Pros:
-West Lafayette's Purdue University is home to two complimentary 9-hole courses (Pickett Park is the other), approximately a couple of blocks down W Stadium Ave from each other. The PU DGC 9er is located on Slayter Hill in the heart of the student residential hall area of campus. The hill is mostly grassy, with a multitude of large mature trees (especially deciduous varieties) creating a nice shady area to play under. The elevation provides the main "spills and thrills" aspect of play. Uphills, downhills, and laterally along the side of the hills, are all covered here to good effect. With no undergrowth to punish errant shots here, playing around the scattered mature tree trunks provide the remainder of the challenge. If you can conjure up a vision of a "hilly, park-style grassy area dotted with mature oaks and other trees" then you basically know what PU DGC is all about.
-Hole # 1 is located alongside the large decorative amphitheater, on the corner of Martin Jischke and W Stadium. Hole #'s 1 and 2 play uphill towards the cluster of trees at the crown of the hill. Hole #'s 3-5 work along the backside of the hill. Hole # 4 is a hyzer shot off the tee around a small line of pine trees, the only real conifers that come into play. Hole # 5 plays downhill, # 6 is uphill with a mando to avoid, and the rest of the holes alternate up and downhill, finishing on # 9's tee shot back down to the corner of the amphitheater, where the pin is tucked behind a bush along the wall.
- Signage is sufficient, as are the brick pavers used for tee pads.
- Just based on geographical location, the height of the hill, and the relative openness of the hill, wind is going to be a big factor here. That adds a nice bump to the challenge level, especially on the downhill holes (#'s 5, 7, and 9).
Cons:
- The nine holes here are all reasonably designed, with reasonable amenities, flow/routing, and spacing between the holes. Where things go off the rails is hinted at in the second sentence of this review: PU DGC is located in the heart of the student residential hall area of campus. Apparently, the designer(s) spent too much time in the ivory tower to figure out this park is going to be teeming with non-disc golf pedestrians, choral groups, joggers, photographers, hammockers, and young lovers furiously dry humping in the grass in the middle of the fairways. I literally encountered all of these in one short round here, even during a non-peak time. So if you play here, be aware you're almost certainly going to have to compromise...this is far from a disc golf dedicated area. We had to throw around a person sitting by # 1's basket; on # 2 we had to avoid a sleeping hammocker set up directly in line with the basket AND a jogger who kept running up the hill to the basket. The walk from # 3 to # 4 wasn't immediately obvious because we were blocked by an acapella group singing Lady Gaga. Hole #6 had the humping couple in the middle of the fairway, oblivious to everything everywhere except heavy necking. Thus, "Mando: Humping Couple" entered our lexicon. Finally, we had to wait for people in the middle of # 9's fairway as well.
Other Thoughts:
- PU DGC's overall course design nicely compliments its longer, more open sister course (Pickett Park) just down W Stadium Ave. The two courses being located more or less on the same property slightly raises the overall vibe and thus my rating.
- In a vacuum: this course is a solid enough 9er. In reality, however, the sheer impossibility of anything resembling a normal uninterrupted round of disc golf significantly lowers the overall vibe and thus my rating.
- Be aware this course is seasonal based on football, etc. Not being available year-round also lowers my rating. There are just too many hassles (parking, seasonal, people everywhere) to rate this course any higher.