"Freestyle Disc Golfing" is how I decided to play my Course 100 at Walnut Creek Park which I decided to choose based on the variety of holes the course offered. Meaning if the long tee was elevated higher than shorts such as #16, I was playing it. I mostly played short tees to long baskets, on a few holes both tees and even both baskets. Keep it fun and casual. The course offered every element I enjoy in Disc Golf with the primary draw elevation. Every hole offered something different, and months later still memorable! I look forward to returning to give it a go long to longs and on a warm weekday morning. Kudos to the local club and park, #8 long basket was crushed a few days before I played by a tree and was replaced quickly within a few weeks.
My biggest personnel con was the amount of non-disc golfers crossing fairways, and there were several delays. The biggest scare was on #13 when a little girl came running from the woods into the fairway with her father chasing her as my disc sailed by. When I heard voices the rest of the way in, I had to pause to make sure I wasn't surprised by others. If its busy in the park and if a good flow or rhythm is important to your game, you could be interrupted.
My overall rating is anchored on a rock solid 5.0 from the 1st tee to the 18th basket. The time to play was 95 minutes taking pictures, and the delays.
The Closing Holes:
Part of my overall rating on any course is how far back from the 18th basket are the closing holes at least excellent. I like to see it at least from the 16th tee, but at Walnut Creek with the variety of holes starts at tee #12. #18 a scenic level open water carries from the long to long need to carry at least 400 feet or a double water carry to the short basket area of at least 260 feet, then crossing shorter distance to reach the long basket. Walnut Creek rivals all three of my 5.0 rated courses (Lake Marshall Lions and Lair, and Hawk Hollow) in closing out a round.
Featured Holes:
-No. 7 a Par 3 is one of the X fairways. From short-to-short downhill at 259 feet, long to long at 322 feet sloping down and across the hill left to right. Heavily wooded, canopy, and tight gaps for both fairways. Short tee with a creek on the left all the way to the short basket. The long basket is not seen from the short tee since its 90-degree fairway left, and maybe not from longs as well. Long tee straight to the long basket with 5 to 10-foot tree gaps about 225 feet down, and the creek within C2. Long basket was my most scenic basket played sits on a shelf across the creek surrounded by bushes and trees all within 10 feet of the basket, and a green roller into the creek. There's a foot bridge to cross the creek for a scenic ending to the hole.
-No. 12 Par 3 short tees to short basket 270 feet, Par 4 long tee to long basket at 435 feet is a tree lined hole to the short basket on a downward slope, but plenty of space. The short basket green was reddish dirt offering appeal, and surrounding guardian trees, go long or to the right down the hill you go into the bushes. Long tee to long basket is not seen from the tee, target your tee right center on the border of C1 for short basket, too long or short you won't see the basket to the right. To the right the fairway drops all the way to the basket about 180 feet and the gap narrows from 20 to 6 feet with bushes about 4 feet high and within 5 feet of basket. Scenic from the shelf, but an "oh boy" on the approach, and disc can roll into the bushes. Haven't seen a basket placement quite like it, and huge disc lost potential if gunning for it from the tee. My eagle approach ran about 5 feet into the bushes and finding my disc.
Signature Hole/My No. 1 Hole in Disc Golf:
No. 17 is freaking epic! From my research an elevated tee of about 85 feet to long basket, short tee seems to be about 5 feet higher than long tee which is to the right, so that's where I played from. I played both baskets, shorts maybe a height of 55 feet. Short distance tee 290 feet/480 feet Par 3, long tee adds another 30 feet. Its wide-open space all the way to long basket except for towering pine trees lined from left to right stopping in the middle of the fairway hiding the short basket which sits on a down slope. Right center fairway is a dirt road that's crested, to the right of it, a roller into the lake, to the left your fairway rolling right to left. From the tee there's a wave effect as you drop elevation, two waves. The open fairway narrows as you reach the long basket continuing with the right to left roller, approaching heavy woods on left as fairway narrows, and a pond prior to reaching long basket on the left, all of it outside C1. Just a scenic look from the tee, with the excitement of throwing from the tee. I threw to both baskets, a Star Leopard 3 to short on a fade thru the tree line disappearing past it, and found it parked behind basket. A Star Mamba with too much height that tombstone just short of the crest of the road on the way to long basket. I'll never forget the park job.
Trouble Hole:
No. 8 Long tee to short basket 289 feet Par 3, long tee to long basket 346 feet Par 4. Short tee directly ahead from long. From the long tee a fairway lined with heavy woods small as 20-foot gaps, gently level downslope, until the short tee with a drop, and fairway slopes left to right into a creek and disc can roll. The fairway will have a rolling dogleg left to short basket with a hook left to basket outside C1 and can roll into creek. The hook continues to long basket up hill, and not so bad on a roller green. From the tee very scenic, with trouble written all over it both in score and lost disc potential. Took a tree kiss into the creek, before playing out of the creek decided to check out the long basket to see if playable at all, nope totally crushed under a large tree. Pitched out to short basket.