Mostly squeezed into a small area behind a large baptist church off Beltway 8 in the south of Houston, this course offers a lot with a little. There are a lot of short holes through some trees that at first seem like poke-and-*pray* (badum-tsh), you can move around the tee post to find a good line (there's no specifically designated throwing area, so I went for the most fun shot).

Most of the course, or at least a lot of it, plays in this small area between the main building and what looks like some storage facilities/back meeting area. In this little area are some hills, a pond, and trees. Even a very muddy creek. The rest of the course plays through a big field.

The holes are a mix of short and long. Some very short, some long 'tweeners that they went ahead and called a 4 but you shouldn't have a hard time getting a three as long as you can find the basket.

Navigation was pretty easy once you pick a starting a hole. I started at 9 because it was right by the parking lot. But hole 1 and hole 10 start by 9's basket, so if you want to start on hole 1 just walk hole 9 first. Or do whatever you want. I'm not your real dad.

Oh, baskets are brand new Mach V's.

Sadly this course feels like it kind of cheats you, because the "18 holes" are basically 9 holes played backward and forwards. To me that's a huge con. I'd rather see 9 great holes than a mix and mash Frankenstein course. I could see a 3.0 course in this land if it was devoted to 9 good holes instead of 3 or 4 good holes, and a lot of forced holes.

There's no tee's, just a pole with signs on it with par and distance. There are two tee signs per hole, and they face in the direction of the corresponding basket. I kept finding myself wanting more though. The poles were always very close to a basket, within circle 1, sometimes within just a few steps.

Overall length is still pretty short, but it's nothing compared to:

The hazards. Playing close to buildings, and walkways, in a garden that looks like an otherwise great place to sit and chill, is probably not a big issue since it's on a private property and no one will really just be hanging out there all the time. The bigger deal is playing straight across a parking lot (towards the road on one of the back and forths). Even on Christmas, there were cars and big rigs between the tee pole and the basket. I just can't imagine why it was decided that was a good idea.

I gave this course a 1.5 because I do think there are enough holes to make it Passable. I would go back with a buddy and play this course, though it probably wouldn't be my first choice.

But as the title says, something is better than nothing and I am very grateful that this church put something out there to let people throw some plastic. Coming in from out of town with a coworker, I had a lot of time to kill before the rest of my family got back from our various places around the country, and this Baptist church gave me something for my dogs and I to do for an hour in the morning. And I would definitely have this cute but problematic course than none at all.