Ran Off The Course By Mosquito's?

[thrembo]

This is a quote from my review of the course, previously the most current one:

"Also, bring plenty of bug spray as the mosquitos can be brutal at times."

In the other thoughts section of my review. I also noted the uptick in insect populations in the course conditions a week or so ago.

 

[reposado]

With the caveat that I think everyone should review in their own way, this is my philosophy.

- Do you always ignore conditional variables in your rating? What if it's something like a daily infestation of snakes instead of seasonal mosquitos? I don't write enough reviews to have run into something like this, so I'm curious if/how others factor this in.

No. I review the course as it was the day I played it. If I have played a course multiple times, I consider the average of the different states I have seen. If it is unplayable 25% of the time, I would dock 25% of the score from optimal conditions. If the course is closed sometime, then that does not factor in. I rate the course as an average of what the player can expect when said course is open for play.

- We know environmental variables matter when it comes to ratings - some highly rated courses are rewarded for factors other than course design. How does this dimension factor in for you? Could a 3.5 disc course become a 5.0 if they had your ideal amenities (and I'd rather not know what those are for some on here...)

That's a big gap for amenities. It depends on how much they affect the play. If amenities include tees, tee signs and navigation aids, yes those can make a big difference. But there is no set rule. It depends on how a course comes together and I don't have a formula where I would even know what I would give a course if the amenities were different from what they are.

The factor I have the most trouble with is the course's potential. I have played several courses that would likely be rated much higher if they were allowed to and could afford to remove trees, reshape/define hazards, and so forth. I know I should rate a course for what it is, but it's sometimes hard to ding someone who had a good vision but for whatever reason couldn't totally execute it.

Well I don't think I'm ever dinging any one. I'm rating a course and not making any judgments about people. I'm not sure how I would be aware of what limitations were in place for every course I play, nor what the original vision was. Beyond that, rating the original vision and not the course would be like going on imdb and reviewing only the director's intent and not including the actual movie

 

[Martin Dewgarita]

The review was removed, presumably because playing [edit] 'a majority of the holes' is required for a review.

 

[ohtobediscing]

As for snakes, I've mentioned them in two reviews because a fair % of them are poisonous at those courses-- Hiller Park and Moccasin Bend (duh), both in MS. It did not factor into the rating itself, just a warning.

 

[Timeetyo]

"Pros: The 5 holes we managed to get through seemed like a great layout for a course!


Cons: Mosquitos ran us off the this course from what I noticed every hole we played your best bet is to wear long sleeves and pants or else like us you won't finish this course!"

Normally I don't nitpick on reviews, but c'mon man.

Tolerance to mosquitos is a very regional thing (some areas have no choice but to deal) and also of note is how this course compares to others in the area.

All of our local courses have mosquitos of some sort which are 90% of the time easily dealt with with some off. Then there is MCC. In a typical summer there is so much standing water that it breeds an army of skeeters that do make it unpleasant to play. Most of our league players simply do not go when leagues are at MCC in the summer. When the bugs are bad enough that attendance at leagues is <50% the weeks its there then that warrants mention (and maybe even a slight deduction).

 

[scarpfish]

If a course has an unusually persistent mosquito problem that seems to be a chronic issue, then yes, I think that's worth mentioning if not docking for.

But if you were docking it because you were dumb enough to play it right after a big rain left a lot of standing water, which will likely clear up within a week, well, you're a douchebag.

 

[BrotherDave]

If the mosquitos are especially bad I usually just mention in a course conditions update. Goat Island in Cramerton NC comes to mind. I played in the summer and even though I add MaxiDeet (99.9%) to my Deep Woods off, they were swarming like crazy. Not bad enough to run me off the course but bad enough to warn others.

Goat Island was so bad it got mentioned in my review. I'm aching to play it again and see if the skeeters are still as bad since my last visit was during a historic wetness.

-------------

I review courses like a restaurant critic. I don't expect to find a fly in my soup everyday at a particular restaurant but if there's one on the day I'm eating there, it gets a mention and factored into the rating. As far as mosquitoes go, there isn't a lot that can be done to help your course if it's in a mosquito rich area but it wouldn't be fair to the other courses that don't have bug problems if I don't factor it into the rating somewhat. I don't care how great a course's terrain and design is if you're too busy running away from skeeters and deer flies to judge or enjoy it.

 

[Aim For The Chains]

i think i hate this place.(not mn...) #landofmosquitos

 

[THUGNIFICENT763]

Mosquitoes don't faze me. They don't like my thick Irish/German blood hahahaha. Also, I have protective barriers of forearm and shin hair. Mosquitoes that dare to try to bite me get ensnared in it. Then, I roll them up into a ball and flick 'em. It's pretty sweet.

 

[bhadella]

If most people rated courses lower with insect issues, there is no way Flip City would be the second rated course in the world. The horse flies are Fly City are hungry, mean and plentiful.

 

[demon102]

I can definitely see where posting a crappy score cuz of bugs is a worthy issue. 1 course I used to like to play had these things that looked like big hornets and were everywhere and would buzz the crap out of you, maybe cicada eaters or something like that. It was also the only place where I saw what must have been a tick nest, I guess I grabbed a disc or my bag and looked down and it was like like 100 ticks in 1 spot and it was garunteed you had ticks on you after a round there. Bugs don't usually bother me but that course was just on some other level when it came to bugs and I grew up being used to horse flies eating the **** out of me lol.

 

[Bardu]

Mosquitoes don't bother Minnesotans.

 

[ZMan44]

I'd never dock a course on its rating due to mosquitoes. That being said, I want to know about them, especially in the SE, and especially this year with the Zika threat. Even in Tennessee, I'm staying off my local course (well-known for mosquitoes...even have an annual tourney named after them) until the fall. I'll just go play other area courses less prone.

 

[Peter S]

As a fan of P.I. I am happy that review was removed. I got very upset when I saw such a low review for a great course.

I see Bullfrog has came out with a combo mosquito repellent + sun screen all in one. I will keep an eye out for that. Sounds like a good product for P.I.

p.s. There has been a lot of rain in Florida & summer means bugs. Any visiting players, please bring mosquito repellent & don't hammer our courses in your reviews for your own negligence if you forget.

 

[THUGNIFICENT763]

Mosquitoes don't bother Minnesotans.

State bird

 

[JamesM]

We have had an issue where a jam in the drainage created a full pond at Shillito Park DGC in Lexington KY. The pond created was over 5 acres, and with no fish to eat the larva, prime mosquito breeding ground.

In a case like that, where normally casual water leads to an outbreak, I can see it becoming a factor in the review. It shows the care the local Parks Depts. or owners of pay courses take with the land under their stewardship.

The pond was recently drained (5 days of continual pumping), but the increased mosquito population will be with us for the rest of the summer.

 

[br2526]

A FLA course shouldn't be penalized for mosquito's in the summer.

It's essentially the same as docking points because it rained.

It's a staple no matter what during this time of year, and nothing can be done about it.