Rock Rest Elementary is a course that is reminiscent of the old saying, "Don't judge a book by its cover." What initially appears to be 9 DISCatcher baskets and 9 tee signs in a field, turns out to be a well conceived beginner course that makes use of the limited resources available on the land.

For a course built on a relatively flat piece of land, a lot of thought has gone into how to best utilize any available elevation. Not only are there holes that are slight uphill/downhill tee shots, but Hole 3's basket is on the edge of a gentle ditch creating what would be a risky green for an elementary school student. Hole 8 even has an elevated basket, further adding to the three dimensional play of the course. Smartly there are little steps so the students can retrieve their discs.

The course also utilizes the few trees available really well with gaps that should be hit, trees to be thrown around, to even a tree lined fairway on Hole 4. For more experienced players, some of the gaps (such as the one on Hole 8) can be avoided by throwing over the trees, but this can be fun as well.

The course ends with an excellent view of the pretty retention pond out front. Hole 9's basket isn't too far away from a stone lined ditch that leads into the pond. Fortunately, it would take an incredibly errant shot, and a bigger arm than this course is really catered to, to clear the fence and land in the water.

Rock Rest Elementary's most glaring con, other than suffering from the same woes as other Elementary School courses, is that it is so far removed from all of the surrounding towns/cities. Unless you are a local or are driving from Wingate to Monroe, you'd be driving a long way out of your way to play here. There would likely be courses closer to you that offer a similar, if not better experience. The course was designed with beginners in mind, and has done an excellent job in that regard, but there is little incentive for more experienced players to make the trip out to play this course, other than checking it off their list.

There may be a fun safari layout here for more experienced players that locals might find fun. (For instance, I thought Hole 6's tee to Hole 8's basket looked like a fun, downhill, multi shot hole that ends with an elevated basket.) However most of these options would likely struggle to truly spice up the holes outside of wide open distance.

I had more fun playing Rock Rest Elementary than I expected to have. There was a light layer of snow on the ground, which could have added to my enjoyment of the course, but I left earnestly glad that I had driven out to play here. While it isn't a course I expect typical golfers to travel for, any locals or course baggers who do wind up here, will be treated with a fun, well thought out beginner course. For all of the aforementioned reasons, I am giving it a 1.5 rating. This is an excellent beginner/practice course for those living nearby.

Favorite Holes: 4 & 8

Forty minutes east of downtown Charlotte, Rock Rest Elementary feels like you're in a completely different world than the metro region. The terrain here gives you more of a sense of farmlands than a typical Charlotte course. Yet, despite its simplicity, this is a fun layout.
- Exceeded expectations. The course is far better than it should be. Driving into the parking lot, I essentially saw a bunch of baskets in a field. The course designer (Jeremy Ryder, who's also designed two other school courses in Union County) seemingly used every single obstacle that was available.
- Perfect execution of the 'less is more' mentality. The few trees that are in the field seem to all come into play. That ranges from throwing around or under trees on #1 and 2, throwing through gaps on #6, 7, and 8, and throwing through a tree lined fairway (or throwing a wide sweeping shot) on #4. The minimal elevation also creates slight upshots on #5 or downhill on #7 and 8.
- This is an outstanding course to introduce beginners to the game, especially children. The trees present just enough challenge to make holes all seemingly different. This is a short layout with an average hole length of 183 feet. And, there's almost no chance of losing a disc, unless you throw a disc extremely far left on #9.
- Good course for practice and safari hole layouts. For example throw from #1 to 3's basket. Play #5 to #7's basket; play #6 to #9.
- Easy flow to the course. #9's basket isn't too far from the first tee. If you park in the front lot, just start playing on #3 and finish with #2.
- Good course for ace runs as well. Taking a bag of putters and mid-range discs, set up your tripod, and start firing at the basket. It shouldn't take too long to get one on tape.

I played it shortly after the course was listed as open. At that time, there were no tee markers other than spray paint on the ground. The UDisc app was spot on so I found each tee without a problem.
- No bathrooms, water fountains, or trash cans. It is an elementary school, so be respectful when here. That also means the course isn't available until late afternoons on school days.
- The course is out of the way. For most locals, you're only heading this far east (on either 74 or 601) if you're headed to the beach. Otherwise, for the disc golfers, you're driving 25 minutes past Dry Creek or 15 minutes past Bearskin Creek to bag this one.
- For better players, course is overly simplistic. That's a sign this course wasn't built for you. Sure, a couple holes could easily have an additional 100 feet of length. Maybe long tees will be installed one day. In the meantime, enjoy what's here.
- Tee signs would be nice eventually. As would a basic sign at the first tee.

Rock Rest is excellent for what it is. You'd be hard pressed to improve on its layout with this available land.
- This is a wonderful reminder of how you can have a high quality, simple layout course. Creating fake challenges, making each hole 100 feet longer, or trying to mess with the layout would actually take away from this appeal. If you know what you can offer, offer that. Some excellent restaurants only serve a handful of items. They know what they're good at and they stay in their lane.
- This is good for a quick round. I finished in less than 20 minutes and threw extra tee shots on a number of holes. I also had a long walk parking in the front lot, then starting at the first hole.
- I really liked holes #7 & 8. Both holes are flat for the first 2/3 of the layout. Once you're close to the putting circle, both have a slight dip towards the basket. Both holes have several trees creating options to throw over or around to make a run at the baskets. #7 is the better of the two, IMO.
- For short, kid-friendly courses, this is one of the best I've played. This layout could easily have gone wrong if someone tried to overcomplicate the design. A job well done.