A semi-local course has four of them.
#1 - No real issue, the hole is a kind of tight tunnel with a finish to the right. Lefties and forehanders can play this hole, but right-backhanders are basically playing for placement. It makes the putt a little more challenging on otherwise would have been a bland par 3 in the woods hole. The basket's height comes into play if your placement shot was not perfect and you still want to get a birdie.
#2 - This one is actually a good one. It is a shorter hole, right between powering up a putter or powering down a mid. It is flat hole with a fair direct window at the basket. You are only going to be in trouble if you early release or griplock. However, the back end of the fairway intersects with a later fairway, so an OB line has been established, meaning that you run the risk of going OB if your grossly overshoot your ace run. With the basket elevated, it brings a greater risk versus reward if you want to run the basket. Usually a putter is a better choice here because they can die before making it to the OB line. This elevated basket makes sense.
#3 - This basket is just cruel. The majority of the hole is a standard right to left dogleg that a right hander can park all day long. Again, it is between a putter and midrange distance with mature trees on both sides but otherwise a fair fairway. The risk of the hole is that the basket is on the edge of a quick drop-off. The elevation drop immediately behind the basket is thick with shrubbery and trees, but if you sneak down, you will go a long ways and will add at least two, if not more, throws to your score fighting back up. By elevating this basket, it has essentially made the risks versus reward for going for an ace too extreme. By throwing higher at this drop off, if you are basket high and miss, you may now have enough height going over the shrubbery to clear all the way down to the highway. I get the idea of raising it; if you are short, you have an even greater chance of something going wrong with your putt. I know that not every hole needs to be an ace run, but now the risk is so extreme (playing solo there is a decent chance I am losing a disc) that all I do now on this hole is play for placement, every time. Even on days where I am just throwing for fun and want to ace run baskets, score be damned, there is no enjoyment spending 20-30 minutes looking for a disc.
#4 - I am sorry, I know the guy that maintains this course a great guy and does a lot for the local scene, but this basket is stupid. It is the last hole on the course and without it it is difficult enough. Not that you want a creampuff to end your round, but to walk away from a course playing a gimmick hole is just... The hole is difficult enough without it, and without it you still get the taste of what the course's identity is. Short placement it is a tunnel shot for 280+ feet, thick forest on both sides, and a minor elevation change at about 100 feet. The fairway is maybe 10 feet wide, and any chance at a run or parking it, you need something that can maintain a straight line for the whole distance. Now, in the short position, the elevated basket is not that bad. You change a 280 foot drive into something that needs about 330 foot power instead. You can still run the basket without too much risk. If it were not for it being the fourth elevated basket on the course, it would be acceptable. However, in the long position it is just stupid. The basket is moved back to about 430 to 450. You still need that straight shot up to where the short basket would be, but once you pass this position, the park opens up to a normal "city" park kind of layout; mowed grass, open area, and only a few mature trees. There is definitely more room for error up here. At this point it is already a tough par 3. If you have played it well, you drove up or just past the short placement, make a decent approach that should have you under the basket, and elevated or not, you should have an easy putt. More than likely, if you are taking a bogey or worse on this hole, it is because of the opening drive and has nothing to do with the basket being elevated. With the basket now elevated, you may snag a player or two with a bad putt, but most players are likely just playing safe on this hole to preserve whatever score they have. Elevating the basket adds nothing in risk or reward. At this point it is pure gimmick, and you have already played three of these on the course.
