are very long and open. Number four uses a creek and is near the lake, evidence that the open holes are not entirely barren. The mix of holes is nice considering the age of the course, designed in 1991. Once you have finished playing six you have reached a disproportionate amount of the walking you are going to have to do, which is nice because the round feels easier after that point. Provided the wind has not zapped away your hydration the rest of the course is relative child's play.

The course and park and parking are all easy to find. There were no crowds when I played it, in many of the other area courses you have to contend with crowds. There are four holes over 600 feet long, so this is where it gets it deserved reputation as a long course. There is variable hole length though, where 1000 feet may seem long (two holes), there are five holes under three hundred feet and another handful of holes that are in that medium-long distance. Nice rolling hills and a smattering of trees make for pretty good basket placements.

What I mentioned before about 4, 5, and 6 being wide open is disappointing because I feel that it sets a negative tone for the match. I was trying to bomb which is not a big part of my game and I paid the price for it. This is a wide open course and the wind seemed to have more speed here than it did at the house when I decided to play Old Settler's.

In the Austin area there are better and newer options. The course reminds me of an old shopping mall, the one that nobody goes to anymore, you can still appreciate how it's nice and there are still fun things about it, but the new mall, like the newer courses across town blow it away.

The long walks from basket to tee, from tee to drive to drive to drive to basket make for a long day. Yes multiple drives on one hole, all fighting the wind I might add, and it felt repetitive. I had a guide my first time and I felt that I would have had a scouting mission or two to go on my first time, so bring a map.

I'm proud to say that noted DGCR member Bevo was my tour guide. He bombs. I took to trying to bomb myself which only made my game worse. I imagine if I develop an arm and wanted to play in the wind, this could be one of those parks to seek out. I could see taking short cuts and just skipping the holes that I am not in the mood to play.

I recommend this course to people who love to bomb and dislike crowds. The Austin area has at least five courses I would recommend before this course and I would caution noodle arms against it, because it will suck the fun factor away. The entire short time I lived in Austin, I only played here twice. Not because it is a bad course. There are just too many other great options in the area compared to this course.

This park is very big and takes forever to play, so you and some friends can go out, have fun, and just make a day of it. This course is very drive-oriented (2 holes being over the 1000' mark and there's one 600' par 3), so if that's your thing, you'll probably like it. The layout of the course doesn't seem to interfere too much with other aspects of a multi-use park. We only had to give people the "heads up!" one or two times. The design of holes #13b-16 was really neat and had almost a battlefield feel to them. One all of those, you're throwing back and forth across a big, open field from the crests of surrounding twenty-foot hills with rocks piled up next to the bulkhead for the pond on one side. My personal favorite hole at the park was #16. That is the only hole at the park where you have to throw across a significant amount of water. The tee box is on a concrete pathway going over the dam for the pond, and when walking up to it, it looks alot farther than it actually is to the other side. I felt so sure I was going to lose a disc in the water that I wrote "Hello Round Rock" on the back of my driver. For the most part, the holes aren't too terribly difficult to find; although I would recommend bringing a map if its your first time.

Alot of the holes are repetitive. Drive.....walk......drive.......walk.....drive.......walk.....etc. There isn't a whole lot of trees involved, (maybe 3 or four holes) out of 21. So, there aren't alot of technical shots through wooded areas. When I went, the bathrooms were still closed from the freeze a few weeks prior, (and like I previously stated, there aren't alot of trees to go and sneak off behind).

The three extra holes are not marked with signs - consult your map. All-in-all, this course seems like a good one for a power player, but if you're like me and prefer really wooded, technical shots, you're better off just continuing on to East Metro in Manor.

There are actually 2 courses here...or at least alternate teepads for the back half of the course that will keep you away from the lake and the 1000ft holes.

Personally I find the alt tee course to be a lot more fun as it gives you a wide range of shots without having to worry about losing a disc in the lake or deal with gale force winds. Basically you park by the play area near the back nine and there are some dirt teepads right by the lot.

Pros on the main course is that it will open up your big arm throws and it will teach you how to play in the wind. It will teach you how the wind will affect your putting. That said, it's not a course for most if you don't have a big arm and if you're playing par 3s.

Lack of people there. You can pretty much have the place to yourself on most days so you can work on different aspects of your game without having to worry about holding people up. And you can go out with large groups playing doubles without spending half the day letting people play through

Lack of course direction is pretty huge here especially on the alternate tees so if you don't have someone who's played there a few times leading you, you're probably going to be walking around aimlessly.

The cons on the actual course are part of what makes it unique and that's the long long open holes and dealing with the wind. This is not a course for beginners. Find someone who knows the alternate course and you will be much happier with the round. Personally, I like playing in the wind though of my friends I think I may be the only one. So as a possible con here, it is pretty much always windy.

Last time we played there with the alternate tees we shot up on one of the baskets then waited for a group to play the main course on that basket...which ended with half of our discs being moved because the kids grabbed our discs and the dad with them didn't stop them. It was pretty obvious that they were our discs and the dad clearly saw us. Not a course con, per se, but just a bit of warning that 2 groups playing the same basket could cause some issues.

All in all, this course has something for everyone. If you're new to the sport or don't want to deal with wind/water, stick to the short course. If you're looking for a challenge and want to work on different aspects of your game, there's room here for you as well.

There really are some great holes there in the back area so if you are feeling beat down after the first few extremely long holes on the main course, don't give up. If you can't figure out what box goes to which pin...just make up your own course if no one is around.

Low traffic, wind, water, and some elevation. Concrete tees are nice because you got some long throws. Go watch a AAA baseball game after your round and drink some beer!

Distance is either a con or a pro, and I say both. I had a hard time finding the first tee, because the park is HUGE!

Been there once and someday will go back again. The best Austin course to get some wind disc golf practice in.

This is the course that brought me a little more dedication to the sport. With some of the long, wide open holes, I find my self trying and working on new grips, throws, discs, etc.. The back nine is a bit of fun if...

you can make it through the front nine without getting bored, pissed, or tired. Nice long walk. You will learn to hate wind.

Not really the most challenging, but you still have to throw all your shots. A really good course to get your full game together. Extra points for only being a bike ride away from home.