I know this will spark plenty of conversation and debate. This site ranks Charlotte the top DG city in the country http://lifelongdiscgolf.com/top-10-disc-golf-cities-in-america/. Gotta give some love to my hometown.
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Top DG cities
- Thread starter DiscGolfCraig
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I live in Grand Rapids so it's pretty sweet to see it in the top 10. I'd agree with the ranking, I have 7 or 8 courses within 10 miles of my apartment. There's also Spinski's, an incredible Pro Shop, just a couple of miles down the road.
I'll be hitting up Denver and Minneapolis on my DG road trip next month.
I'll be hitting up Denver and Minneapolis on my DG road trip next month.
YoDesigner
Bogey Member
Throw DFW in there as a notable. Congrats to Charlotte.
Luke@DiscTrips
Bogey Member
Two cities that I think were overlooked for his top 10: Tampa and Kansas City.
(I know it's one guy's opinion and his disclaimer at the top states that much of his research was done online, not in person, so I'm not taking anything way from the list he assembled -- his choices are clearly explained and well-justified, and it's a good group.)
Both Tampa and K.C. have 10 or more area courses, active local clubs, and are symbolically important (Tampa as Climo territory, and K.C. as the home of many big tourneys, the birthplace of the Ice Bowl, and the HQ of the erstwhile Disc Golf World magazine). I don't live in either place, so I'm not partial here... Just wanted to highlight those as probably appearing on any consensus Top 10 list.
(I know it's one guy's opinion and his disclaimer at the top states that much of his research was done online, not in person, so I'm not taking anything way from the list he assembled -- his choices are clearly explained and well-justified, and it's a good group.)
Both Tampa and K.C. have 10 or more area courses, active local clubs, and are symbolically important (Tampa as Climo territory, and K.C. as the home of many big tourneys, the birthplace of the Ice Bowl, and the HQ of the erstwhile Disc Golf World magazine). I don't live in either place, so I'm not partial here... Just wanted to highlight those as probably appearing on any consensus Top 10 list.
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I second Kansas City. I was surprised to see San Francisco. Golden Gate sounds like a good course, but the others seem too far away to be included, IMO.
I think Ken Climo should move to Kansas City, so that KC is in KC.
I think Ken Climo should move to Kansas City, so that KC is in KC.
ehillis
Newbie
Oh it's totally fine, I'm glad this is sparking discussion and debate, that was really the purpose anyway. Those are just the cities that I would want to visit, but I guess I will have to add Kansas City and Tampa to the list. I have also heard about Bowling Green and Louisville as good destinations.
Louisville is ok...but Bowling Green is better in my opinion. I have played both areas a few times.
I don't know for sure, but I think two areas of PA have some potential on that list. Two of the top 10 courses listed on the front of DGCR are in the Pittsburgh area (Moraine and Deer Lakes Park), and I know Knob Hill is up there as well, which is supposed to be a similarly top-notch course. They only have a few other courses, but what they don't have in quantity of courses, they make up for in quality.
I think an ever stronger case can be made for Allentown, PA. They hosted Pro Worlds a few years ago and have more than a dozen courses, several of which are top-shelf courses: Little Lehigh, Tinicum, Nockamixon and Jordan Creek. Also within an hour or so is Tyler State Park (27 holes and a DGCR top-10) if you head southeast; if you headed north instead, you've got Francis E. Walter and Hickory Run courses. So I don't know about the local clubs, but I can think of few better places to spend a week discing than in the Allentown area.
Last place you might want to look into is Portland, OR. I think they've got far more disc golf presence than San Francisco, and some amazing courses (though I do love the Golden Gate Park course -- one of the prettiest courses I have ever played).
I think an ever stronger case can be made for Allentown, PA. They hosted Pro Worlds a few years ago and have more than a dozen courses, several of which are top-shelf courses: Little Lehigh, Tinicum, Nockamixon and Jordan Creek. Also within an hour or so is Tyler State Park (27 holes and a DGCR top-10) if you head southeast; if you headed north instead, you've got Francis E. Walter and Hickory Run courses. So I don't know about the local clubs, but I can think of few better places to spend a week discing than in the Allentown area.
Last place you might want to look into is Portland, OR. I think they've got far more disc golf presence than San Francisco, and some amazing courses (though I do love the Golden Gate Park course -- one of the prettiest courses I have ever played).
I don't know for sure, but I think two areas of PA have some potential on that list. Two of the top 10 courses listed on the front of DGCR are in the Pittsburgh area (Moraine and Deer Lakes Park), and I know Knob Hill is up there as well, which is supposed to be a similarly top-notch course. They only have a few other courses, but what they don't have in quantity of courses, they make up for in quality.
I think an ever stronger case can be made for Allentown, PA. They hosted Pro Worlds a few years ago and have more than a dozen courses, several of which are top-shelf courses: Little Lehigh, Tinicum, Nockamixon and Jordan Creek. Also within an hour or so is Tyler State Park (27 holes and a DGCR top-10) if you head southeast; if you headed north instead, you've got Francis E. Walter and Hickory Run courses. So I don't know about the local clubs, but I can think of few better places to spend a week discing than in the Allentown area.
Last place you might want to look into is Portland, OR. I think they've got far more disc golf presence than San Francisco, and some amazing courses (though I do love the Golden Gate Park course -- one of the prettiest courses I have ever played).
I think an ever stronger case can be made for Allentown, PA. They hosted Pro Worlds a few years ago and have more than a dozen courses, several of which are top-shelf courses: Little Lehigh, Tinicum, Nockamixon and Jordan Creek. Also within an hour or so is Tyler State Park (27 holes and a DGCR top-10) if you head southeast; if you headed north instead, you've got Francis E. Walter and Hickory Run courses. So I don't know about the local clubs, but I can think of few better places to spend a week discing than in the Allentown area.
Last place you might want to look into is Portland, OR. I think they've got far more disc golf presence than San Francisco, and some amazing courses (though I do love the Golden Gate Park course -- one of the prettiest courses I have ever played).
Sorry about the double post -- not sure why that happened; I've been having computer problems today. I tried to edit the post, but got a message that "you can only edit a post in the first five minutes after it posts, so this message has been locked." Never seen a message like that on a forum before, but oh well.
Thanks for the list by the way. It's a great discussion to start. Of the top 10 cities currently listed, I've played a fair amount in Raleigh, Charlotte and Austin, and agree with the inclusion of all three.
Other cities to watch for the future, as I'm thinking about it:
Fredericksburg/Spotsylvania, VA -- a pair of very good (and very different) public courses and several of the best private courses I've every played. Also host quite a few big tourneys throughout the year. Some more courses are in the works, and as they come in it will be an amazing disc golf destination.
Dallas, TX -- It has a ton of courses, but not many of them are very memorable. However, it has some great locals and the courses that are going in are showing some tremendous potential and I think the parks departments are getting on board with the sport. Give it a few more years and I think it will be a top shelf fall/winter destination when all the Northern cities on your list are buried in snow.
Augusta, GA -- depending on the quality of the PDGA HQ courses being built here, this has some potential as an up-and-coming disc golf destination. The only course I've played there is the Riverside Park course in North Augusta (just over the border into SC), and it was excellent (though that course has been around for years and has nothing to do with the PDGA HQ).
Thanks for the list by the way. It's a great discussion to start. Of the top 10 cities currently listed, I've played a fair amount in Raleigh, Charlotte and Austin, and agree with the inclusion of all three.
Other cities to watch for the future, as I'm thinking about it:
Fredericksburg/Spotsylvania, VA -- a pair of very good (and very different) public courses and several of the best private courses I've every played. Also host quite a few big tourneys throughout the year. Some more courses are in the works, and as they come in it will be an amazing disc golf destination.
Dallas, TX -- It has a ton of courses, but not many of them are very memorable. However, it has some great locals and the courses that are going in are showing some tremendous potential and I think the parks departments are getting on board with the sport. Give it a few more years and I think it will be a top shelf fall/winter destination when all the Northern cities on your list are buried in snow.
Augusta, GA -- depending on the quality of the PDGA HQ courses being built here, this has some potential as an up-and-coming disc golf destination. The only course I've played there is the Riverside Park course in North Augusta (just over the border into SC), and it was excellent (though that course has been around for years and has nothing to do with the PDGA HQ).
I agree. Allentown, PA has some really nice courses. Top 10, probably not; Top 25, probably yes.
ehillis
Newbie
Alright, I added some more profiles for the cities that I missed the first time around, including Bowling Green, Kansas City, Pittsburgh, Mobile, and Tampa.
San Francisco was easily the most rejected, so it moves down. How about a top 15?:
1. Charlotte, NC
2. Cincinnati, OH
3. Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN*
4. Kansas City, MO
5. Des Moines, IA
6. Pittsburgh, PA
7. Bowling Green, KY
8. St. Louis, MO*
9. Tampa Bay, FL
10. Austin, TX*
11. Madison, WI
12. Mobile, AL
13. Raleigh, NC
14. Grand Rapids, MI
15. I'm sure I'm still missing somewhere in the Northeast...
San Francisco was easily the most rejected, so it moves down. How about a top 15?:
1. Charlotte, NC
2. Cincinnati, OH
3. Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN*
4. Kansas City, MO
5. Des Moines, IA
6. Pittsburgh, PA
7. Bowling Green, KY
8. St. Louis, MO*
9. Tampa Bay, FL
10. Austin, TX*
11. Madison, WI
12. Mobile, AL
13. Raleigh, NC
14. Grand Rapids, MI
15. I'm sure I'm still missing somewhere in the Northeast...
I know you are from Austin, which is why I think you put it low, but feel it should be a little higher.
I'd move Bowling Green, Grand Rapids and Austin up, definitely. Pittsburgh down. And I'd add Portland, OR to the list -- several top courses in the country in Portland and the scene is growing.
I'm not sure what "Local support" is worth for courses, but that's a place where Bowling Green gains a lot of ground. They don't necessarily have world class courses yet, but they have tremendous volunteer support and good upkeep of all their courses. The same goes for Raleigh -- no true world-class courses, but amazing, amazing course/tourney support.
People will keep making suggestions, so I'd go ahead and bump it to a Top-20 list. And to help get there, I nominate Allentown, PA; Augusta, GA; and Dallas, TX to go on the list.
I would also look at a list of cities that have hosted Pro/Am Worlds tournaments in the past (if you can find one), as that would give you leads to other cities that may have a critical mass of dedicated disc golfers and several decent courses... (Note: not all cities that have hosted worlds have good disc golf scenes -- Houston, for instance).
You'll be hard pressed to find any golfer that has enough knowledge of all the local scenes across the country to make any true hierarchy completely valid, but you should be able to get close -- or you will have to do the slightly more objective thing, come up with a weighted system for each city, score each city in each category, and come up with a hierarchy that way.
If you decide to go the more objective city-scorecard route, I would suggest categories such as (# of holes in a 50 mile radius of the city; # of sanctioned tourneys in a year; # of top-tier courses within 100 miles of the city; accessibility, navigability, helpfulness of the local disc golf Web site; overall course maintenance; extra points for hosting A-tier or higher tourneys; extra points for public/private courses with camping; enthusiasm of the local disc golf scene, etc...) Hard to get definitive measurements of all of these, but it would be a fun project to take on if anyone had the time -- if you want to take it on, I would see if you can pitch it as a story to the fabled Flying Disc Magazine and get some sort of compensation for your time and effort. I think most disc golfers would love to see the results.
I'm not sure what "Local support" is worth for courses, but that's a place where Bowling Green gains a lot of ground. They don't necessarily have world class courses yet, but they have tremendous volunteer support and good upkeep of all their courses. The same goes for Raleigh -- no true world-class courses, but amazing, amazing course/tourney support.
People will keep making suggestions, so I'd go ahead and bump it to a Top-20 list. And to help get there, I nominate Allentown, PA; Augusta, GA; and Dallas, TX to go on the list.
I would also look at a list of cities that have hosted Pro/Am Worlds tournaments in the past (if you can find one), as that would give you leads to other cities that may have a critical mass of dedicated disc golfers and several decent courses... (Note: not all cities that have hosted worlds have good disc golf scenes -- Houston, for instance).
You'll be hard pressed to find any golfer that has enough knowledge of all the local scenes across the country to make any true hierarchy completely valid, but you should be able to get close -- or you will have to do the slightly more objective thing, come up with a weighted system for each city, score each city in each category, and come up with a hierarchy that way.
If you decide to go the more objective city-scorecard route, I would suggest categories such as (# of holes in a 50 mile radius of the city; # of sanctioned tourneys in a year; # of top-tier courses within 100 miles of the city; accessibility, navigability, helpfulness of the local disc golf Web site; overall course maintenance; extra points for hosting A-tier or higher tourneys; extra points for public/private courses with camping; enthusiasm of the local disc golf scene, etc...) Hard to get definitive measurements of all of these, but it would be a fun project to take on if anyone had the time -- if you want to take it on, I would see if you can pitch it as a story to the fabled Flying Disc Magazine and get some sort of compensation for your time and effort. I think most disc golfers would love to see the results.
John Merhi
Newbie
Newark DE (esp now with Iron Hills) and Allentown PA both have better disc golf than Raleigh.
Plus, Kentrock is in Raleigh and that alone should demote them off the list.
Iowa has the 2nd most amount of courses of any State. Surprised to not see more Iowa in the list.
Plus, Kentrock is in Raleigh and that alone should demote them off the list.
Iowa has the 2nd most amount of courses of any State. Surprised to not see more Iowa in the list.
What's Kentrock?
i'm in raleigh and I've never heard of Kentrock??...i know of Kentwood and think that it's a good confidence booster type course, mostly ace-runs. I don't think that just because it's a short course that it should detract from Raleigh area courses as a whole. Another good/great thing about Raleigh area disc golf is the HomeGrown Tour! a series of 12-16 local, privately owned courses that have a rotating tournament tour on each course throughout the summer. The only one of those courses on this website is Higher Ground, and from what I hear that's one of the lesser courses on HGT, although still a nice course. Plus, with proximity to Charlotte, i think it definitely deserves a spot in the top 20, if not top 15.
i'm in raleigh and I've never heard of Kentrock??...i know of Kentwood and think that it's a good confidence booster type course, mostly ace-runs. I don't think that just because it's a short course that it should detract from Raleigh area courses as a whole. Another good/great thing about Raleigh area disc golf is the HomeGrown Tour! a series of 12-16 local, privately owned courses that have a rotating tournament tour on each course throughout the summer. The only one of those courses on this website is Higher Ground, and from what I hear that's one of the lesser courses on HGT, although still a nice course. Plus, with proximity to Charlotte, i think it definitely deserves a spot in the top 20, if not top 15.
I have to agree with everyone who's supporting Allentown, PA in a top list. Certainly it wouldn't be the higher ups, but it could make the list at a lower notch. We have four world class courses in Nockamixon St. Park, Tinicum, Little Lehigh, and Jordan, then several other 18 hole courses such as S. Mountain, DeSales U., and Hackett's, then you can add the 9 hole rec courses that aren't all that bad. And from the airport, you can hit any course around here well within an hour's drive. As for Tyler State, Walter Dam, and Hickory Run, they're all within 90 minutes of downtown Allentown. Enough said, I think the Lehigh Valley deserves mention.
dg cities
laas angeeleees, not on the list? the area has some great courses.....
laas angeeleees, not on the list? the area has some great courses.....
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Kentwood is packed with new players! It's by far the most played course in the Triangle. Countless hordes have learned the sport of disc golf by starting at Kentwood. It's a shorter White level course that more seasoned players will have a birdie fest on, but every city should have a course like it for newer and younger players. Not to mention that far and away more women play Kentwood than any other Triangle course, so it's also introduced tons of women to DG as well. For myself, as a White level player, it sure was fun to shoot a -10 the one time I got it all together!!
Calvert Road in College Park MD is an equivalent.
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