A short and technical woods course that scratches the itch, and possibly your legs too.

NOTE: It appears that the park has undergone a redesign sometime in the past few years that eliminated the first five holes, split some subsequent holes, and added a couple new ones to create a par-54, 4,400' course.

-Technicality: This course may be the technician's dream. The woods are tight (though fair) on all but a small handful of more open holes. It's also not the longest course, rewarding accuracy much more than distance. A good straddle putt will probably net a couple of strokes from trees/bushes.

-Paths: Well-worn paths mark the way between holes pretty clearly. The only navigation challenges are when the course crosses the road.

-Creek: A small handful of holes incorporate a creek nicely.

-Rec-Friendly: Honestly, this isn't a terrible course for rec players. I think they'll be able to hit the initial gaps more often than not, and playing here would teach you flight patterns much better than somewhere open. Being short, even a not-great shot may have a scramble chance.

-Shot Shaping/Gameplay: The signature line is RHBH hyzer 250' through the woods, but there is a good amount of other variety. The more open holes are pretty much dead straight, and guardian objects will enforce that line. A couple of woods also have slight right turns to keep the FH happy players content. Being able to land with great touch will save you a lot of obstructed putts, and constitutes the biggest challenge for more experienced players. Two holes were cool - (13) is a short RHFH shot with a creek guarding the green, and (17) is a long grassy fairway fading right at the very end.

-Mud: After just a light rain, a lot of the middle holes had marshy ground.

-Rough: Moderate undergrowth throughout. Some poison ivy, and a lot of tickling bushes to navigate. This isn't a manicured fairways type of place for sure.

-Long Walks: There are a handful of transitions with longer walks than desirable. Furthermore, the course ends on the opposite side of the park from its start, which provides a long and boring walk.

-Variety: Essentially all technical holes under 300' doesn't create the most appealing course. As noted, it's also RHBH hyzer-heavy. Additionally, no single hole wows me with its design.

Patriots is a nice little technical run. It shows its age in declining equipment and persistent rough. On the other hand, its birdie opportunities and issues like mud and long walks are baked in and unlikely to ever change. On the whole, it's a pretty Typical course.

-Amenities: Concrete tees with a lot of seams and cracks, benches and trash cans, signs with info but no map, old DISCatchers with varying chain patterns. Occasional next tee signs. No course kiosk or marking - I drove right past the start of the course at first.

~Similar Courses: Blair Mill/Crooked Creek Park (Stallings, NC); Shepherd Rec Center (Chattanooga, TN); Suwanee Creek Park (Suwanee, GA); Preston Miller Park (Bowling Green, KY). I have Patriot's rated a bit higher than all of these.

Located in a nice park. Mix of open and wooded. Some interesting holes around the softball fields.

Long walks to the next tee sometimes, but it seemed to flow well.

Park was very crowded and cars were parked all over a couple of holes. Softball field fences can come into play on some holes. I would avoid playing in the summer on weekends.

Next time in the area I will skip this course as there are better alternatives now. But it is still not a bad course to play.