-great layout
-some of the best elevation in the Charlotte area
-unique
-beautiful in the summer
-less rough in the winter
-Charlottes best course that is easier than gold level
-18 is an epic finishing hole
-great walk
-no hole feels the same
-never crowded (play every week and only seen three people in the last 4 months)
-ace run and difficult birdies

-summer bugs can be pretty bad
-rough is very rough
-sometimes the sewer that runs along a few holes can smell (very rarely)
-18 needs stairs
-Teepads could be bigger

This might be overrating this course a little bit. Its a 4 star course but it's the best 4 star course in the area. I just wouldn't feel right giving this 4. My home course Bradford is a definite 4 but, I much prefer this course over that one. There are just more epic and unique holes here.

-Good signage
-Excellent variety of terrain with elevation as well as water hazards
-adequate tee pads
-Challenging but Fair
-multiple fairways on some of the holes
-interesting use of rock formations to tuck baskets into the hillside

May be a little too tough for beginners, multiple teepads would be nice on some holes

The course could use a few more "to the next tee" arrows/signs for non-locals

Tough/slippery terrain may not be suitable for some people

I had a ton of fun playing this wooded course, on my way through Charlotte,
had 1 birdie on 12, putting up into the rocks/basket from below- a lot of pars and a few bogeys/double boges
It's not a course for the faint of heart, or beginners, or non athletic people, the terrain/footing is hazardous especially with the wet leaves, and rather extreme elevation changes
Overall- a very nice and well built/designed course

- The signage at this course is outstanding. The signs are very detailed, have not been vandalized, and are easy to read.
- There is a great mix of long holes and short holes on this course which make it fun. A few holes are even aceable.
- There is a lot of elevation changes on the course. I had fun trying to navigate the steep hills with my throws.
- The course is very well maintained and is pretty clean for a public course.
- I loved that 3 holes (3, 11, and 13) had a right track and left track to throw down. I've never seen this on any of the courses I've played and it is a a great idea to let players mix it up.
- Although there is a creek and river bed that go through the course, there really isn't much in the way of water hazards. The only holes you really need to watch yourself on are 4, 8, and possibly 7
- I loved the U-turn hole (#9). That was just a fun hole made challenging by the U-turn and mando.
- My favorite hole of the course was probably #12. There is a very nice, elevated tee box and you throw towards a basket up on a pile of rocks.
- The location is real close to the airport. So for those traveling, it is really easy to get to via taxi or rental car.

- This is not a good course for younger players or those with mobility issues due to the steep terrain.

This is one of the best courses I've ever played. It had everything...short holes, long holes, elevation, lots of trees (some with openings, some with a tight fairway). Most importantly, it was a lot of fun. I'll definitely come back to this course next time I'm in Charlotte.

Very challenging championship level course that would aimed for intermediate to pro level players.

Baskets - 18 Innova Discatchers that were in perfect shape. No issues at all. A practice basket on site with markers to get warmed up.

Tees - One large concrete tee per hole. Very grippy and easy to find.

Signs - Signs were great. Billboard at the start with info. Signs at each hole had a map, distance, par, etc. Arrows throughout the course pointing you to where you need to go. Some were painted on trees. Really helped with navigation.

Variety - Right from the get go, this course is intimidating. Course is extremely wooded and extremely hilly. Many tight gaps that will make or break your day. Elevation on every hole expect for 4. Several uphill and downhill wooded shots as well as some longer holes through the woods requiring accuracy. A few chances for aces on the back 9. Multiple holes had a shallow creek running through or along them. Multiple blind shots due to elevation, woods, rocks, or all of the above. Course requires extreme accuracy as well as the ability to launch one. The rough is rough so if you get off the path, you will spend plenty of time locating it.

Elevation - Elevation is a major factor at this course. Not only do you need to be able to place your throw through the woods, but you need to be able to throw it up and down moderate to extreme changes in elevation.

Course gets easier after hole 3. Survive those and you are in the clear.

The paths in between the holes added to this beauty of this course. Even if you just walked the course without throwing, you would enjoy it.

Restrooms and water fountain on site. Also a playground for kids if they join in.

Large rocks on 9 and 12 with the basket on top of them. Very cool and unique feature.

Benches and trash bags at every hole. Helps to keep it clean.

Course is not beginner or intermediate friendly. An added set of amateur concrete tees on every hole (especially on 1 and 3) would take this course from a 4.5 to a 5.

Some of the holes need to be cleared a little more. Starting to grow in more than it appears it was intended to be. Can spend a lot of time looking for discs.

Trash along holes 2-4.

Poison ivy.

Long walk from hole 18 to parking lot. Room to expand and add a few holes to make more of a complete loop.

I absolutely loved this course. My second favorite in Charlotte behind Nevin. It was easy to navigate, it was very scenic and peaceful, it was challenging, and it was very enjoyable even though it was intimidating. What more can you ask for in a course?

I would recommend this course to any intermediate or pro level player in the area or traveling through. It was tough but it was worth it. The only way not to like it is if you find yourself off of the fairway.

Another Beautiful Course in Charlotte

Good Concrete Tees
Great Baskets
Adequate signage (Teesigns and "next tee")
Benches at several tees
Bathrooms/water fountains at the parking lot
Plenty of parking
Navigation is easy

Very fun course
Great Risk/Reward
Use of elevation changes is Top-notch
Fairways are well trimmed and wide enough to make the intended shot
Variety is great.
-Up/Down/Flat
-Right/Straight/Left
-Water/Rough/Terrain
-Long/Short/mid
Good use of what water is there to make some holes challenging
Loved the use of Mandos to force certain lines
Also liked having several lines/options on most holes
The Deck on 12 added to the experience
Great place to work on shot-shaping
Some really good holes to work on Mids/Fairways
A few places to stretch out your drivers (you better be accurate)
Good for Rec to Pro players (something for everyone)
Empty your bag on 18 (fun)

Well kept and clean
Several trashcans
Trimmed not just butchered
Playground for the Family/kids to wait for your round to finish
Well planned and flows well
Not crowded
Good workout, up and down hills

Favorite Hole(s): 5,12, 18

Not very many cons

A few more trashcans would be better (not really a problem, if you can lug it in full, surely you can make it all the way to the next trashcan empty)
A few good walks between holes (with friends this can be a plus)
A couple of holes feel repetetive
18 ends a little ways from the parking

Not really a con, but, if you're here in the Fall, bring your brightly colored discs and save you and your friends a good bit of time kicking around in the leaves looking for your discs.

Least Favorite Hole(s): 3, 11

This course is a great, fun, and challenging course that will really get your blood moving. Not too challenging, just enough to make it fun for everyone. I will definitely play it again if I'm ever in the area. This course is on the lower end of a 4.5 but I think better than a 4.

All in all, RL Smith is a must play if you're ever in the Charlotte area. If your passing through or traveling to Charlotte for DG, add this course to your plans and you won't regret it.

My disc rating is based heavily on "Fun Factor" which this course has lots of. I then bump it up or down based on amenities. This course has plenty of both.

PM me and let me know how I can be "more helpful" with my reviews.

Course is fairly easy to navigate.

Tee pads and signs at every hole. Benches and trash cans at most holes.

This course unlike some others in the Charlotte area is not as crowded.

Course is secluded from the rest of the park.

Course provides a variety of holes (open, wooded, uphill, downhill, water, etc.). Variety of shots needed to score well.

Some holes will allow you to take various lines to get to the basket and the tee pads even accommodate for that.

Once you start your round, there are no exits if you are short on time and only planned to play 9 holes or so. Course design kind of forces you to play the whole round.

No chances to bomb a drive in an open field.

A couple of the early holes (#1, #3, and #4) have horrible underbrush.

Hole #9's mando is strange IMO.

Probability of losing discs is high due to water and high brush in some places. (I've found 4 out there this year alone.)

This will probably work itself out over time but there are some areas on the course where steps or a bridge here and there would be helpful.

Have seen several snakes out there so watch out!

Be sure to carry bug spray.

My opinion the signature holes for this course are #13 and #18.

This course is quite a hike and can be tiresome due to the constant elevation changes; however the back 9 is much shorter than the front.

If in Charlotte, along with Renny, Hornets' Nest, and many others....this one is a must play. You won't regret it.

What a well designed course! This course was one of the most enjoyable rounds of true Disc golf I have played in a very long time. It has a mix of everything and as a Lefty, I loved that all the punishement for errant or early releases was not on the right side. Hole 4 has to be my favorite. It is an extremely tough par 3. Water and OB all along the right, and a basket that is surrounded. a well placed drive will most likely earn a par. going for the bird is as risky as it gets, and will prob get you 2 strokes on a lot of people. The use of the property was perfect, you feel completely separated from the rest of the park and that is my favorite kind of DG. It almost has the private course feel. I really could go on and on about this course. Holes 17 and 18 are also amazing. Again, as a lefty I love 17, I can rip my drive and usually get up over the creek. 18 is just gorgeous. I want to empty my bag everytime I get on that teebox.

None really. you are isolated, so make sure to bring anything you want to have with you. Water,backup discs, towels, maybe a banana for the leg cramps. this course is a workout.

I am always down to play a round at R.L. the little extras that the club put in really make it special. Some of the coolest benches and teeboxes I have seen. the gallery area on the back 9, for the short uphill drive to the boulder is EPIC! If you are going to Charlotte, Do not miss the opportunity to play this course.

The Robert L. Smith course in Charlotte is a great course and instant favorite of mine. Offering challenging, and very shapely fairways featuring elements of extreme elevation changes, a few long distance holes, some water, and moderate to heavy woods almost all the way around. Each hole has its own merits, with several stunners. I particularly remember the proximity to the water on holes 4 and 7, the candy cane hairpin fairway on 9, and a fantastic finishing hole on 18. I think hole 13 had the only V shaped tee pad I have ever seen, giving options to drive the split fairways. I saw a number of interesting trees and liked the surroundings of this course. I would like to see it in the summer with leaf canopy on the trees.

Like most of the course I have played in Charlotte, the course is well designed, and the tee pads, baskets and signage are all high quality and complete. I really thought the benches, stairs, and bridges were great as well. There are restrooms at the beginning of the course and a few garbage cans around the course. A police officer was keeping an eye on the park entrance from his cruiser the entire time we were there.

The planes arriving at and departing the nearby airport were my biggest distraction, but nothing can be done about that. Some footing issues for me due to leafy debris and some wet ground, not that bad considering the rain in the days prior to my visit. The signs and pads were quality through the course, but there were not as many benches on the back 9, maybe more are in the works. My only real reason to complain was the poor play from me all day. Such a great course, and I really stunk it up. A few good throws, but couldn't really even get out of the box most of the day.

I have not given a 5 to any course yet, and rarely 4.5 ratings. I feel Robert L. Smith disc golf course deserves the phenomenal status, for the terrific blend of scenic beauty, fun, challenge, great layout, and quality equipment. I realize there is not the versatility of extra boxes or pin positions, and maybe some might find this course too difficult, but it is as close to perfection as few other courses I have played. If I had played better, or hit an ace I might have rewarded my first 5. Reminds me of Golden Hills DGC in Blacksburg, VA.

Excellent variety. A little cit of everything. Elevation- OB- Water- right turns- left turns- did i mention elevation??
The moment you walk onto this course you can tell that it is something special and that a ton of work has gone into making this place incredible. I feel the course designers did a terrific job with the land provided. It is a beast to walk and play- but very fun and enjoyable. There are hand built benches and a huge deck right off of a teepad. I would highly recommend playing this course if you are nearby!

My score- nah just kidding. You have to be able to throw several different types of shots to score well. Challenging and rewarding. I dont really have anything negative to say about this course!!

Thank you to all of the volunteers for all of your hard work building and maintaining this gem!

The elevation here and design is very well done. There are terrific concrete tees. Hole 2 plays straight uphill and is very unique in that it goes way right and uphill. I've never seen another hole like it. There are some great par 4s here and plenty of unique shot shaping required in the woods. Some of my favorite holes include hole 5, a tough right dog leg to a treacherous sloped island green. Oh, and there is ob the entire right side of the fairway. Hole 10 is a great par 3 that requires an uphill, long, straight shot. 18 is a fun downhill straight shot with ob directly behind the basket.

Some holes are weaker than the rest of the course like hole 3. It is a short downhill hole. I dislike how hole 7 is a tweener hole. It cannot be 2d unless you hit a big uphill putt. Hole 12 is a very short uphill hole but it has an awesome green. The back nine is considerably shorter than the front nine. There is a long walk back to the parking lot and hole 1 after the last hole.

I love Charlotte golf. Good work gentlemen.

Elevation: Really, nowhere else to get the variety of elevation change in Charlotte, except of course for Stumpy. I've been playing this course since the baskets went in, and though it's still a tough hump, the work done on little bridges, stairs, etc, have done so much to ease the walk. Amazing job on the navigation, CDGC.

Challenge: At my intermediate skill level, I like the level of challenget this course presents. OK, you're going to have a Nevin flashback or two here, but it's not impossible from start to finish. There are "pitfall" holes that can ruin your day. But smart play at the right times, and this course can be had.

T-pads: Obviously, this course improved once the natural pads were history, and I can speak from experience that the back nine was not an easy pour.

Layout: there was a real danger to be repetitive here, but the holes around the rock formation break up the round nicely. It's not like the Web, with one 325 ft tunnel shot after another. Some people have beefs with risky basket locations...welcome to Charlotte, where we don't like flat turf circles with 10m radii.
Again, the amenities have made this course jump a full "disc" in rating for me. The deck on 12 needs a grill!

18 is a truly great finishing hole. Tough climb, but a bench to rest your weary feet, great view down to the basket, and out into the park, not TOO much of a chance to he a tree 100 ft off the ground and watch your Buzz go native.

I just don't like #2. I have no problem with "top-o-the-world" or "bottom-pf-the-world" shots, etc. But 2 is just a buzzkill to play. The entire fairway is a 45 degree incline, with some rough, so ANY shot requires climbing around on the cliff. "Belay On!"

I'd just like to see this hole reworked some, so it doesn't feel like such an obligation. Like "I'd love to play Smith today, but then I 'have" to play 2. Overexaggeration for effect, but you get me. I think the hole can be reworked to incorporate the slope, etc, without it being so zzzzzzzzzz.

--Like the little lounge area by 4 basket/5/7 tee.

--hole 2's really my main beef. Otherwise, as teh finishing touches go in here, this thing could make it to 4-5.

Note: This is a biased review, but an attempt at being objective.

This course has a little bit of everything. Some really tough holes, balanced with some refreshingly short holes.

The course starts off with a nice new practice basket installed just for worlds. Little touches of hard work show up at the very beginning where one of many cedar benches is located, with some nicely installed steps that lead you to the tee of hole 1.

As the course progresses, you throw down the woods, up the woods, around the woods and between the woods (as you can tell, Avery Jenkins won't like this course). What's great about this course is that every fairway is fair. If you don't have the shot to shape the hole, it's your fault, not the courses.

As everyone has mentioned, hole 12 is the BEST easy hole in Charlotte. A simple 170 foot hole with beautiful scenery with a great place to take a picture break.

It's not perfect. Not even close. This course demands tons of work by nature and will be in continual development. Lot's of areas are still treacherous to walk.

Also, unfortunately, there are 2 sewage vents located in the middle of great holes. It's kinda too bad, but really there is nothing you can do about it.

There is a mando on 9 that I feel is a little ridiculous. If the mando wasn't there, you can get a 3 often with a bad shot. The mando forces the turn, but the design flaw is that from the tee, often you won't know if you made it or not. In my opinion, this is the worst hole on the course. I think it needs to be either longer with no mando, or shorter.

There isn't a variety of tee pads or basket. So far the decision to play RL is a one course decision.

This course shined it Worlds, and will continue to. The people behind this course are insanely dedicated to it's success.

Rumors are that in the future, this course will add 9 more holes. I really look forward to that day!

If you're in Charlotte, please do yourself a favor and play this course!

(EDIT) Ever since reviewing this course, it's just gotten better. How cool! It wouldn't take much to be a 5 star course. A couple extra stairs here and there could be helpful after a rainy day.

-Robert L Smith is a terrific disc golf course on Little rock road. It's wooded and challenging and great for any players.
-The elevation here at Robert L Smith is really intense. This could possibly be the hilliest course you ever played. It starts off on a hole with a downhill teeshot into the mouth of the woods. Then #2 is immensely uphill then #3 is straight downhill. I am not going to go on because it's very exciting to see the elevation here.
-Teesigns are installed from what I saw and they are very cool. They were needed since it can be hard to find the basket on the hole you're playing.
-Nice teepads are installed and they allow nice and long run ups. #12 now has one along with a bench. You might get tired after going up and down are those hills so you might want to sit for a moment.
-#16 and #17 are great ace runs! The water is in play right on #16 so that tells you it's not a sidearm hole like #17. On #17, you need an anhyzer or flick because water is a bit right and the basket is a little more to the right. A birdie on either is a good one!
-From what I heard from dandaman, there is now a practice basket. It might just be the #19th hole's basket since #19 is across the field. I may be wrong though, the course has gotten changed quite a bit since I played here.
-A couple of the holes are in the field. #2 and #3. #2 is hard because it's crazily uphill. #3 is longer but straight downhill so it's a high birdie opprotunity if you go straight. Drivers turn too much on #3. A midrange can get you close.
-#11 and #13 have two routes. The shorter ones are harder to get to. #11's shorter route straight ahead goes to the right so it's a slight dogleg right. #13's shorter route's fairway is not wide. Similar to #11 long at Eager Beaver. Take the longer ones since they are easier birdies.
-#5 is one of my favorite par 4's in North Carolina! It's narrow and along the creek bed where the green is. #3 is also another sweet tee shot. In the pic on the media, It doesn't look downhill but believe me, it is and hyzering over the thick trees close to the large green makes this one of the best holes in charlotte. Definitely my favorite on the course.
-Next tee signs for the holes that can be confusing to find. Keep an eye out for them, especially on the walk to #13 because it's a long walk. They are very helpful.
-Great finishing hole. #18 is definitely a fun hole that has a super fun teeshot. Just going past the creek is good enough so you are not in OB.
-Bathrooms are next to the parking lot and they are nice and clean.
-Bridges are installed and benches and trashcans on every hole.

-If you play in the summer, there is wildlife in the woods. Copperheads are around here.

I love this course, the design is perfect and I am glad grass got cut here on the course. This is possibly my favorite and if you live in Gastonia like me, this is the closest course in charlotte. It's super hilly and definitely one of the best in Charlotte. On the hole by hole review, I am not going to say what you need to do on every hole because on hole info, I put hole tips on every hole.
-This is the best course in Charlotte that I have played. Once I play Nevin, I might find that as the best because I have seen it on YouTube but this course is definitely worth the play no matter how faraway you live from it. The scenery is great, the fairways have no debris and mainly, it's the hilliest in Charlotte. This is a must play in Charlotte and since the original course at Renaissance is gone, this WILL be the best in Charlotte. Don't skip it.
Signature holes, hmm, I'd say #5 because it's a cool, narrow par 4 along the creek bed. #12, Steep uphill ace run on an elevation green on rocks and #18, truly great finishing hole. Have fun.

Update:
I deleted the hole by hole review. That gave way too much away. This is my favorite course in Charlotte and my favorite course overall. Eight holes on this course have elevation changes of over 20 feet. Water is in play on seven holes too and also has some great pin placements, like on #9 and #12.
-My favorite hole is #3. It's an easy, really straight down 265' footer that plays much shorter. #13 is also a fun hole with two routes and the double tee is pretty awesome. Really, I like every hole on the course.
-I gave this course a 4.5 because it's maintained well, it's very hilly, it's has an amazing layout. Just needs to be cleared on #3 because the tall grass isn't somewhere to look for discs, if ya lose it, ya lose it. Keep an eye out for snakes and bring hiking shoes.

This is a mostly wooded course with great elevation changes. Out of bounds both water and artifically marked is all over the place. If you play all the marked out of bounds this course goes from hard to very difficult. There are huge boulders and rocks all over. Check out the pictures. Your nerves will be tested in the putting game. Bad putts will often result in fly bys or roll aways.

The benches they installed are fantastic!

Tee pads were concrete and great.

Signage and navigation was pretty easy.

Brand new Innova Discatchers.

Hole #2 is a monster uphill shot then you get to throw right back down the hill on #3. If I counted correctly there are 6 really fun downhill shots.

Hole #5 is a great par 4. It takes 2 great shots to get a birdie 3 especially with out of bounds lining the fairways and protecting the green.

Hole #12 has a great deck lining and extending the run up for this cool looking par 3 hole.

The double route and double tee on #13 is sweet!

I love the variety on this course. No 2 holes are alike and it will test every shot you have.

Hole #18 is an awesome finish to the course. Super fun downhill shot.

There is rough in some spots but we did not have that hard of a time locating discs.

The only thing missing from this course is a few chances to unleash some open drives.

Bring some hiking shoes. This is a hike through the woods. Try to avoid playing after rain.

There are no stopping points back by the parking lot. Bring everything you need with you.

Check maps and find out where the water is. I played this course on Friday and the creek was pretty much empty. It rained over night and it was pretty full on Saturday.

Do not judge this course by the current pictures. I'm amazed at how the course looks now compared to when those pictures were taken last summer. It's night and day.

I played 15 courses in Charlotte over a 10 day period. Make a trip. They have some awesome disc golf!

I love RL Smith Park. The memorial is for a hero and more amenities (Disc Golf) that draw people to it to honor Robert L. Smith the better. Charlotte is a city of wooded courses. This is no different, however it is "the" elevation course in Charlotte. You will huff and puff and RL will blow you down! Hole one is a great opening hole. Throwing from the open into the mouth of the woods you get a glimpse of what is to come. Fairways are "fair" but can be tight in some areas, they are mostly clear of brush and new growth. Benches are amazing and a number of really good bridges are being built. Teepads are plenty long and built to the hole, there is a trapazoid and a "shorts shaped" pad for a couple of the courses multiple fairway holes.
There are a number of unique "to Charlotte" and cool holes. 2, uphill drive to a very precarious green, 3 is a straight drop down into a basin. 7 has an awesome green as do 9 and 12 (nestled in rock formations). Even short 200' holes are deadly like hole 16. Hole 18 is one of the signature holes. It throws from the top of a cliff down to a basket with OB right behind it. Fast greens (like 9+ of them) and fairway turns offer a great opportunity for smart golf.
Greens are nicely cut to 30' at least for most of them.

GREAT looking and feeling deck behind #12 and 3 new bridges.

A number of these Cons can and will be attended to some wont. My major concern is the overuse of OB; the OB can be oppressive and unfair. It lines the underside of hilly greens on 5, 16, 17, 18 It outlines some of the creeks and tributaries however if those are flowing and are so high that OBs are needed, you are dealing with a lost disc anyway or thr course will be unplayable. Simply surrounded by water is good enough for these holes. Some of the OB is just too close to baskets or fairways because maybe the baskets are too close to the creeks. Hole 16's OB is silly in my opinion. OB is high so the stakes don't wash away... if water is that high, there will be no tournament that day. The course difficulty speaks for itself. To get through RL underpar is a challenge. The OB just adds gimmick and luck and drives my score down .5 discs. With no OB on 5, 16,17 I would rate the course a 5.
Trashcans arent numerous and it doesnt appear the park department can get back to empty them anyway. So many greens are "fast" greens it adds more than the average amount of luck to score good or bad here. A great round can be overshadowed by a number of slides or rolls OB that resulted from great shots. Its part of the game, but I can see how it will frustrate some. EDIT<NOW there is a GREAT area behind 12 to stand, the deck is amazing) Trees have begun to arc into the fairways to get light and are covering up the airways. I noticed this on 6,7 specifically. A few retaining walls and a number of stairs (EDIT - Great new goat trail on 18 and 3 new bridges are now installed) are needed on some of the fast greens/steep transitions.
Many of the baskets are not visible from the tee... they might be aceble but you don't get the satisfaction of seeing it.

Do not read my cons and not come. Great course, one of my favorites in Charlotte! Bring water, you do not go by facilities until the end...and even then you are across a number of soccer fields away. You might be able to run up hole 5 and get to the bathroom but after that, you are deep in it. A lot of people unload their bag on 18 then again across the soccer fields back to their cars. If you are craving that big open shot...it might not be on the course, but you can sure do it on your way home. Maybe try to make a "GOAL!!!" in one of the soccer goals.

Baskets (new)

Teepads (new)

Teesigns (new)

Benches on most of the holes

Practice basket

Great bridges and the most scenic teepad that I have ever seen on hole 12.

A nice design...thanks Chris and Whit (working hard on the course when I was there)! Challanging greens, challanging fairways. Diverse. These guys know what they are doing and thier efforts are awesome. This course is one of the toughest (but fairest) that I have played.

Scenic: This course has a great creek that comes in play and has some rewarding views near greens and fairways. There are also some nice rock outcroppings that were taken advantage of on hole #9 and #12.

The course is far removed from other park activities. No ball fields, no walking paths, and no roads. When you play this course it is all about the golf.

Great next tee signs make it easy to navigate...once you know where hole #1 is (behind the kiosk...thanks for the kiosk Jerry!)

Elevation.

There are some areas of the creek if your disc lands in it is possible that it will be lost.

If the course is wet the walk up the hills (and down them) could be quite difficult and slippery.

The course was looking great when I was there for the World's. The amount of work and attention to detail really sets this course apart from others that I have played. While it is a difficult course it is still a fun course.

I appreciate that currently it is only one tee and one basket per hole. In the future I would say that if you want to attarct the more casual golfer or newbie: shorter tees would need to be placed.

There appears to be more land available if the course were ever to be expanded. I might recommend however that if it was to be expanded, have a loop that plays it's way back somewhere close to the fields...or alternatively have a seperate 18 hole course. That way you have a chance to restock on water and other goodies.

A beast lurks in the shadows of quiet RL Smith Park. A wooded monster that twists and turns every which way, up and down steep hills and studded with boulders. Stay on the fairway or become prey to its many minions of briers, creeks, and valleys.

Okay, enough of that. It's a tough, mini Nevin cross-bred with Stumpy Creek kind of course, which, if you like your DG rump handed to you by the rough, grizzled hands of nature, you should be excited about now. It's meaner than a bag full of rattlesnakes, not b/c it's downright hard or unfair (definitely not unfair) but b/c it teases you into thinking that you might have a good round. There aren't really any holes that an Intermediate ranked player shouldn't be able to hit the line he wants but it'll wear you down with the elevation and heaven forbid long disc retrieval efforts that are bound to happen.

Most of these holes are squarely in the woods, playing along creeks and gulleys, ridges and hills. The first 4 holes play in and out of the trees, fun holes where elevation (mostly throwing downhill) comes into play big time. Then it's into the trees for some classic Charlotte golf, a little flatter but plenty of terrain and line variety to make you think out each shot carefully. The easiest or shorter holes even have a little spice to them, typical of Stan courses, in the form of elevated baskets (natural, no poles this time) or perched upon picturesque boulders. Oh yeah, this is the kind of nature we disc golfers pine for, big time.

Not many holes really favor the big arm golfer in the classic sense, noodle arms are welcome b/c it favors a precision game. As long as you can throw downhill, the longer holes aren't much of a problem. All the holes have very defined fairways that will become even more so with use. Great variety, and I believe some legit par 4's might be here.

The course is easy to navigate thanks to all the orange tape denoting the paths.

Well, it's new. So the tees are natural, only present thanks to pink flags in the ground. The transitions from tee to basket on some holes, especially the first 4 or so, are pretty steep and rough with just little goat paths weaving through the tremendous amount of weeds, tall grass and briers accompanying these holes. There's still some fallen branches that need to be tossed aside and some baskets could use some nearby saplings cut away to create more of a putting green.

The rough can be extremely so, if you toss your disc in the brier filled mess on holes 1-4 you can almost kiss it goodbye. I hope they clear a bit of this out, if anything just to give you less areas to look for your disc.

There's a painfully long walk from hole 12-13. Also, 18 doesn't really dump you near the parking lot either.

My rating will only go up as this course matures. It's a definite contender for 4 disc category. It's Stumpy meets Nevin, a Reedy Creek on 'roid rage, a Barber Park except designed well. A lot of the holes around the creek remind me of Barber Park's back 9 except better scenery and better hole variety.

Hole 18 is one of the best finishing holes in the state. Holes 9 and 12 have gorgeous pin placements (rocky outcrops). Hole 9 will probably have a mando, it's meant to be played kind of like a long fishhook, but you can cut half of the fairway out by tossing a thumber through a window in the treeline on the left. If I could putt I would have 3'd it rather easily.

Another quality course in the Queen City, you've got to be kidding me.