Pros:
-Goat Hill Disc Golf Course shares property with the executive-length Goat Hill Park Golf Course. The course plays on rolling terrain adjacent to I-5, just a mile from the coast. This is a pro-level course in the standard layout and a super pro-level course in the tournament layout.
-Like many disc/ball golf shared courses, the technicality of this course lies not in navigating trees, but in avoiding golf greens, sand traps, and especially angle control on the sharp hills. Achieving distance on the downhill tee shots (8, 10, 12 for example) is just as much about angle as it is about power.
-Turf tees and Innova Discatcher baskets are in excellent condition. Very few greens are flat. Almost every basket is perched on a mound, steep slope, or next to a huge eucalyptus.
Cons:
-The course is extremely long, measuring in at 10,600 ft, par 66 on the normal layout, and nearly 12,000 ft, par 70 on the tournament layout. It is not very suitable for anyone with less than 400 feet of power. Even folks with 400-450 feet of power are going to be throwing drivers on most every hole. There are no designated short tees but plenty of options to build your own shorter layout if that strikes your fancy.
Other Thoughts:
-The layout plays alongside the ball golf layout. On a weekday, it's quite easy to pass by groups of golfers on several holes and play in ~2.5 hours. When the course is crowded, however, especially on Sundays, you can expect a round of 3.5-4 hours.
-Goat Hill is an incredible hike. The hills are not to be reckoned with and a large bottle of water is essential.
-I recommend watching a round of the Central Coast Goat Hill Challenge coverage before playing the course. Many holes are so long and blind that it's hard to know where to throw (and avoid to throw).
-The sheer length of this course makes it awfully repetitive for most players. Some of the longest holes feel almost like a driving range. There are a handful of very memorable holes (5, 8, 10, and 12), and it's certainly worth playing once or twice. Except for the longest throwers, however, it's simply not a great everyday course.