Sioux Falls, SD

Spencer Park

Permanent course
3.335(based on 3 reviews)
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9 0
Pevio
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 12.5 years 194 played 122 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Uh, surprisingly difficult? 2+ years

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Jun 26, 2021 Played the course:once

Pros:

Spencer is one of the most challenging nine-hole courses I have ever played. Many tunnel shots demand an almost perfect tee shot if you want a birdie, and even the smallest mistake can leave you scrambling for par even if you had a good tee shot. There are lots of opportunities for perfectly placed tee shots and upshots, but also lots of trouble to get into.

There seems to be little lost disc potential here. The water hazards are just a swampy area that hardly comes into play, the rough isn't super thick, and the woods on the sides of several holes aren't bad, so even if you go in, it should be easy to find discs. This makes fairly quick rounds possible, which is surprising considering how difficult this course is.

The best holes are, obviously, the tunnel shots, particularly 1, 2, 6, and 9. They did leave me scratching my head sometimes wondering what the best line ought to be, but that's the point of a difficult hole. On hole 9, I don't think there's really any way to park it in 1, but I can imagine something getting in putting range. However, the mix of a few open holes here and there is a nice touch; I like hole 7, and the second half of hole 8 plays into the open but still near a treeline.

This park also has a playground, off-leash dog parks, and a walking/biking trail, none of which even come close to being in play for the Disc Golf course. Two other courses are within walking distance of this one, and the teepads and baskets are in good shape. Even after a lot of rain, this course was in pretty good shape, even in the woods.

Cons:

A lot of the fairways are narrow, meaning many drives could end up in the rough, even without unlucky tree hits. While the rough itself isn't too bad, it's very possible to have some short searches for discs quite often. On hole 5, the dogleg right par 4, you want your drive to the left to give a better look at the pin, but that would put you in the tall grass. If you count the tall grass as OB on holes 3-5, it'll be pretty oppressive and unfair.

While this course is legitimately challenging, some holes don't really make sense. I think holes 2 and 8 have gaps that are just too small, and while birdies are possible on those holes, they require just as much luck as skill. I think there might be a high right route on 2, which could be the preferred route for some because of how tight the fairway is.

There are no tee signs, but it's not too bad because the tees are always easy to find and on the only holes that you can't see the basket from the tee (5, 8, and 9), a glance at the map will show you a rough idea of where the hole is. Hole distances would help though, especially when you know where the basket is but may have a hard time judging distance.

Interstate 229 is nearby and can make the course a little noisy. Fortunately, there's no danger of putting a disc over its fence except possibly a bad shank on hole 7. Also, after hole 9, you have to walk down the fairway of 1 to get back to the parking lot (unless there's a path in the woods I didn't see).

Other Thoughts:

This course isn't just a walk in the park. If you want a walk in the park, there's a nice trail nearby close to the river. Nearly all the skills in your bag will be challenged here. I wish the fairways were mowed a little wider and some rough was cleaned up, but it wouldn't change how varied and tight many of the shots are.

Surprisingly, I didn't notice the lack of elevation too much here. I think it was because there was such great variety in the holes that there are, and with only nine holes, nothing began to get repetitive. The course would be better with some more elevation change, obviously, but it isn't a real knock on its design.
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2 2
Bunky
Experience: 8 years 2 played 2 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Nice course 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Nov 3, 2016 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

Nice tight holes with nice paths . Bounced off the trees a couple of times and that made things interesting. It is great to have an alternative to Tuthill in sioux falls.

Cons:

Can get muddy with rain

Other Thoughts:

Nice technical course with some open holes also
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10 0
mndiscg
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 16.4 years 502 played 494 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Early Review 2+ years

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Jun 21, 2016 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

+Nice new Innova baskets
+This course is surprisingly challenging and wooded for being in South Dakota. There are some nice tight lanes that you have to hit. There isn't a ton of room for error. At the same time, the rough isn't too rough and you should be able to find your disc and get out of trouble. There are no easy holes and deuces will be hard to come by.
+A few open holes and mostly semi-wooded holes. A good balance. More technical than neighboring Tuthill.
+The length here is solid. There are no very short holes and the shorter ones have good challenges. There is one pretty long hole that is more open.
+There are other amenities in the area: dog park, bathroom, bike trail, playground.
+Can be played at the same time as Tuthill park. This course shouldn't be too busy due to Tuthill's proximity and it will also alleviate some pressure at Tut too.
+You shouldn't lose a disc here. Keep it in the fairway as much as possible but the rough is navigable.
+Pretty easy to follow and will be easier as the course develops. It has a good, logical flow with no dangerous throws.
+This course has an overall very high fun factor for a guy like me. It isn't too long or too short. It has tight lanes but not too tight. There were a few tees that I stepped up to and was surprised at the quality of the tee shot. Holes 2 and 6 come to mind especially.
+Practice basket.
+A surprising lack of bugs. One might think it would be full of them due to the woods and proximity to the river.
+SIgn at start of course, take a pic to make sure you don't get lost.
+Nice concrete tees. Level, grippy, and good sized.

Cons:

-No elevation
-There was some signage but now most if not all of it is gone. Permanent signage on each hole would be very nice.
-Only 9 holes for now. Hopefully another 9 will come soon, there is room for sure. Edit: there are 9 more at Tomar across the river. Playable as a loop if you want to.
-You hear the interstate a lot.
-Some of the holes have rough very close to the basket. Hole 1,5,8 all have this issue. A great tee shot might be buried. I put a disc within 6 feet of hole one the other day but couldn't find it for awhile. I thought it was further away but it was just really hard to find.

+I am having a hard time coming up with real cons for this course. It is solid. It won't be rated higher by me right now due to the lack of signage, tees, etc and being a 9 hole. If it gets expanded and gets those amenities next summer, this course would get a bump to 3.5 or maybe even 4 if done very well.

Other Thoughts:

+As I mentioned earlier, this course will help course traffic at Tuthill a lot. That was the only course in Sioux Falls until now.
+Thanks to Les, Brady and the others that helped make this course a reality. A lot of thought and physical work went into placing the baskets and tees where they are. They didn't just plop nine holes into a park and call it good. They took full advantage of what they had to work with.
+To play this course, drive into Spencer park and park straight back at the end of the lot. The basket you see is the practice basket. Walk past that one and the first tee is just into the woods past the basket.
+I'll be back and I'll be excited to play here. Tuthill wasn't very exciting to me but I think that I will like this better.
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