Oceanside, CA

Emerald Isle

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3.885(based on 13 reviews)
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1 3
vince
Experience: 7 played 7 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Don't throw your arm out 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Apr 3, 2009 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Good driver workout on the wide open course. There are some fun water shots. Some killer elevation change holes.

Cons:

Expensive for disc golf. Lacks technical holes to balance it out.

Other Thoughts:

A fun course all in all. Bring your heavy discs as it gets windy. And save you're arm...all those wide open looks can be tempting to just unload.
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2 0
The Drake
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 20.8 years 126 played 60 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Unique playing experience 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Apr 24, 2009 Played the course:once

Pros:

A solid course with a good test of distance. Some very lengthy true par 4s make for a true test of distance. The course itself is very well maintained as you can imagine being on a ball golf course. Well marked with pro and am tees.

Cons:

any of the holes are just alike. In an effort to blend with the ball golf course it takes very similar lines and uses the same fairways which leads to a lot of boring straight shots.

Other Thoughts:

Being from Birmingham, Al. this course provided a very unique experience for me as I've always been curious to see what its like to have a combined disc golf/ ball golf course. During my particular round there was a pairing of ball golfers playing almost simultaneously with me. I felt like the flow worked well.
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4 0
LeBeau
Experience: 1 played 1 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Top notch 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 30, 2009 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Elevation changes
Challenging breeze/wind conditions
Usually not crowded
Good Innova baskets visible from a distance
Really well-groomed course
Ball golfers tend to cooperate in letting you play through

Cons:

Sharing the course with ball golfers can be a drag.
Disc Golf is restricted to 4 pm. or later during daylight savings season.

Other Thoughts:

Aesthetically this course is one of the best I've played. (As a reference, Milo McIver is the best course I've played.) The course's challenges come mainly from elevation changes and having to deal with OB in the form of ball-golf greens and sand traps. In general, the course requires a pretty good power shot on the drive. There are numerous holes in which the basket is within 15 feet of a ball-golf green, so you may have to putt conservatively on occasion, or grow a pair.
This is my favorite local course by far; the $5 admittance fee is well worth the price, as is the 40 minute drive to get there.
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3 0
roadtripstuff
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 21.1 years 286 played 57 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Nicely Done 2+ years

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

Pros:

Very well maintained, nice rubber tee pads, great water hazards, can rent golf carts, snacks, beverages, and beer available, pro shop on site

Cons:

Played alongside ball golfers, price is a little steep (carts and def worth paying for), we had trouble spotting some of the teepads

Other Thoughts:

This was a great disc golf experience. The course as you can imagine is kept in great condition. There are multiple tees for each hole and the tees are nice rubber pads with great traction. The water hazards on this course are what make the course. Another interesting obstacle are the greens for the ball golf, your disc can stick or it can send your disc gliding out of control so watch out for that. We got there when they opened and there were only two other people on the course ball golfing, but by the time we finished there was a line for the first tee, so get there early to avoid the crowds. Also keep and eye out for the beer cart, what more could you ask for.
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6 0
TalbotTrojan
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 15.6 years 112 played 104 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Different Kind Of Grass 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Mar 21, 2009 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

Super well maintained course as it shares the grounds with a ball golf course. Amazing tee rubber tee pads with multiple tee pads as well as multiple pin locations. This is a very wide open course as you would expect and there are a couple of nice long holes. There is some great use of elevation change. The club house has a good pro shop as well as more than just snacks for food. If you happen to throw a disc into one of their lakes, they do go diving for discs about once a month and they work really hard to get your disc back to you though you will only have 60 to 90 days to get your disc back. I am not sure if it is always the case but you may be able to rent a golf cart for your round as well.

Cons:

You do have to pay a good bit of money to play this course and you will end up sharing it with ball golfers if you do not play this course in the Emerald Isle Open in the spring every year. While the grass is really nice, the way a disc responds on it is very interesting. It is hard to predict if the grass will grab your disc or just let it skip off of it.

Other Thoughts:

I did play this course as part of the Emerald Isl Open and had one of my best disc golf experiences yet. I enjoyed the open feel of this course but understand that part of what makes disc golf so great is that there are some really tight places to try and throw your disc through. I would say that this course is definately worth the cost to play it though I will probably not pay to play it until next years EIO if I have the ability to make it.
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4 3
Mark R
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 21.8 years 115 played 89 reviews
4.00 star(s)

2+ years

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Feb 3, 2009 Played the course:once

Pros:

Water holes (3, 9, 15,16) are a thumber thrower's dream. These holes are truly what separate this course from the rest and earn extra points. Manicured, defined fairways as one would expect. Pay-to-play but worth it for the features. Hole 7 is a favorite, a long downhill shot just wide enough to make it reasonable, and perfect for backhand crush drives. Hole 17 is a great 300' downhill RH backhand shot. Rubber tee pads are OK. Skip at the Pro Shop was a big help by stopping by periodically to help me find the next hole, and to avoid ball golfers.

Cons:

Kind of tough (but not impossible) to deal with somewhat square group of ball golfers. Not crazy about greens rule (cost me three strokes, maybe putters only?). Most holes are wide open enough for ball golfing, which means none are tight and technical, like for instance, Chavez Ridge in L.A. Busy overall with a 2:1 ball/disc golfer ratio.

Other Thoughts:

Need more courses like this with carts and beverages. Move it up to five stars by eliminating ball golf, and planting a few more trees to make some tech holes.
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4 1
BENFTS
Bronze level trusted reviewer
Experience: 30 years 102 played 33 reviews
4.50 star(s)

2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Oct 10, 2007 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

great course layout, sitting on a golf course it is hard to make a great disc golf course flow and not get in the way. this is that course, with three teepads and several pin locations this place will find a way to challenge your game. there is a fair amount of elevation change and some extreme change on the later holes. holes play around water hazard but tee selection lets you decide how much of a hazard it is. the greens and sand traps are O.B. so you don't mess up the ball golf course. i really like this it adds some difficulty as the pins are always near the hazards or the O.B. areas. great mix of short and long holes with a fair amount of lefty and righty shots off the tee. on site pro shop and snack shop. OH you can rent golf carts here.

Cons:

hazard retrieval, it can be treacherous but its my own fault for putting it there.

Other Thoughts:

even though i play ball and disc golf not all of the ball golfers on this course do, sometimes they can be a bit rude.
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3 2
ddevine
Experience: 45 years 133 played 39 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Ball Meets Disc 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Apr 5, 2008 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

Ball Golf course, so fairways are very nice, you can rent a cart and enjoy a relaxed round in Sunny SoCal. Good pin placements near OB on many of the holes. Your driver is a must. Good elevation changes. Many deuces for those with accurate 380-400 foot drives.

Cons:

Share the course with ball golfers, although I have played afternoon rounds with almost no BGers around. Wide open, so you are mostly working on your drives, but that is a nice change from Morley.

Other Thoughts:

Traffic on I-5 can be a pain, which is why I don't go up there much. If I have the time I would rather play La Mirada, even though it is another 60 miles north.
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5 1
progprowl
Bronze level trusted reviewer
Experience: 21.8 years 18 played 16 reviews
3.50 star(s)

challenging 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Dec 31, 2008 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

-The course is clean, well maintanied, and challenging.
- Living in San Diego you can play here to work on distance and Morley for the short game. I play here in the summer and it is a great change-up from Morley or Montiel.
-Many challenging shots with hills behind holes (Don't go left on hole one, or you'll be at the bottom of the hill).
-Be sure to bring your Dragon for the holes where water comes into play. (They send a diver into the ponds once every few months)
-Some great holes for roller shots if you have a good one in your aresenal.
-Holes are clearly marked with maps and signage. Garbage cans and Benches are present.
-Nice rubber tees make for solid driving surfaces.
-Carts are available as well as Beverage (Beer) cart patrolling the course.
-Great Pro Shop with lots of discs and food.

Cons:

-Competing with Ball golfers can be difficult, although it can be fun to play both at the same time (when they aren't busy).
-Course is designed with Ball golfers in mind not us. Accuracy is important, shots on the golf green or sand traps are out of bounds.

Other Thoughts:

I don't like that they don't allow play on peak Ball golf times. I tried to go at 2PM on a Saturday during the summer and was turned away. I played again recently and upgrded to a 3.5 Disc rating. I was bitter before about the turn away. This turned me off for a while. I realize that ball golf is where the money is for the owner. Beautiful green setting is a great change of pace from the brown of the SD landscape.
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4 8
whaithai
Experience: 24.6 years 2 played 2 reviews
5.00 star(s)

Emerald Greens! 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Nov 16, 2008 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Par 4's, Lots of OB's, Water Hazards, Sand Traps, Open Fair ways good for Rightees and Leftees. Golf carts and the occasional Beer.

Cons:

Just the occasional inconsiderate Ball Golfer and non local Disc golfers who tear up the greens and wreck golf carts and jeapordize the existance of this great course... don't be an idiot!!!

Other Thoughts:

I'm proud to say... this is my local course, less than 10 min. from home. Home to the famous EIEIO tournament and currently 2 of my Aces... This course is challenging everytime I play it. Whether it's the massive amounts of OB's and the occasional 15 - 20 mile per hour winds (I may be exaggerating a little bit) this course has helped me become a better player. Thanks to Skip who always has our backs and all the locals who have become like family. Do me a favor, don't be a Con!!! We are trying to get rid of those.
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2 8
booze2death
Experience: 16.8 years 13 played 1 reviews
4.00 star(s)

clean course 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jun 16, 2008 Played the course:never

Pros:

very clean well manicured course
easily maneuvered layout
several very challenging holes
all around beautiful course

Cons:

STRAY GOLF BALLS! my buddy got tagged on like hole 4 by a stray ball and wasn't even given warning
if you're too over confident on the water holes you may lose a disc

Other Thoughts:

it was a little more expensive of a course but you could see where that money goes. other than always looking over my shoulder for stray golf balls i had a great time at this beautiful course. i look forward to being able to clear those water traps from the pro tees someday soon.
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13 1
Rizbee
Premium Member
Experience: 45.9 years 320 played 11 reviews
4.50 star(s)

Emerald Isle 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Mar 11, 2008 Played the course:never

Pros:

Beautiful setting: the course is extremely well-maintained, with lush green grass all around. Rubber tee pads allow for consistently solid foot placement. Flow of the disc golf holes mirrors the ball golf course, which aids in overall flow of play and integration with ball golfers. Challenge created by several carries over water and placement of baskets near ball greens and sand traps (which are O.B.). It's a "pseudo links" design - if the wind is with you going out it'll be hard in your face on the way back in. Great pro shop stocking tons of discs and snacks, periodic snack cart patrolling the course. Pins rotated regularly.

Cons:

Play can be somewhat slow at heavy use times. The holes are by necessity pretty wide open, so the precision of the line you throw is not often tested.

Other Thoughts:

This course rewards big arms. Another way of looking at this is that the course pushes you to improve your distance throwing. Glad to have EI as one of my home courses.
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13 0
gwillim
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 22.8 years 169 played 41 reviews
4.50 star(s)

Fantastic! 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Mar 3, 2008 Played the course:once

Pros:

Very well kept grounds.
Great variety of tee shots.
Great use of elevation.
Friendly staff.
Discs available for purchase.
Golf carts for rent!
Fantastic use of water hazards.
Disc recovery for discs lost in hazards.
Cute girls driving around in beer carts!

Cons:

Takes a while to play a round. But when you're enjoying yourself this much, that's a good thing!

We have to share the course with ball golfers.

No other cons.

Other Thoughts:

Emerald Isle is my favourite course in SoCal. It really feels like a Professional disc golf experience. I love all the holes, and it is a very challenging round of golf.

The staff at the course is great. Skip Winship is one of the nicest guys you'll meet, and the rest of the staff love DGers as well.
For all the big arms, this is the place to play.

All-in-all, my rounds at EI have been some of the most rewarding rounds of DG I've ever had.
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