Kirkland, WA

Northwest University DGC

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2.855(based on 13 reviews)
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Northwest University DGC reviews

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2 0
Schreuds2.0
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 6.8 years 93 played 81 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Great for beginners 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Jul 16, 2017 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Layout is good for beginners, but the course is also challenging enough to be fun. Some holes are very open, others are tightly closed in with trees. Cool course on a beautiful campus. Space is used very very well, 9 holes is a lot for the space they have so there are a few holes (1, 2, 3) That are farther away from the "main" course, but overall the fairways are clear and do not intersect. Very close to where I live, the most accessible course for me and probably any other east side discers. Baskets here are in perfect condition. The rough is not too brutal, but it still comes into play.

Cons:

Very short, if you are looking to spend an afternoon playing disc golf, do not go here unless you wish to play the same course over and over again. Also a little heavy on forehands (Right handed), this makes it seems really repetitive even though it is not that repetitive. Hole 5 goes right in front of the church and there are almost always cars parked on the street, this adds some nerves to your shot especially with hole 5's length.
Tees are not good, they are dirt and often muddy.
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2 0
Dadio
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 39.6 years 174 played 75 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Good Short course in Bellevue 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:May 3, 2017 Played the course:once

Pros:

This short course is on the campus of Northwestern University in Bellevue. It is tucked into the SE corner of campus and plays surprisingly well for the size of the footprint. The designers made good use of the available space, giving a variety of throws and hole lengths. Even moving 8 and 9 over by 6 and 7, while tight, is playable w/o being hazardous, not an easy task.

Cons:

Main con is natural tee pads. Some of them have roots across them, others have divots or holes. I was able to throw beside or behind most of them, a workable solution.

Other Thoughts:

Course is potentially busy since it is on a college campus but we were there mid afternoon on a weekday and it was clear. I have avoided this course for years because of this but will play it again when in the area.
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3 0
pnwooki
Experience: 9.8 years 4 played 4 reviews
3.00 star(s)

2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Sep 20, 2014 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

-quick after work course.
-good practice course for beginners to intermediates to work on keeping drives straight and low.
-pretty course on a quite college campus.
-recently played there and lost a disc in a bit of underbrush, got a call from a security guard letting me know he found my disc and it will be waiting for me at the security office.
-course can be altered to be more challenging on the fly. the baskets for 4,5,6 are close together and can be mixed up for a bit of a challenge. i like to shoot for 6 from the 5 tee pad for ex.

Cons:

-natural tee pads are twisted/rolled ankles waiting to happen (when possible shoot from street or sidewalk)
-it is on a college campus so if you are working on your drives, kids passing by may pick up your disc.
-a sign pointing from the 3rd basket to the 4th tee could be useful for people who have never played the course.

Other Thoughts:

the little cafe by the 2 tee is pretty decent and has some good coffee
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7 0
bizweasel
Experience: 13.7 years 14 played 3 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Holes 8&9 now MOVED 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Aug 1, 2013 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

If you are looking for a course on the Eastside to play during a summer lunch hour and want some time left over to actually eat lunch in that hour, this course is great. For what's really a very small course it has pretty good variety. Most of the holes are pretty straight so LH/RH or FH/BH don't really come into play but at least half the holes have significant treecover that will keep you low and tight.
Some interesting potential to work on your skips and rollers here.
Campus is very pretty. The little creek besides #3 is cute.
GREAT quality baskets. And pretty good placements of those baskets in situ.
Great place to take your kids along, you will all have fun.

Cons:

They need to seriously rethink their teepad strategy. Or lack thereof. I've taken another reviewer's advice and throw from either a sidewalk or the street whenever I can. Both to avoid falling over and to not do further excavation of the sad looking dirt pits that pass as 'tees' here.
The course is SUPER short. Even for a short thrower you do end up wishing there was something longer than ... 225 feet.

Other Thoughts:

The previous holes 8 and 9 are OUT now. These used to be by a building that was northeast of Hole 2. Hole 8 was many people's favorites even after it was shortened. It's too bad 8 got changed but 9 is no great loss. The new 8 and 9 are just uphill from 7 and seem awfully crammed in and short. If you've played the old 8, you might be disappointed by the change.
However the new 8+9 are still somewhat fun, with new 8 being a FH flip and 9 being a fun skipper.
A few other minor course changes that happened recently are that tee for #2 moved right/downhill (probably to avoid a roof) and tee/basket for #5 were reversed, not sure why, but the #5 basket is in a tricky/fun location now guarded by a couple small trees and close to a fence.
Because of the usage of the campus it's sort of a summer and evenings place to play, you might feel out of place otherwise.
Watch out for students and others just hanging out, who are maybe not so aware that there are flying discs loose on their campus.
I mentioned lunch ... I recommend the food counter at Metropolitan Market about a mile north ... and the gelato there, mmm.
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2 1
Lackychams
Experience: 11.2 years 3 played 3 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Great beginner course 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Feb 2, 2013 Played the course:once

Pros:

very short, not very technical, course is well maintained and the baskets are noticeable.

very easy to find and parking wasnt that bad, even though it was a wet and cold morning i had a blast.

Cons:

natural tee boxes made it a muddy day,
the course isnt really marked where to go after so defiantly download the course map or print it out.

Other Thoughts:

being from out of town, this was a great course and easy to find but took me a few minutes to find hole one, it was wet so i dont recommend going at 8 am or wearing the wrong shoe.
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6 0
Ranger Rick
Experience: 11.6 years 53 played 15 reviews
3.00 star(s)

2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jan 12, 2013 Played the course:once

Pros:

Very well maintained - the grass was trimmed and all of the baskets look as new as when they were installed.
Great variety of holes - up hills; down hills; left hyzers; right hyzers; short holes; long holes; tree cover; wide open - a little bit of everything!
Great ace potential!
Beautiful location!

Cons:

No tee boxes - luckily it was frozen out, so I had no problems with footing, but I can see where there could be some added difficulty when the course is wet.
Course is located in and around the buildings of an active university. as such I can see that there might be some issues with pedestrian traffic during school hours. I went on a saturday, so it was not too busy.
Course layout hard to navigate for the first time without a map.

Other Thoughts:

This was a fun little course to play! Not too far off the the I-405, so it was easy to find, even for an out-of-towner. I was worried about restroom facilities since it was a saturday, but found that the chapel building between holes 3 and 4, was open and the restrooms were right inside the door. I'm not sure if there were other buildings that were available, but it is a possibility.
Hole #1 really set the stage for a fun day, with it starting on high ground, and ending on high ground, but with a huge depression in between. I really had to push it to get all the way across to the other side!
If it's your first time, be sure to print out the course map. Even though there is blue tape on the basket, pointing to the next hole, many times, there was a building or two between them, and you could wander around a bit looking for your next tee. One person I talked to said he finally had to walk the course backwards to find the tee box for hole 8. I found it with no problem, because I had a map :)
Hole #4 is the shortest, but don't think it's an easy ace, as you are shooting it blind around a copse of trees. I thought I actually aced it because I heard the chains but when I walked around, I found the disk on the ground next to the basket :(
I will definitely be back to play it again!
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4 1
fruggiedesh
Experience: 25.8 years 12 played 1 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Great Beginner Course 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Aug 8, 2012 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Very well kept grounds. No trash, mowed grass, etc.
Variety of shots for a short, 9-hole course.
Easy parking/access when NWU is not in session (summer).
Nice baskets.
Ace runs!
Never crowded during the summer.

Cons:

Bordering on too short.
Par 4 #8 should be a par 3.
Some tees are far from previous pin.
Parking is tough during the school year (permit only on campus).
Dirt tee pads.

Other Thoughts:

This is a nice, clean course close to Seattle. I have played a number of rounds with younger players and beginners and it is a good fit for them. There is limited underbrush, which means limited time hunting for/losing discs even on the most errant throws. Many of the dirt tee pads are worn or muddy during rain. I tend to throw from the roads or sidewalks adjacent to the dirt when possible. I nearly always chat with security when I play and they are friendly and curious about the sport of disc golf.
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5 3
TheSinator
Experience: 14.1 years 28 played 18 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Try my alternate tees for a slight challenge 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Aug 5, 2012 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

There are many pros about this course:
- cool, new baskets with the uni's logo on them
- beautifully manicured lawns
- some really nice, picturesque holes (mainly #1 and #8)
- indicators on each tee sign that show were the next hole is
- pretty good elevation changes
- nice mix of RHFH and RHBH shots

Cons:

Teepads - The tees are basically a worn-out patch of dirt. They are uneven and some have roots in them. All the more reason to play the "blue tees" I suggest below.

It's also kind of a con that this course cannot be played when students are in session as people would definitely get in the way on Holes #1-2, 8.

Aside from #8, which any self-respecting player should play as a Par 3, this course doesn't have much length. In fact, 5 of the holes play under 200 ft--Yikes! (Below I've listed some alternate tee spots and will hopefully be able to upload some photos of these tee spots soon.)

Other Thoughts:

I don't know why people hate on 9-holers like this, giving low ratings. If this were an 18-holer, it'd have a much higher rating. When potential players are checking out the course, they know it's a 9-holer, so why give it a low rating on top of that? It doesn't describe the course well.


For those wanting more of a challenge, here are my ideas for alternate tee pads that make the course a little longer/harder/different:

#1 - Play as is. (Optional tee: If the rock wall to the right of the fairway is extended backwards, tee of behind that--next to the parking lot. This brings the OB volleyball courts into play more, as well as the elevated walls.)

#2 - Back up about 40 feet, so that you're teeing off underneath the tree at the corner of the building, bringing an uphill teebox into play, along with the branches of the overhanging tree, as well as the bush next to the original "red" tee.

#3 - Back up 20-30 feet until you're on the other side of the road. Tee off from behind the sidewalk. (This doesn't really bring any trees into play--just adds some much-needed length.)

#4 - All you need to do on this is back up 5-10 feet to bring the low-hanging tee tree into play.

#5 - Back up ~30 feet and tee off from behind the brick wall, bringing some low-hanging trees into play. (Just don't hit the lightpost)

#6 - Back up if you want, but you could play this as is.

#7 - Play as is.

#8 - Play as is (awesome hole!)

#9 - Walk west down the sidewalk until you're on the other side of the parking lot. Tee off from underneath the tree next to the basketball course (play the parking lot as OB--almost like the parking lot is a river or lake). This brings a lot more trees into play, plus the OB. Obviously, you can't use this tee when there are cars there.
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9 1
The Valkyrie Kid
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 45.9 years 1563 played 1507 reviews
3.00 star(s)

College Pitch & Putt Course Only With A Personality! 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Apr 15, 2012 Played the course:once

Pros:

As sillybizz so clearly explains, most college courses all seem cut from the same mold. Most of them seem that they were designed by someone from the intramural department with no clue whatsoever about disc golf. NWDGC breaks the mold in while it is still short, (it's mostly a pitch and putt) the elevation, the unique challenge for most every hole and overall tranquililty of the campus gives the entire experience a positve feel. I just kind of liked everything about the campus and playing here. # 3 plays slightly uphill next to a little stream and waterfall in a valley. Kinds of gives it a Japaneese Water Garden feel to it. You can almost feel the Zen! You're welcome to park on campus if there's a spot available. I saw neighbors walking onto campus, playing the course, almost using the campus like a neighborhood park.
The baskets are nice and new with blue rims with the college logo on the side. Navigation was fairly simple for me, playing here for the first time this morning. There are plenty of ACE Ops here.

Cons:

The teepads are dirt and not particularily level. Most of the holes don't require a run-up but the pads would probably get a little messy during our mostly rainy season.
The course is not to going to challenge most players. Many holes are under 200' but at least most of these offer some uniqueness whether it's a low ceiling or low lying branches right in front of the basket.

Other Thoughts:

I like that on a Sunday morning, I saw a neighbor with his two young sons playing. It gave me a chance to educate him a little bit on where to buy some decent discs and let him and his sons try throwing mine.
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4 0
mr.radon
Experience: 22 years 10 played 2 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Awesome lunch break course 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Mar 9, 2012 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Very good for working on your short game.
Excellently maintained course with brand new disk catchers.
Few people on the course - you can play at your pace.
Close by in Kirkland with excellent parking. (don't park in faculty spots) I asked a few faculty and they said as long as there are more than one empty spot, don't hesitate to park on campus.
You can get a latte between rounds next to the tee for hole 2, plus it has a rest room.
Motivation - if you are lacking in your short game this is perfect. Every hole can be birdied and some can be aced!

Cons:

No tee boxes. Adding tee boxes would be a great Boy Scout project for some aspiring Eagle Scout. However most tee shots don't require run ups, so if they are muddy practice your stationary throw.
Be careful no one is on the course, during class changes you may have to wait for people to clear when they take short cuts across holes 2 and 7.

Other Thoughts:

Others mention that there are cars near some holes (5&9). Be careful if you can't control your disks. Holes 5 is a short blind hole around a tree with parking spaces parallel to the left. A bad backhand or a forehand fade skip can end up in the street, but the hole is so short. Hole 9 - the cars are parked on the right (perpendicular parking). Bad bounce off a tree, but once again a very short hole.
Here is my perfect game...
Hole #1 is straight forward - be careful to avoid the volleyball players. Aim slightly right so the disk will fade close to the hole.
Hole #2 throw a controlled backhand for a possible ace or try a tomahawk/thumber throw which will always get close to the basket.
Hole #3 another controlled backhand for an easy ace/birdie.
Hole #4 another backhand avoiding the tree, which fades right for a easy birdie.
Hole #5 easy forehand, blind ace shot!
Hole #6 a hard backhand with a fade towards the hole for a birdie.
Hole #7 a hard forehand just under the branches will get you to the pin and a well earned birdie.
Hole #8 is long, has a building on your right and many trees; a gem. Hit a long low straight forearm shot with a fade after passing the first big trees. A good second shot will get you an easy birdie.
Hole #9 an easy forehand will fade into an ace.
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5 0
b-mart
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 13.7 years 66 played 61 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Surprisingly enjoyable 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jan 30, 2012 Played the course:once

Pros:

The baskets on this course are the biggest pro by a long shot. They're so new that the tone of disc-on-chain actually sounds funny. Navigation isn't too bad, considering that there are signs at each tee. Some form of signage to lead you to the next tee (and to tee 1) would be a nice touch for first timers. This is a great course to introduce people to the game. The holes are short (laughably so at times), but provide enough challenge for anyone to work on their mids and putts. Since it's a college campus, the upkeep of the grounds is top notch. You also can see a lot of potential for playing here as a safari course. They did pretty well with what they had here. There's plenty of use of elevation and a few reasonably tight windowed shots.

Cons:

It feels like the designer was half asleep when they designed the place. I found myself creating new holes in my mind by the time I'd played three holes (to an easy two under par I might add). There is a lot of potential here. Holes 8 and 9 almost feel like they were thrown on as an afterthought, but are two of the better holes on the course. Hole 5 is probably the worst hole here. Not only is it so short that I nearly aced it with a nonchalant backhand, but it's dangerously close to a row of parked cars (which I had to putt while leaning against). Being a course aimed at beginners, that's just not intelligent. I would also prefer it if they used the woods between 6 and 7 more, instead of throwing around them. That said, hole 7 is a great challenge and probably my favorite hole on the course.

The flow here is just wrong. Any time you have to walk across another fairway to get to a hole there's something wrong there. This course will never be overcrowded with players though... Just college students at select times of the day.

Other Thoughts:

With the rumors of the demise of Blyth Park, this might become my new go to course in the summer evenings to work on my game (sans drives). It's no Blyth or Silver Lake, but it's fun and will still stretch you enough to improve your skill set.

It's listed as a private course on here, but I wouldn't let that phase you. There's plenty of parking available in the neighborhood across the street, and nobody seemed to mind us being there. If anything they would stop and watch what we were doing, meaning that it's a great place for us to be ambassadors for the game.
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10 2
sillybizz
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Premium Member
Experience: 22.2 years 407 played 392 reviews
2.00 star(s)

2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Dec 4, 2011 Played the course:once

Pros:

Nice course on a college campus. Most of these straight forward college courses are open, short and usually all the same like they came off an assembly line but this course looks a little different. First off there are hills and the course uses them by making you throw up and down and on the sides of hills. Holes like number three are deceptive in that it looks very short and it is but the small climb in elevation may make your putter or mid come up shorter than expected. The reverse can be said about holes like number four that are slightly downhill and short with a low ceiling but sailing past the basket 100 feet is easy to do. Speaking of low ceiling I like some of the low ceiling approaches to this place like hole number seven which is a classic keep it under the branches skip shot or my favorite a roller.

Cons:

Most college courses that I have played bring the buildings dangerously into play on the course and this place is no exception. It's not incredibly dangerous here but errant shots from noobs are going to hit things and lets face the fact that the majority of people playing here will be college students who are noobs.

Hole eight is a good hole but hardly a par four for anyone who can throw more than 300 feet or so. The hole is probably 380 feet with some good trees blocking your path but it is downhill and very reachable in one throw. My problem with this hole is that you are forced to take the path to the right which is clearly more open and just a smarter play all around and there is potential here for a great split fairway, if the basket was moved up the hill a little more it might force you to choose the left or right side. It would also be nice if some of the hanging bush on that left side were trimmed up like the right side to open that area and make for a better hole.

The tee areas are muddy and destroying the pretty grass here. Most of the time I found a solid alternative in throwing from the sidewalk and this is possible on just about every hole out here and I would encourage people to do so.

Other Thoughts:

This is a surprisingly good little practice course on campus that is lots of fun for your short game practice. There are enough obstacles, elevation, and variety of throw style here to keep you busy and having fun for a while. We didn't have any trouble finding things with the exception of the jump from three to four and seven to eight, so the map is still desired for these two sections but once you do it once you have it.
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6 0
JR Stengele
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 23.9 years 251 played 191 reviews
2.00 star(s)

Northwest University Blue and Gold 2+ years

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Nov 26, 2011 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Northwest University DGC is a fun and beautiful little nine hole course located right off I-405 in Kirkland, WA. Established in 2010, this course plays directly through the center of campus exposing thousands of college students to this great game. What this course lacks in distance it makes up for with its unique course layout. Holes range anywhere from 150 - 435 feet, with eight Par 3's and one Par 4. Although the course isn't very difficult, it is the perfect place to bring children, spouses, or those new to the game. When I played I found myself making a lot of ace runs with my putter, mids, and occasionally a fairway driver. The replay factor here is high for all skill levels considering there is plenty of room to practice both putts and approaches.

The course is extremely clean due to being located in the middle of campus, offering areas to throw trash away, seating, vending machines, and bathrooms if you look hard enough. The tee signs on every hole give detailed information regarding par, distance, and pin placement. The DISCatchers are truly unique as well, using NWU school colors on the baskets, blue and gold, with large bold numbers on the top to help first timers navigate.

Best hole(s): Hole #8

Cons:

Considering this course was intended as more of a recreational type of course, the challenge for a more seasoned disc golfer may not be there. However, as I stated above, the enjoyment factor makes this course well worth your time. Please be aware of pedestrians and parked cars as they can come in to play quite often. Just be patient and give them the right away.

Navigation can be an issue for first timers so I recommend printing off a map on the links tab. When my friend and I played we had some troubles locating holes three and eight. Fortunately there were some college students playing who were more than willing to help.

Last, the tee pads. Currently the tee pads are large muddy divots near the tee signs and during the wetter months they become quite slippery making drives more daunting. The erosion is an issue as well as the tee pads are becoming increasingly larger due to students kicking the dirt around, making the tee pads longer and longer. Eventually it would be nice to see some rubber mats installed to help with this issue.

Least favorite hole(s): Hole # 5

Other Thoughts:

The signature hole for this course may vary depending on who is reviewing the course but in my eyes it was hole eight, the only hole on the course that requires both distance and precision. However, they have recently adjusted the tee pad, making it about 100 feet shorter, which allows for a more natural throw off the tee.
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