Pros:
-Of the courses I have played so far, Clay would be a great nominee for the perfect course to be displayed in a movie. Many spots you'll stand at and the sight won't escape your mind. The main spot would be on top of the hill after finishing #14 on your way down to #15. A fun steep downhill walk on a trail that you could only see in the deep south. It's incredibly surreal! The view of #16's steep hill is visible for the remainder of your round, and it's one of the prettiest, and most memorable disc golf views you'll ever see if you really set your gaze upon it. A pretty background to display in a movie. And the look of the tee shot from hole five's long tee had me staring in amazement. Huge uphill passing a mando gate 280' ahead! Open hole up a gorgeous hill!
-Originality is something you'll see in the first five minutes. The first hole is basically a driving range. Many brick markers that list the distances below. They are faded out, but I know that the first brick is 250' from the long tee pad. Many fairways are topped with small rocks, making it a little more difficult to reach the 280-300' footers because of them preventing a skip. The scenery (I know I mention that a lot, but it's SO special here!), and the stacked baskets on #20 show creativity. Yet, there is some inspiration from older courses. There is a bamboo mando gate on #4, some dangerous pin placements, along with a lot of elevation change. To clarify; this course is NOT flat. No where close to it!
-The elevation is very well used here. There's a lot. You'll know it gets hilly once you get to #2 and see the land past the gate. #2 is pretty significantly uphill from the long pad, but once you get to #5, the special aspect of Clay DGC begins. You throw up a huge hill and continue throwing uphill on the next several holes #6-8. You don't play a downhill hole until you get to #16, but some are flat from #6-15. #16 is a severe downhill shot. Very severe! Very hard not to go long or left, especially from the long pad considering it's more than 20' above the short pad. The short pad is still majorly downhill and plays extremely short due to a huge elevation drop. This hole utilizes the most elevation on the entire course. You'll play a few slightly downhill holes after this one (#17-19), and one uphill (#20). You end with a top of the world downhill bomb (#21). Not extreme like #16, but probably 35' down. You play more uphill holes than downhill, and many disc golfers strongly prefer downhill. I think this course will get many players to really see the value that uphill holes can bring!
-Most holes have two pin positions and both were on some of the holes that I played. You can essentially play four different layouts. S to S, S to L, L to S, or L to L. The A pins are tougher; they play a couple strokes harder overall. The B pins are little bit shorter and easier, but still have their demands. 1000 rated on a day without much wind would probably be -7 from the Long pads to A pins and maybe -9 from the Long pads to B pins. I never played the short pads, but they are a good bit easier.
-Good mix between open and wooded. First five holes are open. You can throw hard without a lot of risk on the first few holes. Since holes four and five have mando gates, you'll have to be more cautious even though they are still in the open. Holes #6-16 are all at least partially wooded. The last few are all open.
-Green turf pads seem to really click with the atmosphere of this course. Cool color, unique course with epic views! The tee signs are very accurate and informative on the hole info.
-Many benches to sit on. You'll want to relax a little bit. You're walking uphill and then working your way downhill for the most part rather than going uphill then downhill consistently, but it'll get steep in places.
-Very quiet. It's one of the best courses in Alabama, so you'll probably see groups of players playing the course. But the area is very quiet. You are near a few churches, some homes right off the country road, and a gas station.
-Many nice pin placements that help with the mental game. In the emotional and rational sense. Some baskets are on hills with roller potential. Some are more grueling than they appear. Holes #5 and #12 stick out in my mind, while #16 is another scary placement. They are on hills with the bottom of those hills being far down. They don't drop instantly, a couple aren't entirely steep but they are high. You could stay still after a run at the pin, or you could roll. They are harder to interpret, but they do forgive sometimes. Either because the small rocks stopped a roller, or because your putter has less potential for rollaways. My advice, get comfortable with a softer, gummy putter that isn't hard.
-Many ace runs since all except one of the holes are par threes. Others are longer and harder to reach, yet still fair and very possible to birdie. #6 and #7 are nice breaks from the first five holes. Both under 300' (<200' from shorts) and aceable. They are still rather challenging, as they are uphill and wooded. But they really help with the variety in length.
Cons:
-There is an OB fence that plays from holes #7-14 and is relatively hard to spot. It's really in play on #10 but the wind can get very brutal here. If it's windy, the fence will play more of a factor. Don't know if it's safe to cross or how to cross it if it's not safe.
-You don't get to tee off the big hill you walk down on #15. That would be a sketchy but awesome par four. Would be nice to have a few more par fours. There is definitely room, and plenty of potential to make a really sick championship course with a third set of pads. I seem to say that a lot, I know. But many courses do have room for that. As fun I thought #16 was, I agree with wellsbranch250. There could be a pad a little further up the hill and a pin placement a bit further down! Would be really epic! It's still a very cool hole with an unforgettable view in my personal opinion.
Other Thoughts:
-Clay DGC is an awesome experience and instantly made it to my top 10 favorite courses! I enjoyed every hole here and am very happy that the tournament directors replaced George Ward with this one in the Mega Bowl! I think Clay should be played in the Mega Bowl from now on because it's an epic disc golf experience I think. It's a creative design with lots of elevation, scenery, and variety.
-It's relatively difficult. Intermediates will probably find the shorts to be pretty challenging, even though it's pretty short from the short pads. The long pads are still very manageable, but they are tricky. On the day of the tournament, the advanced and pro players played the longs. Earlier, even par was about 940 rated (when the advanced division played). Later the wind picked up and even par ended up being over 960 for the entire day on the longs. The wind really determines the overall difficulty here! It was very strong during the middle of my round.
-With the man made structures on holes three and four, the stacked baskets on #20, the smart use of elevation, and the variety makes me really want to come back soon. I really hope I'll get the opportunity to go to Alabama again!