Grapevine, TX

Bear Creek

3.625(based on 96 reviews)
Filter course reviews

Filter reviews

Filter reviews

Bear Creek reviews

Filter
10 1
sgb118
Bronze level trusted reviewer
Experience: 19.3 years 24 played 22 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Bear Creek 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Mar 17, 2009 Played the course:once

Pros:

This course is a challenger. Great tee pads, and you have the option to choose the long or short one. The park is beautiful, and the creek looks good. Nice signiture holes, especially the taunting #12. It is a fine test of accurracy, as the trees will play with you all day if you don't mind your placement, so it makes you think before you play. Well wooded, with a nice mix of open shots as well. Good course for all levels of player. Mostly friendly locals, a few unfriendly younger players, but we just blew them off.

Cons:

Of course I must put the disconnection between #12 and #13. It was quite confusing; we Had to get help. The bridges always seemed to be just far enough away to slow the game, so you ended up crossing the creek anyway, even if you didn't land in it. Signage...There are wooden posts in the ground with a number on them. Sometimes hard to follow without directions, but not too difficult. Tons of golfers=tons of waiting. Eventually we played through most of them and finished up, but be prepared to play the waiting game. Those water hazards are monsters, so keep that plastic out of them.

Other Thoughts:

This course was a tricky little booger to get to, but we finally got there. It was a fun round of DG, even with the giant crowd. It will probably receive another visit from us. It is definately worth playing at least once, so if you are thinking about, just do it. If you end up not liking it, you can blame me. :)
Was this review helpful? Yes No
4 2
strain
Bronze level trusted reviewer
Experience: 16.4 years 42 played 40 reviews
4.00 star(s)

A Great Challenging Course In The DFW 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:May 30, 2010 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

If your looking for a fun and very challenging course to play, this is the one. This course has a real good pin layout for each hole. There is a great variety of some dogleg left and right shots and some long and short shots with plenty of trees to make it more difficult. Water comes into play on some holes and requires some accurcy to keep from over throwing the basket with the creek just behind it. There are multiple pin locations and multiple concrete tees for different skill levels and the tees are just the right size. Each hole has a challenge of its own with each pin tucked away very well. There are signs on most holes that tell you all of the imformation for each hole. Look for the wooden post on the short tees for the hole number. The park is very clean and well maintained with plenty of trash cans and seating throughout the whole course.

Cons:

This course can be a little tricky to navigate for a first timer who has never played here before. The signs don't seem to help out too much. It is kind of hard to see the pin from the tee, so you might have to walk up and look for the basket before you throw. Some of the long tees seem to be hidden but they are there. Since this is a popular park in DFW, it can get very busy so you might want to get here early to get a good round in.

Other Thoughts:

Over all, this was a very fun and challenging course to play. It really brought out the best in me to see where I stand. This is another great course in the DFW and is well worth the stop if you are in the area. You will not be disappointed so come by and throw a round.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
4 7
Nastynate
Experience: 29.8 years 8 played 2 reviews
4.50 star(s)

This Was FUN But Busy 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Feb 22, 2009 Played the course:once

Pros:

I had heard of this course but had never made it to it until last weekend. I went with a buddy of mine after warming up at Tommy and Sue Brown. The difficultly factor of some of the holes are excellent.

Cons:

This place was so freaking busy it was unbelievable. I had to wait 7 minutes per hole. On hole 12 I cleared the gourge, but still had to walk through it to get to the basket. so I was beaten to have to walk though it it

Other Thoughts:

I would love to play it when not so crowded
Was this review helpful? Yes No
11 2
JeffThroW
Experience: 19.3 years 741 played 33 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Local Enough 2+ years

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Apr 24, 2013 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Eagle scouts added ten nice sized benches on 1/21/13.Double up an play some long tees! Plenty of disc golfers around.Signage 2012! Theres a brand new map at hole one by the Bridge don't let it confuse u the holes have individual maps!Snap a pic helps too!Short tees are very popular here allowing for low scores,long tees here provide a more challenging disc golf experience for sure.Hole15 has a new location as of 1/8/13.Thanks to Joe and myself hole 15 will have a new sleeve up on the hill beyond where your used to throwing to the other two pins. It should be done by April of 2016!When there's a cold wind blowing out of the north holes 3-10 have virtually no wind ensuring on a cold windy day that you'll be secluded from weathers wrath.Logs to sit and/or to place your bag are a thing of the past as only a few remain since the benches were added!The ditch behind hole 10's long placement shortcuts you to 11 short tee.Also on hole 12 you can walk straight down and up the narrow peninsula up to 12's basket. People like to say Bear Creek is easy but the thickness of the flora here can wreak havoc if your disc isn't kept low and/or leaves the fairways.Remember this is a very fast moving 18 hole shin-dig take it to Lewisville, Gateway, Turner or North park none of which are too far from this course for a more DIFFICULT disc golf experience. Cheap used disc sellers in abundance in the p lot due to the creek.

Cons:

The worst problems are too many people,land degraded to dirt, its a short course and poor unmanaged broken down concrete tee boxes.Theres also only 3 tees reaching over 400 and of course the massive amounts of thorny vines and darn near year round poison Ivy that flourish here.Little league has taken over what use to be our field.Car Break-ins in broad day light brought Police presence even more.These new family events have been taking place every day of the week almost now creating a very crowded parking lot.K-9's randomly sniff cars here.Beer, weed,even cursing is frowned upon by the neighborhood and these families .WATCH YOURSELF IN THE PARKING LOT.Expired tags are what the cops look for to guys an gals;Okay i said my piece about going to jail possibly from from bear creek which i've witnessed more then a handful people.Some Reject/dooche ripped and broke limbs on alot of our cedar trees recently esp. 9 and 10. Some fool chopped trees also on 16 and 17(No Talent)in 2007.7 long is no longer as hard as it once was with a tree cut down in 2012.We know who cut it, REALLY SUCKS. I wish we had better ways of catching an prosecuting these scums of society that choose to whack down trees on fairways.Beavers are the only ones' allowed to cut our trees! Bring A leash!Idiots that don't respect the leash laws only cause conflicts to flare up when the sidewalk neighborhood pedestrians clash with unleashed dogs.Even if you have the sweetest dog in the world Bear Creek is "NOT" a Dog Park.We aren't out there to watch you schmoozing with the other dog walkers.Honey bees are abundant in warmer months around the zillion trash cans scattered about! Watch Out! A large moccisin bit someone here summer 09' right next to 15's basket while attempting to come onto the shoreline from the creek the moccasin came from under the water to get one anda half fangs in ol' Jeremy S.Consensus is that this snake which he nick-named "Big Poppa" is still around and/or has mated.Wanna hunt him?Follow the shore line downstream from 15 not as far as the backside of hole six.We believe moccasins still live in this area under the creekbanks.

Other Thoughts:

After playing the front 12 with Barry Schultz once he said he enjoyed 6 and 9 long.If your hungry the park has pecan trees on 5,8 and 14 and 18's tee areas.Wild onions grow on 10 an 11 and the famous Texas Grapevines never die around hole 13's tees. Plenty of squirrels and rabbits too for added protein.Over five hawks live along the creekway near holes 10,11 and 16 don't be surprised if you hear them being loud while u play.Bring a fishing line if you think your good enough to catch some of the Bass that are spotted swimming upstream as well.Dam yellow jacket bit me! Don't badger the tree and rat snakes they're harmless and not aggressive or venomous unlike the moccasins of course .Moccasin wrangling is approved if you can get one. Copperheads have been seen numerous times too.the Bullfrogs,snapping turtles,ducks and the beautiful Blue Herring are seen soaring thru as well.Clyde is what we're callin the huge Beaver that has been spotted by me and others. Bobcats,Coyotes,racoons and fox round off the complete # of native fauna I've seen at this park that the DFW airport wilderness has kept safe to roam our disc course.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
17 0
t i m
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 27.4 years 285 played 43 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Enjoyable course; watch out for the poison ivy 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Sep 7, 2006 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Bear Creek makes good use of the available land and has aged well over the years, growing from a little 9-hole course back in the late 90s to a full 18-holes with multiple pin placements and dual teepads on every hole.

In most cases the long teepads not only add distance but open up (or force) differently shaped lines to the pins, offering a variety of shots for the course. The course -- from both the longs and the shorts -- flows well with very little wasted space and very little extra walking between holes. This clean design allows the course to play much faster than most courses, as long as you can keep it on the fairways.

Fortunately, the fairways are a lot more obvious than they were a few years ago. The underbrush and poison ivy used to be legendary. Now, the course has worn in to the point where only truly errant shots get penalized by bad underbrush and unreasonable foliage.

The course makes good use of the underbrush and tees that are there, forcing a lot of different lines, ranging from big hyzers to low tunnel shots to delicate anhyzers to flicks, thumbers and skip shots around corners.

The course is almost completely flat -- all of the elevation is dropoffs into creeks/ponds -- so if you are playing well, everything is flat ground. This is good for speed-of-play, but is weak from a course-design standpoint. Having at least a couple elevation changes would have been nice variety.

Cons:

My biggest pet peeves on a course are waiting to play and loosing discs, and unfortunately, Bear Creek is frequent home to both occurrences...

Bear Creek is one of the busiest courses in Texas, and lots and lots of high school kids play here recreationally (and sometimes are into other, less sanctioned activities on the side). Backups can be prevalent on the course, and often there are groups that lack the tact to allow more serious golfers to play through.

The course also has more than it's share of water hazards. With most pin placements, 9 or 10 of the holes have water hazards (9 from shorts, 10 from longs), and there are seldom good opportunities to retrieve your discs. The water is often murky or covered in foul-smelling scum, trash is abundant, broken glass, snakes, etc... are prevalent. It's just not a great place to go fishing for your discs (though I have done it before). So a bad bounce off a tree or a shot pulled early or sailing just a little too long, and you can be down in the creek with the water moccasins. This is a huge detractor for me.

I've also experienced (and heard of many other instances) where neighborhood kids have waited around the corners on blind shots and grabbed and run off with discs when the owners aren't in view. I don't think this is frequent, but it's happened to enough people -- and there are enough blind holes -- that it is worth keeping in mind as you play. On some of the shots, friends and I made a point of keeping spotters -- not to find our discs, but to make sure SOMEONE ELSE didn't find our discs before we did.

A last con worth mentioning is the poison ivy. The annual tournament called the "Poison Ivy Open" held at Bear Creek is aptly named. The poison ivy has been beaten back immensely over the years, but I still have friends who catch poison ivy every time they play Bear Creek. The poison ivy is there, and is prevalent any time you toss a disc off the fairway or skip past a basket. It's not going to kill you, but it is worth watching out for.

Other Thoughts:

My parents lived near this course for years and it's where my brother and I would play hundreds of rounds a year during summer and winter breaks when I was home from college...

So I admit I have a hard time being objective about this course because it is where I learned to play. I have a lot of fond memories about it, and a lot of experience. But it also means that it's been so long since I first navigated this course that I have no idea how hard it is to find your way through the holes... I have no idea whether the teesigns are any good, since I haven't looked at them in years; in short, I know I can't answer some of the basic questions most people would have about a course.

I can give a word of warning that holes 13-18 can be hard to find your first time through. After hole 12, walk back through the parking lot and turn right into the woods just before you get to the interstate access road to the park. There you will find the teebox for hole 13. However, there are so many people who play this course that it is always easy to find a helpful local to show you through... my brother had the pleasure of playing tour guide for Ron Russell several years ago when he was passing through -- my brother said he'd never seen so many birdies look so effortless...

I have many fond memories of Bear Creek -- aces hit or watched, great rounds of Glow golf, snakes snapping, blue-balled disc retrieval in the icy stream in the dead of winter, innumerable great times with friends and family... and this colors my perception of the course. It is home to amazing memories, but I'm also aware of how many better courses I've played all across the country.

What makes Bear Creek special -- the reason I suspect it has approximately a 4.0 rating -- is that so many people come to treat Bear Creek as their disc golf home. There are many great local golfers who call this home and have spent thousands of hours working on their games and teaching/inspiring others to play disc golf. This is an amazing course for the memories and for the people. However, it isn't an amazing course for the holes or for the land -- there are much better courses to play, but few better places to learn from such a great community of golfers.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
8 1
Razorback Ramsey
Experience: 16.3 years 16 played 14 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Oasis in the City 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Dec 20, 2008 Played the course:once

Pros:

Beautiful course in the middle of the city.
Parts of the course have you underneath huge shade trees walking across lush grass. Then the course sends you into the throws of a huge ravine, up and down embankments.
Some truly memorable holes here!
Good mix of long holes and
short/medium.
Good markers.
Well established pathways.

Cons:

A little fuzzy walking from #12 to #13 - you will get lost unless you know where you are going.
Some hole markers are nonexistent
You will loose disc on a few of the more difficult holes (via the giant ravine).

Other Thoughts:

Truly enjoyable course!
Was this review helpful? Yes No
9 0
sidewinding
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 16.8 years 81 played 68 reviews
4.00 star(s)

2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Oct 18, 2008 Played the course:once

Pros:

This course has many beautiful fairways cutting through flat heavily wooded land with a huge deep creek winding throughout.

Some of the funnest holes have you thowing over huge gorges that were created when the creek eroded away the sandy soil.

I never got bored or tired of this course. It's like there is a hidden suprise around every corner.

The multiple concrete tees make this a course that anyone could enjoy.

Cons:

I have never seen so much poison ivy on a course. It is everywhere, however, I played with my brother and 5 year old son and none of us were effected by the poison ivy.

The teepads are a little short and some of them have had the sand eroded away on the end leaving a big drop off. I fell after tripping off the end of one such pad.

This course is in serious need of some new signage. There are 2-3 teepads for every hole and it would be nice to know what they are all for. For consistency we played the tees that have the original wood post signs.

Anyone playing this course has the potential to lose discs either in the creek or in the rough.

Other Thoughts:

I would drive out of my way to play this course again.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
9 0
Joshua1972
Experience: 16.3 years 15 played 15 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Beautiful!!! 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Sep 25, 2008 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

Gorgeous course!!! Lots of mature trees, dual tee pads, varied terrain, just awesome!!! A great combination of semi-open and tight shots are needed for this course. I really wish I had played it sooner.

Cons:

Really there are but 2 cons I can give this course... The first would be there needs to be better directions to following holes, maybe a course map even. even though I played with a guy who had played the course a couple times we nearly went the wrong direction and once played the wrong hole... The other con is more aimed at other user's of the park and course. There are tons of garbage cans available throughout the course, people need to use them!

Other Thoughts:

This course has definately move up to near the top on my favorites.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
12 3
Innovadude
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 26.4 years 235 played 185 reviews
3.00 star(s)

poison ******* ivy up the *** watch your self! 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Sep 22, 2008 Played the course:once

Pros:

Nice design stressing fundamentals, with all sorts of shots. Low ceilings, high ceilings, tunnels, short putter shots through thick woods, shots over and next to a creek with steep sides and murky water. Well balanced shot mix overall (but begins with 3 rhbh shots in a row). Well mowed, clean.

Cons:

POISON IVY- too much to avoid, you WILL get it on you playing here.
- Needs some new signs, tough to realize there are even dual tees on the first hole with one hidden from the other.
- Hole #13 is like impossible to find without help or just luck, you must cross back over #1 to the parking lot, then enter the woods through a small trail. No sign points this out, leaving it up to you to walk around for a long time searching for it.

Other Thoughts:

There's just too much poison ivy for anyone highly allergic to have a good time, or to play the course (even play well) and not get covered in it head-to-toe. Be prepared for that, or skip it as I recommend, if allergic.
You will encounter it on the follow through on the tee, on the paths between holes (sometimes have to find alt. route to the next hole to avoid touching it), surrounding baskets and lining the fairways 5 feet high.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
14 0
cc0049
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 21.5 years 168 played 56 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Fun course; not Competition Level 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Jul 16, 2008 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

One of the greatest things about the course is the option for short tees or long tees. There are also multiple pin positions on many holes, although they are rarely moved these days. Bring your hiking shoes, because there is some good terrain to cross. You shoot over a creek on hole 12 and over a pond on hole 8 (from the long tee). The water hazards will keep you on your toes. There are lots of holes for possible aces and birdies and a couple that you're doing well to pull out a par on. This course seems to draw a lot of beginners as well as some very good, experienced players; it has something for everyone.

Cons:

Watch out for poison ivy and other miscellaneous poisonous plant. I've not really gotten it bad myself, but have heard of folks that have out there. The course is easy to follow in most places. People get mixed up after holes 3 and 12. After 3, follow the sidewalk around to hole 4, don't go to the teebox that you see first, that is actually hole 11. After 12, you have to walk back to the parking lot and enter the trees near the access road to find 13. Lots of people will start their round on 13 instead of 1 because the course flows better that way. There are usually quite a few people out playing so be prepared to be patient while you wait.

My biggest complaint with Bear Creek are it's design flaws. There are several holes that fall into the "poke and hope" category to me. These holes are 6, 12, and 13 from both sets of tees, and hole 16 from the long tee. These holes are notorious for punishing good shots while rewarding lucky errant shots. Bear Creek is a ratings killer for tournaments if you don't have an exceptionally good round. It is not difficult for less skilled players to shoot well and skew the ratings negatively.

Other Thoughts:

If you are consistently playing under par on the shorts, give the long tees a shot...they are a lot of fun and more challenging. This course used to be one of my favorites in the area, but as I have gotten better, I like this course less and less.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
9 0
slacker
Experience: 31.6 years 37 played 6 reviews
4.00 star(s)

2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 1, 2008 Played the course:never

Pros:

This is a very fun and challenging course.Good mix of a few open holeswith lots of holes in and around trees. Hole #12 is a very unique hole that tees off on one side of Bear Creek and the basket is on the other side.

Cons:

there are 7 holes where it is possible to wind up in a water hazard, some that you will not get your disk back from. To get from #12 to #13 you have to go back through the parkinglot and through the trees to the left of the first tee.#13 tee is very close to 360.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
10 1
DiscGolfJunkie
Experience: 17.4 years 5 played 5 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Pretty Sweet 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jun 4, 2008 Played the course:never

Pros:

Assuming that you are playing from the advanced tee's.... this course is very fun and challenging and offers unique holes that you cannot find anywhere else in the N. Texas area. I think that the Grapevine parks department does a very suitable job of upkeep on the course and it is pretty easy to navigate.

Cons:

From the shorter tee's this course is way too easy.... If you arent familiar with this park you could easilly get lost trying to find 13 unless someone tells you where to go. I would suggest to the people who run the course out there to come up with better signs at the beginning of the course.

Other Thoughts:

Fun to play and another sweet park in the N. Texas stable.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
18 2
Donovan
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Premium Member
Experience: 37.6 years 302 played 188 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Gorge Yourself 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Mar 18, 2010 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Let me start by saying that some of these holes have gorges/large creeks to clear off the tees. They are amazing. Most of them do have a path down in them to recover your discs, but plan to climb to get them. Multiple tees can make this as tough as you want. This is a beautiful park and most people are not near the disc golf course portion. There are some really great holes, making you bring out most of your shot arsenal. Direction and distance will both be needed on many tee shots. #18 is fun possible blind ace hole to finish up the round. Bathrooms are on the other side of the ball field and there are many trash cans along the way.

Cons:

You may need help finding your way around without a map or a guide. Getting from hole to basket may take some climbing. Some holes have some water that is dark/deep enough that you may not recover a disc on (#14 & 15 for sure). I do advise walking ahead on the questionably safe holes on your first time out as sometimes the trouble spots are close by the baskets. Getting from #12 to #13 is not marked as it makes you walk clear past where you started (which means back to the parking lot & into the woods across the entrance drive between left field and 3rd base of the ball field). You may need to ask for help.

Other Thoughts:

This course is fantastic when it comes to a great variety of hole designs. I have a great time and really enjoyed how amazing some of the tougher holes play out. Most of the course is under tree cover, so the sun is not to much of a burden. Great course, well maintained, and there is lots of trash cans along the way. Basically, almost every hole from the shorts is a certain par 3 except for maybe hole #11 in the long left pin position. So, it's not a long course and it does have some ace potential.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
4 12
myoung
Experience: 17.7 years 58 played 14 reviews
3.00 star(s)

nice course to try different shots on 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Apr 10, 2008 Played the course:never

Pros:

this course will have you trying all kinds of shots. there are some very challenging holes. you will need extra discs on this course.

Cons:

hole 12 can be a bit annoying seeing that you have to be a billy goat to get to the hole after you throw your shot.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
4 6
gravedigger
Experience: 16.4 years 55 played 40 reviews
5.00 star(s)

One of my favorites! 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Apr 16, 2008 Played the course:never

Pros:

All kinds of landscape features in play. Ponds, low shots, high shots, drop shots, creeks, sharp hooks, open fairways, window shots. I love it. Very cool woods area/ layout to the course.

Cons:

Navigating is an issue about 2/3 of the way through the course.

Other Thoughts:

Bear Creek just has that x factor that makes a course really enjoyable.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
13 0
jessepittman
Experience: 15.4 years 17 played 6 reviews
4.50 star(s)

2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Mar 9, 2008 Played the course:never

Pros:

Excellent course. Well maintained, lots of different shots needed to score well. Tees usually well marked. A few holes tee off directly in front of large, deep creekbeds with fallen trees or water manes as direct bridges. Lots of fun.

Cons:

To get from hole 12 to 13 you have to exit out to the parking area to cross a large creek, but it's only unclear the first time through.

Other Thoughts:

None of the holes are super long, but lots of variety. Some fairways are an alley in the trees, some are an open field. Creeks in play frequently. Again, very fun course.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
Top