The Patriot course at Pineland Farms is truly a great course. Of the 7 Maine courses I have played now, it is near the top of the list, in very close competition with Troll Valley. Instant favorite for sure.

The set up is done well. Tees are rubber mats on good foundations that I had no issues with. The signs have the relevant info you need to get through each hole. All baskets are in good form. Most transitions from hole to hole are logical, but there are a couple of longer walks. Signs are there to point the way.

There are many great holes on this one, most featuring mature trees and elevation change, others are covering open spreads of grass. The edge of a small pond is in play on 16 and 17. It's more of a factor on 16 as there is a bit of a water carry if you choose to take a direct line.

The first hole is hum drum, but use it as a warm up and the disappointment will fade rapidly. 2 is a big downhill that requires perfect mix of trajectory and power to find the right distance and negotiate gaps between a stand of tall trees. It was probably my favorite hole on the course. 4 Is long and open, with a nice altitude fall off the tee, and some contour to the fairway as well. The edges roll off down to the tree line, and the pin is atop a bit of a hill. The fairway on 8 is a fun drive, with the trail to the right, and heavy woods to the left. The basket is left side and downhill in a clearing, and it takes a nice rip to get there.

10 is lengthy and steadily uphill, with a bit of a bend to the left mid fairway. There are different gaps you can sneak into, but the central line has a clear advantage on the second shot approach if you can hold it. 11 is also uphill, but not as much gain, over less distance. 13 is a slight downhill and one of the shorter holes, but the pin position is surrounded by trees, and it takes a well controlled shot that doesn't tail off to one side or the other to hold the green. 16 is over the reeds on the banks of a small pond. It isn't very long, and you can play the right side if you want to minimize risk. Throw short and you're in trouble, too long and you are past the pin and running downhill. It's an ace run I nearly hit, but wound up with an uphill comeback that I did not get. 17 is open for the first half, then gets into trees that are thick on both sides of the line. Entry point is critical, and the drive must have a low trajectory with plenty of momentum to have a shot at a birdie here.

It costs money to play these two magnificent courses, boo hoo. A few holes are on the bland side, such as 1, 5, and 15. You are likely to have joggers and bicyclists passing on the trails that traverse the park near the course in a few spots.

This one is a tough round, and novice players are likely to have a long day here. It takes good technique and ability to get distance with accuracy to score well. Hills are not extreme, but there is a lot of up and down. The footing may be rough in spots, especially when you leave the fairways.

The Patriot is fantastic. Minuteman course is also a fun track, shorter with roller coaster elevation changes. The Pineland Farms also has many other activities. I enjoy having a beer and wine trailer near the office, it makes a great place for a pit stop between rounds.

Patriot hit me hard on the scorecard. No birdies and 12 over par. I had 4 double bogies and 4 bogies. There are seven par 4 holes, with four consecutive on holes 4-7. Several of the par 3's are very unforgiving. This is a legit par 61. Maybe I'm a wierdo, but the +12 here is more satisfying than the -12 you might bag at Pleasant Hill or Sabuttus Hawk.

If you're in the area and have the chance, I recommend that you play both courses at Pineland Farms. Patriot is a championship level test of skills, and Minuteman is a romp around non-stop hilly birdie holes. A great way to spend a morning.

- huge variety of holes, some open, some tight, some huge elevation changes, several super long holes
- trash/recylcing at most holes, nice benches for resting
-super clean, available food ordering menu on the back 9. little details like that were fun.

- long ass course. I knew that going into it but I throw 300ft at best on a good day. Par was just too far out of my reach on several of the holes even without mistakes. that said maybe its something you practice yourself into.

Its a long course but its a very cool and well maintained course. I would definitely try it again after working on my driving some more.

-Amazing hole designs. Just super fun golf.
-Great mix of open holes that have great design (Hole 4 is about as perfect an open hole bomber gets) with tight, but fair wooded holes.
-I'm an elevation whore, so I love courses that utilize good elevation and this course has some of the best I've seen in Maine.
-Good sized concrete tees with plenty of grip, but not overly grated.
-Nice Discatcher 28's
-Good descriptive tee signs
-Natural flow from hole to hole with only 2 decent walks between holes.
-Amenities galore!! A HUGE market that sells booze to be consumed on the course, lobster rolls, a bakery, jerky, homemade crafts. I had a wonderful sandwich after a long day of frolfing with locally brewed beverages in an air conditioned building. Pretty freaking dreamy.
-Clean bathrooms, benches, trashcans
-Plenty of holes that bait you into risk reward lines like hole 18. There is a small cut out window through the rough that you just absolutely have to pure a FH to utilize, but if you do gets you waaaay up the fairway quick.
-Another course on site that is much shorter, but techy and fun for warmup or cooldown.
-Super friendly staff
-Pro shop on site

-Hole 1 is a pretty boring hole for an otherwise wonderful disc golf experience. I honestly wondered if we made a mistake adding this complex in stepping up to hole 1.
-I didn't care for hole 6 either. Most of the other holes that used a service road as part of a fairway seemed much more interesting and unique. This one felt contrived and forced with disgusting bumble just off the fairway. Just my opinion though.

Why hadn't I heard more about this place on DGCR?? This was just an add because it was a close well rated complex near another well rated complex (Bittersweet Ridge) and seemed like a good day of disc golf.

This course blew away every other course we played in Maine. And Maine has all the disc golf culture and all the perfectly maintained complexes with competing pride on who offers the best golf. This place wins. It's not even that close.

Huge Kudos to all those that work on this course. As we were finishing hole 18, someone was digging holes to plant new trees to frame the green. Just constantly working on adding beauty and making the best disc golf experience possible.

This is a long, tough course on the beautiful campus of Pineland Farms.

I learned that Pineland Farms is the re-purposed grounds of the former Maine State Hospital which now features businesses, farm operations and miles of hiking/biking trails. And, two 18-hole disc golf courses! Checking in and paying ($5 single round or $8 all day) at the pro shop was quick and friendly.

The Patriot Course is by far the tougher of the two courses. With an average hole length of 400' and plenty of elevation this is a course that will tire you out. There is a good mix of tight wooded holes, wide open holes, and some nice combinations.

Many of the holes follow existing trails, some of which are in dense woods. This gives some unusually long, densely wooded holes which are challenging to say the least.

Don't let the first hole fool you. It is a 298' throw across open ground to an unguarded basket. I birdied it and thought "This might not be so tough". Wrong. It gets much more challenging, and quickly!

Hole 4 is a standout 625' par 4 that tees from an elevated pad and has you throwing to a downhill landing area. While fairly open you will very much need to avoid the dense edges. Your second shot is somewhat uphill around a corner of trees to the pin. The pin offers a great look at some of the farm building in the complex.

Hole 5 works you back up the opposite direction, finishing in the woods.

Holes 7 - 13 are the holes in the woods that predominantly follow the roads and trails. Lines are tight and you really want to stay in the fairways. In many cases you'll not see the baskets from the tees. Accuracy is much more important than distance in this stretch.

The course opens up some starting with Hole 14 but continues to be challenging with some remaining long holes.

Baskets are Innova DisCatchers with their visible yellow band. Tee pads are some sort of masonry/rock panels that worked well for me, even in the wet conditions I played in. Tee signs at each pad include the expected information including hole number, length, par, and a "next tee" arrow. Hole diagrams were too general to be particularly useful (see cons).

Very good navigation with well-developed trails and abundant "next hole" arrows.

I generally find holes that use existing trails and roads as fairways to be compromises, and this course is no exception. Let's face it, roads and trails are built for a purpose and that purpose isn't to create interesting disc golf holes. That being said this course handles it better than most, with some good pin positions and tree removal to open things up a bit.


The tee signs have oddly vague hole diagrams on them. While they may show a slight left or right turn for the hole they in no way give an accurate diagram of hole shape. For this reason you'll end up walking up (in some cases WAY up) fairways in order to locate baskets. Even on holes that play up roads and paths you'll find yourself walking up to determine exactly where the basket is placed.

While I found this to be an excellent course, it ended up being a bit of a grind. I played the Minuteman course as a warm-up, and by the time I finished this one I was flat tired. This is a long hilly course that offers only a single set of tees, so you play the long layout every time!

- Challenging course. If you have a long throw, you can really use it here.
- Good mix of holes and strategies required. Stuff for both righties and lefties. Fairways are generally clean and approaches obvious, albeit not easy.
- Top notch groundswork. Undergrowth is quite tamed. Pineland has a large full time staff because they are some kind of farm/business campus with enormous acreage to maintain (I mean beyond the two disc golf courses).
- Good baskets
- Solid tees
- Good tee signs
- Clear markings to find next tee
- Real, clean bathrooms in the market above the pro shop.
- Awesome market with fresh, organic stuff (though it can be pricey)

- Most of the tees are rubber mats in 2-4 sections, and they can slide over time so you have to shift them back. They are grippy and even, though, so this is minor.
- Circle is not marked around baskets
- Small pro shop, not a lot of selection

- This is a challenging course!! Not only are the holes long, but the hiking required is a real cardio workout and you need to take breaks, especially if playing alone, or fatigue will start to accumulate and affect your game.
- I would have added "No short tees" as a Con but they now have a second, smaller course, which to my mind is a wonderful alternative to the short tees when you have the real estate for it. If you don't want to play the big arm course, play the short one instead. It's still brand new and raw but will be an excellent course once they finish the tees.
- All in all, this is a fantastic course and is a must-visit for serious players looking for the best that Maine has to offer. I would already put it in the top 3 and it has been improving steadily.

- High quality baskets, Good tees
- Great mix of wooded and open holes. After the first 3 holes they're all on the longer side, but provide enough variety of situations to test your whole repertoire of throws.
- Beautiful, immaculately maintained grounds (Pineland also operates a working farm on their massive property, so they have plenty of full-time, experienced groundskeepers)
- Adjacent to the excellent Pineland Farms market, providing the best pre/post round refreshments of any course.

These aren't really negatives as much as things you need to know before playing it. If you're not prepared for it, you likely won't have a good time.
- This is a long course that plays even longer due to elevation changes and above-average distance between holes. Prepare like you would for a hike, not a walk.
- There's a few very punishing holes in the middle that can be a bit demoralizing if you don't know what you're in for. One follows a dirt road on a steep slope to the left that is just all trees to the left of the road. From a crest in the road, the basket is downhill and into the trees. There's also a 700+ft wooded, uphill hole where the basket is like an extra 50ft past where you expect it to be.
- Shop is small with a pretty basic selection of discs/gear/accessories

The only reason I don't play this course more is the length. Since I play seasonally, I need some time to build up the stamina for it in the spring, then I don't really want to play it in 90 degree heat in the summer. I hear they're building a second, presumably smaller, course, which will be a welcome addition.

The scenery from the start of the course is really attractive, overlooking a valley with views miles long to the hills in the distance.

There is a nice mix of open and wooded holes here. Hole 4 is a tantalizing bomb off of an elevated tee to the rolling mounds below, some 600+ feet away. Hole 2 is a drive down a steep ridge into the woods. Hole 16, one of the few short holes, is a fun ace run across a marsh to a basket on top of a bowl.

Tee pads are expertly installed and look really nice. Navigation wasn't bad.

Whoever designed the course has a real love affair with distance. My god. There is very little variety in that respect. After hole 3, it is an onslaught of holes that either a) play really long or b) are actually really long. Midway through the course, I started to lose interest. Another 500 foot wooded hole? Great. Oh, this one is only 350-feet...but it's straight uphill. Hole 18 has a nice uphill drive out of the woods, and then is followed by about 350 more of fairway. Just cuz. On one of the uphill holes I threw three shots before I even saw the basket (many of the baskets are blind).

Tee signs are just okay, showing the distance and general fairway but have a real problem with showing the real contour of the fairway (a pet peeve of mine; don't show a straight shot if the fairway clearly requires a big hyzer around a bend).

I don't completely understand what Pineland Farms is, but I like it. It looks like a college campus, but it has trails for biking, cross country skiing, and all manner of outdoor activities. You check in on the lower level of a farm-to-table deli and grocery store with some great food options and craft beer. This is not your usual setting for disc golf. Good stuff.

But when I'm reviewing a course, I have to consider if I'd play this course a lot if I lived in the area. The answer in this case is probably not. Have you ever eaten ice cream for 18 straight meals? You'd probably get pretty tired of it, even if the 10th flavor you had was an objectively fantastic flavor (say, cookies and cream cake batter). It's too bad. There are some really good holes here. But it's too much.

-Pay to pay, $5 per round and worth every penny. A true destination course and a unique disc golf experience.
-Set on a breathtakingly beautiful working farm. Stunning views from many holes
-A true "Gold Level" test of skills with 7 true par fours, and many long and challenging par threes. At 7,155 feet you need to be able to throw long, but also will need accuracy to negotiate the wooded holes and to play smart to handle the elevation changes.
-Clean lines, usually but multiple options, but you'll need to execute well. On many holes a "just miss" is going to get you struggling to salvage par.
-Immaculately maintained. Fairways mowed, not a bit of trash or litter anywhere.
-Practice basket available near first tee.
-Built up tee boxes with rubber pads. All appropriately sized for the hole length.
-New DiscCatcher baskets, well mounted. All of the greens are fair with no 'gimmick' hazards, but several feature "turtleback" terrain. Get too aggressive and miss a putt you might find your come-backer is a little further than you'd like
-Trash cans with lids and benches on every holes.
-Pro shop with a good selection and knowledgeable staff, with bathrooms and a changing area. Upstairs is the Pineland Farms Marketplace with a full deli and a dining room with terrific views. Pineland Farms amenities match or exceed those of a good public ball golf country club.
-Safety is fine, little chance on an errant shot on one hole threating other groups. The course does have some hiking / cross-country ski trails the occasionally cross fairways, but things seem to be well marked and traffic is light enough I don't see this as a problem.
-Navigation is easy. Good signage with Explore Disc Golf's great "watercolor style" hole drawings. Also scorecard and course map available at the pro shop.
-Solid mix of wooded and open holes that favor no particular throwing style.
-It's Maine, Lobster Rolls, blueberry pie, and shopping at LL Bean conveniently nearby.

-With only one tee and one basket per hole, this is a Gold Level course and is very challenging for rec players and will certainly "beat up" beginners. I'd recommend taking beginners to nearby Sabbatus and let them cut their teeth on "the Owl" and "the Hawk" a few times before stepping up to the awesomeness of Pineland Farms.
-If you are used to the generous pars of many of the Maine pay-for-play courses, getting beat up by the layout of Pineland Farms could be tough on the ego. What I did was arbitrarily adjust some of the pars for myself: the fourth hole at 625' was a challenge for my arm in the weather conditions I was playing in, so I just told myself it was a par five. Nailed a 20' putt, took my 5, and happily moved on. Many of the longer par threes, like the 337' #17, were a par 3 ½ for me.

In 1974 jaded rock critic Jon Landau wrote "I saw rock and roll future and its name is Bruce Springsteen" after being wowed by the then unknown act that blew the doors off a small club in Boston. Along with courses like Brewster Ridge at Smuggler's in Vermont, Frost Valley in New York, Sabittus just down the road, and Maple Hill in Massachusetts, there is an undeniable trend, disc golf is heading for a level of quality in the northeast that would have been unimaginable just a few years ago. Pineland Farms is a natural evolution in the top echelons of destination courses.
Hole-by-hole
#1 - your basic basket across an open field, 295' away, when the wind is down this is an easy par for a rec player and top players will see it as an ace run. Get a little too aggressive any you could catch the slope past the basket, but this is a pretty run-of-the mill hole. Don't let that fool you. You won't see another "boring" hole on this course again. By the turn you might be wishing for such boredom.
#2- Tee downhill across some scruff into a gap in the trees and negotiate right to left to the basket. You'll have to hit a tight line, there are many trees to grab an errant shot, and if you are unfortunate enough to kick left (or hard right) you are in a pretty impenetrable forest. Pitch out and take your bogie. At 390' this par three is a challenge for all skill levels. A big well placed RHBH hyzer might get you close, but it will take both power and precision. Nasty hole for a rec player, better be on your game!
#3 - Not my favorite hole on the course, very short (188'), sharp dogleg right uphill to a protected basic. There are lots of "early trees" to keep you honest. Really takes a hard turning mid to get close, tough shot shape for most players. The removal of one tree might make this a better hole, but the removal of two trees would make this too easy. When you stand on the tee you'll know immediately the trees I'm thinking of.
#4 - Tee off from an elevated tee to a basket 625' away across a manicured pasture to a basket set atop a grassy nob. This is one of the most beautiful par fours I've ever played, with the Maine hills and farmland framed in the distance. A couple of subtle challenges in the design... first the tee box points you slightly right of the basket... and even though it's a pretty open fairway it does "pinch" near the landing area and can give you some trouble to the right. The second is the basket is up on a "nob". Any flaws in your approach in any direction will be magnified by the slope. As a Rec player, I played this a par five, though big arms will be able to take a birdie run.
#5 - Hole four "in reverse" parallel to #4 fairway, tee back to a basket up hill and tucked just into the woods. This one measures 530' but plays a little longer with the elevation. Winds can offer challenges on #4 and #5, you'll be diving in an open area and the gentle sloping terrain can create some swirling winds that are hard to read.
#6 - A 492' undulating challenge along a cross-country ski path with a basket up in a clearing with a spectacular view of the white barns and pastures beyond. Again, some power and precision is needed on this narrow par four, with woods closing in. Get careless with your approach and the slope will cause havoc.
Hole 7 - Cross the road a short hike up to the next tee to enter the wooded part of the course. Seven is a bit uphill at the end, narrow and straight along a logging road to a protected green. At 406' this is the shortest par four on the course, but that doesn't necessarily translate to "easiest".
Hole 8 - A long par 3 up a logging road, again to a basket well protected by some birches and pines. Takes some precision to get close enough for a birdie look. The logging road runs from left to right in front of the tee, but I wouldn't really call this a dogleg. If you catch the right line you can go straight at the basket. The woods on the left slope off, go too far left and you can make for a difficult recovery shot.
Hole 9 - An longer par 3, 357' through the woods with trouble lurking just off the fairway. There are some lines to the basket in there, but you must hit a tight line. Again, as a rec player, I played this as a par 4 and even then it took some shot making to make that.
Hole 10 - A tight wooded par four, with a blind shot from the tee. At 546' a good shot to the clearly defined landing area still leaves a demanding tight shot to the basket. The sign shows this as a dogleg left, but depending on where you hit the landing area it can be relatively straight. As a player who struggles to throw 250' with any accuracy, I'll have to say these middle round holes in the woods were very challenging.
Hole 11 - Another blind tee shot, at 358' a long and tight par three. Eleven's sign shows it a fairly straight, but the line I the basket was tucked away to the left pretty far. Again, I played this as a par four.
Hole 12 - Another long 393' par three, maybe a little less dense forest then the previous few holes. For a rec player you are probably feeling pretty beat up at this point. From hear out it gets a touch easier.
Hole 13 - A little shorter, at least you can easily see the basket from this tee. Maybe a little right to left, still tight lines for a 277' hole.
Hole 14 - A favorite! Tee from an elevated tee box in the woods, through a pretty big opening (just miss hat one tree in the middle). The Fairway opens up pretty well, at 291' this is the first one that plays a little shorter than the posted distance with that elevation change. Still, some slope around the basket if you get careless. This is a pretty and fun hole and for a rec player your first real birdie chance since #1. After you tee you can't go down the slope, be sure to follow the path around to the left to prevent erosion in a sensitive area.
Hole 15 - A big dogleg left to right. If you try to cut the dogleg too close your can get yourself in big trouble, but some spindly trees just left of the tee-box keeps you from playing it too safe. Beautiful vista of colorful hardwoods on the mid October day I played this.
Hole 16 - You are probably tired and hungry at this point. At the tee box you are greeted with a sign with the menu from the Marketplace. Good sandwiches. A short par 3, 207' over a drainage area with the basket on an "S" shaped levy. Short, long, left, or right and you're left with an uphill approach. Place your drive well and you'll card your birdie.
Hole 17 - At 337' this par three requires you to hit a gap in the woods to get a run to the basket. Even if you hit the gap, you'll find some well-placed trees for you to make a solid approach to this basket. If you miss the gap, the woods are pretty thick, you probably will need to pitch it back to the fairway and take your bogie.
Hole 18 - A dramatic finishing hole, tees from down out of the woods out to a basket in the open up on the hill, a slight dogleg right-to-left. A big drive will leave a run at birdie. Get greedy and make a mistake on the drive and bogie is possible. Could be a two shot swing in a tight match. A bit of a walk back to the pro shop, parking lot, and the Marketplace.

- On at least half the holes, when I got to the tee I said "wow!" Spectacular use of a gorgeous undulating piece of property.
- It's very quiet out here. No planes, trains or automobiles, just nature at it's finest.
- You will need your whole bag for all different kinds of shots. Long arms have an advantage, but precision helps as well.
- Nice baskets, teepads, signage.
- I highly recommend the stopping by the market (next door to the Outdoor Center where you check in) for lunch, snacks, chilling after the round, and perhaps for something extra to take home.

- Beginner to intermediate golfers may get discouraged by the challenging nature of the course. A set of short tees would make the course more accessible and fun for novices.
- It's a long hike to play 18, so some more benches would be welcome.

With a bit more seasoning, this course could rank right up there with Brewster Ridge and Maple Hill as one of the best in New England. Can't wait to see a tournament hosted at Pineland Farms!

Lots to say about this place! First off if you have never been to Pineland Farms you are in for a treat. Once a Mental Hospital in the early 1900's. Now Pineland Farms is a 5,000 acre farm and recreational property with a variety of other seasonal activities, such as trail running, mountain biking, and cyclo-cross and most recently Disc Golf (not seasonal?)
The property can be used to host corporate meetings, retreats, weddings, picnics, etc. The facilities include a conference center and banquet room as well as a tented location accented with a patio and pergola area, suitable for wedding ceremonies and cocktail parties.
Food grown and produced by the farm is available for sale in the Visitor Center's market.
They also have an amazing cold beer selection and a wonderful sandwich counter in the market. Open till about 6? i think.

The course is a very long and challenging pro caliber course with multiple pro par 4's. It makes great use of the scenery and elevation. From wooded holes to long field holes this course has it all. This course is still in its infancy and improvements have been made every time I come.

Tee pads on 1 and 2 need to change they chose a poor material to create pads with, the rest of the tee pads are mostly rubber and are wonderful. The rough can be rough in some places but with the amazing landscaping crew at their disposal those spots are becoming few and far between. Signage and markings can be improved upon to help golfers find their way and to alert joggers sharing the property to watch out for flying discs.

This is a destination course and I expect it to be at the top of New England golfers lists in the coming years.

This is a brand new course that was just opened up on 7/6/15. I got a chance to play it just a couple of days later during opening week. This is a 9 hole course, but do not undervalue it because of it being only 9 holes. It's worth it! Read on:

This is a pro par length style course. Every hole has either far distance, funky pin placements or tight lanes. If you walk out of here with just par you probably did pretty well.

Each hole has a different plan of attack. I didn't feel myself using the same disc for the same shot that can sometimes happen at poorly set up courses. This course made me use everything in my bag and think about the consequences of what I was going to throw.

For just opening up, this is a pretty well maintained/groomed course. There are great signs for each holes, the paths are very walkable and the greens are all mowed well. Many courses open up barely playable then improve from there, but this course got to a good spot before opening up to the public.

These aren't as much cons but just small things to improve upon over the next few months or years depending on Pineland's desires to make this a top quality course:

Tee pads - Hole 1's tee pad you should be careful on. It has this weird divot pattern, so be careful with your ankle. The rest of the tee pads are just dirt. This isn't a big deal, but it's just not top quality at the moment either.

Shrub/tall grass around the fairways - The tall grass that surrounds a couple of the fairways can be extremely difficult to find your disc. We played for a few hours recently and took about 30+ minutes out of the day to find discs through 18 holes.

No benches or trash cans at the moment - I can only assume they'll add these things in over time, but as of right now they are not there.

The above things aren't really deal breakers - they don't take away from the awesomeness that is this course, it could just be slight touches to improve the place. Here's hoping!

Don't worry about the course being 9 holes. It's very long and I would be surprised if many people play it more than two times. You'll get your normal 18 holes in. Plus, with how challenging the course is, you'll have a great opportunity to get vengeance on some of the holes by repeating them on your second round.

When you pull into the property, the practice basket is immediately to your left and so is Hole 1 Tee pad. Go inside (directly behind you to the building behind hole 1) to pay your $5 one round (9 holes, twice) or $8 all day greens fees.

This is an amazing course. If you live anything nearby, you owe it to yourself to check it out. You will not be disappointed.