+

+ Starting area includes a shed, practice basket, course map, lost disc box.


+ Paver tees, DisCatchers. Excellent permanent signage has been installed since some older reviews.


+ Good mix of wooded and open holes across the 18; great use of elevation and natural water features, with a water carry on #17.


+ The layout at Stonykill features a wide range of challenges for experienced players: technical wooded holes, elevation changes, doglegs in both directions, some bombers on the back nine, a bracing water carry, island holes. the need to consider the effects of wind, and to throw with an eye toward controlling landing angles. For a single basket and (mostly) single tee layout, Stonykill packs a lot of punch


+ Ryal remarked in a previous review about the beauty that is hole #12: a long gliding downhill bending left with trouble on both sides after you make the turn. He's right: it's a beauty!


+ Hole #17 is the water crossing - an elevated tee with a large pond protecting a wooded approach. You only need about 170' to land safely, but it's a big wide pond and it's right there in your face. A uDisc reviewer compared Stonykill to Stafford Woods in New Jersey (sacrilege!), and this hole might be why. I'm gonna be the "well, actually…" Jersey guy and say the hole lines up more like #14 at South Vineland.


+ There are two temporary holes on the back nine, made necessary because of the storm damage closing holes #1 and #2. They're short and straight, and could be real low points to the layout. But they both play downhill - and to add some challenge, the temporary greens are flagged to create island holes out of both.


+ Stonykill saves a few of its best punches for the very end. Following the #17 pond, hole #18 is a vicious par 4 that's almost 500' with a 90 degree right dogleg half way. First you throw down through a narrow fairway in the woods, then once through the turn, you're headed up to a basket obscured by the crest of the hill. The trees and the distance have probably broken a bunch of good rounds - you can't let up at the finish.

-

Holes #1 and #2 are closed due to storm damage. Two temporary holes have been added following #14, so you'll still have a full round of 18.



The Red (shorter) layout has very few differences from the main Blue layout. They play from the same tees to the single set of baskets on the front nine. Several holes on the back indicate shorter Red tees. A few are marked by small flags (and a few might be missing). Other than shortening a few of the back nine holes, the only significant changes in "layouts" I noticed are on the closing two holes: the Red position removes the water carry on #17 and the dogleg on #18. None of this affects the excellent experience of playing the Blues, but if you're coming to Stonykill bringing a newbie with the idea of them playing the Reds, they'll be in for a difficult go of it.

~

~ Elevation creates rollaway dangers often in the early holes: #3 plays up to a slanted bowl that's carpeted with pine needles, hole #4 is uphill to a basket with a steep ledge on the right. If you're on the green but to the left of the basket, you're facing a deathputt. And hole #5 is a short, comically uphill hole where you're throwing almost straight up to a cliffside basket.


~ It's a bit of a walk from #9 to #10, down through the starting area and parking lot. But when you reach the tenth tee, you're rewarded with a vista: the course opens up into a completely different environment featuring long open teeshots across rolling hills


~ Despite what's indicated, this is not cart-friendly. "Somewhat" cart-friendly hides the fact that there's steep elevation, creek crossings, and lots of roots and rocks in the fairways. A cart is really more trouble than it's worth here.


~ The two temporary holes following #14 are 14b and 14c. Holding aside the quality of the holes (as I mentioned, they're really good as temp holes), why aren't they 14a and 14b? Later in the day, when playing Joralemon Park, the holes went from 9 to 9b. Hey NY Capital Region: what's the deal with skippin the a's??


~ Stonykill is an excellent course, with a layout offering plenty of varied challenges. For reasons mentioned above, I don't think it's a good place for beginners. I don't hold against it that the first two holes were closed when I played. That's temporary and just unfortunate timing on my part, and I credit the course for putting in a couple of decent temp holes. To me, Stonykill is about as good as any course gets with only one playable layout. Just about anything rated higher by me offers multiple tees and/or baskets, which significantly increases the replay experience. That said, I'm sure that if I lived closer to Stonykill, it would be in my regular rotation.

The variety is what i like best about this course. it is more about technicality than just how far you can throw, with the front 9 mostly in the woods with some narrow alleyways. But it also has some open holes.Some holes go left, right, up and down, meaning you need a lot of different shots for different holes, and even one over a small pond.
I have never seen it very crowded, and there are generally loaner discs available.
They now do have permanent metal signs at each tee. A few previous comments mentioned that lack.

Be careful of ticks, this is the epicenter of Lyme ticks, and easy to lose discs in the underbrush.

+ Great welcome area with a practice basket, a complete info board and compartments for lost discs, lost personal items, etc.
+ Bright 'next tee' arrows.
+ Deep forests, wide open fields, elevation, a stream and a pond await the player here.
+ Tee pads are flat, sturdy, long and wide made of pavers, but...

- ...Some of the pads are in disrepair. Hole6 comes to mind.
-/+ Tee signs are just okay. They're present, mostly.

Hole1 was my favorite to look at. Right off the bat, Stonykill starts you off in a haunted-looking creaky forest of tall pines. It is such a prefectly framed image that you can't help but stare in amazement for a few moments. The next few holes continue this way, but I liked hole1 the best. After, say, hole5, the course calms down and resembles most other northeastern courses.

Hole12 was my favorite to play. After hole 9, the course almost audibly clunks into a different rhythm. The distances increase dramatically. Gone are the dense forest tunnels. Instead, we get mostly fields and wider tunnels. But hole11 and especially hole12 find a nice balance in that back nine. 12 has a lovely downhill glide that requires tree-dodging and power control. Watch out for that stream on the left hand side. It's a fun hole to outsmart.

The biggest surprise to me was hole5 by far. Up until that point, the fairways are flat or at least not textured enough to force me to take notice. Then, I walked to tee5, turned to face the fairway, and my mouth dropped from the surprise before me. It might be the briefest on the course, but it still laughs and dares you to attack its crazy uphill climb without hitting any of its trees. The course never reaches that kind of wow factor again, but it was nice to see once.

And my least favorite was hole10. I'm finding that hole10 is usually my least favorite hole at locations that used to be a 9-hole course. A lot is asked of such a connecting fairway, and Stonykill's hole10 was just a little too long and open to be fun, despite its hills. Plus, the sign at 10's tee area wasn't nearly clear enough. I ended up throwing towards basket 14 without realizing it.

So, I may as well say that the tee signs in general need a bit of work. They are just laminated paper on wooden posts. Some of the posts themselves are rickety, and a few have fallen over. More permanent tee signs would be cool.
Also, some of the holes aren't that great. Holes9 and 15 were on the boring side because of their direct nature.

But the course as a whole is great. Even after it leaves the spooky pine tunnels behind, Stonykill has a trick up its sleeve. Maybe a stream on holes11 and 12. Maybe an entire pond on hole17. It is a nice example of what disc golf variety can be, and I hope you get the chance to play it someday. It's not too explosive or gripping, but you'd still be missing out on something good if you decided to pass on it.

I am going to start out by saying I enjoyed this course a great deal. I was passing through the area and had an afternoon to play DG, so chose this as the closest course. From the reviews I expected an "average-to-good" municipal course, but man was I pleasantly surprised.

The variety out here is fantastic. Hole lengths vary from 150' out to 633'. The short holes are tight, "New England Tunnel" type shots which are narrow. Really narrow. The longer holes are partially open with only two completely open. Most require careful line-shaping and hitting specific gaps to score well, and the two open holes incorporated enough elevation to be challenging.

In addition to dead-straight tunnel shots are several tricky little bends and doglegs. Hole 18 is a Par 4 with a 90 degree dogleg right that heads uphill for a challenging finish. Plenty of elevation introduces a couple of side-hill holes and others with tricky, roll-away greens.

Holes that stood out for me include Hole 10 with a drive out over an open grassy bowl, then an approach into an opening in the edge of the woods then uphill to the basket.

Hole 12 is slightly downhill and bending left the entire way. A creek guards the right side of the fairway and collects discs that are slightly off line.

Hole 17 is a reasonable drive straight over a pond to a basket on a steep slope. The landing area is plenty wide and the carry isn't too long, but hitting any of the guardian trees or even landing the disc on edge will bring the pond quickly into play.

Some previous reviewers downgraded for incomplete tee pads and poor/missing signage. The day I played there were 18 outstanding paver teepads. Flat, level and well boxed with heavy 6"x6" timbers. Tee signs were laminated paper and obviously not permanent, but had excellent hole diagrams, next hole arrows, etc. If they keep these signs up there shouldn't be any complaints.

Other infrastructure includes excellent DISCatchers on the "main" 18 holes, and more benches than I've seen on any other course. The locals must like to sit down a lot! Next tee arrows where needed made navigation a snap.

I really enjoyed this course and have trouble coming up with cons. But here goes:

No alternate tee pads or basket positions.

Holes 14B and 14C are add-ons using natural tees, no signs, and home-made baskets which were decent but not great. I enjoyed the holes but they aren't of the same caliber as the main holes.

Swampy, murky water is in play on several holes, and in some places looks like you won't be getting your disc back.

Color me impressed with this course. I would love it as a home course as it offers the entire range of shots from tight woods to open to everything in between, with elevation and water to boot.

With permanent tee signs and some refinement of the two "add-on" holes this course would easily jump to 4.5 for me. As it is, I'm around 4.25 as it sits.

The large parking area is directly behind the Town Hall. There are restrooms inside of the building.

Great new tee boxes, easily navigated, loner discs available, well maintained, good parking lot behind town hall

can get very wet/muddy, tics, tics, tics, lost disc at 17 will likely not be found, no bathrooms

Beautiful course, new brick tee boxes, mostly wooded with a few open fairways on the back 9, wooded areas not super tight, good elevation change, hole 17 over water, streams running though 11 and 12 can get moving after heavy rain can make some shots unsafe, lots of tics make sure to check yourself even if you stay mostly out of the rough

Clear fairways, nice baskets, pointer to the next hole on most greens

none, one hole had some steep hills, had to climb down to get my disc, but that is all part of the game

Really enjoyed playing the front 9, will be back next time I am in the area.

Excellent tee pads on most holes.
Most holes had signs with map, par and distance.
Great baskets.
Good directional/next tee signs around the course.
Front nine loops back to parking lot for a quick round or refill of supplies.
Course is in excellent condition. Trees trimmed, mowed fairways, paths clear.
Amazing mix of tight wooded shots with wide open bombs.
Good blend of 3s and 4s.
Beautiful landscape for a course.
Fair lines off the tee and from the fairways.
Lot of fun shots. Good variety through the course.
Seating on just about every hole.
Kiosk with course info, disc golf community, lost and found, and loaner discs.
One trash can at start, turn, finish.
Good parking

No bathrooms.
No scorecards available.
A few tees without pads.
Practice basket is kinda dated.
Paper laminated tee signs should be upgraded to something more permanent.

Stonykill gives you a wide range of shots over the course of 18 holes. The front nine is more tight woods with the back nine playing more open and long.
The course is in excellent shape. The tees are clear, the routes are fair, and the basket & greens play well.
The layout allows for nine hole rounds with the 1st tee, 10th tee, and 9th & 18th green, all located right near the parking lot. This also makes refilling your bag with snacks and liquids very easy during play.
You can't go wrong playing this one.

Nice mix of mostly wooded and open field holes.

Nice tee pads on 1-18.

Advanced players should be happy with the back 9 (actually 11 at this point).
Strong arm drivers will enjoy #10, a long....open field drive that finishes at a wooded uphill target.

The front 9 is better for beginner players though most holes wooded and tight.

Discatcher targets on 18 holes.
14b & c made by students at the local high school along with the practice basket.

At kiosk, loaner discs and trash can available.

Nice location and beautiful land.

Good parking behind Chatham Town Hall.

The Village of Chatham a couple miles South-West on Rt. 295 is a great place to grab a bite after playing. Especially for couples.

Better designed tee signs needed.
Last round played on 11/11/18 they were set very low to the ground?

No restrooms.

Ticks. Some years bad & some years not.

Poison ivy, especially on #3 & #4.

Needs alternate "white" tee locations designed & installed.

14b & 14c are underdeveloped.

This course is being totally designed, built & maintained by a dedicated group of volunteers with the support of individuals and local businesses.

The Town of Chatham NY has allowed the developement of this course on Town land.
Please respect Town laws while playing at Stonykill.

Discs lost in pond on #17 are usually unretrievable.

Nice paver tee pads being installed. Looks like maybe some alternate long tee pads as well in progress. Course map by parking lot, along with loaner discs. Two loops of nine holes back to parking lot.

The front nine features mostly heavy woods golf and some nice elevation changes and fast putting greens.

The back nine features a little more length and some open air, but still has some heavy wooded holes and similar elevation and a pond.

Being still new, the course is a little rough in places and lacking in signage(I'm sure this will improved). The course is a little on the short side currently, if long tees do get installed the course would be awesome. No restrooms or portapotties. Beware of ticks.

Stonykill DGC is still a work in progress although it's very playable and quite a treat. I played the current 20 hole layout with the two short temp holes in the open field and holes currently known as 17b and c. The current hole 17 would become hole 15 and the potential long tee on that hole would be a tremendous downhill shot. Also the potential change to hole 18 would be an awesome closing shot for the course. The potential for this course is phenomenal and hearing that there maybe another 18 holes going in would definitely make Stonykill a disc golf destination.

Currently the course plays well for intermediate to advanced level players. As the course evolves some more it should be great for players from rank beginners to expert. I will be back and can't wait to see it then!

Good mix of open and wooded shots.
Good lines, you just have to hit them.
Have Tee Pads though some need work.
Free
Maintained

Need more signage at the tees. Can be hard to figure out which basket you need to hit on the back 9.
Needs some steps in places especially on the front 9, steep hole.

Course is set up well with a good mix of open and woods. Back side is more open. This course will get better as its played more.

I like the variety at Stonykill. First 9 is mostly heavily wooded, and back 9 plays in and around an epic pole-pine lined rolling hill field that i want to be buried in when I die. They have installed GORGEOUS pressure treated and paver T boxes on majority of first nine and are working on finishing the rest (i think... I hope so) It also looks like and has been rumored more holes coming. Yes please. They have loaner discs.

They need to finish making the T boxes. Add Garbage cans please.

One of my favorite courses in the Tri-State area. Not to be missed.

Located only 40 minutes from Joralemon Park and only 25 minutes from Bousquet, this course sits on about 100 acres of Chatham town land. There are currently 9 discatchers installed, with plans to install as many as 27 more holes. The 9 holes are exciting, better than any 9 hole course I've played. I've played the course close to 100 times now, and it has yet to become dull. For a new course, there is great signage on the holes, and arrows on the trees to point in the direction of the next hole. The course flows really well and there is no problem of landing in another fairway. Hole 5 is a straight uphill 200' ace run and will get your adrenaline going every time you throw it. There are maps and scorecards located in a mail box by hole 1. The Chatham Brewery and the rest of downtown Chatham is only located 2 miles away for a bite to eat after you play.

The obvious con is that there are only 9 holes. After surveying the land and seeing the possibilities, I have no doubt that this will increase in rating to 4.5 and soon. There is still quite a bit of dead wood laying around on some of the holes, but it has been diminishing very quickly since the course was built, thanks to the volunteers. Hole 9 is very easy to lose a disc in the honeysuckle dividing 9 and 6. I would recommend a lay-up shot or a spotter on this hole. Hole 5 can be somewhat treacherous, as there are a few cliffs or very sloped landing areas. Some steps have been installed, but it needs more. Be careful!

The course volunteers have been putting in countless hours to clean the fairways and it shows. The next phase of design is to install 9 holes in and around a reclaimed gravel pit. While 7 of the original 9 are shorter, but technical holes, the incoming 9 in the pit will include some long and open bombs up and down the slopes. Hole 6 and 9, the only par 4's on the course, will text your ability to throw it long and accurately. Hole 6 shoots across a somewhat open meadow to the landing zone, then down towards a creek and back uphill to a basket with spectacular views of the entire property. Hole 9 is a very long and technical tunnel shot that requires great placement shots. Pros and ams will both have a lot of fun on this course. Can't wait for new holes and tees to appear! Thanks to everyone who made this course possible!

Well defined fairways throughout the course. Technical course that forces you to throttle back to stay on the fairways. Discatcher Pro 28s catch well. Great use of pine groves and rollaway greens.

Some long walks between holes. The rough is REALLY ROUGH. Should thin out with more playing. Tees are gravel.

Some holes will be changed as we play it more. Once the reclaimed gravel pit grows in, a championship 18 will be added.

A brand new course that needs lots of work and workers. Nine well laid out and well marked holes. Fairways well defined. Metal fence posts instead of baskets to facilitate fine tuning the course. On every hole, several orange flags are near the pin and viewable from the fairway.

Very easy to loose discs in the shule. The vegetation is still thick most everywhere. Still needs a lot of weed whacking. A small swamp on left side of fairway on hole 4. Creek OB 30 feet from pin on 8. A few paths cross and use fairways which will be solved next time we run the brush hog there.