Johnson City, TN

Winged Deer Park

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3.445(based on 44 reviews)
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1 1
DBdiscgolf
Experience: 13.7 years 12 played 7 reviews
3.00 star(s)

2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:May 20, 2011 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

The course starts out great. The first 5 holes are realy good, and some others( 7,8,12) are also pretty good. A few holes that you can realy let your disc fly. Good signs.

Cons:

This course is NOT well kept at all. Some holes have NO fairway to speak of(13,14), and the rough is crazy thick(very easy to loose discs). Plus #4 has a huge sink hole that is very easy to loose your disc in.

Other Thoughts:

I've given this course many chances and it never impresses me. There is a weird feeling to the park like something is going on (probably because of all the stories that I don't need to mention). But if you are near the course and you are bored you should play it just for the experience. Like I said there are some realy enjoyable holes. I think with some changes and better keep up this could be a realy good course withing a short period of time (revise some holes and clean up the rough and fairways).
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1 4
Zenzubar
Experience: 13.2 years 9 played 4 reviews
4.50 star(s)

First Full Course Played 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Feb 19, 2011 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Great Course... clean, signs, great shots, in a nice park the course mixes up the baskets well and are moved pretty often for a nice change with each visit. It even plays well in the rain. There are benches at every tee, and all the tee pads are concrete. Been here a few time and it's never been too busy. The layout is good it brings you right back to your car. The practice basket is also in a good spot so you can get a variety of practice putts. You can DL a map of this course on line which will help out your first time or two but I didn't have much troble getting through it.

Cons:

Can't really think of any.....but it was my first full course so I was loving everything...

Other Thoughts:

If you haven't played this course then you should as soon as you can
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0 2
rustystrings
Experience: 45 played 3 reviews
3.50 star(s)

winged deer 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Feb 21, 2011 Played the course:once

Pros:

a really fun course with lots of elevation change...some holes' fairways are literally over the tree-line below. nice mix of short, wooded holes and long, open ones. requires a wide variety of shots to score well. Not crowded at all on the day I went...which was a warm & cloudy saturday. easy to find....definitely worth a trip if you are nearby.

Cons:

not very well maintained....good bit of trash around...probably because there are very few trash cans anywhere. Poor signage in general....and subsequently lots of blind drives if you haven't played it before. Fairly easy to get lost and miss holes altogether. some of the teepads were very small. Very few benches at teepads
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4 0
bjreagh
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 27.7 years 350 played 321 reviews
3.50 star(s)

2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Jun 19, 2012 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

The course is spread out on a very nice and generous piece of land. The course area is used only for disc golf. There is an excellent mix of holes that play all in the woods, tee in woods-basket in open, tee in open to basket in woods, and mostly open. Lots of holes utilize elevation. When you start out you think you are going to play a nice short technical woods course, but you soon find out there is a lot of variety here.

There is also a decent variety in length from hole to hole. The course requires all kinds of shots and shot shapes at various distances. Many of the holes are set up to where the basket is not visible from the teepad, but this just means you have to think first and plan out how you are going to play the hole and then you have execute or you will be punished, and I really enjoyed this particular aspect of the course.

I got a chance to play this course again three years later and I was glad to see a tee sign on every hole helping navigation. Always good to see courses getting improved.

Cons:

- My biggest memory from Winged Deer is the infamous hole 13- there is no fairway, only a narrow walking path that snakes its way down the hole between several tall, thick trees. The best (maybe only) shot here is a tomahawk. The hole is laughable from the tee, but play it smart and you can pick up strokes on somebody. The next hole #14 also had a patch of skinny trees across the whole fairway requiring a lot of luck to get through.

Navigation was tricky in some spots as there were sometimes many paths leading in all directions- next tee signs and arrows would be a major improvement. Though concrete tees exist, they are not uniform, show their age, and many could use a complete overhaul at some point. The baskets were not all the same model, and I seem to remember the wrong number posted on a couple of them.

Other Thoughts:

I really enjoyed playing here (and nearby Warriors Path), and I hope I can come back and play it again, especially to check out the recent improvements. Winged Deer has a quality design yet still has room for improvement. If the baskets and teepads can be upgraded like the signs, this has the potential to be a top tier course (at least in TN).
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1 1
coolhand
Experience: 23 played 23 reviews
3.50 star(s)

my home course 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Dec 6, 2010 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

challenging in the long. good mix of open and wooded. left, right, straight shots. just added new signs and benches. learned to play on this course and i still love it.

Cons:

city doesn't keep nearly as clean or mowed as they should. some of the tees are off level but that should be fixed in the near future.
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1 1
dnbailey
Experience: 13.8 years 4 played 4 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Throwing Blind 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Aug 14, 2010 Played the course:once

Pros:

Wide variety of hole layouts. It's definitely challenging. The park is pretty nice. We had a deer run right up to us while we were playing.

Cons:

It's impossible to know where the baskets are unless you just go look or you've played before. Even if you've played it before you can't tell what the pin's position is from the tee box on many of the holes. Sometimes you're just throwing blindly.

Other Thoughts:

I played with some guys who'd been to the course before, so that definitely helped. I wouldn't recommend going if you don't have someone to talk you through.
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1 1
jimmazz
Experience: 16.8 years 9 played 3 reviews
4.00 star(s)

2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 22, 2010 Played the course:once

Pros:

not crowded, good fairways, and good course markings.

Cons:

none... fun course, good people. highly recomended

Other Thoughts:

I met some good folks here. Really challenging course, but totally fun. No big crowds. Take your time and enjoy the east tn hils.
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1 1
CatFish
Experience: 14.9 years 23 played 13 reviews
1.50 star(s)

Needs love 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Aug 7, 2010 Played the course:once

Pros:

Some nice holes at the beginning. Concrete tee pads. Some nice scenery, some holes that allow for crazy distance.

Cons:

Little signage. Concrete tee pads are small, and sometimes do not have ground in front of them, DO NOT over shoot the tee pad if you value your ankles. I did over shoot them, just a warning. Some holes didn't have fairways, they were just through dense woods. Some fairways were about 6 feet wide. Some fairways just stopped and the course continued through dense trees. A poorly place tee locations.

Other Thoughts:

Course could be very nice, it just needs some love. Course is confusing, I caught up to some people who had played before, and if not for that I'd have never found all the holes. I found number 10, and they said they had never seen it before. Drop off after small tee boxes seems dangerous. There is a pink leopard out there on about 15 or 16, the group with me lost it, if you find it please call them.
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6 1
prerube
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Premium Member
Experience: 16.9 years 275 played 236 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Signage needs to be replaced ASAP 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Jun 21, 2010 Played the course:once

Pros:

Lots of elevation and foliage used creatively. Several well designed holes border on being signature holes. They really make you think and use an arsenal of skills.

The basket on 12 looks normal, but it is actually 6 feet high, which adds a unique challenge to putting and approach shots. (I'll add the pic).

Large colored map at the start of the course.

good variety of distances from 244-577.

Concrete Tees

Course has amazing potential to become an excellent course with just a few small additions and fixes.

Cons:

Tee signs are missing on most tees, this makes the course beyond frustrating. The baskets are in hard to find locations and there is no way to know if you are looking for the a or b pin and do not know where either of the pins actually are. Many baskets are blind and you are guessing where the baskets are. This is the worst from 13-16. On hole 13 you can not see the basket until you are with in putting range. On hole 14 the trees have closed in on the opening and created a blind shot where you have to throw low and flat or tomahawk it, with no idea of where the basket is. Hole 15 is long and straight with no sign so there is no way to know how far the basket is. I continued to throw and throw until I was in an opening, then I saw the basket blended into the trees 50 feet back. (pink ribbons would do wonders on the baskets for visibility, maybe a ribbon on the branches where the basket is hidden also). After hole 15 there are 3 trails with no sign telling you where 16 is. When you find the tee on 16 again there is no tee sign, so there is no way to know the basket is over 500 feet away. Again I threw and threw wondering when I would see the basket. When I got to the basket, I saw it was labeled 15 so I thought I screwed up. After all of this frustration mixed in with all of the time spent looking for lost discs, I almost left the course. This course needs to replace the Tee signage, add arrows on the baskets to lead to the next tee, and use a system to show players if the baskets are in the A or B position.

Other Thoughts:

Good course for locals who are familiar with the layout, but not a good course for beginners due to the level of challenge on a few holes and the chance of disc loss.
Course is not stroller friendly, leave the kiddies at the playground.

To get to the disc golf courses pass the main park and turn at the firehouse. Turn left at Meredith Pavilion. There is a giant playground for kids at the boat launch area. If you go up to the main park there are batting cages.

When tee signs are all re-installed I would change my rating to a 3.5.

Favorite holes: 10 is relatively flat and almost straight with a narrow opening. It would be perfect for a tomahawk, but there are several tree branches right over the tee to prevent the thumber. 14 is a tough hole with lots of young trees preventing any easy shots. 17 is a short downhill ace/birdie opportunity and 18 is a dog leg right over rolling terrain.
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2 1
stitt32009
Experience: 20.9 years 5 played 4 reviews
4.50 star(s)

good challenge 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Jan 18, 2011 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

The course has a great mix of holes; long & short, wooded & open, flat & elevation changes. The course also allows you to use many different shots. Course is looking a lot better in the past year and is going to continue that way. Course has new t-signs that really add to the course. Course offers fair challenge to a the beginner on most holes, but will also challenge the advanced and pro player. Course has other local courses near: warriors and steels creek. Great scenery

Cons:

There are a couple tee pads that need changed and those are also going to be worked on in the near future.

Other Thoughts:

Overall this course is great and fun to play. The course had a good PDGA event last November and doubles on thursday evenings starting soon.
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1 3
G-money
Experience: 4 played 2 reviews
2.50 star(s)

What the ****? 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jan 25, 2010 Played the course:once

Pros:

Good scenery, easy to find, with some holes in reasonable locations.

Cons:

This course had some, uh, interesting, yeah, interesting aspects. Such as, where is the basket! Poor signage for most holes, and unless you are a local, you won't have a clue on some blind, nothing but luck shots.A 6-7 feet tall basket? Come on!

Other Thoughts:

Not a beginer's course! Challenging to say the least. I am local and play here from time to time for a change of pace. Hey, at least it's free!
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1 2
b_rad44
Experience: 15.8 years 14 played 5 reviews
3.00 star(s)

2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Nov 28, 2009 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

Good variation of hole types, challenging and super fun

Cons:

Two blind holes with no conventional method of driving the basket, Hole 12 is 8-10ft high?!?!?!, poor signage

Other Thoughts:

This course began as a wonderful course, but after the first 6 holes it got a bit strange. Holes 7 through 15 definitely didn't "fit in" with the rest of the holes. They were fun for a random play, but would have been disappointing if I was trying to play a serious game. For a fun weekend I definitely recommend this course...but for a competitive game with a friend it will bite you in the butt! All in all I have to admit I enjoyed this course and will return for some more...
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4 1
DSCJNKY
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 22.7 years 690 played 132 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Venison Done Right! 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Oct 24, 2009 Played the course:once

Pros:

- Bad Ass Holes. Winged Deer is Bad Ass! Several holes give you that "Ball Golf" feeling... and the others are great wooded (not too tight, not too open, tons of punishment for bad drives) holes... Awesome!
- Blind Shots. Personally I loved holes 13 and 14, two spike hyzers with absolutely no view of the pin. Fun shots... risky, but fun.
- Club Support. It appears as if the local club has really been doing a good job maintaining and improving the course.

Cons:

- Mix-Match Baskets. No consistency to the baskets either. Most were new DGA baskets (which I personally don't like due to the inner chain structure), but a few were mix-match.
- Tee-Pads. The tee-pads were mix-matched. All were concrete (yeah), but some were too small, some had a smooth finish, others rough... no consistency. Also, one of the tee-pads had a knee high rock formation literally 2 inches off the front edge - Dangerous!
- Sloping Tee-Pad(s). Hole 13's tee slopes downhill, and since you have to throw a fairly large uphill spike hyzer, it makes for an awkward drive on a difficult hole. Other tees sloped too, but 13's is the only one that had an impact on my drive.
- Signage. The signage was old and mostly busted up.

Other Thoughts:

- If Only. If only this course had consistent, large, concrete tee-pads, one type of basket and quality signage... it would be top notch. It pretty much still is... but, it could be more. The Bad Assness definitely outweighs the cons in terms of experience, but the cons hurt the overall score.
- Destination Golf. This area is a hotbed for great disc golf courses. Plan your road trip here! Warrior's Path and Fossil Hill are just a short drive away... Good Stuff! I'm coming back.
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3 0
jackrbailey72
Experience: 14.9 years 16 played 6 reviews
3.00 star(s)

How About Some Signage??? 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Oct 24, 2009 Played the course:once

Pros:

Pros:
1) I REALLY liked how this course was laid out and the variety of woods, open, left, right, up hill, down hill, and even the hidden baskets. This is a WELL designed course and I appreciated the challenge it gave me.
2) Nice warm up area and basket that is RIGHT at the tee pad for #1. This is a great place, right out of the car, to warm up, get focused, and make clothing changes (especially now that it is fall).
3) Risk versus Reward. The way this course is laid out FORCES you to make decisions...do I follow the obvious route or do I attempt a money shot that MAY be just out of my rage or ability? If you make the shot, you have a birdie or better chance. If you miss, it hurts...bad...But I like that characteristic about this course.

Cons:

Con 1- SIGNAGE SIGNAGE SIGNAGE....If there were signs, direction pointers, and hole layouts, this review would EASILY have been a 4+. I drove over an hour to play here and it is frustrating to have to figure out where to go, break the rythm by having to walk a hole before you play it because there is nothing denoting basket position, hole layout, etc. If it were not for the doubles tournament today, I am not sure if I would have even known the actual length of each hole....come on guys, sqaure this away.
Con 2- Tee pads...the tee pads are VERY short and most are not long enough for a run up or decent X-step...I was forced to a single step or modified X-step to get any momentum RHBH.

Other Thoughts:

Winged Deer DG Course is an AWESOME course and will test your every shot and mental game....but the signage and course markings MUST be addressed. Nice job on directions into the park and there is ample parking that is safe no matter what day or time of the year.
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1 2
DiscChainBasket18
Silver level trusted reviewer
Experience: 19.9 years 98 played 63 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Tough but Sweet course! 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Oct 20, 2009 Played the course:once

Pros:

Beautiful park setting with wide open & tightly wooded shots. Clean disc golf only course with mowed grass fairways. Elevation comes into play on many holes. Large benches grace many holes. Practice basket. Large, concrete tee pads.

Cons:

Could use more tee signs. #6 tee pad butts up against a rock outcropping which could interfere with your run up.

Other Thoughts:

This course really made me stop & think about what I would throw on many holes. It's a real thinker's course because many holes offer optional routes to the pin. Some (like #13) have no fairway or sight of the pin.
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6 0
Tin Machine
Experience: 21.9 years 30 played 11 reviews
3.00 star(s)

The Winged Deer 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Sep 3, 2009 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

A lot of the holes on this course are very nicely laid out. The holes that are wooded often have a distinct suggested fairway to take, however there are a couple of nice little risky shots to take to get you closer to the hole. These, of course, will bite you in the end if you don't pull them off.

I like the way the course plays into and out of the woods a few times, keeping the feel of everything fresh and non-repetitive. Also, the chances of running into someone on the course who is not a disc golfer is slim to none, so you don't have to hassle with the occasional passer by you'd find at most park courses.

Cons:

What starts out as a strong attempt at decent signage, benches, and trashcans quickly dissipates. You slowly start to lose trashcans, then benches, then navigational signs and info. I really don't see why the park stopped short on what they had going, unless they're doing it piece by piece as they get the funds. Either way, they should continue their early work throughout the course.

Hole 13. This hole was interesting. I can't decide if it was a Pro or a Con. What I mean is, there is absolutely no fairway here. You can't see the basket from the tee. You basically end up having to hurl your disc into the sky and hope it comes down around the very small clearing surrounding the pin. When I saw it for the first time, I couldn't help but laugh. As absurd as it was, I sort of had fun with it, so take that one for what it's worth. Definitely not a conventional hole in the least.

Other Thoughts:

Cool course with decent variation. This course really could rate anywhere from pretty good to simply decent depending on you as a player and what you look for in a course. My advice is to anyone playing here, have fun with it and you'll enjoy some of the craziness of it a bit more. Take it too seriously, and it could potentially get on your nerves at times.
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2 1
JimDK27
Experience: 14.9 years 35 played 11 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Winged Deer 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Oct 17, 2012 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Good hole layout
It has some deceptively challenging holes
They have benches on just about every hole now
They have trash cans about every 3
There are some signs that direct you to the next tee
They have new tee signs on every hole! They have pin location designators on a handful of them which is also nice.

Cons:

There are cedar trees in abundance but they are avoidable.
It only has detailed signs for the first 4 holes.
There are a couple holes that are dangerous if your disc goes off course
There is poison ivy in various areas on the course so be careful looking for discs gone astray
The pin designators aren't on the holes that they are needed imo. Some of the holes have blind tee shots like hole 6 where you can't see the basket in either of its positions from the tee.
It seems they need some more trash cans now. This time when I went I only remember one. There were a lot of trash bags hanging from trees that critters had ripped the bottoms open.

Other Thoughts:

When I went the gate to the parking lot was closed so we started on hole 5 and ended on hole 4, it worked out perfectly. We parked at the little turn around spot at the gate.
They have concrete tee pads that vary in size from narrow to a few that seemed abnormally large.
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2 4
tnbruisers
Experience: 5 played 5 reviews
2.50 star(s)

2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 23, 2009 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

Variety of holes. Large parking lot. Course is easy to follow from hole to hole. Not far from home.

Cons:

Alot of holes missing tee signs. Too many cedar trees. Upkeep of the park is awful (undergrowth on course).
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9 1
swatso
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 15.7 years 755 played 414 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Sets The Bar High Early, Then ... 2+ years

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Jul 4, 2009 Played the course:once

Pros:

Private area of park, large parking lot. Practice basket. Relatively simple to follow, even without a map available. Near food/petrol options.

First four holes have: Excellent signs showing possible basket locations, and listing distances to each position. Nice benches. Garbage cans. First three were all wooded with fair throwing paths and minor elevation changes, and number four has you throwing out of the woods into an open field. At this point, the course reminded me of some other strong eastern Tennessee courses, such as nearby Warriors Path, or Morristown a bit farther afield.

Cons:

The remainder of the course was a let down after the strong start. Less than half the holes had any type of signs, so you needed to scout ahead to find the basket's location. Benches and trash cans were far and few between. A few holes, I think #13 as an example, didn't have any real fairways to speak of, and rollers weren't an option, so essentially you had to huck your disc as high and long as you could, and hope it didn't get caught in a disc-snatching cedar on the way down, and that you could find it after it landed sight unseen on the other side of various trees and possibly in undergrowth.

Other Thoughts:

There were still some good holes the final fourteen (number 17 comes to mind - it was wooded, and similar to the first three), and there was some variety - open, wooded, partial, turning both ways, some elevation changes, distances ranging from under 200' to just under 600'.

FYI, to find hole#16, continue walking downhill from #15's basket. When a broad path crosses your path, turn left onto it.

Continuing the initial quality signs, benches, and trashcans throughout the entire course would be a major plus, as would redesigning a few holes to create some "fair"ways.
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4 5
splatbaseball51
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 15.1 years 182 played 59 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Very Unique 18 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Jun 13, 2009 Played the course:once

Pros:

Alot of variety in the types of holes. Great mix of open and wooded shots as well as short technical shots and long "Air out" shots. No Navigational issuses. Two holes stick out in my mind and they are ones i will remember throughout my career. Hole 8 is a cool hole in the long position its 410 wide open and you throw from a plateau. Its just one you can cut loose on and hole 12 has a unique pin position. I dont know if its always like this but the bottom of the basket was about 7 feet off the ground. That one ill definately remember.

Cons:

General upkeep wasnt the greatest, needs nicer (more) signs.
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