Eagles Crossing is a singular course in the disc golf world. Even at such a young age it has developed a unique notoriety. I don't think I have ever had a course jump up my wish list so quickly with the actual golf being a secondary reason. The vast amount of money put into the course, the drama with the big money skins events, the sculptures, the goal of challenging the top professionals, and all the other grand plans for the complex generated more buzzz than any other course I can remember. With all of that at the top of my mind, I arrived at Eagles Crossing expecting an over-the-top experience from the amenities and course dressing, but wasn't sure if the quality of golf would live up to the rest of it all. For me, at least, it did.
When you check in at the pro-shop for your tee-time you are given a rundown of the course and the caddy guide which is filled out for you with the current pin locations. The caddy guide also goes over the various irritating or dangerous flora and fauna you may encounter during your round. Gnats were the only thing we had issue with during our visit in mid May, but they were heavy only around the lower lying areas of the driving range and Hole 1. We opted to rent a golf cart which was washed for us while we made use of the excellent practice putting green and driving range. The cart rental was expensive at $60 for 4-hours but, for a once-a-year at most trip, I thought it was worth it. The cart was the most comfortable I've driven, saved us a lot of energy navigating the various hills, and I'd wager our play time could easily have gone up from ~3 hours to ~4 without it.
This place really has a feel unlike any other course. The meticulous landscaping, water features, and at times odd variety of statues provide a unique vibe that feels at once both posh and kitschy. The large color coded tee pads are excellent and the baskets caught well, if not my favorite. And all of this is just the wrapper on top of what is actually an incredibly well designed, fun, and challenging course. My brother and I played the White tees and as ~930 rated players it felt like a great fit for our skill levels. The gaps you need to hit and water carries you need to cross are tough but not oppressive, and feel great when you execute. There are a few locations where the OB felt slightly too tight or unnecessary, but the fairways were generous enough on the whole. That said, getting off the fairway early can easily spell double bogey or worse on many holes. The Blue tees obviously challenge even the top professionals with tighter gaps and big distance required. The red tees looked to be a good fit for those with less distance or accuracy, but I would likely caution against playing this track if you are less than about 850 rated.
With two to four pin locations on every hole, your experience can vary quite a bit on each visit. I don't know how frequently they change up the basket locations on each hole, but some are significantly different, and a few seemed to have a position that was superior to the others. In general though, all pin positions were great and many have significant roll away potential with landing angle and speed being very important. I feel like I threw a pretty good balance of forehands and backhands during my round, and there is a great variety of fairway shapes and types, the round never felt stale. The length of the course meant I leaned more heavily on distance and fairway drivers, but I definitely made good use of most of my bag.
Navigation was usually seamless, but there were a couple of more tricky spots (9 to 10 and 13 to 14 notably). The provided caddy guide and forewarning of the confusing locations during check-in meant we were never stumped for long. Tee signs and bit more directional signage would completely alleviate these minor issues and are apparently weeks away from installation. The second course on site is currently undergoing play testing and will be open before long as well. It will purportedly have a more rugged feel and be more heavily wooded to compliment the current track. There are some additional activities you can do as part of your greens fee, including fishing. You can easily spend an entire day here, especially once the second course is open, which you will likely want to do as it is a bit of a trek from anywhere.
This was the most expensive round of disc golf I have ever played. Discussing value is an interesting proposition, as I preferred my round at the (relatively) nearby Harmony Bends a few days later, which was free. However, this is a singular experience and not something most people are likely to do with any frequency. I felt the cost was worth it, and will definitely make an effort to come back and play the second course in the future. Eagles Crossing jumped up into my personal top 5 courses played and is easily deserving of its Best of the Best status.