Wild Haven peeps and I played it last fall and I remember enjoying myself.
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Michigan New Course Updates
- Thread starter DirtyMittenDG
- Start date
Wild Haven peeps and I played it last fall and I remember enjoying myself.
What's really sad is that course has been in the ground for about 4 years now and I live roughly 7 miles away and have yet to play it. I'm just hesitant to play it because I'm pretty sure it's a chit show and it'll just piss me off to see what nonsense they came up with using my tax money. :|
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I seem to specialize in hitting the chit courses.
I'll hit it sometime in the next week and let you know if it's even worth the stop.
You might want to give the college a jingle because I am not entirely sure it is truly open to the public. I've heard different things through the grapevine none of which has been very reliable.
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Appreciate the heads up.
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Well, I tried calling a couple of times and just get routed around their directory. Tried to speak to the "operator" for assistance but no answer.
Imma assume it's open to public based on recent scores on Udisc, and the fact it's a community college.
Since you live right there, I'll give you a jingle to come bail me out when I get busted for trespassing.
#growthesport :|
Kurt641
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Added garfield park in Fife Lake
https://www.dgcoursereview.com/course.php?id=11875
https://www.dgcoursereview.com/course.php?id=11875
Someone told me that there was a group working on getting Bonnie Brook back in the ground. He did not know much else. Just wondering if this was just hot air or if it is true. I would love to help out, if true. Anyone heard anything about this?
Future_Primitive
Double Eagle Member
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Independence Lake has been updated to reflect the new two course layout. Worked with Tim to move holes around and keep most data intact. Updated all tees with GIS map data from the park. And we added the new map yesterday to help navigate the courses. The park has doing a lot of course work and it would be good to snap some new photos next time you play and add them here and on the Scene. Six or seven holes now have alternate A/B baskets and others have been made longer. I believe temp tee signs are up now with permanent ones on the way.
Terrific upgrades to a really solid set of courses. The Washtenaw County park system has really stepped up with new pads, new pin placements, new tee signs, new directional signs, new drop zone and smartly cut new paths from all the new pins to pads. Seems well thought out. The improvement in flow and play will make the golf experience here much better. :thmbup::thmbup:
Thanks for the updates, FP.
Independence Lake has really committed to disc golf as one of the core park services.
They commit significant park resources to active maintenance of the course - litter, brush clearing, clearing tee pads during the winter etc. They've offered "Learn about disc golf" events (disclaimer: that I helped administer) to evangelize the sport to new players (mostly family groups attended). They seek out & listen to disc golfer feedback.
I'm going to take a small amount of credit for the alternate baskets (merely by virtue of never shutting up about it). Alternate pin placements - variety is the spice of life! - are not common in Michigan disc golf courses in this area.
In my opinion, they've truly demonstrated the desire to improve the quality of golf played at their park wherever possible. Because of all this, I'm happy to pay the newly instituted fee for disc golf & to sing their praises. In my opinion, Independence Lake has now clearly surpassed Hudson Mills* as the premier disc golf course in the Ann Arbor Area.
*when asked if they could kindly help clear off tee pads during the winter as we were still paying to play w/ our yearly bag tags, HM responded that they would do their best but only the shorts on the Original (and NOT the extra letter holes!). The fees for disc golf that we are paying, they said, barely cover mowing expenses during the summer so tough luck. The only time I saw snow on the tee pads at Independence Lake this winter was when it was actively snowing, and I didn't even have to ask.
They commit significant park resources to active maintenance of the course - litter, brush clearing, clearing tee pads during the winter etc. They've offered "Learn about disc golf" events (disclaimer: that I helped administer) to evangelize the sport to new players (mostly family groups attended). They seek out & listen to disc golfer feedback.
I'm going to take a small amount of credit for the alternate baskets (merely by virtue of never shutting up about it). Alternate pin placements - variety is the spice of life! - are not common in Michigan disc golf courses in this area.
In my opinion, they've truly demonstrated the desire to improve the quality of golf played at their park wherever possible. Because of all this, I'm happy to pay the newly instituted fee for disc golf & to sing their praises. In my opinion, Independence Lake has now clearly surpassed Hudson Mills* as the premier disc golf course in the Ann Arbor Area.
*when asked if they could kindly help clear off tee pads during the winter as we were still paying to play w/ our yearly bag tags, HM responded that they would do their best but only the shorts on the Original (and NOT the extra letter holes!). The fees for disc golf that we are paying, they said, barely cover mowing expenses during the summer so tough luck. The only time I saw snow on the tee pads at Independence Lake this winter was when it was actively snowing, and I didn't even have to ask.
Very good post.
I think there is a disservice done by comparing two completely different park entities. My intention is not to defend or take sides. The MetroPark authority is a multi county/regional park system, dependent on a different tax and funding base. They treat the disc golf income differently, by the mandate of a board of directors and bylaws. Not all of this benefits disc golfers, but the revenue does benefit all parkgoers, in the case of the MetroParks.
The Washtenaw County park system has really stepped up their game in the last few years and have put Indy in a position to claim a spot in destination golf discussions. That does come at a price, as the park entry fee for non residents is outrageous at Indy and Rolling Hills.
As golfers, we are not really entitled to much, even with the inclusion of pay to play. Hudson Mills is still a world class disc golf facility. It has become an old school style course, in need of a facelift. We have seen some nice upgrades at Kensington and Stony Creek, so we can hope that Hudson Mills will see the same love.
We are very lucky to have both park systems working hard to provide the state and area with the quality of golf we have.
I think an important part of the discussion has to be the ease and ability of clubs to hold events at the two park systems. Indy has increasingly been providing cheaper, better and easier communication and services for tournament. The lack of bathrooms and a picnic shelter really hurt the tournament experience, IMO. Though, I have heard they are talking about addressing this.
Thanks for your post and I essentially agree with all of it. I just hate to think any HM vs IL discussions would even come to light. I am hopeful that the improvements to Indy, will simply spur Hudson Mills, to spend some money to upgrade their courses, as well....and in turn, to see a trickle down impact on the smaller, yet still very important courses in the area. With the big jump in participation we are seeing, making the entire area a better disc golf destination should be the goal.
esdubya
Double Eagle Member
As one of the original Indy course designers I'm really happy to see all of this activity at Indy Lake that is happening without any of my involvement. Splitting the course into 2x 18s was long overdue. Pouring pads on the newer holes also long overdue. Updated maps and signage, etc. Indy at some point realized how much of a gem they have and have taken full ownership over it. It's amazing to see. Thanks to all of those involved in making this happen.
The torch has clearly been passed, and I really can't wait to get out there and see all of the changes. Now I just need this darned border to open up!
Oh, and can someone please push the idea of replacing those old Chainstars with something better? The Mach 7 numberplate would be a nice complement to the powder coated Mach 3s.
The torch has clearly been passed, and I really can't wait to get out there and see all of the changes. Now I just need this darned border to open up!
Oh, and can someone please push the idea of replacing those old Chainstars with something better? The Mach 7 numberplate would be a nice complement to the powder coated Mach 3s.
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Future_Primitive
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Pavilion is a go thankfully and should help with set-up/take down. Plan to include this on the map once I am given confirmation on location. Definitely in the works. Not sure on bathrooms but one can hope. :hfive:
A BIG THANK YOU for putting in the course and all your work in helping get it to this point! :clap:
Sounds like at least 18 new baskets are in the works. Think orange ones will be on one 18 hole course and then new set on the other. Briefly came up during our talk with the park. Should be really nice once all the changes are completed. I am mainly just helping with graphics for signage, all changes are park driven.
If anyone wonders how disc golf communities thrive. Here are the examples. Hats off to all three of you guys. Our disc golf community is lucky to have you and better for it.
:clap::clap::clap::clap::clap:
:clap::clap::clap::clap::clap:
esdubya said:
Thanks for bringing to life my absolute favorite starting hole in the area! Sincerely!
ru4por said:
Good point. It's a no brainer as a local, but definitely prohibitive to visiting players. The pay-to-Park aspect of playing disc golf in Michigan - is the course in a state rec. area, Metropark, specific county park system etc.? - can be difficult to navigate at times, especially for an out-of-towner.
ru4por said:
Totally agree; it can be hard to watch a loved one grow old & wrinkled.
ru4por said:
Well said! I love both parks and enjoy the courses multiple times a week. When considering both parks, the thing that has shifted for me recently is that I am now more likely to recommend Indy over Hudson (if you have to pick!) when asked. And the reason is not the quality of golf necessarily (HM is definitely more old school style, as you said) - it's the active maintenance & care at Indy.
An example: Indy makes a point to trim the prairie/field grass that makes up the rough on the open holes at least a few times per year. During the height of the Summer, on the open/letter holes of the Original, when the grass reaches up to tickle my chin and my will is weak, I consider skipping them. I don't - but it can be a poor experience for newer players.
esdubya
Double Eagle Member
That hole pretty much designed itself.. The trail was already there through the woods, and the proximity to the parking lot made it easy to use as the starting hole. We did briefly consider making it hole 18 instead of 1.
I always thought that the long pad on hole 1 discouraged players from playing the blacks, that if we had an easier starting hole from the longs more people would play it. I'm curious now what you think the balance of play is between blacks and whites?
Another fun fact. The 'standard' for layout colors should have been red, white and blue. However as a slight homage to Hudson Mills blacks (Monster long) we decided to make the long tees black as well.
esdubya
Double Eagle Member
Check out this early shot of hole 1, pre concrete pre basket.
That picture is awesome; really neat to see how courses 'become themselves' over time. Thanks for sharing.
Personally, I really enjoy the hole from both tees. It's a great two-shot hole from the tips for me, and I'm really just trying to land a putter near the short pad anyway. It's funny that you mention considering it for #18 because we often use it as a tiebreaker if we're tied after finishing a round and can't bear to not know in the final accounting who is playing best that day. I can't recall many times in which we had to play another hole after that to crown a winner. Anecdotally, I think it's got great player 'sorting' ability (as Mr. Steve West might say), whether I play it at the start or finish of a round.
I've heard enough complaints about hole #1's difficulty from the shorts that I don't think the long tee pad position really influences which tee pads players choose to play from for their round. The semi-serious complaining I hear is more so about falling on one's sword before the world watches you whack one of those early trees. I think, for the most part, that players already know which tee pads they will be playing from when they arrive.
Disclaimer: I mainly play Indy from the shorts, and I would guess that's also true for most other disc golfers in the area. I think this is more indicative of skill level preferences than quality of play between the two sets of tee pads. I think both sets of tee pads are great and offer different experiences - heck, even the Reds are fun & well-designed for newer players, natural tee pads notwithstanding.
In my opinion, the Indy 'Blacks' (cool history tid-bit, by the way) will become the area destination for serious, competitive disc golf in the next few years, given the park can improve the tournament HQ/ hosting experience as some other posters mentioned.
esdubya said:
Personally, I really enjoy the hole from both tees. It's a great two-shot hole from the tips for me, and I'm really just trying to land a putter near the short pad anyway. It's funny that you mention considering it for #18 because we often use it as a tiebreaker if we're tied after finishing a round and can't bear to not know in the final accounting who is playing best that day. I can't recall many times in which we had to play another hole after that to crown a winner. Anecdotally, I think it's got great player 'sorting' ability (as Mr. Steve West might say), whether I play it at the start or finish of a round.
I've heard enough complaints about hole #1's difficulty from the shorts that I don't think the long tee pad position really influences which tee pads players choose to play from for their round. The semi-serious complaining I hear is more so about falling on one's sword before the world watches you whack one of those early trees. I think, for the most part, that players already know which tee pads they will be playing from when they arrive.
Disclaimer: I mainly play Indy from the shorts, and I would guess that's also true for most other disc golfers in the area. I think this is more indicative of skill level preferences than quality of play between the two sets of tee pads. I think both sets of tee pads are great and offer different experiences - heck, even the Reds are fun & well-designed for newer players, natural tee pads notwithstanding.
In my opinion, the Indy 'Blacks' (cool history tid-bit, by the way) will become the area destination for serious, competitive disc golf in the next few years, given the park can improve the tournament HQ/ hosting experience as some other posters mentioned.
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