Hattiesburg, MS

Paul B. Johnson SP - Artic Fox

2.945(based on 9 reviews)
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Paul B. Johnson SP - Artic Fox reviews

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8 0
Pizza God
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Premium Member
Experience: 36.6 years 1888 played 637 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Artic Fox is Cool

Reviewed: Played on:May 2, 2024 Played the course:once

Pros:

Great Tee signs
Good Cement Tee pads
Good mix of holes

Cons:

A couple of the holes come too close to places other park users may be.

Other Thoughts:

I am just going to say this right off the bat, I LOVED this course.

Hole 1 tee's off next to the parking lot. Oh, I should mention there are decent restrooms next to the parking lot, you happen to swing by here again after hole 9.

The next 3 holes are carved into the forest. They are narrow fairways with thick rough. Hole 4 is a hard right.

Then you get back out to the open park setting with rolling hills and large tree's.

hole 5 has the OB road on the right and the lake on the left with an inlet just past the basket you don't want to be in.

Cross back over for hole 6. This is a fun, throw over a small hill down to the edge of the lake. You DON'T want to be right (OB roads) or skip off to the left (the lake)

7 is a good birdie opportunity over a small valley to the basket behind a couple of trees.

Hole 8 throws back down the slight hill with plenty of tree's to hit. But there is a good line to the basket. You just don't want to skip off to the left OB road.

9 has you throwing back up the hill and plays longer than it is with some large guardian tree's.

Take a break, refresh for the back 9

Hole 10 starts across the main road. Actually the best shot to the basket is OVER the road for a Right handed player.

Hole 11's basket is tucked back into a clearing in the woods and is a longer hole. It's open enough for a big right handed anhyzer or a roller.

12 and 13 are both run of the mills shots that are reachable if you hit your line. I got both of them as they were perfect for my fairway driver.

Hole 14 is scarry fun. You can't see the basket from the tee, you have a couple of trees to navigate then the hole is wide open. But if you overthrow your shot, you land in the spillway.

15 goes back up the hill.

16 is another fun shot, down the hill to the basket on a small landing right next to the lake. Super scary putt if you don't land close enough.

17 goes back up the hill and then 18 throws back to the parking lot.


I LOVED this course, I really enjoyed playing it. It fits perfect for my game. If I get a good shot off, I can birdie just about every hole. I enjoy that, it's fun.

would I play here again, YES, I really want to play this one again, specially after writing about it right now. This course blows Desert Fox away as far as enjoying my round. More shade too.

I gave it a 4 because it's not perfect, the course does have some safety issues and it' would not be super challenging for a pro. But for me, it was perfect. If I lived closer than 8 hours away, I would play this course all the time.
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7 0
magictenor1
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 24.4 years 429 played 91 reviews
3.50 star(s)

18 holes now 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 30, 2021 Played the course:once

Pros:

restroom at 1st tee area. course map with yardage at office. 2 tee pads for each hole. nice variety of holes. 3 holes in heavy woods. several holes with water in play with one basket on a small outcrop just about in the water . lots of elevation changes as well. navigation is good with the map

Cons:

not really any tee pads just posts in the ground

Other Thoughts:

not much wrong with this course but it also doesn't 'pop". nice but a lot of the holes are just average. with another 18 holes onsite this a a nice destination
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13 0
blake833
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 14.5 years 161 played 142 reviews
2.50 star(s)

weird until you get to know it 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:May 27, 2020 Played the course:once

Pros:

Of the two courses at Paul B. Johnson State Park, this 9 holer has the better terrain than the 18 hole Desert Fox. However, the lake doesn't come into play as much, and the hills could definitely be utilized better, as most of the holes are still surprisingly flat from basket to tee.

The tees are natural, and marked by red or blue posts. The baskets are knock-off DisCatchers - single chain yellow baskets with shallow cages.

The hole design is much like Desert Fox- longer holes, good lines, mostly straight with maybe slight right or left finishes.

Cons:

Hazards abound, and were given little consideration when designing this layout. Roads, bathroom, picnic areas all come into play.

The holes are a little long for recreational play. It's not too bad, but as at least one previous reviewer has noted, "Little" Fox might be more than a little misleading (i'd say by a few hundred feet in total).

I mentioned the tee's and equipment in the pro's but they're really more of cons. Maybe neutral, but I will say it was kind of a nightmare to work out the map and find my way around without anything more than posts to find the tee's. Once I got started I kind of figured it out.

Other Thoughts:

The oddest part was the baskets labeled A through I instead of 1-9. This isn't a pro or a con, it's just weirdly non-traditional. But it kind of fit the whole vibe of this course which was just slightly... like a weird fitting shirt sometimes. There are parts of it that were pretty fun, but it wasn't something I'm just itching to go back for.
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10 0
wellsbranch250
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Premium Member
Experience: 10.8 years 694 played 680 reviews
2.00 star(s)

Not So Little 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:May 26, 2019 Played the course:once

Pros:

(2.041 Rating) An advanced level park style course with several water plays.
- NATURAL BEAUTY - Driving into the park I had a hunch that this was going to be a nice looking course. Lots of gentle slopping terrain and plenty of water in play as well as in the backdrop. The scenery would have been absolutely killer if the landscape had been heavily wooded and without the constant site of park structures and pavement. Players who weigh course beauty higher over other elements, will rate Little Fox higher than I have. Overall I scored the course a 3.625 for beauty.
- CHALLENGING - There are two sets of tees on this 9 hole layout. The front tees reads as tweener between Intermediate and Recreational level and the back tees read as lower Advanced level. 15 of the 18 tees exceed 290 feet in length. Water needs to be avoided a couple times. The technical requirements are present but modest. Just about every hole plays through a moderately wooded canopy.
- CHAINS - DISCatcher Baskets.
- QUICK PLAY - I conquered the layout in 30 minutes on a empty course, but busy park.
- MAINTENANCE - Looks like a well maintained park. Grass was mowed and tree debris was limited.
- MULTIPLE COURSES - Two courses to bag in one location. Unfortunately it requires a 5 minute drive or a 3,000 foot hike to get to the other course on site.

Cons:

Needs upgrades to tees and navigation.
- MULTI USE HAZARDS - Tee (A) to start has some roads in play. Basket (D) is located next to a restroom building. Grip-locks and/or horrible new players have the potential to throw a disc into a picnic table. Overall the spacing is not the greatest, but I've seen much worse out there.
- TEE AREA - Natural tees and only one commandeered picnic table for seating. Despite the moderately wooded canopy, tee shading is not the greatest.
- NAVIGATION - Doable, but not the easiest. Tees are marked with 2x4 wood posts and tipped off with either blue paint for the short tees or gold paint for the back tees. Tees and baskets are marked with the letters A thru I to make 9 holes. A couple posts were missing on my visit, and only a couple still had affixed stickers for distances. No course map or navigational cues. The map link on DGCR appears accurate, but is a touch too diagrammatic.
- BEGINNER FRIENDLY - I had every intention of throw this course with my 5 year old. I figure with a name like little fox, it must be a good choice for families and beginners. Nope, not even close. I played the front tees, played half-way decent, and still shot even par as an Intermediate level player. Beginners could easily lose a disc on 2 or 3 holes.
- PAY TO PLAY - It cost a few bucks to enter the park. I'd say worth it for the pair.

Other Thoughts:

A nice "Little" spin for an experienced player to try out. For me, it's not developed enough to warrant a higher score, but I could definitely see many rate this course higher if things like tees, amenities, and signage have no-impact on their experience. With concrete tees and respectable signage, I'd up the rating to a 2.5. If this occurs, please let me know and I will change my score.
- UNIQUENESS - Good for a nine holer, but probably a hair below average overall. (2) and (4) from the back tees are both awesome water plays with the lake on the left. Some modest elevation changes in the 20 to 25 foot range on a few holes. A moderately wooded canopy to weave around on many shots. My biggest complaint is the hole length variety. The front tees basically all play between 250 and 350, while the back tees pretty much all play between 325 and 400. A course like this one should have had a couple 500 to 600 foot bending par 4s and a couple technical low two hundred foot shots to spice it up.
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2 0
buddyspop
Experience: 8 played 7 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Print the map before you go 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Oct 29, 2018 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

Nice, clean course with bathroom nearby. PBJ park is really pretty, so scenery is a bonus. T's are well-marked, but natural pads are a bit rough. Map on DGCR is accurate. That said, there is a 10th basket at the spillway that isn't listed. Apparently it's sometimes used during tournaments.

Cons:

Office at park has no map, and little knowledge of the course. We played during weekdays while school was in session, so we didn't see another golfer. It would probably be pretty tough on weekends and during peak vacation times since the course parallels the road and weaves within picnic tables.

Other Thoughts:

I'm a beginner, so take what I say with a grain of salt. I like the course, and I like the regular Desert Fox course at PBJ. It would be nice if the nice folks in the office could get a little education about the courses.

2018 Update: Well, the basket by the spillway is gone, so that reduces confusion. Little Fox, even with the map I drew and posted last year, is a bit clunky to navigate. I end up zigzagging more than necessary. If I played the course regularly, that wouldn't be a problem. Still a nice little course with pretty scenery.
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5 0
Qikly
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 12.3 years 181 played 150 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Not-Quite-So-Little Fox 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Oct 19, 2014 Played the course:once

Pros:

Paul B. J's "Little Fox" isn't as small as its name might suggest: while there are only 9 holes, these offer some nice opportunities to stretch your shots out. Hole length is ample from both sets of tees, and the golds particularly lend themselves to bigger arms wanting to test their shot shaping and placement at longer distances. The tree-studded landscape provides enough wiggle-room to trace distance-driver lines fairly, but still with some challenge; Little Fox's distance carries its fair share of technical demand. Outside of trees, water comes into play on a few holes, including E's very scary all but unavoidable water carry (at least from the longs), further intensified by a strategically-placed mando.

Tees and pins are well placed. Considering the relative formlessness of the landscape, with trees dotted more or less uniformly throughout, the holes could have easily had much less clearly defined characters. The modest elevation provided by rolling hills is well integrated, and helps shape shots. Pin placements utilize available obstacles well, often setting up several possible routes towards the basket. Many holes allow you to pick your path to the basket, which helps pique your mental game and engenders a wider range of shots. Overall there's a nice balance of technicality and freedom.

Parking is ample, grooming seems to be well kept, and Desert Fox offers an additional 18 holes of slightly different character. Great place to visit. Two sets of tees often effectively offer different looks at the basket.

Cons:

Navigation is simply not kind, owing to the natural tees and the absence of tee signs beyond small colored stakes, although it only truly gets confusing between E and F. The map helps, and it's not going to ruin your round, but it could be better. The natural tees suffice but could be better, and I'm sure are junk after a rain.

On the design end, the aforementioned uniformity in terms of tree distribution and the minor elevation combine to lend the course a self-similar feel throughout, although there are some departures on a few holes. It's not that the course is repetitious per se - I think it's designed rather well given the terrain it's on - but the level of woodedness and nature of the obstacles present is pretty consistent, which lessens variation. The ability to throw multiple routes on most holes definitely helps counteract this quality, but between this fact and the presence of only 9 holes on Little Fox itself keeps the course from achieving a true variation. In many ways the consistently longer hole lengths and greater number of trees seems calculated to complement Desert Fox. In this sense Little Fox does its job very well; it just has a relatively narrow focus.

Other Thoughts:

In case it isn't already obvious, I really enjoyed PBJ's Little Fox: it's probably my favorite stretch of 9 in Mississippi that I've played thus far, outside of Center City (though I've admittedly yet to play Moccasin Bend and the Rez). While it doesn't approach an ideal level of variation, it offers a nice amount of technicality and ability to choose your shot. This is a great 9 that pairs well with Desert Fox, which together make for a worthwhile outing if you're in the area. I drove up from New Orleans to play here (a bit less than 2 hour drive) and was definitely happy to make the trip for these courses and the conveniently-nearby Ashe Lake. Pay it a visit!
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10 0
sisyphus
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 13.2 years 401 played 385 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Sweet Surprise 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Dec 27, 2013 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

A nice surprise awaits the traveling disc golfer who ventures south of Hattiesburg to try out the nine hole 'Little Fox course at Paul B. Johnson State Park. There's already a challenging, wooded 18 hole course just up Geiger Lake Road, but if you stop in at the first parking lot on your right after you spot the baskets, you'll be able to play this fun little 9 hole course, too (of course you can come for all 27, as well!).

Starting from the island in the middle of the lot, you can throw from the Blue (shorter) tees, or take a peek at the new map here on dgcr for the rough locations of both the blue and the yellow tees. They're typically marked by a post and flags. The trees here (along with the water possible on hole B, and the roads that can be used for strict OB) allow for some creative lines, though you'll want to pay attention to the mando on B that keeps you left of the turnaround, the double mando on E, and the mando for the long tee on H. They do help avoid bad experiences.

There is plenty of challenge here for the Rec to Intermediate skill level disc golfer, with distances ranging from 243' to 345' from the short tees to 282' to 396' from the longs. The trees do make some, but not all, of the line shaping different between the sets of tees, so there is some variety if you want to play both for a full 18.

Personally, I felt the course starts off with a bang, and three 'signature' holes: Hole A is a sweet valley crossing opener, hole B pinches you between the water on your left and the mando on your right, and hole C is an ace run if you can navigate the set of four guardian trees at the bottom of the dip. Pretty neat course that uses its elevation well, and has all the park amenities you need close at hand. There's even a beautiful playground out on the point overlooking the lake and below the shelter just past the 'D' basket, so if you're traveling with family, they can have some fun while you get in a quick round.

Cons:

The lack of a clear mando on the right bending hole D becomes glaring when you top the rise and see the picnic table in play if you hook right too soon. The flow from hole E to F is a little awkward. Obviously, permanent tees (instead of dirt), numbering (lettering) the baskets, and signage would vastly improve this course.

Other Thoughts:

I played through here bagging courses in seven states on a quick road trip to see my folks over the holidays. I'm glad I picked the Little Fox, and can see it becoming a really sweet little course in the spring weather!

Note there is an honor box (or an attendant) at the gate for a park pass ($3 is well worth it).
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5 0
WSP420
Bronze level trusted reviewer
Experience: 22.4 years 51 played 48 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Little Fox - Warm-Up or Cool-Downa 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:May 26, 2013 Played the course:once

Pros:

-Well maintained State Park
-Convenient parking
-Great use of elevation
-Multiple tees
-Nearby, CLEAN restrooms
-Perfect addition to "Desert Fox DGC" - play it 1st for a warm-up or play it last to work off that pent up frustration.

Cons:

-Weekends and holidays = people on the course
-Not much for tee pads - dirt/grass
-Older baskets are not marked with the hole#(letter)

Other Thoughts:

The Holes are numbered (lettered) with A-I. Maybe J-R would turn this nice little 9 into an outstanding 18?
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7 0
MikeK
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 29.4 years 334 played 132 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Nice Extra 9 Addition to Paul B State Park 2+ years

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Feb 11, 2012 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

Close enough to the other 18-hole layout in the park to play 27 holes. Some fun elevation changes on a few holes. Tight enough that placement is important.

Big pine trees, water in play and a bit of road OB.

Cons:

I'm not a fan of that many mandos! There must be at least 5 or 6 mandos on the 9 holes. I understand the safety issues on the holes though. The holes are a bit close together and a bit close to picnic and parking areas, but the course is often uncrowded so that isn't always an issue.

Might be kinda tough to navigate at first.

Other Thoughts:

Since these are an extra nine holes in Paul B. Johnson, I recommend only playing them in less crowded conditions. The other 18 at PBJ won't have the kind of interference that could happen to players on the Little Fox.
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