This review is that of a traveling player playing this course for the first time. This course has some great hole designs with plenty of elevation change, precarious pin placements, natural OB and a beautiful setting.

Hole 1 starts uphill through mature trees in an open setting and is a low celing hole. Hole 2 is a par four with a tight fairway on the first shot and a throw over a deep ravine to a basket on a fair-sized ledge on the other side. Holes 3-8 or 9 (to be discussed below), are in a heavily wooded area with a creek running though it and lots of elevation change. I thought the holes here were pretty amazing. All of them were fun and the front nine is the highlight of the course before it goes into a more open area in and out of a power line right of way.

There is a good balance of shots required by the course including heavily wooded fairways that require an early turn and beg for a RHBH hyzer flip or a RHFH flex. There are uphill and downhill throws with both moderate and more significant elevation change. Several baskets are on rock outcrops near dropoffs and several baskets are on ledges on steep hillsides.

The heavily wooded holes have a very good distance to fairway width relationship that made all of the holes seem eminently fair though incredibly challenging.

About 1/2 the course is heavily shaded which will be nice on hotter summer days.

There has been a lot of work done on this course like the bridges and steps found in different areas and, if that kind of effort could be put into making the course easier to navigate for people not familar with it, it would get a higher rating from me.

This was the most frustrating course to navigate that I have ever played. To whomever is in charge of the use of tee signs and navigational aids, you failed miserably from a navigational standpoint. Like Hornets Nest, this course has apparently had its navigation re-thought or re-designed without letting all of the tee signs know about it. Hole 1 Gold sends you to what is apparently hole 1 "gray" if you want to play the shorts. However - Surprise! - that might actually be hole 2 gray! This nonsense then propagates throughout the rest of the course until there is a 2 number difference between the two tee lengths - apparently so that it can be called two different courses - maybe.

The above nonsense then leads to the 9 and 11 basket, having the "11" facing you while you are looking for 9 (not realizing how you've just been fooled) only, after walking around looking for 9, to approach the basket from the direction that the 9 faces to realize that you've just wasted even more time (and believe me, by the time you get to this hole, you've wasted a lot of time trying to figure out where to throw from and to).

Hole 7 and 9 gray use the same fairway and tee box but just have alternate basket locations. You play, backtrack to 8, then backtrack to 9 to play a hole that you have pretty much already played, or some such nonsense.

You cross over hole 8 gold's tee box (clearly marked as such) on your way to 7. However, that isn't really 8 gold's basket - Psyche!. So when you finish 7, you know where to go, because you've already been there, right? Nope. The navigational issues are so bad in several places that my group almost quit. It took us over three hours to play a round that we would typically finish in 2-1/2 at most.

Holes 3 - 9 are crammed into an amazing piece of property with lots of elevation change and a creek running through it but are also holes that aqre basically piled on top of each other requiring the crossing of fairways, walking up fairways and crossing other tee pads to get to the next hole.

I guess if you are a local, you probably don't even look at the tee signs or next hole signs because you know your way around the course, but the confusion caused by the inconsistent signs rises to a level that is nearly comical on some holes. 7 and 9 gray are really just one hole with alternate baskets apparently.

And, lastly, I have to agree with another reviewer that the 18 Gold basket location is just silly.

This course looks like it has three sets of tee signs and navigational aids that were put in at three different times by people who had different ideas about how the course was supposed to be played.

I don't think that I have ever been as frustrated with the navigation on a course as I was with this one. If you are traveling, I'd recommend playing with a local. The signs on this course are almost guaranteed to make you misplay it in a couple of areas unless you just ignore them.

I suppose that some people likely think that UDisc is the answer to all of this, but then why have signs at all? Updating the course signs and elimination of the shared fairway and teebox for 7/9 on the gray course are what it would take for me to rate this course higher.

Some very fun holes. Great use of elevation. Well maintained.

EDIT: There's a lot going on here and it's probably not fair to judge after just one round... but I will...

The only con, and it's a big one, is the lack of signage. Really, it's an embarrassment to the club to have such a nice course that's so frustrating for anyone who isn't in the know. Yes, there was a poorly-photocopied map you could grab but it was illedgible.

I know lots of people won't agree with this rating but I stand by it. If you can't walk in off the street and get around the course that's a major drawback.

We went to RL Smith right after Renny and it was a much more fun experience.

EDIT: I will go up to 3.5. Perhaps I expected too much after all the buildup. But if this is going to be the showplace of Charlotte disc golf, as it should be, basic navigation is not too much to ask.

I know my opinion of Renaissance will improve after I go back. But if you've only got time for one round and you're not with a local, I'd go to RL Smith, Nevin, or Hornet's Nest first.

Very tough course. It will make you throw shots that you don't think are part of your game.

Very muddy after a rain. Hard to follow even with a map. Lots of elevation changes. Tee boxes and next Tee signs are not very helpful.

Take a map with you if you've never played before. There is no short basket on 1. Also, the original #7 is closed. They have re-organized the course as follows. #7 is the old 8, #8 is the old 9, #9 is the old 10, #10 is the old 11, #11 is the old 12. #12 is the Gold 12, #13 is the Gold 13, #14 is the Gold 14, 15-18 are the same.

This course will test everything you have. I was able to team up with 3 regulars who were great in taking me through the course.

Since other reviewers have done the hole by hole I will skip that.

The course is well taken care of and seems to be in a constant state of improvement. The group here is working hard to make this a classy course.

Bridges and stairs are everywhere. The big stairway into the ravine is a godsend.

You have bathrooms available and parking is plentiful. With the high use of the park for other things, there are a bunch of volleyball courts that were packed the day I played, you will find picnic areas, water fountains. and plenty of people to play disc golf with.

My favorite basket was 5. It was a great challenge technically.

The spotting tower on 10 was a great asset.

I and 18 are near roads and parking areas so be careful.

That ravine nearly killed me. I am 48 with a bad leg. I had one end up in there and it is a bear to get it off the side walls of the ravine. The bottom is not to bad if you have a spotter, on top, because the stairs are sound. Just hope it dose not get on the side walls where you will have to climb up or down to get it. The sides are made of clay and I saw some poison oak in there.

The logging that was on 10, to the right, will definitely help the course but made it a nightmare for me in the short run.

Some signage needs to be improved. Without help and or a map this would be a difficult course to get through.

I thought a lot about the grade for this course. In fact of all the courses I have played this one was hardest to decide.

It is a must play course if you are in the area.

It is a great place to play. Especially if you have some experience already. But there were probably 60 people that day and I now know why I was by far the oldest.

If you are new please have someone with you and/or make sure you have brass ones.

It is probably not family friendly either. This is the perfect course for the players that like there golf and want a challenge each time out.

The ravine means you better be careful.

This course is very good and they will have it even better in time. But for me to get to excellent it needs to have a part that is more user friendly for others. It has the room. Or the signage were better I could jump it up to 4.

This is without a doubt the hardest Disc Golf course I have ever played. When looking at the course you can tell its long, and brutal, but when you actually step up and play, the course will destroy you. the shorter tees to the shorter baskets is a big challenge. Then, if you dare to try the "Gold" course which has tees that are further back, and baskets that are even longer, and tougher, the course takes everything out of you. I can not explain the toughness. You have to experience it. The throwing lanes are not too tight, but the holes are long, and tough. When I went (2004), I read a sign saying they are even going to be adding more to the course making it LONGER and HARDER. A course has not kicked my butt like this one ever.

GREAT job making the course look awesome. You can really see all the work done to this course. I can just imagine how much more difficult the course would of been without all the countless hours of volunteer work that was done to make it look great. This course would probably skyrocket in rating if I played it more.

Most every hole you have to walk 400 feet just to find the basket. Then you have to walk back to the tee to throw. Can take a lot out of you doing this for every hole on a 98 degree day like I did.