Pros:
18 hole course set in a wooded, secluded corner of a large park, close to edge of a lake.
- Secluded - Very serene, nice setting in a quiet, wooded, shaded section of woods in a park with many large, mature trees
- Not crowded when I was there (weekday morning), but appeared to be plenty of parking with a short walk to the first hole
- Bulletin board/kiosk for club/league postings as well as warnings about ticks (no course map when I was there - see "other thoughts")
- Navigation was pretty simple, regardless
- Mailbox near tee #1 houses scorecards for the taking
- Benches and trash cans in a few spots
- Solid tee signs showing colored hole map and distance for each tee pad on each hole
- Multiple tee pads on each (most?) hole to a single basket position - allows for variety if you're a frequent player or short tees can be a good intro to wooded courses for newer players
- Concrete tee pads
- Some tight wooded lines create the necessity for precise shots - there's a bunch of everything here - left and right shots - subtle elevation changes that aren't greuling
- Water throw-overs on #9, 10, 11, 17 - nice change-up as these are more open than the rest of the course (well, 17 is still wooded/tight), but still have a lot of risk - #9, 10 and 11 are over the marshy shore line of the big lake, while #17 is over a nasty, funky pond with the pin perched just on the opposite shore
- Nice course maintenance - no trash, well-defined paths, boards over a couple wet spots or ditches, stairs/planks on #15 help get up to the berm, etc.
- Basket #18 brings you right back to the parking lot
- I thought hole #1 was a terrifc opening hole - nice long, wide tunnel with a generous green near some sporadic trees
- Loved hole #8, short little par 3 pitch to a pin perched up rocks with the lake looming close behind with rocks/ditches creating for some interesting footing on your putt if you come up short
Cons:
- Only played the long tees, but I remember many of the short tees being along the same lines - I like having the short tees create some new lines or looks
- Decent amount of loose underbrush creates some potential for lost discs - spent about 20 minutes looking for my drive on #4 that hugged the left side a bit too much and didn't make the turn
- Warning for ticks was right on - found 2 crawling on me when I got done
- Course map doesn't show water throwover on hole #9, but it is definitely there
- A lot of people seem to like #15's pin perched right on the edge of the pond - in and of itself, that is fine (like pin #8) - however, I don't like how you have essentially to shoot up a small cliff at the basket (big ditch in front) and anything long you lose in the drink - tough holes are fine, but there is nowhere to truly layup and getting aggressive could cost you a disc - if the area in front of the green was more equal elevation, I think I would like this more
- Maybe there's a reason, but the random roped-off section of OB on hole #18 seemed kind of silly
- Some tee pads aren't as flush with the ground as they could/should be
Other Thoughts:
- Can't decide if I like hole #16 or not - short pitch, then 90+ degree left turn to another long "fairway" - definitely unique and forces a precise "drive", but for some reason I felt annoyed not really being able to go in the direction of the pin off the tee
- No course map online or at site when I played, but I now see that a course map has been added to this site. Although it's not overly detailed, I think a map is a must for all top courses
- Nice view out over the lake on holes 8, 9, 10, 11 - somewhat spoiled by the nuclear plant exhaust stack on the other side...
- I believe this park/course actually closes at dark
This was a very nice course that presented some interesting challenges. The woods make you play very precise golf and the holes at the lake and pond create some danger. Definitely a great stop during my visit to the Triangle.