Pros:
Bracketts's Bluff is a major conundrum. The current, overhauled course is a great one with some great holes, including new ones that didn't exist before. If you never played the old, epic layout, you'll never know what's missing. But, for fans of the old layout, oh how it feels like there's a major void.
- When it comes down it, this course has that 'it' factor of offering both a tremendous fun factor and plenty of challenge. There are parts of this course where you feel like you could be in the mountains (look around you while standing on the tee at #11) or deep in the woods, rather than being on the outskirts of a metropolitan area.
- That said, you have to love how Brackett's is a disc golf scene. How many other people do you know who have built a clubhouse for their course on their property? Intentional or not, after the nature preserve fiasco, I like how the Brackett family ratcheted up their efforts to make this even more so of a disc golf scene. We don't need no stinking' nature preserve for our course.
- There are some great holes here, with plenty of challenging layouts throughout the entire round. There are 21 holes in total, with some layouts being used twice. A couple of these duplicates could be eliminated (more about that in the cons) if you wanted to eliminate the weak links.
- That said, you've got some great elevation layouts, the best by far in Mecklenburg County, even better than Robert L. Smith. I loved the uphill/downhill combo of #4 & 5. #3 has always been an amazing hole, being a survivor from the original layout. Both layouts for the Rock hole (#11 & 20) are awesome. These holes can leave you with one of the most daunting putts anywhere, with the big drop-off right behind the basket. And the closing hole (#21) has an intimidating looking tee-shot, followed by a lovely stroll straight up the hill towards the basket. This is a steep uphill shot, which reminds me a lot of #14 at Ashe County in Jefferson.
- Overall course quality. The upkeep here is amazing. This is where the public vs. private debate is completely one-sided. Most public courses won't get anywhere close to the TLC that Brackett's gets. There are trashcans, benches, even brooms on many holes. Tee pads are in great shape as well. For a course having holes playing so close together, it was actually very easy to navigate the layout. The course essentially is a very rough looking, very uneven figure 8 layout, which you play through twice.
- Course puts a big emphasis on accuracy. There are no big-arm, open holes here. There are longer holes (350 feet plus) or uphill holes that play long, but even on these, if you're not accurate with your tee shot, a big arm won't matter. With the accuracy emphasis, there's plenty of risk/reward going on here, especially with some strategically placed baskets.
Cons:
I'm not going to rant about the whole Nature Preserve dispute that led to the redesign. If you don't know what happened, it's a moot point. If you are in the know, you know a ton more than I do. Whatever happened, the end result is that the course got knocked down a peg or two in its overall quality level. You lose that much land, and nearly half of your holes, there are going to be some consequences. To the credit of Dave & company, there's still a great course here, with just a few flaws. I will not focus on the holes that were lost, rather point out a few concerns with the existing layout.
- A couple of the duplicate holes could be done without. #2 & 14, 8 &18 and 9 & 19 are all essentially the same hole with only a slight variance: 2/14 play from same tee to a baskets that are 50 feet apart. 8/18 is different in that #8 is teeing from a higher up a hill, but both end up playing straight ahead to the same basket. 9/19 have tee pads 25 feet apart to the same basket. One simple way to remedy this repetitiveness is to create a safari-esque hole, teeing off #18's tee to the basket for 9/19. That gives you one long hole with a completely different look. Oh, and just eliminate #14 altogether. By doing this you now have 19 holes instead of 21, but I think this is a case of less is more. Other holes share a basket but they offer such variety, they are two different holes.
- There's little to no penalty here for playing safe/boring. Without any long holes, one could realistically throw play the whole round with only a midrange disc/putter and still see par on every hole. If you throw straight/accurate and 225 - 250 off the tee on every hole, you're going to see 3s on every hole. I feel the elite courses force players to pull out every type of shot/disc in a round. That's one of, if not the only, thing missing here.
- With the course being so tight, it's very easy to throw onto other holes, or into other groups. When this course is crowded, you'll have to keep an eye on other holes as well.
Other Thoughts:
Here's my thought about the Nature Preserve land dispute. Regardless of the cause, it's a shame some great land is now going to waste. What was once well maintained green areas have become unkempt fields with tall grass. This land was once enjoyed by many, now the government website boldly proclaims "AT THIS TIME THIS NATURE PRESERVE IS CLOSED TO THE PUBLIC." It might just be me, but that seems like somebody (or elected somebodies) missed the boat on this one. Not the most efficient use of government land and money.
- Even with overlapping holes/baskets, I'm not sure how they squeezed 21 holes into this land. It's a true testament to some people with quality eyes to use every inch of land and create this many great holes.
- With that said, the redesign produced my favorite one the course: #16. It's one of the longer holes, a true par 4 that includes all aspects of the Bluff: woods, elevation, drop-offs, a risk/reward factor, and attention to detail. A well placed tee shot on this hole will result in a second shot to a basket protected by a ravine in front. End up in the ravine and you get to enjoy climbing up the ladder after a straight-up shot. A three is a real possibility at this hole, as is the chance for a possible blow up score with one bad shot.
- There is a lot to like at the Bluff. The old layout was in easily in the top 5 courses I've played. The new layout can't match that elite level. The course now is now very comparable to Glenn Hilton and Robert L. Smith, with the Bluff being the best of all three.
- Brackett's should be played by any serious disc golfer. It's not the same layout, but it's still a solid course. And whatever this course can't offer, you can get with a solid 1-2 punch while playing at Bradford afterwards. Or, if the clubhouse ever got a tap added, you might never leave this place.