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Chattanooga, TN

The Narrows

2.635(based on 4 reviews)
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13 0
Sharknado2
Silver level trusted reviewer
Experience: 34 played 34 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Just as full of potential as it is full of frustration

Reviewed: Played on:Jan 22, 2024 Played the course:once

Pros:

- A variety of hole lengths, some really short chippers like 1, 8 and 18. But then 600+ holes like 2, 5 and 13.
- Lots of gaps to hit to really challenge the player
- Some cool hole shapes, some straight as an arrow and some really dramatic dog leg shapes (like 90 degree plus bends)
- The course puts a premium on staying in the fairway above all else because the rough is so thick
- It's a true challenge. If you're an advanced or pro level player looking for a challenge then this course has the potential to be really satisfying for you
- A good portion of these holes are challenging but fair. And there are even a few breather holes that are 275' or less and don't have crazy narrow gaps where you can steal some strokes back
- The teepads with their turf surface were a highlight. Good grip and very level.

Cons:

- It was difficult to even make it to the first hole--I parked behind a closed gate 500'+ away and bushwhacked only to realize I could have just parked at the sinks and then walked from the hole 18 tee pad. So there's a helpful tip.
- This course is obviously still super new and the rough is far from broken in. If you're more than 3-5' off the fairway you're gonna have almost nothing and you'll just have to pitch back to the middle. Add to that brambles, thorns, and high disc losing potential and it goes from being a challenge to just a massive inconvenience.
- Navigation is really tricky and even with a Udisc map and some signs here or there pointing to the next hole I still got lost a few times. I think the next hole signs need to be more prominent, different colored, etc.
- Some layout inefficiencies where you backtrack down the fairway of a hole from the green to get to the path to the next hole. Could be greatly improved with paths cut from the green to the next hole.\
- There is no world in which hole 13, a three, almost four shot dog leg hole at 761', could be considered a par 4. Holes 2 and 5 are both 600+ par 4's that technically work length wise but the fairways are so ridiculously narrow that they really feel more like par 5's. Even if they move up to par 5, holes 2 and 5 are just so narrow that they are almost unplayable.
- Without clear tee signs showing the layout there's really no way play this course well your first time out without walking each hole where the basket isn't visible. Between that and the difficult navigation, be prepared to have a frustrating round if you're playing this alone for your first time.
- While there are a few shorter "breather holes", the course is missing one or two more open holes for variety. Hole 3 is a good example, it's relatively more open than the rest of the course and a bit longer at 400' for a par 3. The fact that it doesn't have longer and more open holes holds it back from having really high level tournament potential.

Other Thoughts:

After playing the Sinks a couple times while visiting Chattanooga I wanted to mix it up so I went for The Narrows. This course has amazing potential no doubt. But the course is far from broken in, lacks clear signage for navigation and hole scouting, and even reaching it from a parking lot is confusing.

Ultimately I'm just not sure who this course is for. Is it supposed be a AAA pro level course for A-tier+ events? If so then it's lacking amenities, open bomber holes, and a safe and streamlined layout from hole to hole. Is it just supposed to be the "narrow" younger sibling of the sinks that will host smaller local tournaments? If so, the course is way too hard for any division below MA1 to play a round in under 3+ hours and without a ton of frustration.

With proper signs, a more efficient layout, another open hole or two, and some serious breaking in the ceiling is high. Honestly could go as high as 4 stars. But with the current limitations it is still a pretty frustrating round, even if you're 950+ rated and consistent with gap hitting.
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19 0
wellsbranch250
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 10.3 years 658 played 638 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Sinking Confidence

Reviewed: Played on:Sep 10, 2023 Played the course:once

Pros:

(3.093 Rating) A Masochistic Woods Course.
- CHALLENGING - The Narrows course, thru and thru, is a line threading gauntlet course. Players that can routinely throw even par here, deserve a sponsorship. The first hole out of the gates is not indicative of the demands that the next 16 holes will require. Hole (2) was a punch in the face, to both me and my playing partner. (2) requires skills I apparently don't have. As an MA2, I could throw hole (2) 100 times and never birdie it. It's a snakey plus 600-foot par 4 with numerous pinch points. I ended up with a +4 for the round and felt great about it. Finishing 2 or 3 down might even bring a 1000 rated round, or so.
- UNREFINED BEAUTY - I personally enjoyed the untamed wild nature of the course. Other than traffic noise along a couple holes, the course felt 100 percent detached from the built environment. I felt peace and tranquility at the many tee seating areas while watching my cardmate continuously execute flawless tree aces. 😊 I scored the beauty aspect roughly 60 percentile. The flatness, lack of water and spots of old trash keeps it from going any higher.
- HOLE VARIETY - Someone could argue that this woods course offers only woods play, and they'd be right, but there are enough switch-ups in this aspect that I thought overall the variety was better than the average course. First off, great hole distance variation. From sub 200 to plus 700. There are par 4s here and even a par 5. The par 5, hole (13), is a double dogleg right. I don't ever recall playing a hole like it. Hole (3) is a tough dogleg left par 4 that needs a correctly distanced tee shot. The par 3s break both ways and some also finish straight. Elements that the course is missing include, big elevation change, water and boring wide-open holes.
- SOME AMENITIES - Newly installed average sized turf pads were present. I would have liked a little more room on a bunch of them, but they were level and worked well enough I guess. There are a bunch of benches at the tees, which were used several times during my round. Since the course is next to the Sinks, the course thus has access to a practice area, driving range and porta-potty.

Cons:

Too much bite, too many times.
- BEGINNER FRIENDLY - Anyone who brings a friend here for their first round ever, will be going home friendless. In my portfolio of 632 courses played, less than 5 have been both at least this tight, and at least this long at the same time. I was at times digging the brutalness, but this will be Nightmare on Elm Street to players with less than 50 rounds in the bag.
- UNRELENTING - I thought a couple holes were perhaps too insane to ever score well. I've already noted hole (2), but holes (5) and (13) are also both very tough pars. Excluding (1) and (18), there are no easy gets. One's accuracy and mental fortitude will be fully tested.
- RAW - The course was just over a year old when I played it. It's going to take years for this course to beat in well. There are tons of dead branches and tree debris scattered almost everywhere. Lots of toe smashing mini stumps and even a few rocks. Players that enjoy courses with ball golf styled pampered lawns might hate this place.
- NAVIGATION AND SIGNAGE - Proper signs were not in yet, but there were hole number markings using wood at most tees. No course map was posted yet either. I would assume that these omissions are coming soon. My partner and I made a couple navigational errors even with using a nav app.

Other Thoughts:

I liked the savage flavor that The Narrows delivered, but I know this would not be the case for some players. Players that enjoy easy breezy lemon squeezy disc golf, should not add this place to their wish list. To those that have played The Sinks before and thought that that was a bit too hairy, they should also avoid it, as this one is even more over the top on that aspect. To the adrenaline junkies that like heavy woods disc golf, I do recommend checking it out. As is, a 3.0 course to me with a half point of growth potential with a ton of work. It reminded me of courses such as Bear's Den near Traverse City, Blue Angel Pines in Pensacola, Whispering Pines North of Tampa and Dog River near Atlanta if it were flat.
- THANK YOU - A big thanks to my friend RocketCityRedd for driving me here. I was car-less on this day, and he picked up my bagging torch and we hit 3 courses on this mini roadtrip. This being the first of the 3. Thanks Redd!
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15 0
Moose33
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 12.4 years 216 played 213 reviews
2.50 star(s)

True to its name

Reviewed: Played on:Jun 4, 2023 Played the course:once

Pros:

The Sinks has been Chattanooga's premier disc golf destination since before I was playing and when I heard there was a second 18 hole course on the property I had to drag a buddy out there to try it with me.

I was familiar with the Sinks but as we struggled to find hole 1 we asked a local who said, "the narrows? No this is the sinks" with a confused expression.

We found hole 1 without his help.

The course is true to its name and tightly wooded, and though hole 1 and 18 and maybe 1 more are sub 250, but this is mainly a longer course with 20-40 foot wide fairways and some very sharp doglegs and hairpin turns.

I like some of the lines and I think I could shoot decent on it after trying it, and some of the shot shapes are really interesting.

Pads are all turf on concrete or just concrete, and grip well.

Chainstars seem to have been repurposed from elsewhere but they catch well and look decent.

You get to work on all kinds of shots here, you need minimum 4 shot shapes off the tee.

Cons:

It's probably still a little too tight for how long some holes are and there aren't tee signs or maps yet to help you navigate the many blind holes. And the Udisc map isn't that good yet.

Navigation is also erratic. We got through 7 no problem and then accidentally skipped to 10, but didn't notice until after because there are no tee signs.

There are a few next tee signs, but we need more.

The course is fun and should be a 3-3.5 but it's still feels raw. You're tripping over recently cut stumps, and brush a lot and if you go off the fairway good luck.

I only did once but the course graciously provide me with a +2 on that hole for my troubles.

Other Thoughts:

I want to like it, I like so many things about it and at times had a ton of fun. At others I felt miserable and when we got lost on the way to hole 13 and ended up at the Sinks I almost said screw it, let's just pick the other course up here.

With signs and better navigation it's a 3. If it ever gets played enough to get broken in well, 3.5 is possible. But despite a full parking lot, we had it to ourselves.
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23 0
Cerealman
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Premium Member
Experience: 15.8 years 588 played 178 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Still straight and narrow but also cleaner

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Feb 23, 2024 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

After 17 years as the lone course in the Dupont Park complex, Chattanooga's iconic wooded layout known as The Sinks got a little brother named The Narrows.

Except this brother is bigger and meaner.

The Narrows shares a parking lot with The Sinks, complete with its driving range and practice basket. The Narrows was built on an unused portion of land on the west side of the park just a few disc throws from the Tennessee River. There's an access path near the Hole #16 basket of The Sinks, and visitors to The Narrows will be welcomed by a sign using an appropriately-slender font.

Thanks to dedication by several members of the Chattanooga disc golf community, the teepads are fantastic. The teepads are green turf on top of concrete; currently, they're very flat and in excellent condition.

The Narrows lives up to its name. If you like extremely technical disc golf, you're in luck, as all but two holes demand hitting a specific gap shortly off the tee. While many of the holes require a straight throw initially, several of the holes require some left or right movement after the gap. Combined with elevation on several holes, the lines offer enough diversity for the holes to not seem similar.

Holes #1 and #18 provide a gentle start and ending to the course. Both holes are about 200 feet to an elevated basket. The walking conditions are better on these holes too.

The holes include a rustic bench that fits the feel of the course.

The ground condition at The Narrows has been much improved in the last year. The fairways have been cleaned up, greatly improving the traversability and making the course more cart friendly, though there will still be a few downed logs to navigate. Also, the design of Hole #13 was previously a bit questionable, but the fairway has been considerably cleaned up and the nearly 800-foot-long hole is now a reasonable par 5.

Cons:

Course conditions are still quite difficult if your throw ventures off the straight and narrow, as the rough is incredibly thick and punitive. Scrambling will be extremely challenging and some drives will end up in shoddy lies that are nearly unplayable. You probably won't incorporate many rollers or skip shots into your shot selection.

If the course name didn't telegraph its challenge, you'll quickly realize how demanding this layout is. Thanks to the narrow lines, the slightest of tree kicks may send your disc into rough. Many of the lines appear to have been a narrow walking path through the woods and they were not enlarged much for the course. One disc golfer critiqued the course with a warning and promise: "not for beginners ... you will lose discs."

Several of the holes have ridiculous lines that struggle to fit the normal flight of a disc. Hole #2 is about 550 feet long and requires a sharp right-turn shortly off the tee, then navigating a long fairway with just enough fluctuation in the tree lines that it's difficult to bite it off and get anywhere close to the basket. The twists and turns means it plays like a par 5; but it's a difficult par 4, and making par will feel like a million dollars.

Hole #3 is another strange design. The widest path is about 300 feet straight ahead, and then a 90-degree left-turn for a couple hundred feet before gently turning the corner to the basket. However, there's also a narrow shortcut option about 250 feet from the teepad that requires a precise landing zone to access. From the sky, this hole design would look like a lowercase q, which probably stands for "quirky."

There are few teepad signs at The Narrows. There are several twisting paths through the woods to get to the next hole and while it might be easy for a first-timer to get lost in the woods if they didn't have a map, the well-worn paths are helping with navigation.

The only water on the course is sporadic. There's an area on Hole #16 that can fill after the rains and force a 200-foot-plus carry over shallow waters.

There's still some long-term garbage around the course. On my most recent round, I spotted a busted computer monitor hanging out in a tree just off the fairway of Hole #5.

Other Thoughts:

With the noticeable clean-up, The Narrows is closer to matching the smooth playing surface of the course next door.

It's still a difficult play, especially from the rough, but in its current condition, The Narrows has earned an upgrade in its rating.
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