It's been 7 years since the last review so figured I'd let the world know what's new at River Bends. In general, this place is fun and has multiple signature holes to enjoy: 10 with the big downhill drop overlooking the beautiful river, 15 with the snaking river water carry, 17 with the interesting 12 ft tall shrubs/trees that line the rough (amazingly seen nowhere else on the course), 26 with the big downhill drop through the narrow gap off the tee.

Lots to enjoy here and every hole has demanding lines to hit in order to score well. Holes vary nicely in length/difficulty and many holes present a few line options to get to the basket.
You'll have some 375-450ft par 3s that require elite abilities as well as some must-get 250ft ace runs sprinkled in. Navigation and flow is pretty good too with some next-tee signs and obvious paths throughout. Somehow the designers managed 27 holes on this property without any "filler" holes to connect you to the good stuff.

The park itself is really nice and the walking/biking trails were filled with happy joggers/cyclists during my late October visit. Thankfully the course largely plays away from much of the other park activities. Upkeep isn't quite as stellar as the pay-to-play Hudson Mills/Kensington/Independence tracks BUT this bonus here is River Bends is FREE (a rarity for a quality course in metro Detroit).

There are a few things that hold River Bends back from what could easily be a 4 star rating.

Signs and baskets first and foremost. The baskets are a collection of old Mach 3s and Chainstars. Signs are basic wooden posts that only show distance. Signs are also missing on several holes.

Most of the property is extremely flat despite the handful of holes with big elevation.

I can imagine lots of very muddy spots in the spring or after big rains (echo'd from some previous reviews). I've played nearby Palmer and Cass Benton after rains and the low spots get really nasty. Expect the same here.

When the conditions are dry, this course is a must-play when in the area. It's a little more rough around the edges than the aforementioned pay-to-play courses but the golf lines, scenery, and overall experience are pretty darn good!

Good mix of tight and open fairways. Well thought out and timed course in terms of shot making execution. Has a handful of severe elevation changes mixed throughout the round. 27 holes. Decent but mixed baskets overall. Great parking. Majority of holes measure over 300 feet. Hole 13 is played from atop a twenty foot cliff overlooking a river and bridge. 360ish to the basket.

Missing signs throughout and three teepads. Potential to lose a disc on many holes if not careful. Terrible bug problem at certain time of the year and will be under water during heavy rains. Poison ivy can be a serious concern if you are not throwing from the fairway. Hole 11 is borderline unfair but fun...

this course is almost completely under construction, at the moment. Do not go there expecting to play 27, if you have never been there previously. Park in the north east corner of the park to locate hole one. The course is half old/half new for those who have played there previously. Not too much has changed since the 90s. I like this course. You must be accurate and throw for some distance to score well. Played as a par three course, any round under par would be applauded by me(unless you throw over 400feet).

--Very wooded and bucolic setting; it is very common to encounter hawks and deer during rounds. The course is rarely crowded.

The entire course seems to be located in a flood zone and so early spring, late summer and soon after rain the course has poor playing conditions.Also, many of the baskets are old and in disrepair

Great design and plenty of shot variety in a pleasant park setting.

Plays in and around the scenic Clinton River Valley, making nice use of elevation changes. Features five holes that have you throwing either down into the valley or up and out of it, but otherwise plays fairly long and flat. Mostly open fairways, with some light to moderately wooded holes, and a few densely wooded stretches. Several Ace/Birdie runs, many over 300' and a couple over 450 including a 700+ bomber that'll stretch your arm out. The mix here lets you use every disc from the tee: putters, mids, fairway and distance drivers. Great use of the river to ratchet up the challenge and eye appeal, with 2-3 holes over water (depending which tee you play 15th hole from) and another fairway running parallel to the river. Signature hole has you throwing through a tight window, nicely framed by trees, way down into the valley below. Throw in some nicely tucked pin locations and a few baskets located in a clearing off the fairway and Riverbends offers a little of everything.

Concrete tees with dual pads on quite a few holes, including safer alternatives on the water holes.

Although there are other visitors to the park, the land the course is on is all but dedicated to disc golf, not too many other folks come down in the valley where most of the course lies.

Nice pavilion with picnic table/benches near the first/last hole.

Course maintenance is truly a crying shame. Due to budgetary constraints, infrequent mowing means grass in the fairway can exceed 3 feet. Check course conditions - if grass has been recently mowed, course plays well, otherwise, it's probably not a great idea to play a round here when the grass is so high that shots right in the middle of the fairway can take 10 minutes to locate.

Maintenance nightmares extend beyond mowing: Pro tee on 15 has literally collapsed and fallen into the river. At least 4 different types of baskets employed on the course. Most are in decent shape, but some are ancient, and have really seen better days. Many have been stolen over time and replaced with whatever was available through the local club, but the hodge-podge of basket types only adds to the bastard child feeling of neglect this course has.

Navigation: Can't argue with claims that it's tough to find your way around here - can be quite tricky if you're not familiar with the place. The spray-painted rocks for tee markers idea is OK, but completely useless when the grass is 3' tall. Any type of vertical, numbered, tee marker along with some next tee signs would make things a LOT easier for new visitors. However, once you learn your way around, the course actually flows quite well from basket to next tee (17th being the sole exception).

Because it plays through a river valley, some holes can get flooded after a hard rain, and take a while to dry out - makes the local mosquito population quite happy.

Some of the tee pads are on the small side and area around many looks bare.

Riverbends is a truly great course that is dreadfully in need of help. Playing here is hugely dependent on the current conditions. If recently mowed, it's a great place to play (3.5), but if the grass is high, or it's rained hard recently, it's simply miserable (1.0). The low lying ground means it retains moisture and the grass really grows well.

When I first played here years ago, I was thoroughly impressed, and would have given this a 4.0, but this place has been sadly neglected. I'm certain it's because the tax base has eroded, and there's simply not enough funding to go around, but regardless of why or how understandable it is, the fact is the course upkeep sucks, and most definitely affects play. Never seen a course that could benefit more from pay to play than this one, but I'm not sure the local Parks and Rec agency thinks it's feasible.

That being said it's still a good round if the grass isn't too high.

Update 10/26/11: Course looking a lot better:
• fairways getting mowed regularly
• fresh coat of bright orange paint on tee marker rocks
• no missing baskets ( most are old, but all are OK).
• Still litter scattered about and 15's Pro pad is non-existent, but overall course is in much shape than I'd seen it towards the end of last season.
• Rating bumped from 2.5 to3.5...great place to play (except after it rains or when the grass in the valley hasn't been cut).

4/1/12: Still looks like it's being kept up.

Tough Water Holes, clean, cement tee boxes. has some tough holes that make you feel great what you blast your drive down it. Has one of my favorite hole there. good variety

Hard to get your disc once your in the water, some tall grass. could have more upkeep. low elevation. very little elevation change but still has some.

if it rains you will be skipping some holes for sure unless you have some big boots and a bunch of towels

The course is huge, excellent workout just to play it.

You get to throw over rivers and down big hills

There is a boat available if you lose your disc in the water

The bugs can be very bad. Bring spray!

First few holes are crowded since there is other stuff going on in that area, after that it's all good

Bring a cooler and floating disc!

Large and wide, space seems to be pretty devoted to disc golf except for one walking path.
Variety of shot, uphill, downhill, wide open, tight pins, water, blind pins, left and right curves. I really can't say enough about this. It really makes for a variety of challenges and makes every hole feel different
Well maintained, cut grass and bright tee signs (orange painted rocks)

Course map a little misleading on where pads and pins are
Pad signs indicate hole number and distance, but not location or direction of pin. Requires a little scouting ahead as many holes are far, and around curves
Very fast water flowing through the course, and apparently easy to throw into
Occasional alt pads, but not always
Multiple pin types, means you have to adjust your puts hole to hole

Just a little better with the signs (next tee signs at least) and it would be a lot more enjoyable. Occasional holes just seemed like they were tossed in to add more and not really to help the design, but just fill the massive expanse of space. I would love to play a 27 hole tournament here.

Great layout. Mostly long holes with a few tight wood shots. Not sure if this is a recent addition but there are signs pointing to the next tee and without having played here since 98 we had virtually no problem navigating the course.

Unbelievable bugs, some of the worst I have ever seen. The grass is not mowed at all, this means no skips. There is also a lot of standing water.

Good overall course design, could really benefit from some maintenaince but still definetitly worth playing, especially in the fall when the bugs die off.

very open lay out, definitely not cramped. will take at least 2 1/2 hours to play alone, but don't let that discourage you, its a really fun course for all skill levels. very clever water holes!!! watch out for the little kids pulling discs out of the water, they WILL steal your discs. also a very clean park.

mostly flat, too many holes going back and forth with the same shots over and over again. also a ton of boring holes in the open fields.

change it up a bit, make it 18 holes if you have to because shooting the same terrain over and over again is boring.

Riverbends Park is a large park within an even larger park network in Shelby Township Michigan. The land inside the park is rich in history dating back well into the 1800's and was part of the infamous Clinton-Kalamazoo Canal Project.

Riverbends DGC was built in 1988 and was one of the hosts to an AM and PRO World Championships in the early 1990's. The course was one of the largest in this area at that time and was the staple of what was to come. I had my first taste of DG at the Bends back in 1997 and was instantly hooked.

The course has gone through numerous design changes since its original layout 25 years ago. While some parts of the original courses remain, most have been altered or changed altogether due to other park activities/projects that sprung up over time in the area where the course was. Projects such as the paved walking path and pedestrian bridge made it difficult to avoid user conflicts since it weaved in and out of the courses fairways. With the parks dept already busy running a large network of parks, the course could not get the attention to be maintained as well as it should have been. Soon enough, rumors of the course being pulled were also becoming more common. I contacted the parks director to see what they were going to do with all the baskets if the course closed and he replied that it was not true and that there was still hope for the course.

Thanks to the local disc golf club, MCCG, starting in late 2012, the course is undergoing yet another layout change but this time with major improvements and an expansion to 27 holes to be completed by the end of 2013. Since my last visit in Nov 2012, they were already making the improvements to the course.

If the parks dept. can maintain the course and allocate money for course improvements (signage, benches, nicer tee pads, etc.), I believe the course can once again return to its heyday.

PROS:

FREE TO PLAY!

VARIETY ~ The only thing missing from the course are heavily wooded holes. Other than that, Riverbends has everything else a course could want with a good mix of holes types. Hole length is appropriate for experienced players but there are a few longer holes with multiple tees for the beginner. There are equal opportunities for lefties and righties. Fairways are wide-enough to enable some movement with your discs, with mature trees dotting the landscape and still offering a challenge to the holes. You can count on using your entire arsenal of shots and discs on the course. Seems fair enough to Lefties and Righties.

RIVER IN PLAY ~ The course also plays along, over and around a river. There are not many courses around here that feature this much of a water hazard. While also a con in some eyes, it really adds to the experience. Even though the course has changed and some of my favorite holes are gone, the river holes really set the course apart from other courses. The danger of losing a disc in the river adds that extra difficulty that drives the experienced players to keep coming back. Too bad some holes had to be removed because of safety issues with the river banks collapsing from the undercutting currents and seasonal flooding. Hopefully the re-design can bring back some of the extinct holes.

LARGE COURSE ~While the original courses in the late 80's and early 90's had pretty much the entire park to utilize, today's Riverbends DGC still has a foothold on a large portion of the park. The bike/walking path does cut through the current course, but with a small re-design of a few holes that problem will be fixed.

CONS:
SIGNAGE ~One of the two biggest cons for Riverbends is the lack of signage directing and informing players where to go. Vandalism and numerous redesigns are most likely the culprit for why there are no signs at the park. I get to play here a half dozen times a year and even I get frustrated when I find out the design was changed and I'm playing the wrong hole/basket. Newcomers will most likely lose their way to the correct tees and end up walking across other fairways while they search in vain for direction. Hopefully this can be addressed in the improvements for 2013.

MAINTENANCE ~ The other big con is the lack of maintenance the course receives. The grass is rarely cut because of the course being located in the lower floodplains. Water does not recede very well and ponding occurs constantly. Fallen trees on the fairways are an ongoing problem and are not cleared very often. To be fair to the parks dept, they do have their hands full with all the other parks they take care of. Just don't expect a manicured golf course when you get here because that won't exactly be the case.

Other issues to consider...
TEES ~ A few tees have been damaged, washed away, or are too small for the current hole. These are being fixed in 2013 by the MCCG.
BASKETS ~ Some of the baskets on the course could be the originals, but after 25 years of use, the course has become a hodge-podge of INNOVA, DGA, and DISCRAFT baskets. Some have been damaged or stolen over that time and replaced with what was available. The plan in 2013 is to move baskets around to and from other courses to make each course have its own model without a mixture of different targets.

River Bends is a real fun place to play and it's free. It does need some work to get a higher rating though. Still, you should give this older course a try.

This is a really fun and challenging course I definitely will play again,most fairways are relatively open for a michigan course,some nice elevation changes,good variety of shots and good pin placement will require you to bring everything you have,24 holes,water in play on a few holes,practice basket,

When I was there the half the course consisted of walking through 3-4ft. grass I would not recommend wearing shorts,kind of muddy/swampy be prepared wear junk shoes or boots,some of the holes were a little hard to find but worth the time once I figured them out,holes marked by big orange rocks some hard to see through grass but on the other hand it's hard to vandalize a rock,could see losing a disc in the high grass,course is pretty long could use some benches or a picnic table for resting,bring bugspray,bike course going through fairway could be a problem be careful,river is deep discs can not be easily retrieved unless your swimming,

If this course was better maintained I would up may rating to a 4

What really stood out for me here is the variety. Two holes play up the ridge, two play down. There are two holes were you have to play over the river and two where you can play over or alongside of it. Some of the baskets are out in the open, some are on the edge of the woods and some are tucked into the woods. I really had to think about how I was going to play my shots, and that added to the enjoyment.

The noise from the nearby shooting range echos through the valley, and disturbs what otherwise could be a peaceful round of golf. The tee pads should be bigger, and some are in disrepair. The alternate, shorter tees were perplexing - some holes had two sets of tees and some only had one. The hole info on the giant orange rocks is a good idea in that the rocks are too big to be stolen, but the info on them really is just the bare minimum. As such, navigating the course the first time through may take longer than it should, but follow your instincts and you should make it through.

Of the three courses I played on my recent trip to Michigan, the others being Raintree and Firefighters, this one seemed to be the toughest and the most interesting.

From what we saw of this course, it looks like a good place to return to and revisit. We didn't get a chance to play any of the water holes, but what we did play was varied and interestingly laid out. Looking forward to a return visit and will update the review to reflect that.

There is a bike path that we had to shoot over on the 6th hole which seemed kind of dangerous, especially since part of it was blocked by trees and you couldn't see if someone were coming.

Disclaimer: We only had time to play the first 6 holes on this course due to time constraints and weather. Will be back to Utica again to give this course another try in the future.

Excellant for driving practice. Always kept the next shot challenging .
Awesome holes that the river plays through.

When it's crowded the pople can defenmiatly get in the way if not paying attention.If you lose control of your disc your more then likely gonna go swimming for it.

Nice upkeep , all the passerby's are friendly and famialiar with whats going on. If it's a hot day you can cool off in the river at a few different holes.