Cove Valley reviews
10
0
Bryan Spang
Experience:
44 played
4 reviews
Awesome Tournament course drive by
Reviewed:
Played on:Feb 26, 2024
Played the course:5+ times
Pros:
New Cement tee pads on both short and long tees have made this course a destination course.
This course has it all Elevation changes, water carries, OB stream to maneuverer around, Must hit gap shots, Top of the mountain open bomber shots and trees.
This course has it all Elevation changes, water carries, OB stream to maneuverer around, Must hit gap shots, Top of the mountain open bomber shots and trees.
Cons:
Footing can be dicey if you get off the fairways but it will be hard to loose a disc. (unless you throw it in the lake.).
Some of the elevation changes can leave you breathless but the views and the downhill shots that come next are worth the climb.
Some of the elevation changes can leave you breathless but the views and the downhill shots that come next are worth the climb.
Other Thoughts:
Great Tournament course to separate the field and to earn a great rating.
19
0
Potentially epic course in progress 2+ years
Reviewed:
Played on:Feb 17, 2020
Played the course:once
Pros:
This is a gorgeous piece of land in the Appalachian foothills, with stunning views and the potential for an epic disc golf course. Topography is the most striking feature, with elevation changes ranging from -100' downhill (hole 12) to +85' uphill (hole 9). Cove Valley also features mature deciduous and pine forest, park-like grassy areas, a lake in play on several holes, and a creek that meanders through the course.
This landscape diversity allows a wide variety of hole types, ranging from long wooded bombers, short technical woods holes, park style holes around the lake, grinding uphill beat-downs, and a couple of epic top-of-the-world throws.
Long (blue) vs. short (white) tees often utilize different fairways or feature a significantly increased distance. For example, there were at least a couple of holes where my drive from the long tee did not reach the short tee. OK some of that is on me, but Iron Hill is the only other course where I can recall that happening more than once.
Water hazards and OB (often near the basket) require control on many holes. Hole 16 features a double mando and basket poised next to the OB creek. Hole 3 is a controlled downhill drive to a protected basket on a mound with OB behind the basket.
Diversity of shots is needed to score well and avoid losing discs in the pond. Playing a mix of long and short tees, I threw a reasonably balanced number of backhand and forehand drives. Scrambling on the challenging wooded holes will also test your creative shot-making ability.
Excellent tee signs were being installed when I played in February 2020. Tee signs show the hole layout, distance, elevation change, OB, mandos, and direction to the next tee. The course map on DGCR includes distances and does a nice job of guiding a new player around the course.
On a warm, sunny February day I saw as many people working on the course as disc golfers. Most of the time it felt like I had this beautiful patch of Appalachian foothills to myself.
Favorite holes:
Hole 12: Huge bomb down an incredibly picturesque field, with the basket nestled in a clump of trees. 930' from the long tee and 760' from the "short" tee, with 100' of elevation loss (equivalent to throwing off a 10-story building, but much prettier).
Hole 10: A dead-straight narrowing downhill tunnel, 550' from the long tee with 55' of elevation drop. After crossing a casual stream the fairway heads up a steep bank and through huge pine trees to the basket on the right. Hitting the line and getting across the creek is incredibly satisfying.
Hole 6: Twisting wooded fairway along a winding creek, offering the choice of a tight but safer fairway to the right, or a risky but more open drive over the creek. 575' from the long tee and 474' from the short tee.
Hole 1: A gentle but fun starting hole, 325' from the long tee with 30' of elevation drop. Hyzer through a reasonably generous gap and across a field to a basket set among scattered trees, with OB right, left, and long. Lovely way to start the round.
This landscape diversity allows a wide variety of hole types, ranging from long wooded bombers, short technical woods holes, park style holes around the lake, grinding uphill beat-downs, and a couple of epic top-of-the-world throws.
Long (blue) vs. short (white) tees often utilize different fairways or feature a significantly increased distance. For example, there were at least a couple of holes where my drive from the long tee did not reach the short tee. OK some of that is on me, but Iron Hill is the only other course where I can recall that happening more than once.
Water hazards and OB (often near the basket) require control on many holes. Hole 16 features a double mando and basket poised next to the OB creek. Hole 3 is a controlled downhill drive to a protected basket on a mound with OB behind the basket.
Diversity of shots is needed to score well and avoid losing discs in the pond. Playing a mix of long and short tees, I threw a reasonably balanced number of backhand and forehand drives. Scrambling on the challenging wooded holes will also test your creative shot-making ability.
Excellent tee signs were being installed when I played in February 2020. Tee signs show the hole layout, distance, elevation change, OB, mandos, and direction to the next tee. The course map on DGCR includes distances and does a nice job of guiding a new player around the course.
On a warm, sunny February day I saw as many people working on the course as disc golfers. Most of the time it felt like I had this beautiful patch of Appalachian foothills to myself.
Favorite holes:
Hole 12: Huge bomb down an incredibly picturesque field, with the basket nestled in a clump of trees. 930' from the long tee and 760' from the "short" tee, with 100' of elevation loss (equivalent to throwing off a 10-story building, but much prettier).
Hole 10: A dead-straight narrowing downhill tunnel, 550' from the long tee with 55' of elevation drop. After crossing a casual stream the fairway heads up a steep bank and through huge pine trees to the basket on the right. Hitting the line and getting across the creek is incredibly satisfying.
Hole 6: Twisting wooded fairway along a winding creek, offering the choice of a tight but safer fairway to the right, or a risky but more open drive over the creek. 575' from the long tee and 474' from the short tee.
Hole 1: A gentle but fun starting hole, 325' from the long tee with 30' of elevation drop. Hyzer through a reasonably generous gap and across a field to a basket set among scattered trees, with OB right, left, and long. Lovely way to start the round.
Cons:
Tees need work. Some are natural, others have a short rubber pad placed on uneven ground. Most of the short pads are natural with just a line of pavers defining the tee. I did see a couple of tees where longer rubber pads were set over what looked like built-up asphalt millings, but even those tees were a bit lumpy.
Footing is dangerous in several places. Wobbly rocks are used for creek and sluice crossings in a few places, and some of the paths in the woods are steep and potentially dangerous. One must walk carefully to avoid twisting an ankle in some of the wooded areas where fallen leaves hide uneven, rocky ground.
The course crosses Little Cove Road (PA 456), twice, between holes 7 and 8, and between holes 13 and 14. Traffic volume is low but the crossing can be dangerous due to fast-moving cars and limited visibility around bends in the road.
Several of the shorter holes would be improved by removing enough trees to create defined fairway(s).
Footing is dangerous in several places. Wobbly rocks are used for creek and sluice crossings in a few places, and some of the paths in the woods are steep and potentially dangerous. One must walk carefully to avoid twisting an ankle in some of the wooded areas where fallen leaves hide uneven, rocky ground.
The course crosses Little Cove Road (PA 456), twice, between holes 7 and 8, and between holes 13 and 14. Traffic volume is low but the crossing can be dangerous due to fast-moving cars and limited visibility around bends in the road.
Several of the shorter holes would be improved by removing enough trees to create defined fairway(s).
Other Thoughts:
Cove Valley has the potential to be an epic course. I had a blast playing here even though it is clearly a work in progress. As of February 2020 they were busy installing tee signs and digging tee pads. I can't wait to get back here and see how this course evolves.
Risk of disc loss was fairly low in winter, other than tossing one into the pond (which I did). The creek is small enough that retrieving an errant disc is easy. Winter rough was pretty open, but might require some maintenance during the growing season to avoid the risk of disc loss.
OB adds challenge to quite a few holes. Some of the OB was not (yet?) marked on my last visit so check the tee signs if you wish to play the course as designed. Some of the OB feels organic, but some feels like an artificial means of adding difficulty. I consider this a preference rather than a pro or a con.
After playing so many amazing holes, hole 18 feels like an underwhelming end to the round. Just a simple, fairly open 200' island (but with 40' of elevation gain and rollaway potential, it plays harder than it sounds).
No dogs, no alcohol, no tobacco, no drugs. Hey, Cove Valley is a Christian youth camp. When someone invites you into their home and offers hospitality, you should respect the house rules. And please, don't do stupid stuff and get the course pulled.
In the course's current condition I debated between a rating of 3.5 and 4.0. For now I am assigning a 3.5 rating, but I expect to re-evaluate frequently as course installation proceeds. This course has great potential that I hope to see realized.
Risk of disc loss was fairly low in winter, other than tossing one into the pond (which I did). The creek is small enough that retrieving an errant disc is easy. Winter rough was pretty open, but might require some maintenance during the growing season to avoid the risk of disc loss.
OB adds challenge to quite a few holes. Some of the OB was not (yet?) marked on my last visit so check the tee signs if you wish to play the course as designed. Some of the OB feels organic, but some feels like an artificial means of adding difficulty. I consider this a preference rather than a pro or a con.
After playing so many amazing holes, hole 18 feels like an underwhelming end to the round. Just a simple, fairly open 200' island (but with 40' of elevation gain and rollaway potential, it plays harder than it sounds).
No dogs, no alcohol, no tobacco, no drugs. Hey, Cove Valley is a Christian youth camp. When someone invites you into their home and offers hospitality, you should respect the house rules. And please, don't do stupid stuff and get the course pulled.
In the course's current condition I debated between a rating of 3.5 and 4.0. For now I am assigning a 3.5 rating, but I expect to re-evaluate frequently as course installation proceeds. This course has great potential that I hope to see realized.
10
0
Gump's Chocolates 2+ years
Reviewed:
Played on:Feb 21, 2020
Played the course:2-4 times
Pros:
Between the map, teesigns, and directional signs, the course is easy to navigate.
Attractive valley setting, variety of hardwoods, creek, large pond, vista across valley from basket-11/tee-12.
A wide variety of elevation changes, blend of open/wooded, various hole lengths, shot-shaping, etc.
On-site bathroom. Mercersburg ~10 minutes away. Foot-of-the-Mountain diner ~5 minutes away (order the corn fritters)
Attractive valley setting, variety of hardwoods, creek, large pond, vista across valley from basket-11/tee-12.
A wide variety of elevation changes, blend of open/wooded, various hole lengths, shot-shaping, etc.
On-site bathroom. Mercersburg ~10 minutes away. Foot-of-the-Mountain diner ~5 minutes away (order the corn fritters)
Cons:
While some stone-steps (some are already loose/wobbly) have been built, there are some treacherous, very steep downslope walking required, with a high chance of increased erosion.
Tees are only very slightly better than natural, are often uneven, and frequently too narrow/short.
A few holes are quite pin-bally.
A couple holes have ~300' narrow fairways, with the pond running parallel the entire length, just begging for lost discs.
The contrived mandos on #16 to create a required window ~240' away.
Pet, tobacco, drug restrictions. Already having a bit of a litter problem.
Tees are only very slightly better than natural, are often uneven, and frequently too narrow/short.
A few holes are quite pin-bally.
A couple holes have ~300' narrow fairways, with the pond running parallel the entire length, just begging for lost discs.
The contrived mandos on #16 to create a required window ~240' away.
Pet, tobacco, drug restrictions. Already having a bit of a litter problem.
Other Thoughts:
There's a lot to like, and some to dislike, about this course, as I alluded above.
I'm a big fan of downslope/cross-valley shots, with decently-sized fairways and a key tree or two miss on the optimum line, and this course offers a few of those challenges.
I'm down on pinball, and fairway/basket positions that invite disc loss (not just oob), and this course offers a few of those negatives.
Some of the very long, par-5 holes might have better utilized the natural resources as two par-3 holes.
Hole-9 displays both the strengths and weaknesses of the course.
View-1) A long par-4|5 (short/long tee). Steadily up a steep, wooded slope the entire way. Decent-sized fairway, initially requiring a right turn with minimal fade. Plenty of guardian trees at the end. Slightly inaccurate throws still have recovery options.
View-2) A rare wooded slope with significant elevation gain which would have been better used to create two par-3 holes. An exhausting upslope slog in its entirety. After teeing-off, a very treacherous slip-n-slide into a valley for your next throw. Deep piles of leaves hiding scattered rocks along the right-side low point - decent chance to twist an ankle if your disc is over there, possibly buried. A fast green and pinball at the end - ouch.
What your joy-to-pain ratio will be playing this course, who's to say? I liked it more than I disliked it, but not overwhelmingly so.
I'm a big fan of downslope/cross-valley shots, with decently-sized fairways and a key tree or two miss on the optimum line, and this course offers a few of those challenges.
I'm down on pinball, and fairway/basket positions that invite disc loss (not just oob), and this course offers a few of those negatives.
Some of the very long, par-5 holes might have better utilized the natural resources as two par-3 holes.
Hole-9 displays both the strengths and weaknesses of the course.
View-1) A long par-4|5 (short/long tee). Steadily up a steep, wooded slope the entire way. Decent-sized fairway, initially requiring a right turn with minimal fade. Plenty of guardian trees at the end. Slightly inaccurate throws still have recovery options.
View-2) A rare wooded slope with significant elevation gain which would have been better used to create two par-3 holes. An exhausting upslope slog in its entirety. After teeing-off, a very treacherous slip-n-slide into a valley for your next throw. Deep piles of leaves hiding scattered rocks along the right-side low point - decent chance to twist an ankle if your disc is over there, possibly buried. A fast green and pinball at the end - ouch.
What your joy-to-pain ratio will be playing this course, who's to say? I liked it more than I disliked it, but not overwhelmingly so.