Fairfield, CT

Fairfield University

2.535(based on 15 reviews)
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11 0
HyooMac
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 6.7 years 415 played 380 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Revised for the Better

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 22, 2022 Played the course:once

Pros:

18 hole course was revised in recent years, providing a "campus tour." Encompasses water on two holes and lots of elevation change



+ First, the standout hole: #15 is a 300' par 3 with a long carry over a pond. It's a genuine Gold Level challenge (and therefore way out of character with the other 17 holes here). From the elevated tee, just about all you can see is water. You need ~250' from the tee to stay dry - although you can bail out with a layup to cut off about 100'. But the REAL challenge is that the trees on the far bank guard the basket, and you need to make a narrow opening to have any chance at birdie, or be confident that you can throw a high one with enough distance to crash down through the trees. Pucker up and throw.


+ Very good signage (though a few of the revised holes still have temp signs), carpeted tees, and a few tees play off the concrete sidewalks (look for red paint spots indicating teeing area). Excellent DisCatchers with red bands


+ Other than #15, there are just a few memorable holes. #9 is a 600' par 4, a long right dogleg with a steep downhill sloping to the left. It's ideal for a RHFH, and any RHBH as to turn over to avoid sailing way down the hill. Hole #12 deserves special mention. It's a 270' par 3 that's open most of the way with an alley at the end, but what you don't see is that the basket is perched on the side of a cliff made for rollaways


Cons:

- First-time players will have any number of navigational challenges. The layout is on a fully built college campus, so there are existing structures that the course has been laid out around: buildings, sidewalks, power boxes and other obstacles. There are bricks at the base of most baskets indicating the general direction of the next tee, but the middle section of the course narrows like a figure 8, and it's easy to confuse which of the visible tees and baskets are next.


- Other than the standout water hole and several very good holes, a lot are just so-so. Elevation changes are the spice to much of the layout, and only a few holes really involve trees to navigate. The course is mostly straight shots where you have to consider the elevation change.


Other Thoughts:

~ This is one hilly SOB.


~ This is one immaculately-kept campus.


~ There are wild turkeys walking around this campus (the fowl. I'm not casting aspersions about students or faculty)


~ I'm pretty sure there's a shortcut through the woods after #18 basket to bring you back to the parking lot by the first tee. Look for one - because it will save 10-15 minutes of walking



RECOMMENDED COMBINATIONS:

Fairfield U is worth playing, but not a destination in itself. Would pair up well with the heavily wooded Veterans Memorial Park nearby, or with the flat, windy Sherwood Island. Also close to the excellent wooded Cranbury Park.


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3 1
mbosse11
Experience: 3 played 3 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Upgrades in Progress 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 29, 2021 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

Upgrades are in progress. New tee markers are installed for each hole and tee pads are starting to be put in across course.

Grounds on campus are kept clean and nice.

Challenging but no too difficult course with far distances

Cons:

Easy to get lost since some holes are far from the ones before (ex. 2-3).

Defiantly bring a map to help you find each hole.

Other Thoughts:

Newly employed at Fairfield and was excited that there was a course on campus. Feel like the course is headed in the right direction and it is defiantly fun to play.
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3 0
The0s
Experience: 13.8 years 7 played 1 reviews
2.00 star(s)

2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Sep 19, 2015 Played the course:once

Pros:

• Immaculate grounds and amenities
• Great use of elevation
• No tee pads, but the 'tees' are either concrete walkways or flat grass. No footing issues.
• Easy to get to / plenty of parking
• Good variety of shots, many good holes

Cons:

• Signage is almost nonexistent. Most of the signs were pulled, and some pads are only marked by the grass being scuffed away. Had to use the map and pictures to figure out where some holes were. Pads have a variety of marking methods, nothing uniform.
• Baskets are a mixture of modern varieties, legacy models from the 70s, and temps.
• The flow is very bad. The walk from 2-3, 4-5, 5-6 is way too long. 1 & 2 are a 5 minute walk from anything else.
• The course feels forced to get to 18 holes. 5, 6, 7 & 18 are examples.
• Hole 1 plays up an athletic field ridge which is a no-no.

Other Thoughts:

The course is a fun disc golf round if you assume that you might not be playing 18, and you have patience. Many of the holes are interesting and have clear lines, good use of elevation and are not as short as they may seem. The grounds are immaculate, which makes it very pleasant to play.
The nature of the location means that the holes are forced out of the landscape. Some work, some don't. I think a solid 9 hole with some extra holes, and some doubling would better serve the location. I could play 3,4,11,12,13,9,10,14,15 and not feel that I've missed anything.
Worth the trip for some interesting shots and practice - Then go to Bridgeport for a more traditional 18.
I give the 18 a 2, and the 9 a 3.
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2 0
Rplus84
Experience: 9.8 years 15 played 5 reviews
2.50 star(s)

college campus = clean cut fairways 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Aug 16, 2015 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

-easy access from i95
-open fairways with clean cut grass for the most part
-well designed with good elevation changes
-plenty of parking
-shelter, water and rest rooms in the buildings

Cons:

-this course is old, needs new signs and markings
-baskets r old and rusty, but functional... (ex; basket 6 is sitting on top of a piece of wood)
-6 hole no clear direct path from tee to basket, have to walk around or through the weeds
-pole indicating hole 15 is missing
-weeds on hole 15 r sometimes overgrown making it hard to find ur discs if u cant reach the narrow fairway across the pond
-no tees boxes, only grass and sidewalk
-navigation is tough, BRING A MAP and study it well
-long distance btw hole 2 & 3, 18 & 1
-its a campus so many pedestrians

Other Thoughts:

i gave this course a 2.5 based on my criteria, but it has potential for a lot more if some of the things r fixed in the cons above... i played here on sunday morning so the campus was empty... i can see walkers being a problem though... i updated the measurements of the course using gps so the distances r somewhat accurate give or take 10 feet... i took pictures of every hole too... the weeds on the left side of the pond on hole 15 r cut sometimes making it a good place to lay up... navigation is bad!... but i got to tell u, it can be a good thing... for example, it was fun looking for the tees the first time i played here... it was like a scavenger hunt, very challenging... i was able to find all the tees so pay close attention to the maps!!.. and give ur self 3 hours to play the course... the pictures i took can help u... dont mistake 11 basket for 3 basket, they r near each other... this course is best played on sundays as an alternative to Sherwood island park which charges parking fee in warm weather... i recommend this course very much!...
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4 0
TBabb
Silver level trusted reviewer
Experience: 18.6 years 65 played 56 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Less Trees, Still Fun 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 19, 2014 Played the course:once

Pros:

This course plays around the campus of Fairfield University. The landscape features rolling hills, mature trees, and well kept lawns. The baskets are a mix of several different types, and though they are old with rusty chains, they seem completely functional. In general, the course is very well maintained and clean, mostly because the college campus wants to look pretty for prospective students. Just about every hole here is very well designed. There are a number of elevation changes, tight gaps, low ceilings, vegetal obstacles, and a number of easily definable out of bounds areas that are not expressly marked to make this a challenging course. Stand out holes include tight woods shots (6 &7), tight greens (8 & 16), and a crazy over the pond shot on 15. Don't be fooled by the total course distance on this page; this is a full length course and may actually be longer than many CT courses. Most of the course is open with only two shots going through thick woods making this course a nice change of pace from the typical CT deep woods courses. The 8th hole features an impressive view out to the Long Island Sound. There is ample parking, restrooms and running water are available inside the Business School building, and overall this is a very pleasant spot to get a round in.

Cons:

The main issue here is navigation. The layout here is atrocious with many long walks between holes. The map is hard to follow and a full round here results in a very long walk around the campus. Tee signs are difficult to spot when they do exist making finding the next tee after a hole all the more challenging. There must have been a better way to lay this course out in order to minimize travel time between tees. That being said, once you've played here once or twice, you'll know your way around and navigation will be less of an issue. Better and more signage would make a round here much easier for a first timer.

The tees here are also disappointing. Most of them are grass, and it's tough to get a good run up in. Some tees are on the path, but often are too small to get a good run up as well and other grass tees are not well defined.

There could be a little more variety in the shots. Most of them are straight shots.

Foliage is rough in some spots, especially if you land off the fairway. The weeds by the left side of the pond are especially tough, which is a shame since it's the best spot to drop if you can't make the throw over the pond. The path back to the parking lot after the 18th hole also has a lot of thorns, brambles and prickers.

The other thing to consider is that this is a college campus, so when we played, there was a lacrosse game going on that had spectators all over the first fairway, making it unplayable. Even on a Saturday in the summer the course was not quiet.

Other Thoughts:

This is a great alternative to the typical CT course in the thick woods. Hook up with a regular to make navigation easier and this will be a great course to up your confidence after getting clobbered by the trees in Bridgeport and Norwalk. I was bummed that some little kid probably ran off with one of my drives, though.
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2 0
Flyngtuna
Experience: 12 years 5 played 3 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Good, not without flaws 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 28, 2013 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Most of the holes are open, well designed and fun. Great for beginners - especially in CT when most courses are fairly wooded. Once my friends and I got the hang out this course is became one of our favorites (BRING A MAP). The view on hole # 8 is especially awesome - can see straight to the LI Sound.

Cons:

Extremely confusing without the right map and info. Hole # 7 has lots of logs and branches dumped from what I assume was a storm clearing effort - adds a lot of difficulty to what was already a tough hole.

Other Thoughts:

Overall a good course. Lawns of the campus are well-maintained and the baskets are in good shape. BRING A MAP.
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2 0
dishtowel
Experience: 11.7 years 3 played 2 reviews
2.00 star(s)

Needs to be updated 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Jul 15, 2012 Played the course:once

Pros:

-The few holes we could play were very nice
-The grounds themselves are well kept, although the course itself is clearly not
-One hole goes over a pond

Cons:

-Map is out of date
-Tees and baskets don't match
-Some holes couldn't be found at all
-That map says 12 holes; we found the 18th; in total played 10 holes.

Other Thoughts:

Bottom line is we spent more time looking for the tees and baskets than actually playing. Someone needs to update this course so that it can be followed easily. Even the map wasn't correct.

Update: Found an updated map here http://www.faculty.fairfield....olf2011v1.jpg
and will be returning to see how it plays out now that we know what to look for.
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4 1
rex93
Experience: 15.7 years 3 played 3 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Whoever redesigned this course.... Yahtzee! 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Oct 2, 2011 Played the course:once

Pros:

Perfect Teepads, awesome mix of natural and using the sidewalks throughout the campus not to mention the coolest teepad of them all hole number 7 which is a manmade damn thingy throwing down on to a basket that is positioned on a stump. Its badass because it is a very short hole but super steep drop off down to the basket have fun throwing your entire bag haha.

Amazing views on holes 9 and 10 you can see a nice panoramic view of the ocean its awesome. With the beautiful stone building up there its hard to beat.

Excellent training ground! Awesome combination of short holes and long holes. have fun throwing forehands backhands, rollers, tomohawks, spike hyzers, grenades, top sliders, thumbers and turbo putts tons of options!

Lots of young chicas on campus to look at although fairfield could use some hotter chicks from the sampling i did see.

lush grass fairways because most of them are part of the campus quads, you could play most of the course barefoot.

Mixed bag of baskets with some spanking new chain stars, disc catchers and some old school mach's I beleive. Makes for a challenge and more fun.



Cons:

course is a little confusing and the teepad signs suck but that is very easily fixed so I am not going to knock the course for it. There is a map online that makes it easy not to mention fun to locate all of the holes.

Only 1 teepad position right now. Has sooooo much potential for more!

Sometimes have to wait for poeple to walk past because there are a lot of students when school is in session.

a bit of a walk between 2 and 3 but that shouldnt bother a disc golfer.

Other Thoughts:

Whoever redesigned this course did a phenomenal job and this course is now one of my favorites in the world (yes I said world). The campus feel is quite the novelty and they did an excellent job with what they have. I look forward to seeing this course grow more complex and polished.

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2 4
Jrider29
Experience: 2 played 2 reviews
1.00 star(s)

2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Aug 5, 2011 Played the course:once

Pros:

Found first tee. After that spent most of our time searching for tees/baskets. Only found 5 holes.

Cons:

There is no possible way someone could navigate this course and enjoy it without a guide to show them around.

Other Thoughts:

Very frustrating
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5 0
Kraig Steffen
Experience: 1 played 1 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Course Pro Update 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Aug 11, 2011 Played the course:once

Pros:

All tees now have a tee sign or number marking on the sidewalk or tee area. Tee signs have been updated and now make sense!! (long period of construction changes made it tough) Some signs are low to the ground due restrictions from Campus grounds. Use the Aerial Map!

Cons:

A number of baskets need repair. I am working on it! I moved many tees to sidewalks - use them instead of old tees. (4, 6, 7 (concrete pad), 13, 14, 16 all are on concrete sidewalk or pad now).

Other Thoughts:

Hope everyone likes the new 18 hole layout. Maybe my ratings will inch upward. :)
Note I only gave myself a 3, lots more to be done, but this is one of the prettiest courses in CT so come on down and enjoy!
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3 1
jkdisc
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 15.5 years 117 played 108 reviews
1.50 star(s)

I'm Lost 2+ years

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Apr 20, 2011 Played the course:once

Pros:

The course is on a college campus and vistors are welcome to play. The campus and course are very beautiful and quiet.

There are rolling hills and a pond which make for some fun shots.

Cons:

We found hole #1 very easily but after that it was very difficult to navigate.

Other Cons:

- some tee signs knocked down or non-existent
- #3 tee wasn't anywhere near #2's basket
- some holes play near roads
- baskets in bad shape

Other Thoughts:

When I was actually playing, I had alot of fun but most of my time was wandering around lost.

#10 (pond hole) is way more difficult than it looks because the gap through the branches to the basket is narrow. Loved it!

If you live on campus then this is a perfect course to go to. Everyone else should just pass it by unless there are big changes.
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0 4
jcardozo
Experience: 14.8 years 34 played 5 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Great Scenery! 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Feb 26, 2011 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

Great college scenery in the spring
Long holes for long drives

Cons:

very difficult to navigate. holes have moved or been taken out.

needs maintenance as some holes have fallen over due to wind or are in bad shape.

Other Thoughts:

This course is almost impossible to play if you're not playing with someone who knows it. The holes are scattered across campus and a lot have been moved or taken out completely. The signs at the tee boxes can be ignored except to indicate that you should shoot from there. Hole #s and pin location is often inaccurate. You can get a full 18 in if you shoot at a few baskets multiple times from multiple tee locations.

this course is probably best for a practice round as you're likely not to find a lot of holes. Go to the area in front of the library and just shoot at the 4 baskets in that area from different locations.
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1 2
Axl69
Experience: 13.9 years 21 played 6 reviews
0.00 star(s)

Fun for a minute or 2 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Aug 23, 2010 Played the course:once

Pros:

It's located in a great part of our State.

Cons:

Extremely dificult to navigate. There have been a lot of changes due to construction on campus. It could be a good venue but the course has had little attention paid to it in a long long time. Do not make a special trip to play here.

Other Thoughts:

This course should be removed from this site. It's really not a DGC it's just a couple of baskets littered throughout a cool campus. It would be cool for a student that already lives there. We hit it only because we were nearby to play Cranberry Park in Norwalk which was cool. Again, DO NOT make a special trip to play here. We will not play again even if we are in the area for another course.
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3 1
gottafixit
Silver level trusted reviewer
Premium Member
Experience: 21 years 861 played 68 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Lovely Campus 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Jun 28, 2009 Played the course:once

Pros:

The campus grounds are quite nice and well kept with rolling hills and a killer pond.

Cons:

recent reorg, tee signs had no info, and no next tee signs. Make sure you print the aerial map!

Other Thoughts:

The course has been rearranged due to construction. I managed to find the start no prob and the tee signs are pretty easy to spot although they didn't have par or distance on them. After two I was looking for three with the old map in hand it didn't go so well. I could eventually figure it out but the only numbers where on the tee signs so you had to walk to them to figure it out. I noticed after the fact that their were two maps and the aerial map is the good one. This was really a nice course but with the new layout and no maps or next tee signage I can't give this that high a mark. The shots were mostly open with well placed pins to make use of the old growth trees, and the pond shot is just beautiful. I'm sure this is a fun course for any students that go there.
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3 4
invidious
Experience: 18.9 years 11 played 11 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Work in progress 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Sep 11, 2012 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Update: New signs on all the tees, updated as of 9/11/12. See updated course map in the links section.

The scenery is great, the campus ground are very well maintained. Most holes have open fairways with a good mix of wooded shots . Great course for beginers and enthusiasts.

Cons:

Relocation of several holes due to university contruction (which is completed) leaves the course with lots of zig zagging between holes. So a little extra walking and unintuitive flow for those unaccustomed with the course.

Highly recommend arrow markers at each hole pointing towards the next tee.

This course is a real gem and its a shame to see all the (justifiably) low reviews on this site from players who haven't been able to play it due to poor signage. In my opinion this is easily one of the best couses in fairfield county, second only to Cranbury Park.

It would be nice if someone could get the campus to more ruitinely groom the pond shot, I can throw it over the trees but for weaker throwers who have to go between them the shot is becoming daunting.

Other Thoughts:

Been playing this course for years so the finding the holes is no issue for me, but it would be for any first time player. Bring a copy of the map!
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