Nominate a 'World's Best Disc Golf Hole'

[Midnightbiker]

are you talking about this one? this was my favorite at that park.

I really enjoyed that hole also. I was looking for a pic of it and couldn't find it. I really enjoyed playing that course and I can't wait till I get to again.

 

[humchris85]

Now there are four contenders (IMO!)....Hole 1 at Mason County Beast, Hole 6 at Stafford, Hole 27 at DeLaveaga, and Hole 14 at Whistler's Bend.

I've played 3 out of these 4 (all except Beast) and they are all great holes. Hole 14 @ Whistlers is still my favorite out of these 3.

Hole 1 @ Area 74 (RIP ) in Humboldt County.
By far the best opening hole to a DG course I have ever played. No other Hole 1 has gotten me so excited to play a course.
DSCJNKY

This is a great starting hole, allways gets me stoked for a round of disc golf.

Still my favorite though...

Here's my favorite top of the world hole.

(p.s. it's a secret course[read unlisted])

http://c2.api.ning.com/files/D83L3z...niAao6nhZy3w7UauDkE9PFI2YYiASsDd/100_2914.jpg

 

[odysseus81]

This is my personal favorite that I have played...but many of the ones you guys have thrown up look amazing as well. The picture doesn't do this justice, but #6 at Bud Hill is pretty awesome. The foliage is pretty thick and you are throwing over a pond in the woods...and the basket is elevated to boot. The throw over the pond is farther than it looks in this pic and the foliage is more dense.

http://www.dgcoursereview.com/view_image.php?p=course_pics/2567/e79efa21.jpg

 

[bettsjc]

Renaissance Gold #10 - Par 5 with the chance of an albatros (thumber ace required), eagle three with two perfectly executed throws, birdie 4's are expected but are only attainable if you are not off by more than 1-2 degrees, par 5's are very acceptable and 6's and 7's happen to even really good players. All of this, and it is very fair - want a big reward???? ....better take a big risk.

I'm happy to see that Renny got some recognition in the best disc golf holes....
But I'm gonna have to go with Renaissance Gold #18. As I pulled into the parking lot for the first time at Renny and saw #18 I knew I was about to play an epic course. Takes the cake for me!

 

[Cgkdisc]

I think Renny #18 would be even better if there were water or a creek running thru the gully for a little more scare factor and aesthetics.

 

[bettsjc]

I think Renny #18 would be even better if there were water or a creek running thru the gully for a little more scare factor and aesthetics.

I think that would add to the challange of the hole in some ways, but then you wouldn't have that rediculous climb up to the island green! Picturesque

 

[Tim_the_Enchanter]

I think Renny #18 would be even better if there were water or a creek running thru the gully for a little more scare factor and aesthetics.

I think it would be better if you weren't throwing through high tensile power lines. :| I was watching the Renny Clash with one of my non-DG friends, kinda bragging to him how it Renny was one of the most highly regarded courses in the world, and the first thing he noticed was how it played through power lines and such. He was like "Really? This is one of the best courses? And you have to play through that?" I just kind of took it the less than ideal locale for granted as the kind of land lots of courses have to work with. Hearing his perspective was a real eye opener, though, as to how ghetto of a sport we have in the view of the outside world.

 

[Cgkdisc]

Have you noticed how the magnetic field from those power lines affect the flight of metal hotstamped discs for an added challenge though...

 

[bettsjc]

I think it would be better if you weren't throwing through high tensile power lines. :| I was watching the Renny Clash with one of my non-DG friends, kinda bragging to him how it Renny was one of the most highly regarded courses in the world, and the first thing he noticed was how it played through power lines and such. He was like "Really? This is one of the best courses? And you have to play through that?" I just kind of took it the less than ideal locale for granted as the kind of land lots of courses have to work with. Hearing his perspective was a real eye opener, though, as to how ghetto of a sport we have in the view of the outside world.

You know, I did have that same thought when I first saw it. But you have to remember if those powerlines weren't there, then that type of hole would never exist. Kudos to the designer of the course for making a "one of a kind" hole with a "ghetto" landscape, I guess.

 

[Cgkdisc]

Click on hole 2 at Lions Park. http://www.dgcoursereview.com/gallery.php?id=528&mode=gal#

The photo you see is from the long tee. The short tee to the far left gives you the option to throw thru the gridwork of the power tower or throw a tougher annie route around it. The course doesn't have much foliage so the tower provided some additional challenge for the design. There are several holes around the country that use power or gas line easements.

 

[Tim_the_Enchanter]

You know, I did have that same thought when I first saw it. But you have to remember if those powerlines weren't there, then that type of hole would never exist. Kudos to the designer of the course for making a "one of a kind" hole with a "ghetto" landscape, I guess.

Click on hole 2 at Lions Park. http://www.dgcoursereview.com/gallery.php?id=528&mode=gal#

The photo you see is from the long tee. The short tee to the far left gives you the option to throw thru the gridwork of the power tower or throw a tougher annie route around it. The course doesn't have much foliage so the tower provided some additional challenge for the design. There are several holes around the country that use power or gas line easements.

Yeah, the signature hole at my home course follows a powerline cut down a steep hill, so I'm all too familiar with making use of "unnatural elements." And yeah, props to Stan McDaniel for doing all he did with Renny, no doubt. I just think it's a sad statement for disc golf that even some of the best courses are relegated to the "we gotta take what we can get" kind of land.

 

[bettsjc]

Click on hole 2 at Lions Park. http://www.dgcoursereview.com/gallery.php?id=528&mode=gal#

The photo you see is from the long tee. The short tee to the far left gives you the option to throw thru the gridwork of the power tower or throw a tougher annie route around it. The course doesn't have much foliage so the tower provided some additional challenge for the design. There are several holes around the country that use power or gas line easements.

If used properly, the easements can be created into a useable hole. IMO, the towers are not at all an eyesore. It's really not suprising to hear someone from the outside think that a hole running along or under powerlines is "ghetto". But what has to be understood is that the majority of DG courses in the country are set within a park or recreational area, not exclusive to disc golf. It is very different from a ball golf course, where players pay to play, thus creating revenue to keep a course immaculate. These disc golf courses in public areas do not charge for the use of the course...and should not be taken for granted.

The only thing that strikes me as "ghetto" about the sport of disc golf is the fact that its free to play and a minimal cost of a few discs.

 

[Tim_the_Enchanter]

Heh, there's more I could say on the subject, but don't want to cause any more thread drift. I will say though that powerlines ARE most definitely an eyesore. It might not seem that way since they've been there since you started playing the course, but imagine how people would feel if power lines sprung up on other holes mentioned here like Whistler's Bend #14, Stafford Lake #6, or Waterworks #1. There'd be riots!

 

[Dave242]

Beauty (and solitude) is an important factor to me and I ding Renny in my ratings (and some other top courses) for lack of that. However, on "best hole" I ignore that as IMO beauty relates to an entire course. Even ugly courses usually have at least 2-3 really pretty holes.

And, on the thread-drift topic at hand, I think it is a bonus for disc golf that we are able to craft great courses out of otherwise unusable land. .....and it is a bonus that there are some courses on amazingly beautiful and valuable pieces of land.

Renny has a huge tennis facility, great mountain biking trails, a whole bunch of sand volleyball courts, a couple really nice soccer fields, and a bunch of softball fields (USA Olyympic team has played there).......all under or very near the power-lines. Does that mean that all of the those sports should be also viewed "as to how ghetto they are in the view of the outside world"? Oh....Renaissance Park is built on an old garbage dump too. That's why it is called Renaissance.

 

[Roc1Time]

I really enjoyed that hole also. I was looking for a pic of it and couldn't find it. I really enjoyed playing that course and I can't wait till I get to again.

Yes and the pic doesnt do the rest of the hole any justice

 

[Tim_the_Enchanter]

Beauty (and solitude) is an important factor to me and I ding Renny in my ratings (and some other top courses) for lack of that. However, on "best hole" I ignore that as IMO beauty relates to an entire course. Even ugly courses usually have at least 2-3 really pretty holes.

And, on the thread-drift topic at hand, I think it is a bonus for disc golf that we are able to craft great courses out of otherwise unusable land. .....and it is a bonus that there are some courses on amazingly beautiful and valuable pieces of land.

Agreed. Don't get me wrong, I think it's great to be able to use land that isn't doing anything else.

Renny has a huge tennis facility, great mountain biking trails, a whole bunch of sand volleyball courts, a couple really nice soccer fields, and a bunch of softball fields (USA Olyympic team has played there).......all under or very near the power-lines. Does that mean that all of the those sports should be also viewed "as to how ghetto they are in the view of the outside world"? Oh....Renaissance Park is built on an old garbage dump too. That's why it is called Renaissance.
Not really a fair comparison, as those sports (with the exception of mountain biking maybe) don't really bring environmental aesthetics into play. I also doubt that anybody is trying to boast that those facilities are among the best in the world.

I guess I'm just saying I hope for a day when disc golf isn't primarily confined to public parks, playing second fiddle to whatever else the city/county might want to have installed there. There are a few places where this is happening, but they're still very much in the minority.

Damn, suckered me into further thread drift!

 

[bettsjc]

The drift................is.................to..............................................................strooooooooooong

 

[Cgkdisc]

Don't forget those "ugly" ski lift towers that sully the look on ski hills and courses that are on them. Do the elevation and the cool vistas make up for them otherwise?

There's the one course used in the British Open every ten years or so that has the commuter train running along the whole fairway on one hole. And yet it's used in the top golf event in the world. No one says it's the greatest hole though.

but imagine how people would feel if power lines sprung up on other holes mentioned here like Whistler's Bend #14, Stafford Lake #6, or Waterworks #1.

It all depends. If they were bringing in power for a lighted 24-hour course, then it might be tolerable. I haven't seen any courses on or near those monster wind power propeller towers yet. Have any of you seen one?

On hole 5 at Winthrop, they've done a pretty good job of disguising the road and soccer fields but there's still alot of manmade elements on that great hole.

 

[mike shoys]

chalk up another vote for #6 at stafford lake...

 

[Olorin]

Well... first of all I think that the word "Best" is a poor word choice. I think it's an impossible quest to look for the "best" hole. Instead I think we should be looking for "most enjoyable" holes. There are way too many problems with searching for "the best". The first is that even if you've played 340 courses you've only played 10% of the courses currently in existence. How would you ever know if there might be better holes in the remaining 90%? I think that the only person even qualified to vote for the "World's Best" is a person who has played every course in the world, so I'll wait until someone has done that.

Second, playing disc golf is an aesthetic experience and different people have different preferences. By analogy what is the best piece of art work, the best song, the best wine, or the best dark chocolate? I also review fine dark chocolate and now that I've reviewed over 350 chocolates I've given up on trying to find the "best". All I'm looking for is my own personal favorites. Chocolates that others say are the "best" I don't necessarily care for and the "experts" may not agree with the ones I like best. I would say that I'm much more informed now, though, than when I'd only tried 20 chocolates. But there are still hundreds out there I haven't tasted, so maybe ones I'd like even more are still out there. I've found disc golf to be the same. People have different preferences. I love water holes so my favorite holes and courses have water. Others dislike water. It's all a matter of taste. Even if you could somehow identify the top 20 candidate holes, if 50 qualified reviewers played them the best you could get would be a majority vote about which is the "best". I think that searching for the "best" is a fruitless quest.

For me, I've changed from giving ratings based on "Quality" to rating based on my own "Enjoyment". (I've started to write out some ideas about my review philosophy, but this is still under construction.) My course ratings are now done this way too.

I'd be happy to share "My Favorite" holes, though.