River Road Sports Complex plays on a large plot of meadow and forest near a muddy brown, slow-moving river that never really comes into play. Maybe it's a large creek that feeds into another larger local river? I'm not sure to be honest. You see it a couple of times on later holes but it never feels like a real part of the course.

The course is one that's basically carved out of brushland. There's nothing particularly remarkable about the land itself so the creators attempted to make the course interesting by cutting the fairways out with smart design. They did a solid job of it - the fairways bend back and forth, islands of brush have been left to serve as obstacles, and the distance varies enough to establish a comfortable rhythm of pacing that keeps you engaged.

Long and shorts present. Most pads are cement but we ended up throwing off of a couple of natural pads (I think - maybe there was carpet or something covered by sediment). Baskets were fine.

The designers seem to have a mind for "up-and-over" type shots. Spiced in here and there are holes where you more or less have no choice but to throw OVER trees and brush. Perhaps the trails were once intended to be wider tunnels that would serve as an alternative, but when I played the precision required would be on par with playing beer pong over the length of a gymnasium floor instead of a table. I don't often see these up-and-over holes and I kind of like them as an occasional treat.

The course plays like a nature preserve. Once you're away from the sports fields you end up with an isolated nature walk. It's pretty enough, quiet, and pleasant.

There's at least one covered kiosk that had hanging trash bags in the middle of the course. Nice spot to take a break.

Parking is ample, though I would be concerned if there were some sort of sporting event going on in the park. Everything looks nice and well maintained. They had mowed fairly recently when we played.

Free to play, easy to get to, easy to find your way around more or less. Not sure if there are restrooms - I don't recall seeing them but I wouldn't be surprised if they are there.

The designers probably did the best they could with the land they had. Unfortunately, the land just isn't all that interesting. It's flat as a board without any particularly interesting features - maybe a seasonal stream that's overgrown?

While the fairways are great, the rough is the nasty kind. It's difficult to move through, difficult to search, and punishing to throw a disc into. While I was praising the use of up-and-over holes, if you fall short there's not much in the way of paths cut for disc retrieval. There's a number of blind shots that exacerbate the problem of possibly losing a disc. It's a course you'll appreciate a spotter for, even from the shorts.

There looked to be a tree down in front of hole 23 I believe. Pretty sure it's recent given how green the leaves were, but maybe it's a bush that's growing oddly. I thought it made the hole more interesting as you needed to get around it.

The parking lot runs along the access road. When you finish 24 you'll have a bit of a walk if you parked near 1. It's not ridiculous, but we noticed it on our return.

River Road is a solid vanilla ice cream course. If I lived in the area, I'd play it all the time and be happy with it. It's well thought out and implemented. There's nothing about it to leave a bad taste in your mouth. It's a perfectly competent execution of a disc golf course.

It's also not particularly special or eye-catching. It's not really a course I'd go out of my way to play or carve out some time on a vacation to visit. If I was in the area and had the morning to play? Sure, why not? If I had enough time to go to some of the other courses in the area (understanding that means maybe 30 minutes of driving) I'd be hard pressed to say this is the one I'd want to spend time at.

Challenging course with extra holes. Nice multi-sports park. A good layout, and I'm guessing this was a great course at one time.

Small thing: first time I've seen a course where the 18th didn't return you close to your starting point. Be prepared to play 24 or walk a ways back to parking area. Big thing: not much maintenance has been done recently. Map is pretty much unreadable, the most recent fliers are from a 2015 tournament, and the hole descriptions have faded so much they're impossible to make out.

As some others have suggested, use a spotter or play with someone familiar with the course. Otherwise you'll need to walk ahead and find many whole locations and risk losing discs in heavy brush.

Well kept up, difficult if you want it.

When you get like 8 holes in or so it turns into a hell of trees and brush if you don't know the holes. It's pretty difficult to navigate and the maps are a little hard to read to here you a lot of times have no idea where to throw. I would say go here with an open mind to difficult.

This course is located at the local park complex near softball and soccer fields in an older industrial park type area southeast of downtown Petoskey. Course has 24 holes with a varying degree of difficulty, mostly consisting of fairly narrow paths bordered by punishing rough. A couple of holes are over 500 feet, making this course a notch or two harder than the Crowle Hole course in nearby Harbor Springs. Cement tee pads throughout, at both short and long positions. Baskets are in good shape. Has some unusual paths, such as Hole 2, that will have you scratching your head as to what shot to use. Has a small number of water hazards associated with a nearby creek that are fair, adding increments of additional challenge. Has several blind holes which take a minute or two to decipher.

The meadow in which the course is located offers a number of wildflowers and other flora which one tends not to see at a typical city course. Appears to be a free course, and does well utilizing the available land.

Some holes have very narrow fairways, which wouldn't normally be a problem, but the rough bordering the holes is so thick that a lost disc or two is almost a given. A solo round without a spotter is likely to result in lost discs, even for advanced players. Given the Northern Michigan location, one might expect elevation changes, but there are none to be found here.

Just good enough to be competitive with other courses such as Avalanche or Silver Mountain, but lacking the wow factor that would allow it to compete with top level courses. However, this course has enough variety and challenge to encourage repeated rounds. I'd guess a fall round after the first freeze but before snow might be best, which would clear the rough enough to mitigate disc loss.

Aesthetic-- plays through a river valley and many swampy areas in a large multi-use park. They must have found the lowest area in the city to build this course... It was crazy mucky and wet when I played in mid-may.

Baskets-- all there and in decent shape. Really could have used Orange necks to help increase visibility as there are some blind shots.

Tees-- Long tees are all concrete. some of the shorts are concrete as well but not all of them yet. Tees looked pretty new, maybe late last year or this year.

Teesignage-- excellent-- accurately shows the hole design and footage.

Challenge-- the crazy rough here is the main risk v reward here. The swampy areas aren't really that gnarly but the rough is awful. The bear river on the last few holes is a pretty backdrop but doesn't really come into play.

Routing and nav-- not bad at all. Well worn trails aide in finding the next tee.

Underwhelming-- seems a lot of holes were repeats of previous holes. Didn't have a lot of variety, most holes were straightforward. Some were blind which was truly welcome.

wet wet wet-- they must have used the lowest possible land for this course. I'm sure it holds water way more than it should.

Wind and other uncontrollables-- it was crazy windy here and the bugs, I'm sure, can be crazy bad.

I played six courses this day. I just wasn't overly impressed with this course. I'm sure it's a local favorite as it's not crazy challenging. Go play blissfest!!

24 holes! Tons of vegetation! Really would have been best to have played with someone else to help spot, or someone who played here before. That being said, I had to scope out a lot first but still managed to bogie most holes. Pretty flat with no elevation changes but made up for by pretty good layouts. Maps at all (I think) tees so just pay attention. Big arms will like it here! I played with just alittle wind and was ok. I recommend a bright disk and don't take your eyes off it! Great course to walk and just have a good day! Who ever takes care of this does a great job, very well maintained! This place covers a lot of ground so there are some pretty long drives. Lots of places to sit and rest along with trash barrels. The dual tee pads were cool in that, they were not just one in front on the other, but often with a different line altogether which made it tempting to throw from both! The trees, huge shrubs and bushes and waterways made you really think before you throw.

Tee pads are pretty bad, but they are working on that!
Bugs! bring spray, watch for ticks
Sort of hard to navigate the first time due to lack of signage. High risk of disc loss!
Was abit muddy so don't wear your designer kicks! ha!

Not a beginner course, really more of a planned play course, watch your disk. Most were blind throws which adds to the fun! I do recommend this course for sure!

The trees and bushes really make this course a challenge....and you get to really huck it....but beware - the name of the game here is to be able to manage the course well. Go into the trees or bushes and you can add a stroke or two. Well maintained...bid kudos to the folks mowing, weed wacking and maintaining this sweet layout.

Needs more concrete tee boxes. I've played plenty a natural tee pad and what is offered is sufficient enough....long term, fulfill the dream by putting this course on the map. Blind shots could be a negative, but the more you play it the more you know....definitely an advantage playing with a local your first time out.

If you build it they will come....find the funds....put up donation boxes and have someone collect so that this sweet venue can afford better tee boxes. Throw bright colors, unless you are smart and play safe....which will be my mantra next time.

- Great kept course
- Interesting and challenging
- Beautiful Bear River views

- Played in winter, so vegetation not a factor, as I could see through it and move through it to get to wayward disc. This could really be an issue during summer though.
- Would be hard to locate some tees (and baskets for that matter) with vegetation in bloom. Strange course layout, but print the online map and you'll be OK.

The folks that maintain this course do a super job.
Anyone who didn't play this course Feb 4, 2012 missed an awesome northern Michigan day of excellent disc golf. Tees were cleaned of snow, and enough playing pressure to make good paths for walking and locating next tees.
About 4-5 inches of snow, and no problem with lost discs on this ideal day.
Keep up the great work at the River Road Sports Complex !

Great place to practice distance drives.
Course is well taken care of.
Presents many different challenges that make the game more fun mostly woods and fields.
The set up is well designed, however the baskets are slightly hidden.
Not very busy

A lot of bushes, I would recommend a bright colored disc like Blue, Pink, Red, nothing Green or Yellow, at least in Spring or Summer. I lost my Valkyrie here!

Not really a beginner course, however some holes make for a perfect place to practice distance and putting.

With full foliage, there are only two baskets on the course that you can see standing on the Pro tee. The land is an arborphile's dream, with myriad types of trees covering the area, coupled with brush in all shapes, sizes and densities.

Great distances abound. Five holes are > 400', including one that is 550', with only two holes < 200'. However, Long Arms take warning: This course has some of the most unforgiving rough you will encounter. If you cannot accurately place your shot, be sure to have a spotter, or be ready to do some serious disc searching.

This course is in the Bear River valley. The course flows with the river in several spots, with some of the feeder streams used within the holes. The valley can funnel some seriously strong and squirrelly winds. Abundant wildlife (deer, snake, rabbit, monster snapping turtle) can also be seen.

Fantastic modularity. It is easy to stop after 18, 20 or 24 holes, and you can cut out holes #17-19, 9 & 10, 12 & 13, or 4-15 entirely. If you have limited time, the layout allows for many custom permutations. Very much an "on the links" feel.

Course flow equally challenges Righties and Lefties alike, with lots of benches, garbage cans and picnic tables throughout. The city maintains the grounds, so fairways are regularly mowed and wonderfully maintained.

24 Holes, most with dual tees. Instead of just reducing distance, Amateur tees give measurably different looks (or I should say, different non-looks) at the basket, as well as requiring less skill.

Dog friendly and groomed for winter play, too.

River valleys are often swampy, and this one is no different. Springtime can be unpleasant with holes #3, 8, 15, 17, & 21 especially soggy and full of mud.

No elevation changes, and I mean it. Holes #4, 15 & 16 are (kind of) in an undulating area, but not anything that seriously affects your throw. A good roller technique can serve you well here.

Lack of uniform tees. Amateur tees are dirt, and awful. There are many concrete tees for the Pros, but some are still dirt. It is rather embarrassing, as the rest of the course is so well designed and in great repair.

The first and last few holes share real estate with soccer and softball fields, sometimes necessitating using the Am tees if the fields are in use.

Missing signage on a hole or two, but the next tee signs are great.

This is my current local. I am a definitely a DGer of the Ski Hill variety. The first few years I played this course, I really, really hated it because it was so flat. I would drive to play a neighboring hilly course all the time. River Road has earned my grudging respect, as it always serves up a significant dose of challenge, and if I can keep my temper in line, a whole lot of fun as well. Not once have I finished under par from the Pro tees in Singles play.

Signature Hole Candidates:
#4 - 549' with heavy winds and a bunch of varied vegetation
#12 - 446' over a creek, tons of rough and the main river bend right by the basket (my favorite)
#23 - 375' with a huge stand of trees 200' out and soccer field OB the length of the right

Since finding DGCR and traveling to play every course I can get my boots on, I have come to realize how good I have had it while I've been here. Of the courses I have compared to RRSC, many of them have been found wanting. Only seven cement Pro tees are needed for this course to be 4.5.

Stop by Tom & Dicks Grocery for some new Discraft/MVP plastic for the round.

-The course was laid out very nicely
-At the very beginning they have a map that shows where every thing is located
-They have pro and amateur tees
-Every hole has a sticker on it to show what hole the pin goes to
-The sign at the tee is very nice showing exactly where the pin is located, what the par is, what is out of bounds, and the trees in the middle
-The pad that you throw from is nice and easy to throw from
-Every hole is different (some are long while others are short, and some you need to be accurate while others you really dont)
-It is located in a very nice and well kept park
-It is always easy to find the next hole when you finish another hole

-The water comes into play on some of the back holes
-The park really doesn't get much use
-There is some parts with really long grass that is never cut and you can lose your disc in there pretty easily
-The sign at the tee will be placed backwords sometimes and it is hard to tell which pin to go for

I came here in the morning and nobody was here when i came and nobody was here when i left. I was very surprised because it is a very nice park. Hopefully it will get more use sometime soon because if not the it is just a waste because of how nice the whole park is.

This course was very clean, and had many trash cans throughout the course. Having 24 holes is most definitely a plus. Many veriety of holes, with many chances to really let it rip. I really like hole 17, which presents a good opertunity for an ace. Every hole had a very detailed sign with hole layout, par, and distance on them. All but I think one hole had an alternate pad to shoot from.

I really thought that some of these holes should have been more than a par 3, but thats okay just makes it more challenging. When we got to hole 12, 13, 14 was the only time we ever got a little confused as to where the next hole was or where we had to shoot to. Not every hole had a real pad, but the ones that did had a nice long concrete pad.

DO NOT PLAY THIS COURSE WHEN IT IS WINDY.!!!! We played on a real windy day, and it resulted in my worst score ever. I highly recomend shooting this course when every you have a chance.

I played this course on my birthday last week. Very little traffic. Many wide open holes that allow you to grip and rip. Many tight holes that make you throw at a blind goal. Very good mix.

Navigation was a little tricky at times. I think I might have skipped a hole or two near the back because of poor markers. NO elevation changes. I normally carry a walking stick and it was totally unneeded here.

My wife and I played this course on our way home from Mackinaw City (we live in Kalamazoo, MI). I'm very glad we went out of our way to find it! The course had a lot of variety, although not in elevation, with some holes playing what seemed like over 400 or 500 feet. Each hole had map of the pin and tee locations, distances to the pin, and directions to the next hole.

The rough here can be pretty nasty, so play it safe or bring a spotter. Also, the ground was pretty moist in a lot of areas, and today was a pretty clear, dry day, so I'd imagine that the course can get pretty swampy during wet periods.

There are some blind drives on narrow fairways, so bringing a spotter is recommended. The ninth hole doesn't end up near the parking lot, so plan on playing all 18 (or 24) or walking quite a ways back.

This is a course that truly rewards accuracy with beautiful, well maintained fairways and incredibly well thought out tee and basket placement. Challenges of every type, variety, and distance abound here. Hole #4 challenges big arms with a distance of 646 ft, but threading through the scattered bushes and trees make the hole seem a lot longer than it really is. Three other holes are over 400 ft, but they're balanced out by several really short but incredibly difficult holes. Holes #2, #17, and #22 require sharp left or right turns around big islands of thick brush, or huge thumbers/tommys over them. There's a great balance of very, very tight fairways and more open "choose your own route" holes.

Almost every hole has very creative tee and/or pin placement, fully utilizing the terrain features available on the property. Baskets placed under trees, in small, tight clearings, down tiny alley ways, or hidden behind huge walls of brush keep the interest factor high. On #22, tee pad selection determines whether or not you have to clear the river that flows through the park.

Signage on the 1st 18 holes was descriptive and colorful, though some are a little deceptive as they're designed with North in the top position rather than rotated to show the hole based on the thrower's point of view. Each sign includes obstacles, main fairway, both tee positions, and distance as well as "Next Tee" directions.

The concrete tee pads for the blue tees are well textured and offer plenty of room for a run up. Everything on the course, with the exception of the basket on hole 1 and the signage for holes 19-24, was in tip-top shape and spotlessly clean. The layout is exceptionally well designed to avoid run-ins with other park users. There are 2 port-a-johns available in the parking area.

The kiosk at the parking lot sports lots of information on league play, a beautiful but very faded topo-type map of the course, and a box of nice scorecards printed on colored card stock.

Low lying land and numerous swampy areas mean slogging through soggy grass and squishy black glop during wet periods. The brush here is thick and heavy! Having spotters for the many blind holes is highly recommended as lost discs appear to be the rule rather than exception here. Any discs that end up off the main fairway require determined bushwhacking and great eyes to find.

The dirt and gravel pads for the red tees were rutted and loose, and even the rubber mats supplied on a couple of holes were laid without really leveling the surface below, making for questionable footing.

Navigation for holes 19-24 is a bit challenging as signage is lacking and most of the baskets are blind. These holes have a very different look and feel from the main 18. That's not necessarily a bad thing; just odd.

Although there is no real change in elevation here, the course designer here did an excellent job of maintaining interest and challenge using all the other terrain elements available in the park. With the exception of the unforgiving rough and the need for spotters, this course is a total blast! Even with its shortcomings, I had to rate this course pretty high for its challenge and fun factor. You won't regret driving out of the way to play here (unless you lose a disc, or 2, or 3......)! Before really making a judgement you'll want to play the course at least twice as your first time out will be a chore, but subsequent rounds will become more fun as you get familiar with the lay out.

I've only been able to play here once in 2009 (in 2'+ feet of snow) but I will always remember how much fun we had. I'm not sure how much it has changed/improved but I can assure you it was worth the drive.

Pros:

1. Large and Diverse Course ~ This course has it all. Some woods, fields, thick brush, a little bit of water, nice flowing fairways. Add them all up and this place has everything you look for in a quality course. The park is pretty big and we had it all to ourselves. The only thing that it lacked was major elevation changes which was not a big deal.

2. Places to Relax/Rest ~ Picnic tables and garbage cans were available and in working order. No port-a-johns in sight during the winter-period but not an issue this time.

3. Well Maintained ~ The baskets looked nice and caught well. Park looked like it was cared for. Nice enough to bring the family.

4. Dual Teepads Available. Even though it wasn't shoveled, it was nice to throw from the pro tees.

5. IT IS FREE TO PLAY. Can't say that to the similar nice courses in SE MI.

There is nothing really to complain about coursewise and the only problem we had has already been fixed.

Cons:

1. Limited Signage/Scorecard with map ~ Other than the MB with the map at the beginning, us first-timers became lost after only a few holes With so much space/land dedicated to the disc golf course, it was easy to get confused on the next tee's direction. It didn't help our cause with all the deep snow on the ground but at the time we played, some of the tee signs were missing. It might have been fixed by now but, just in case, take a picture of the map near hole #1 if it's your first time playing here.

I'd like to play here in better weather so I can give this place a higher grade. It's a real nice place and it was a lot of fun.

From the looks of the updated photo's, this place will probably rate a 4.5 these days.

I thought this was the better of the three courses in the area and is the only one I played more than once,good layout and variety of holes will provide a challenge for all players,fairly easy to navigate with some signs,distance markers in fairways were nice and a first for me,well maintained with mowed fairways,24 holes,clean course,

This course has no elevation changes,several of the Am tees were loose dirt and gravel making it easy to loose balance,thick rough off fairway and several blind holes suggest bringing a spotter,

I had a lot of fun here I would definitely recommend checking this course out,the whole park is flat so adding elevation would be hard but with cement tees and better signs I would give this course a 4,

the course is fairly well laid out with almost every type of hole represented. there is a river that runs along the course but there are really only two holes where risk of disc loss would be a worry. although the signs at each tee box have been vandalized the course layout is fairly easy to follow. as long as you can stay on the fairways you will have a wonderful time. tee boxes vary from nice cement pads, suitable rubber mats, to poor gravel (watch your footing). i do like this course but you need to pay attention to your throws or you will spend a lot of time searching for discs.

as mentioned before the signs indicating the throw path and distance from tee box to basket have been vandalized. many of the red tee boxes are still loose gravel so if you throw from the amateur tees watch your footing.

the worst part of this course is the vegetation. once your off the fairway you are in very thick brush. VERY thick brush.

in most instances you have plenty of fairway to work with. but a bad shot here is hard to recover from.

this is a local course for me so i play it very regularly. other than the overly cruel vegetation it is a fun course. lots of opportunities for any type of throw.

there are soccer feilds and a small boat launch on site. plenty of parking and port-a-johns.

Edit: i just learned that this course is groomed for winter play, that's a bonus for you winter players.

Challenging course. Tees and baskets well marked, as well as yardage markers in the fairways.

after the first hole, the grass grows high around narrow mowed fairways. finding errant discs becomes a chore, be sure to use 'spotters', especially on blind holes.

To be completely fair, we only played the front 9 on this course, late in the day after playing two other courses, in our first year of disc golfing. We got frustrated spending most of our time searching for discs in the grass and gave up as the sun was setting. We probably need to come up and give it another test drive.

River Road is my home course, and was created by my father. From March to November, this course is Beautifully Brutal. The Shrubbery grows on average of 3 ft. taller and 1 ft. wider than it already is, between the months of April and August. This course is designed around a Cross-country trail, which makes the layout, very easy to follow and the course is Very enjoyable.

River Road doesn't have any elevation changes, whatsoever. Most of the Red tees(Am) are just dirt holes, from Lots of local play.

River Road will be getting an upgrade in the Spring. With the completion of concrete on the Pro tees, this course will look even more amazing than it already does. We would love to see more out-of-town players come and try our Wonderful course. Go River Road!