Pros:
I didn't know what to expect when arriving at Side Lake today. Literally no idea since there were no reviews for it. Plus it was a little out of my way. Boy am I glad I decided to make the trip. This is a hidden little gem of a course. And it looks to be improving every day, judging by the pics on here.
The baskets are a mix of Discatchers and older Mach II's or III's. The front nine features one of each kind on each hole if I remember correctly. There might have been one hole on the front nine with only one. The back nine holes all feature a single Discatcher. These are all mounted level and catch well enough. Nicely done here.
The tee signs are fantastic now. The pictures on here show some basic hand carved wood signs. That's not the case anymore. The signs now are probably 1'x2' metal signs attached to metal sign posts. These are really well done. They feature the hole # in big, bold black font, anice detailed hole overview map showing both tees and pin placements. They also have the distances from each tee to each pin and the elevation change for each tee/pin combo. Oh, and there are next tee arrows on them too. They literally have all the information on them that you could ask for.
The tees are black rubber mats. There's 2 of them on the majority of holes, which is always a plus.
Navigation here is a breeze. I only had to check the map one time during my round. There are next tee arrows on the majority of the holes too, even when it's pretty obvious where you need to go next.
There's a solid mix of different shot shapes required to score well here. You'll need to pull out all the tricks, especially if you end up off the fairway. The elevation, while not overwhelming, is prevalent throughout and incorporated into the design very well. Just a very well designed track in general. Very impressed by this one.
The course offers a fair challenge for rec up to advanced players, depending on tee/pin combinations.
The course is permanent, clean, secluded and free to play.
Cons:
The rough off the fairways can be pretty hairy in a number of areas. Not really a con per se, but the potential for lost plastic is there. Worth noting.
The tee pads are the number one con right now. The rubber mats are lumpy and very narrow. The length is fine but many are only about 3' wide. They also tend to hold water. Granted we played after some heavy rain, but many of them aren't going to see much, if any sunlight. And with how narrow they are, you don't have much for options of where to tee off from.
It would be cool if there was a second basket on the back nine, but that's being really nitpicky on my end.
Other Thoughts:
I'm so glad I decided to check this course out. It's right up my alley. Holes 1 and 18 are wide open but the rest is tough, technical woods golf. And it's a blast.
I can't call this a destination course or anything but if you're ever in the area I'd highly recommend this one. It's just not quite a 4 in my eyes. With concrete tees, especially 2 sets on each hole it's an absolute 4. As is, it's still absolutely worth a visit. If you like woods golf this one won't disappoint.