Blair, NE

Black Elk-Neihardt Park

Permanent course
3.055(based on 11 reviews)
Filter course reviews

Filter reviews

Filter reviews

Black Elk-Neihardt Park reviews

Filter
0 5
Joe Pollito Willman
Experience: 70 played 5 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Good little 9 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 22, 2020 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

Great use of the hills and trees. Good challenge (tree obstructions, fairway widths, etc). Sort-of a course map by the parking lot

Cons:

Thick rough (keep it on the fairways, especially hole 7).

Other Thoughts:

Could use some subtle signage (basket mounted arrows, etc) to help guide to the next tees.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
3 0
aphilso1
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 6.5 years 52 played 49 reviews
2.50 star(s)

OK course, but could be great 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Feb 18, 2019 Played the course:once

Pros:

-Great teepads and baskets
-Some really fantastic views especially on the latter half of the course
-The land is tailor made for disc golf: mix of open areas/moderate foliage/thickets, plus plenty of elevation changes.
-For a nine hole course, there's a decent variety of shot shapes to execute
-Fun factor is high. This was a really enjoyable place to play.

Cons:

-Comes nowhere close to capitalizing on the potential that the land offers. Some examples of this:
* course could easily be 12-15 holes with no additional footprint. Could comfortably fit a full 18 if the course used just a little bit more of the park.
*the land has lots of elevation changes, but the course design doesn't really capitalize on it. There are lots of spots that require you to hike down or up significant inclines between holes...it would be a lot more fun to THROW up/down those inclines.
-Related to the first 'Con,' almost all holes require a significant trek to get to the next teepad. This begs the question: why not install more holes, rather than have large chunks of land go unused?
-Lots of blind shots, plus no park map. Thankfully some kind soul perfectly mapped it out on uDisc, otherwise I would have had no clue how to navigate.

Other Thoughts:

-I played in the winter with 8" of snow on the ground, which means I can't really comment on course maintenance or how busy it gets. The park is surrounded by a college and very nice neighborhood though, so this seems like the type of place that would be well maintained.
-Black Elk has SO MUCH potential. Seriously, this could be a destination course with the right design. The land reminded me a bit of Water Works in KC, which is high praise indeed. But Water Works is perfect in both land and design, whereas Black Elk has awesome land but very mediocre design. This place could be great but instead it's just OK.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
2 1
Rob Martin
Silver level trusted reviewer
Premium Member
Experience: 13.8 years 325 played 41 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Neat views, needs maintenance 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 8, 2017 Played the course:once

Pros:

Two large tee boxes per hole, although they are pretty close to each other.
Nice baskets.
Neat views from top of hill.

Cons:

A little hard to navigate. Never did find basket seven.
Using the map, if you look real closely you can see the tee pads which will help you figure out the flow. The trees all around basket 8 were cut down, presumably because they were dead or diseased. Seem to be quite of few that were not doing well. Basket seven which shows up on the map probably is buried in some new growth that I didn't feel like digging around for.

Some of the tee posts were missing, or the metal plates on top showing direction / distance to the baskets were missing.


Other Thoughts:

A 2.5 is not a bad rating. It's just kind of typical. The topography really helped keep this course rating up. The maintenance issues pulled the rating down.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
3 0
mndiscg
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 15.8 years 480 played 478 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Up and Down at BE! 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Aug 1, 2014 Played the course:once

Pros:

+Two nice large concrete tees on most holes
+Nice red baskets
+Awesome hilly terrain made for interesting shots and beautiful scenery to play through. Most holes were up or down or had a tricky green. Some fun risk/reward shots here. The holes are tight enough that a few feet could mean the difference between birdie and bogey. Accuracy is more important than distance here.
+Enough trees to force certain shots but not enough to scare away most players or to create a rough to eat discs. It was a perfect amount of trees for a park style course.
+Nice parking, a nature trail with historical things for those who are interested in that.
+I played on a friday afternoon and was the only one on the course. It probably doesn't get too busy.

Cons:

-Every hole is blind or at least close to blind on this course. I don't mind a blind hole or 2 but this was totally unbalanced.
-Navigation was pretty bad. Many tees were missing signage and it was often hard to tell where to go after the last basket. It was also hard to know where all of the blind baskets were. You will need to do a little scouting or play with a local. There was lots of random walking around.
-The hole lengths were medium but didn't vary too much from hole to hole. At the same time, there wasn't a true ace run nor was there a true bomber hole. The course was again pretty one dimensional in that regard.

Other Thoughts:

+They should double the course size and put new signs up. This could be a sweet 4 disc 18 holer with some epic big shots.
+This course is worth a stop. The Omaha area doesn't have too many great courses so you might want to drive up here sometime to check out this park. It is pretty fun. I will be back if the opportunity presents itself.
+This course probably has a better replay value than as a first timer. The poor navigation and signage does hurt it.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
0 0
scvanm
Experience: 4.8 years 41 played 8 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Challenging 9 hole 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Jun 7, 2014 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

They used trees well, both around the tees and close to the tee pads. It has nice hole placement to create some challenging shots. The course has some great country scenery. The A and B pads are placed to create almost completely different holes....nice.

Cons:

Signage in general. Could find no posted map. Since all the baskets (except on the shorter pad on 3) can not be seen from the pads a map would really help first timers. The pads for 3,4,5,6 are hard to find the first time you play.

Other Thoughts:

Will most definitely play again. We thought it was a very fun course for a nine hole layout.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
0 0
Burd
Experience: 12 played 9 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Blair DGC review 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Sep 5, 2011 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

Very fun short course. Low traffic at this course with great scenery for Nebraska. Very well maintained park with good elevation changes. One of my favorite in the area, and I really don't like 9 hole courses but with A and B tees at every hole it is good to throw them back to back.

Cons:

Again its only a 9 hole course with plenty of room to expand but still short.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
5 0
Hector Chain
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 15.8 years 222 played 189 reviews
3.00 star(s)

If you play one course in Blair this year... 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Apr 23, 2011 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

Think of any type of vegetation that you've enjoyed seeing on a course...and this course has it. Big leafy trees, thick pines, big ass shrubbery, and lots of wild grass. The course is not wooded by any means, but you really need to think about your path to the basket. Otherwise you might end up in a place with no great second shot.

There are two concrete tees on each of the 9 holes and two basket positions (only one basket is in use at any given time). The A tees are not too tough to par if you play it safe. The B tees are a bigger challenge, with some tougher alleys to hit. Hole 4 forces you to hit a really thin alley or throw a sweeping turnover shot and then hit a downhill approach shot. Hole 8 tempts you to throw a big hyzer over some un-mowed wild grass that could get you in trouble (maybe better to lay up straight ahead). And hole 9 is an uphill challenge with pine trees on either side that is a very tough par.

In addition to the trees, there is some nice elevation changes. Hole 5 has a really steep dropoff that could ruin your score if you leave your shot to the right.

The park was not crowded, just one other group on the course.

Cons:

The baskets are often not visible from the tee, so you'll need to walk up the fairway to see where you're going with it. Course navigation is okay, but after hole 4 you need to backtrack a bit and go up the hill (there is a little path, but it's not obvious that is where you're supposed to go). There are a couple other parts that require some minor backtracking, but nothing too obnoxious.

Also, the course message board has numerous mis-spellings on it. If you are a lover of both disc golf and proper grammar, you may feel conflicted here.

Other Thoughts:

If you have played Cunningham, the topography is similar on the latter holes with the wild grass and the types of trees and shrubs you'll encounter. It's actually a pretty piece of land, and I really hope they can get more holes put in. If you look at the map near the parking lot, the park is huge. Space would not be an issue.

This was a surprisingly quick drive up from Omaha, and I will be back. This was a fun little course.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
3 0
Wheelz
Experience: 14.2 years 28 played 22 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Hilly fun 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Apr 17, 2011 Played the course:once

Pros:

Nice concrete tees, 2 per hole. Nice red baskets. The course is well taken care of, no trash laying around. Great scenic views as the course is on the top of a very large hill. There is also a lot of elevation here, so bring hiking shoes! Many holes offer a great challenge and force you to use several different shots. There is a very nice walking trail, trash cans, benches, shelter and restrooms in the park. Course flows fairly well. Room to expand.

Cons:

The course is fairly short, there aren't any long bomber holes. It is very easy to lose a disc here as many areas outside of the fairway have tall grass/trees. Several of the pins are blind, some of them can be hard to find.

Other Thoughts:

Overall this was a fun course to play. Although there are only 9 holes, you can play one round on each tee to make 18. The park is beautiful, and the course makes pretty good use of the land it is on. However, there is plenty of room to expand to 18 holes if desired. The park has tons of elevation, if this course was expanded it would make for a really challenging round. If you are a first-timer you may want to allow time to scout out the course before you play... there are several blind pins. The course flows fairly well, although there is a little bit of backtracking. Stop by if you are in Blair!
Was this review helpful? Yes No
8 0
Donovan
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Premium Member
Experience: 37 years 300 played 187 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Tree Farm on a Bluff...Tada! 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Mar 27, 2010 Played the course:once

Pros:

This course is on top of a very scenic hill with a great view! The parking area is nice and ends with some huge religious looking monument thing at the peak. This course is like someone installed the cement tee pads and baskets in the middle of a tree farm. This place has lots of trees, 2 tee pads and 2 pin placements on each hole, some elevation, and a well thought out layout for 9 holes. A few of the holes had well placed baskets. Don't get me wrong, there are pathways to the holes. So, this is not a throw and hope it gets through kind of holes. This was a very clean place to play and it seemed to have well maintained grounds.

Cons:

For having such short holes, many of the holes required you to walk up a little ways to see where that basket was located. Navigation isn't that easy, and I did need a map. Mostly this is due to not being able to see the next hole or the length of walk between some of the holes. I really wish they had put in the full 18 holes as there was plenty of room to do this. The hole lengths did not vary that much. Many of the tee marker plates were missing. There were no trashcans on the course itself and I did not find a restroom here either. Basket 9 and tee 1 are not close to each other.

Other Thoughts:

The Fun Factor for this course was just OK. Some of the holes were fun to navigate around the trees on, but the variety of length was a little dull. I tend to like these kind of courses with lots of trees, but this one didn't end up being as much fun as I anticipated. It is still a nice course for its size and the area. If you have the course map, it might be worth a stop.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
1 2
djmcgaffey
Experience: 19.4 years 16 played 5 reviews
3.00 star(s)

2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Apr 14, 2009 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

This course is located on the top of a bluff in Eastern NE. Has great views and a good challenge with hills and trees.

Cons:

Mostly a par 3 course, with a couple of alt. tee boxes that give you a longer par 4 hole. Two of the holes you must wait on others to play through before driving or you will be throwing over other players.

Other Thoughts:

This would make a nice 18 hole course, but due to trying to protect native grasses, they have kept it to 9. It is a nice short course to play.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
3 3
GodCountryND
Experience: 1 played 1 reviews
2.50 star(s)

You'll get your excercise! 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:May 20, 2008 Played the course:never

Pros:

Very nice scenery on a hill top with very challenging basket placements.

Cons:

Up and down the hill too many times. You would often play a hole down the hill, then have to walk back up the hill to the next tee. Some of the basket placements are next to impossible to par (completely surrounded by trees).

Other Thoughts:

Too much dead space. This is a nine hole course, but could easily be 18 if they filled in the dead space. You do alot of walking in empty space when you could be playing holes there.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
Top