St. Peter, MN

St. Peter Riverside Park

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2.725(based on 9 reviews)
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10 0
Naenae
Silver level trusted reviewer
Experience: 11 months 38 played 38 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Didn't like it? Play it in late fall. Perfection!

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Nov 16, 2023 Played the course:once

Pros:

1. Outstanding piece of property along the Minnesota River (the first big tributary to Old Muddy).
2. 100 foot tall trees of at least 4 different varieties that I could tell with leaves down. And thousands of them.
3. Long tees are good and easy to find. UDisc almost optional. Metal arrows to next tee.
4. Boomer's paradise. This is a long-ish course (6089 ft, par 58) with broad fairways that will seem like super-highways to the talented/polished.

Cons:

1. It's a flood plain. There is no elevation change at all.
2. Speak of floodplain, I estimated the level of this flat as a pancake course to be 20 feet above the water today (see below for more info).
3. Old Innova Discatchers. They are faded and bent, but to be fair, they still catch nicely.
4. Missing tee signage on #5 and #11.
5. Short tees can be hard to find. Rather than concrete, they tend to be a cluster of cobblestones, not large enough to x-step on. Grass is all flat though. Slower throwers probably don't need a large concrete pad.

Other Thoughts:

This review is brought to you by one of those "Always have your discs in the car" moments. I stopped for a round on the way home after getting a couple of spinal injections in Mankato. At no point did the discharge instructions mention that I shouldn't throw a frisbee one hundred times today.

The local conditions at the time of this review were temperatures 20 degrees above average for mid November, windy (25 gusting to 40), all the underbrush dead and all the leaves down. The fairways were nevertheless freshly mowed and perfect, really. I should have tried hitting some of them. See wind, above. Finally, I am no hydrologist, but I did a bit of environmental studies on my way to a medical degree 30+ years ago. I inferred from a tiny bit of sandy near-beach on both sides of the Minnesota that the river is probably just slightly below its baseline level. Preliminaries and context aside, onto the course review:

I like to put the conclusion somewhere up high in the review in case I lose you early. I absolutely loved this course. I shot the worst score out of 46 rounds played so far this year, but I loved it just the same. Here is the thing though:

I played it under absolutely perfect conditions, other than the wind, which was actually fun in a challenging way. I haven't yet given out the elusive 5 star review, but this was close. The last star was withheld for the conditions I am positive constrain this course, but weren't actually there today. Allow me to explain, starting with an anecdote.

I tossed my Leopard over the river bank accidentally on 10, but it was fading back toward the beach. I thought it was probably safe on the little micro beach, so I hurried forward and saw it down the bank, in the river, motionless in 6 inches of water. Easy-peasy. In scrabbling down the steep sand and dirt embankment, peppered with trip-wire roots that could have put me headfirst in the water below, but were helpful on the way back up. I did my best to estimate the height of the embankment. I got 20 feet using a couple of different methods. Remember that the river appears to be a little lower than baseline.

I have since looked up flood stage for the Minnesota at St Peter. It's 22 feet above baseline. You think the Mississippi River floods often? I've lived roughly 40 decades in this state. The Minnesota River floods every year. In higher flood years, about every 5-10 years, the road you would have come in on (169), at least 10-15 feet above the course, gets closed for flooding, although it was recently raised in some of the more vulnerable sections.

I digress. During flood stage, which happens nearly every year in April/May, this course is under water. That's why it's so danged flat. It doubles as a lake with some regularity. It will dry out in June and be a mosquito fest in July. Maybe, just maybe, by August it will be dry and very playable. I will tell you though that I threw through a lot of thin branches today that, if covered with leaves, would have been knockdowns. And, I ended up in woods, owing to the winds and an insufficiency of talent on my part, which would have been dense undergrowth. Previous reviews have mentioned you can lose discs here. Today, they were unbelievably easy to find--even the one in the shallows of the river's edge. Zero problems at all finding them on or off the fairways.

What I am taking too long to say is that if this is a course you want to bag, I strongly suggest that you do so after the first frost to eliminate the bugs and shrivel the rough, and when the leaves are mostly down, similar to what I exploited today.

Under such conditions, you will encounter predominantly blind par threes, with a mixture of banana right and banana left shapes. Not a ton of variety, honestly, and no really short ace runs. The course is board flat, but the designers have tried to mix this up with some elevated tees, elongated poles, and even one hole with the basket dug into a little bunker below the level of the surrounding green. Props.

So will you like this course? That depends. I think you're much more likely to do so in the fall as I've already made clear. Beyond that, are you a bomber? Green light and may the odds be ever in your favor. If you are, like me, not a bomber (I throw 270 max), do you care what par is. I mostly don't. If you look at a 360 foot hole blind basket, angled against the prevailing winds marked as a par three and get pissed off at the designer, then maybe you shouldn't stop here. I took the approach of collecting double and triple bogies on this sort of hole (of which there are many) and thinking about how I might save bogey on a second attempt. That I might never par them didn't bother me. The day before, I threw two birdies at Bassett Creek. I never had a decent birdie look today. It's a different kind of course, and it's awesome at being what it is.

One more anecdote. I was utterly alone on the course today. Three very large trees spontaneously fell over within 100 feet of me during my round. It's the old philosophical/epistemic conundrum with a twist: If a tree falls in a forest and brains you during a late fall round, will your body be found before spring. Sort of glad I didn't learn the answer to that, but it was slightly spooky. The deer, hiding along the fairways from time to time, didn't seem nearly as unnerved by the falling lumber as I was.

If you bag this course and are looking for something else to do, I recommend the Treaty Site Museum about 10 miles upriver (SE toward Mankato). It's a bit sobering how many legally binding promises, as determined by the US Supreme Court, were made in this area to Native peoples only to be violated as soon as was convenient to European American settlers looking to enrich themselves. It happened though, and not learning about it won't make it not be true.
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5 0
Humpupoy
Experience: 14.2 years 4 played 4 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Don’t lose a disc! 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jun 30, 2021 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

~Challenging for beginners and intermediates
~Well maintained at time of playing
~Long and varied
~Not many other people
~Holes lead very naturally to next tee
~Signs and boxes at every tee
~Very scenic

Cons:

~No wide open holes
~Fairway has been mowed on my visits, but the rough is...rough...high chance to lose a disc
~A few very short holes

Other Thoughts:

I consider this the best course in the area if you're ok with playing a little hide 'n seek with your discs. If you're not super accurate plan to spend a lot of time looking for your shots. The entire course is a wooded area, but both times I've been there the fairway is well mowed, contrary to older reviews here. I feel like this is a must play if you're driving through!
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5 0
jademi13
Experience: 16.8 years 17 played 4 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Hidden gem if you don't mind roughing it 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 22, 2015 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

This course was designed and built over a decade ago, and, aside from the occasional mow, dead tree clearance and emptying of the trash, not seriously maintained since. However, for those that don't mind gravel (or grass or sand or dirt) tee offs or other less than perfect conditions, this course offers a technical challenge that is great for in-form intermediate and advanced players. It will reward players who can shape and place their drives, and have variety in their game.

-Many technical, relatively tight, but playable fairways. This demands variety in drives, players will have to lay up, hook right and left, drive low and occasionally high.

-Good length, there are a few straight birdy shots, but 7 of the holes are ~320+ and many others have large doglegs. No true open field shots, though a few fairways near the end are straight, wide and long enough for some bombs.

-The DISCatcher baskets are almost all in great shape, however, a couple are slightly bent and 9 is about six inches off the ground.

-Short tee's on the long holes for beginners/birdy runs (not that I'd say this is a great beginners course overall due to the very thick rough and many narrow fairways).

-Never crowded.

-Great views of the MN River on the front 9. Though the river is nearby, it is never really in play so don't worry about losing discs that way.

-Lots of wildlife including deer, turkey, bald eagles, blue heron and other small critters.

-A decent map at the entrance of the parking lot (if it's your first time through it might be good to take a pic with your phone as there are a few tee signs missing and one or two tee boxes may be tricky to find).

-Though holes 9/10 aren't near the parking lot you can travel from 6's green to 15's tee or 8's green to 12's tee (just cut inland) for a shorter round.

Cons:

As I said before this course has not been seriously maintained since it was built in '04. It is in the flood plane of the MN river and has been completely flooded multiple times (the most recent in '14 put it under 12+ feet of water), this has washed away tee boxes and a few sign posts and added a bit of sand.

-A mix of dirt, gravel, sand and grass tee boxes (when there is a box, otherwise it's pretty easy to tell where people are going from). Post rain many are muddy.

-Extremely thick rough, make sure to place your drives or else you will be spending time looking for discs. All different kinds of brush/weeds/tall grass. If you're new to the course you may want to use a spotter on a few holes.

-Bugs, when it's mosquito season mid june-mid august, they're here, bring some spray.

-A few holes long tee boxes have mostly grown over leaving a long tight tunnel to start 10 and throwing into what are now very tall trees on 17, most players will prefer the short tee's on those holes (or throwing from the base of the hill into the fairway on 17 as a medium tee, the short one is grassed in anyway).

-Hole 14 is supposed to have a right and left option, but the dogleg right half is almost completely grown in (sorry lefties).

-Flat, there are a couple holes with some minor elevation changes, but almost all are virtually flat.

-There are a couple holes that have grown in a bit and could really stand for a bit of tree trimming to widen a couple bottlenecks and/or allow room for more than low drives (2, 3, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15 if anyone working for the City is reading), but for those looking for a challenge maybe this is a plus.

Other Thoughts:

This is not a well maintained course, however it's technicality and variety make it a diamond in the rough. If iffy tee pads, searching for a disc or two in thick rough, mosquito's, and some missing sign posts will ruin your round, don't come here. If you don't mind roughing it, this is the best course inside of a 40 minute one way drive for those in the Mankato/St. Peter area (or much much further if you live to the west or south) and well worth the stop if you're passing through on 169.

Plays best in the spring and fall when tree branches aren't full, the rough is a bit easier and the bugs aren't as bad.
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1 1
Tlrmessner
Experience: 21.8 years 34 played 5 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Challenging 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:May 13, 2013 Played the course:once

Pros:

Very challenging course, with a lot of character. Some great scenic views, and usually only a few groups out. Starts and finishes right up by the parking lot. 2 or 3 great "signature" type holes.

Cons:

The flood, period. This course has a ton of potential, but was flooded several years ago and has been abandoned. Tees come in grass(good) dirt (manageable) and sand(terrible), and most posts are missing or laying down. Very difficult to map out for the first time, so bring a local if possible. Lots of sand so you leave feeling pretty gritty.

Other Thoughts:

All in all, this is a great hidden gem of a course, if you play it early. By mid summer when the undergrowth comes in and the grass gets tall (the city doesn't seem to mow it) it can be downright frustrating. Not a great course for beginners at anytime, but if you are looking for a challenge you'll find it. The first 2 holes are a crisp wake up demanding your attention to leave with pars. Then on to a string of holes that have the opportunity for birdies, but still require long accurate drives to do so. Lucky to pick up a few before getting to the back nine, which lengthen a bit and again command your attention for pars. Through in a few short ones, and back to 350 plus to finish the round.
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1 1
Muskiebite
Experience: 13.9 years 174 played 28 reviews
1.50 star(s)

Scenic 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:May 23, 2012 Played the course:once

Pros:

-Scenic
-Full 18

Cons:

-Bad Signage
-Wicked Rough (and alot of rough)

Other Thoughts:

Great place to let the dog run around, thats about all the nice things I can say about this course. I got lost a few times, wound up playing 1-6, then took a shortcut to 15 by mistake and didn't know it till I was at the basket
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2 0
bschommer
Experience: 19.9 years 50 played 8 reviews
1.00 star(s)

Needs ALOT of work 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Aug 28, 2010 Played the course:once

Pros:

This course holds tons of potential. If it was kept well this course would be great. The first few holes were very nice. I saw the first hole which is about 300 gentle curve to the left with a split fairway. I thought i was in for a well designed course.

The original design of the course is great. Tough long holes that need your A game, but when good shots still require 10+ min of searching the pro's to this course come to an abrupt end.

elevation and use of trees is very good

Cons:

It appears that the river flooded since the last time this course had a review written on it. Basically the course is in awful shape. the first 2 holes had grass that appeared to have been mowed a week or 2 ago. After this the grass and brush continued to get worse and worse. On hole 8 the grass and other growth was over 4 feet tall and off the "fairway" is a disaster zone. the gravel tee boxes are washed out and I was lucky not to lose any discs....not to say i didnt spend alot of time searching for them.

Many holes are blind shots and look outs are required to have any hope of finding your disc.

Other Thoughts:

If the course was maintained this course holds the potential to be a 4 out of 5 kind of course but since the farther along I got the worse shape the course was in it receives an abysmal rating of 1
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5 0
harr0140
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Premium Member
Experience: 15.2 years 1508 played 475 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Dont stray from the fairways!!! 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 18, 2009 Played the course:once

Pros:

1) Nice easy to find posts and very nice signs with hole layout on each hole.

2) Dual gravel pads (althought they could use some levelling and upkeep)

3) Easy routing on most holes except when the holes cross the recreation trail that weaves through the course.

4) Nice large parking lot and port o potty at the beginning of the course.

5) A few holes shove up next to the river although it never should come into play unless you have a bad bounce off a tree that was supposed to be out of the way (I Came within 20' of going over the river bank down 50' to the river)

6) Bring all your shots because you will need to work your discs around corners risking punishing shule. If you get in some of it your only way out is back to the fairway or a tamahawk.

Cons:

1) Tee pads could use some levelling and a handful of them have all sorts of stuff growing into the gravel.

2) 20-30' fairways and then you are in deep shtuff on the sides. There are some wicked plants and I am sure poison ivy and thistle so be careful. Very punishing shule and can eat up discs!

3)Not beginner friendly because of distance combined with the deep shtuff. A wide open course of this distance would be beginner friendly but because it forces throws beginners will struggle mightily.

4) Sign on #14 shows two fairways (yet only one is mowed. DO NOT THROW LEFT OF SCRUBBRUSH UNLESS YOU HAVE A CANNON AND KNOW WHERE THE BASKET IS!

5) The look of these holes is a little boring. There are a few good holes but the rest although average seem about the same.

Other Thoughts:

This is a similar course to a handful of courses I have played. They mow down a fairway through some densely shuled lowland. This isn't prairie style because discs are easily lost 5 feet off the fairway where prairie grass courses are more forgiving. Also there is scrub brush and mature trees in the shule forcing you to follow fairway lines. It is an average course because of maintenance needs. But it is a bove average for forcing your shot making skills.
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3 0
Guurn
Silver level trusted reviewer
Experience: 37.8 years 90 played 40 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Late doglegs 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:May 31, 2009 Played the course:once

Pros:

The course plays near a river and all fairways are sandy with thin vegetation on them. Even though it would seem hard to find discs off any fairway because the vegetation is thicker there it actually wasn't for me. However I did use a spotter on a few holes.

This course has 18 holes and uses Innova Discatcher baskets. I found the flow to be reasonable with the use the park sees helping quite a bit in finding the next hole. The signage was of good quality, showing both distance from each teepad (most have 2) and the basic layout of the hole.

Most holes were not aceable even with the most amazing shot possible due to late doglegs. Now this really doesn't bother me, but I mention it so readers will know what to expect. It seemed to me that course management would be the trick. Many fairways seemed to have landing areas for initial drives and occasionally for chips. The trees off the fairways are mostly of the new growth variety, 20 -30 feet tall.

I would call it an advanced intermediate course that will play well for all except for beginners. If you can't control the hyzer this isn't your course.

Cons:

Teeboxes are sand. I would often look next to the box to see if I could find firmer footing. I did have trouble finding a hole once (going from 14-15). Hole 2 was kind of ridiculous. 480 feet with a hard dogleg right after about 330 feet and then a hard dogleg left 60 feet later.

Other Thoughts:

Has a parking lot near hole 1. Hole 18 finishes near it as well. There is a biffy in the parking lot. I'm pretty sure hole 17 isn't 380 feet. Probably closer to 480.
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4 0
mndiscg
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 15.8 years 480 played 478 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Alright 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Feb 14, 2009 Played the course:once

Pros:

Full 18 holes, nice placement of pins. Dual tees for every hole. Nice course map. Adequate parking. Hazzards of river and dangerous rough. Signs on every hole showing distance and hole location. Local college has club that plays in the warm season. Easy to find, right off major road.

Cons:

Keep your disc out of the ridiculous rough and small trees, fairways are usually pretty small and hard to get out of. Very flat. Gravel tees are uneven and slippery. Many chances to lose discs on almost every hole. I like blind shots but playing from the back tees and you have every single one is a blind shot. Hard to navigate unless you have played before. Hole location shown on map isnt always the best, sometimes hard to see since they are all blind approaches. Most holes seem to be straight then a left dogleg (i throw RHFH), more variety of doglegs needed.

Other Thoughts:

No baskets in winter, just metal poles. Interesting course, nice use of public land that may be flooded by MN river which borders course. I will play again when in the area but I dont think I will make any special trips to go there. I played in winter, while there wasnt alot of snow it still might be a different experience in the summer.
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