(4.195 Rating with a cart, 3.920 without a cart) The former number one rated course on DGCR. A spot I doubt it will ever obtain again.
- OVERVIEW - Before I begin the pros, I want to disclose a few things. First, I did not get a golf cart. I threw the Lakeside course second, and I threw from the short tee layout. The conditions were not good when I played, but for my evaluation I have decided to ignore the unkempt conditions and assume that I caught a rare bad day. The reason I have given two scores, is because the carts likely make a huge difference.
- HOLE VARIETY - Lakeside has all the variety that was achievable. Short par 3s and long par 5s. Water on the left and water on the right. Island greens, water clears and stop short of water plays. Unlike Creekside, this course actually has a nice section of wooded holes. I will say however, that the wooded holes, other than (14) and (15) are rather plain jane and the type of wooded holes that are present on courses I rate at the 3.0 level. Despite this, still superb variety overall and a fantastic mix of gameplay elements. I ranked the variety here into my personal top 15 as of this review.
- SIGNATURE HOLES - Hole (7) is one of the most killer holes I have ever played. Even in poor unkempt conditions it looked fabulous. Without question I would put it into my personal top ten holes ever played. Perilous water along the left the whole way. Landing zone and placement requirements on the hole were both fun and exhilarating. The end of (7) was just stunning with the big island green with 5-foot drop-offs along all the edges. Dear new owners, please maintain this gem of a hole! Holes (4 and 15) were also stellar. I no longer keep track of my personal top 100 holes, but I'm sure these two would be in it or close. (4) is another long water hole where placement is paramount. I played two far left safe shots before attempting the fun water clear. Hole (15) on the other hand is the best wooded hole on the layout and it's blessed with a perched-up tee shot and water along the right. I agree with the previous reviewer that Lakeside has more top caliber holes of the duo, but also has more vanilla ones.
- GOLF CARTS - I highly recommend getting a golf cart. I firmly believe it elevates the experience quite a bit. Reviewers may be tacking on a ½ point of rating score just for this bonus item, perhaps without even realizing it. Those that get a cart will be able to avoid the many long transitions and be less impacted if the grass is longer than it should be. One will be able to speed away from nuisance mosquitos and bugs. There will always be a place to sit in the shade, a place to set a bag and opportunities to sling-shot out your daydreaming friend which a surprise hard left turn.
- RAW BEAUTY - Ignoring the unkempt conditions, this place is breathtaking. The feature lake comes into play 5 times. As noted, this one actually has a decent stretch of woods golf to enjoy. Overall, I have this gem right at about the 25th slot for beauty among the 550 courses I've played as of this review. Had I played this course in its hey-day, I probably would have had it in my top ten, but construction has ruined a couple of holes, see cons.
- CHALLENGING - I think the Creekside Blues are tougher than the Lakeside Blues, but this one is still going to challenge a large swath of the player population. As noted above, I threw the shorter Red tees, but I still looked at almost every Blue tee-off location. As an Intermediate, I'm fairly certain that I would be able to break par from time to time, but also have days where I'd be +5 or worse. Pros and higher Advanced players are going to finish well under par.
- AMENITIES AND EXTRAS - There are two big concrete tees on every hole. DISCatcher baskets and also acceptable signage, which I'll discuss further just below. Pro shop on site, restrooms, disc return bins and a place to stay for those that want to throw away more money.
- SIGNAGE AND NAVIGATION - The greens fee includes a scorecard with map which is very helpful. A big course map is posted before arriving at tee (1). There are tee signs at both tee locations and they provide all the info that is needed. The tee signs are plus ten years old now, one was missing, and another was lying on the ground. I would say that the tee signs are in need of a full replacement. The baskets also could use an arrow or some other type of indicator to help with directing next tee flow.
- STAFF - I spoke with Mike to reserve a tee time a week before my trip. He was kind and laid out how everything worked and the costs. The check in staff (Braylee?) was also kind and courteous.

A gem not getting the love it once did.
- GREENS FEE AND LACK OF MAINTENANCE - I am very much ok with shelling out money for a greens fee. The 25 dollars I paid here is the most I've ever paid as of this review. Even if I cut it in half, it's still $12.50 for each course, which is more than pay-to-play courses like the IDGC trio and Rollin Ridge. The part that didn't sit well with me about the fee, was that the course was not being maintained. Off the course, the maintenance was outstanding. Beautifully trimmed and landscaped gardens. On the course itself, it appeared that nothing had been touched in 2 to 3 weeks. Although the maintenance was not quite as bad as Creekside overall, the grass here in the fairways and greens were still consistently 8 to 10 inches high outside the wooded areas. Why am I paying a greens fee if no work is being done? That's what a greens fee is. Half of the baskets are leaning too. Signage is deteriorating. I played 15 courses on this road trip and the fairway and green condition at Lakeside was the second worst after Selah Creekside. The other 13 courses I played on this trip were all free courses.
- RUINED HOLES - Hole (10) is completely ruined. A new house was built on top of where the old tee was. I equate this to grabbing a piece of fine art and then using it as toilet paper. Hole (5) is ruined as well. Much of the woods along the left are now gone and in its place is a brand new ugly metal storage building.
- GOLF CART COST - A 50 dollar cost for a cart rental is stupid high. I researched the rates at the golf courses around me and its normally 20 to 25 dollars extra to ride.
- LOST DISC POTENTIAL - It'll be higher than normal to lose a disc here compared to the average course. As noted, water is in play five times. There are far less prairie style holes on this one compared to Creekside, but there still could be some searching on errant shots on holes (1) and (16). Bring some floaters and throw-aways.
- BEGINNER FRIENDLY - Please don't bring a new player here. They will lose your discs and really not get much out of it. Novice level players will likely love the Red tee layout.
- PARKING - There is no dedicated parking by the start of this layout. I asked the staff and they said it was ok to park on the grass, which felt weird as I was the only one parked there the entire time I was on this layout.

This former number one rated course on DGCR is officially way past its peak in my opinion. Two holes have already been significantly ruined and it does not appear to be being kept up other than periodic mowing. This is the seventh course I've played in the DGCR top 25 (Rollin Ridge, Idlewild, Harmon Hills, Creekside, Hobbs and Whitetail) and I'd rank it sixth among those seven. Just a hair above Creekside. I could definitely see some reviewers rating Creekside above Lakeside. For one thing, the pair are slightly different styles as Lakeside is half wooded, while Creekside is almost entirely lightly wooded. Second thing, Lakeside has been permanently damaged with the new construction. The reason I have Lakeside a smidge higher is due to the three bombshell holes and it still offers better overall gameplay variety. Despite the downgrades, Lakeside is still a gem of a course, perhaps still a fringe top 100 course and at least top 200 course material in my opinion. Note, a top 200 course is 98 percentile. Anyways, overall I'm going with a strong 4.0. If we rated by quarters of a point, I'd give it a 4.25. I'd say there is potential to get back to the 4.5 level if they bulldoze or burn-down the shameful house on top of hole (10). I'd pay the $75 course fee to watch that happen.
- TIME PLAY - It took me 75 minutes without a cart solo. I think a cart would have shaved off 15 minutes.

Terrific variety of holes: big distance, tight lines, awesome water carries, tricky elevation. Everything you could ask for in a top level course.

The hole design here is top notch; the property available is staggeringly generous, with so much to work with. A beautiful example of the nature in this part of the country.

Hole 4 and Hole 15 are in my dream 18.

Hole 4 is a par 5 that easily plays alongside the lake, with the classic Houck two-options, a certainly dry left wooded line or a wide open line on the right that's closer to the water. The best part of the hole is the approach to the green however, where hopefully you've gotten just in front of the swamp marsh so you have secured footing to throw a 200' approach to a green with the basket on a slight grade. There's a good backstop there but you can skip long, the real play is to land right on the other side of the water and slide up to the basket...if you've got that touch.

Par 5 Hole 15 plays downhill through a narrow gap, hopefully landing pretty straight in a clear patch of grass so you can throw a left to right throw into a tighter fairway sloping downhill. The second throw takes you deeper into the woods on the right with an easy approach that bends to the left to the basket just against some really rough rough.

Of course Hole 7 is an extraordinary hole with two water carries including to a beautiful island. However my frustration at all the discs I continue to lose on it has yet to turn to begrudging respect, although I'm sure it will in time!

The continued development of the property has forced some of the holes to shift. Hole 10 no longer has a teepad, and Hole 5 was crowded with construction vehicles the last time I played.

The construction has also led to a lot of standing water which is fertile ground for some of the worse mosquitos I've felt with while disc golfing. Despite their wonderful design and tight lines, Holes 5 and 6, and 9-14 are miserable to play due to the incessant biting, you want to get them over with as fast as possible.

And the development also comes at the expense of really feeling like I'm surrounded by nature. Instead it feels a little like I'm sneaking around people's property and interrupting their privacy.

Call ahead to reserve a spot, DG is definitely not their priority here and you should let them know you're coming so they can have someone there to check you in. There's a pro shop kind of but it's not really ever open. There are bathrooms and showers there to clean off afterwards. It costs $25 per person per day. There are also carts to rent but I've never used them. They sure do push them on you but I wonder how functional they are to navigate some of the holes, I feel like they'd get stuck in the mud or some of the narrow wooded holes. I don't know, I guess they're helpful with such a long course on a hot day if you're in poor physical condition?

With the two courses on the property and the wonderful variety of challenging holes, it's absolutely worth a trip in the spring and fall when it's cool. However the construction along Lakeside in particular has worsened a good set of holes in the middle of the course and prevent it from being a 5 star course in my opinion. Lakeside has better top holes than Creekside but I think I prefer Creekside over all as it's a little more natural and consistently great.

The lack of traffic, (I live a reasonable drive away and have yet to see another DGer play here at the same time I'm here), the continued development, the rebranding to Pure Hope Ranch, all make me fear for this course's future. Visit it while you can because three of the holes are absolute dream holes and the experience sans mosquitos will be one you treasure for a while.

Everything is bigger in Texas - if you rent a golf cart, as I did, you get a nice off-road cart to travel the course.

- The pro shop was nice and the course maps were handy.
- Some nice water hazard shots especially #2, #4 and #7.
- Lots of risk versus reward type of shots.
- There were actually some short birdie opportunities which was a nice change of pace.
- Good level of challenge here.
- Well maintained course.

Sorry, but this is not a top 5 course - maybe not even top 10?

- Very little elevation. I love uphill, downhill, sidehill type of shots and there was almost no real elevation that comes into play.
- I paid $64 which included the cart and my player fee, this is astronomically high considering I played for 2 hours.
- No benches on the course, I get it - they expect people to be on golf carts, but if you are walking you better bring a tripod chair.
- Lost 2 discs in the water, no big deal really but they were not friendly when I emailed (we get thousands out every spring, you might get a call and we charge to return them).
- There's just not that much variety here, long shots, some dog legs, some water.
- Honestly the off-road golf cart was more fun than the disc golf, and I think that's a problem.

Would I play this course again? Yes.

Do I think this course is rated unfairly high because most of the folks playing it haven't played outside of Texas? Yes.

If you're passing through the area and have half a day, play this course. It is not a top 5 course if you appreciate variety of shots and varied terrain (elevation).

Harmon Hills (TN) and Idlewild (KY) are 2 courses I have played that are more deserving of being in top 5. Harmon Hills is about the most fun you can have playing disc golf with lots of challenge and varied terrain. Idlewild is the most challenging disc golf course out there from what I've seen and it is very well maintained.

- Excellent GOLD level course with a good variety of shots and use of water. I found myself enjoying every hole as a unique challenge.
- Solid tee pads and signage for both blue/red positions, Discatcher baskets gobbled up putts and were easily visible.
- Beautiful property, many holes look really cool over the water
- Easy to navigate with the provided scorecard maps

- No benches, and remember these are LONG courses
- Not much elevation change
- *Some* of the staff extremely rude (most were nice)

When we played the course was in poor condition due to rain, which made two 9,000 ft rounds extra grueling as carts were not allowed. From strictly course layout I'd rate this 4.5/5, but with the lack of amenities there are many courses that do more than Selah. Of the 4 Trey/Selah courses we thought this was 2nd best to Trey Deuce.

This is a really solid course. Most holes are good or great. There is good use of water shots and the course does a good job of making you throw a lot of different distances and angles. Several holes have great scoring separation and utilize risk reward which I applaud.

The course is long and walkable regardless of what the staff at the Ranch tell you. I walked both courses back to back and was tired but certainly not exhausted.

Tee pads and signs are very nice and the course was very clean. No graffiti or trash which is always nice.

My favorite thing about this course was the back and forth between wooded and open holes and the demand for throwing every shot in you repertoire.

The property is beautiful and is really something special that our sport could use more of.

As long as this course is, it desperately needs distance markers on some of the longer holes (the island par 5 and the long downhill par 5 on the back 9 stand out in particular).

For what it costs to play I would like to have seen some cool features that distance this course from the rest (rock green, elevated green, etc.). This is a really good course but it is missing that special touch that would make it great.

I had a really good time playing this course. Im not a huge fan of hole 2's landing zone on the drive but for the most part this course is really good. I would like to see that extra 5% of work to make this course better but the way it sits is still pretty good. I don't think this is the best course in the country (it doesn't make my top 5). That being said I still think it ranks high and is a must play if you are in the area.

Pro shop with a limited selection means that some discs can be replaced. I do not mean to sound like I'm damning this amenity with faint praise, given that most courses I've played over the years don't even have a pro shop. I just don't want people thinking they'll find hundreds of different molds available.

The challenge factor is high here despite the flatness of the area.

Baskets, teepads, etc are all in good shape.

There are many holes where water comes into play without having to carry over water. For me these holes are more intimidating as they tax the end of my shot rather than the beginning. Placement is more important than power, and I enjoy the pressure this causes.

The price. Let's be honest, this is the elephant in the room. $20 for all day access may be a little steep, but I could live with it. However, the course is designed in such a fashion that you almost have to pay the $40 cart rental fee, which is way over the top. I pay way less at a golf course to drive their cart farther. I'm not sure who came up with the price point on this one, but it really bothers me.

There is very little elevation change, although I didn't deduct for that as the designer cannot work with what he does not have.


For $60 a day I would really like to see some jugs of water out on the course the way one does on golf courses.

Maybe I'm nuts, but I enjoyed Creekside more than Lakeside. I waited until I'd played both courses several times and from both sets of tees to write this thinking I'd change my mind, but at the end of the day I'd really like to be able to rate this course a 4.5 and Creekside a 4.75, but working within the system we have I want to rate both courses fairly, but show my preference for Creekside.

Both Selah courses are quite good, but at the end of the day it feels like someone pulled out a checklist labled "Things a good disc golf course needs" and started building. The is kind of a sterile feel that is much more evident on Lakeside than Creekside. Maybe it's the gimmicky island green on 7, or maybe it's the way a couple holes feel forced to play near the lake when they would play better to a different location. I'm not sure what it is that turns me off so much about Lakeside, but at the end of the day I know I won't be dying to play here despite how technically excellent this course is.