Des Moines, IA

Water Works Park

2.175(based on 6 reviews)
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1 3
jwetter
Experience: 110 played 29 reviews
1.00 star(s)

Water Works 2+ years drive by

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

Pros:

It is a very flat course that has baskets. You should not lose any discs other than on a couple of holes that go along some wooded areas.

Cons:

It is a large area with tee pads and baskets sprinkled everywhere. It is a confusing course to play and is not very creative. When we played we spend almost as much time looking for the next hole as we did playing the course. The holes got boring because we were just throwing from one tee pad to a basket and then making a similar throw again.
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2 1
bobo262
Experience: 18.9 years 16 played 3 reviews
2.00 star(s)

Flooding Hits Hard 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Apr 13, 2010 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Long Flat out shots.
No elevation changes.
Pretty much wide open, few trees.

Cons:

Looks like a huge dried up mud flat.
Several Baskets damaged by flood this spring.
Some fairways have large dead trees carried in by flood.
Tee off pads burried under mud and silt, very hard to find.
Only about half of holes have tee off signs.

Other Thoughts:

This course needs moved to another location.
Spring flooding really hurts this course a lot.
Upkeep seems to be nonexsitant.
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3 0
mwgheaton
Bronze level trusted reviewer
Experience: 22.9 years 66 played 25 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Simple, Convenient and Relaxing course 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:May 22, 2007 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Water Works Park is conveniently located a short drive from downtown. It is part of a huge urban open space and is essentially a disc golf only area. It is very flat terrain with mowed grass fairways and huge shady walnut trees spread out throughout the park. Long driving is the name of the game on most of the holes, but holes 12-15 require more technical shots weaving under and around the trees

Cons:

The Raccoon River borders the park to the south and the park is in the flood plain. It usually floods once or twice a year. After the water recedes, mosquitoes can be a bit of a annoyance as well. Hole number one is located at the north end of the park and the access road to the parking lot can be difficult to find. Also, the access road is sometimes closed. The primary access to the park is located on the south end and across the river on a footbridge by hole number 13. Most people start their rounds on this hole which can disrupt the flow of play of those that started at hole number 1.

Other Thoughts:

I live in Colorado now, but I will always consider this my home course. It is a great place to learn disc golf and practice. It is flat, forgiving and the locals are nice.
Note: Newcomers often miss the number 4 tee and accidentally skip straight to number 6 which is located closer to the number 3 basket. Number 4 is a little farther away next to the bike path.
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3 0
mndiscg
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 15.8 years 480 played 478 reviews
2.00 star(s)

Flooding hurts 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Nov 23, 2008 Played the course:once

Pros:

-18 holes!
-Not too busy with disc golfers.
-Most holes have good maps.
-Large, mature, well placed trees.
-Good use of otherwise useless public land.

Cons:

-Floods commonly causing tee-boxes to be buried under silt making them hard to find.
-Appears to be subject to vandalism or maybe just flood damage; many baskets are damaged.
-Some signs are missing and those holes are hard to locate.
-Biking/Running paths nearby on some holes but with a decent shot it isnt a problem.
-Very, Very flat so no elevation changing shots.
-Glow in the dark baskets but park closes at 8 PM.
-Kind of hard to find if you havent been there before.
-Broken glass and other garbage on course.
-Not much grass on course, some weeds otherwise just dirt and this gets muddy fast.

Other Thoughts:

Location makes upkeep hard if not impossible. For the circumstances it isnt a bad course but it seems to have alot to deal with.
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4 0
cydisc
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 27.9 years 257 played 84 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Working on your distance? 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Oct 8, 2008 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Good shot variation. Some par 4 holes.

Cons:

Course hard to find for first time visitor. Not much in the way of obstacles. Many broken baskets, tee signs. Buried tees.

Other Thoughts:

A course with a few inherent flaws. First, the baskets are the type that have solar powered lights that illuminate the chains at night. The only problem is the park is closed after dark. Plus, those baskets are quite flimsy in a park setting and the bulk of them have been broken. Plus, plus, they don't catch the best either.

The course can and has been flooded quite a few times. After the last round of record flooding, most of the tee pads are buried under inches of silt. There isn't much in the way of grass, it's mostly weeds, but the groundskeepers keep them mowed down when it's dry enough to do so.

All in all, it's 18 holes that you don't have to think too much about to play
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3 1
garublador
Experience: 20 years 7 played 7 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Fun for rec round. 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Mar 25, 2008 Played the course:never

Pros:

Good mix of longer and shorter holes, not normally very busy requires sevreal different tee shots, trees are used well, practice fields nearby.

Cons:

Very flat, can flood after heavy rains, minimal parking, no nearby amenities.

Other Thoughts:

I'd avoid this course in the early spring. It stays wet and muddy after the snow melts or after a lot of rain.
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