-amazingly beautiful hill country terrain
-elevation, ponds, creeks, thick trees, sparse trees, open fields, vineyards
-great MachX baskets, top shelf Houck tee signs
-13 holes have dual tees, concrete longs, rubber shorts, all in great condition
-3 of the 5 holes with a single tee have permanent short & long baskets; the par 5 hole 8 has long & short tees and long & short baskets
-double loop design comes back to the clubhouse after 9 and 18
-pro shop, has scorecards, discs & stuff for sale
-course map next to the pro shop
-excellent design, great par 4 and 5 holes, placement on drives emphasized
-practice basket, next to the disc golf parking
-huge variety of distances, lines required, and water dangers
-uses "natural" OB well
-great greens with lots of danger: elevation, water, jail trees
-the two sets of tees cater well to their intended player levels
-course is maintained in great condition
-of course, the winery and restaurant are on site
-pay to play, nice membership option

-a couple of the shorter holes are filler. holes 4 and 5 are both short, somewhat narrow holes between two patches of grapevines. it makes sense for the routing but they really stick out being back to back.
-definitely some places to lose plastic in the drink. personally, i'm a fan of water on the course but some will always complain
-i think the course is quite a bit easier than i expected. i can't say i was disappointed because the design is exciting and i loved the higher par holes. however, those that require the ultimate challenge to give a course a premium rating might not find that here

Flat Creek is an awesome experience. The terrain in this secluded area in the Hill Country northwest of Austin is beautiful and excellent for disc golf. If you take the disc golf entrance (don't turn on Travis Peak Trl, go further to a left turn into the disc golf parking) then you'll see the practice basket on the right and the pro shop straight ahead across the creek (basket 14 is next to the creek there). After paying your fee ($20, or $15 for PDGA members) at the proshop, the first tee is around the corner behind the bistro.

The front 9 plays in a loop on the north end of the property. Hole 3 is the first par 4 and gives a great taste of what is to come. Tree-framed tee shot, rolling elevation in the fairway, OB pond on the right. Holes 6 and 7 are also great par 4s (for the longs) that have a permanent short and long basket (par 3 for the short basket on hole 6). I especially liked hole 7, that has a tall tree line separating the first and second halves of the fairway and a green up on an elevated area. Hole 8 is a long par 5 that forces you to decide whether you can clear the creek on the first shot or not. The second shot is through a long open field with one large tree to beat and the approach to the green is across the creek and uphill. The short but very wooded hole 9 finishes up the front 9.

After a pit stop at the proshop/tasting room/patio, the back 9 starts off with another par 5 that has a tough tee shot, crosses the creek, and has a very dangerous green with a drop-off toward the creek. Hole 11 is short but very tight, Hole 12 is a fun, downhill ace run, and Hole 13 is a deceptively difficult par 3 with a low ceiling on the second half of the fairway and a well-guarded green. Hole 14 is a straightforward par 4 but the danger is going down into the creek/pond behind the basket if you're long on your second shot. Hole 16 is a really tough par 4 with a tight, left to right tee shot and the green next to the pond. Hole 17 is a fun, short shot through a copse of trees with a low ceiling. I couldn't get my backhand through there after several tries, I think a RHFH is the better line. Finally ending on the epic par 5 hole 18 is a great finish. You must carry the water twice to reach the peninsula green that has a single tree blocking a putt from a short left lie, a likely lie if you're a shorter arm going for the eagle (me, but at least I got my 4!).

The course plays pretty differently from the shorts and the longs. As an intermediate player rated below 900, I shot a 52 from the shorts and a 69 from the longs, if I remember correctly. The short layout has a generous par and nearly half the holes are must get birdies for an experienced player. It is an easy red layout. The longs definitely require distance to score well. It's a blue layout that an AM1 or Open player should be able to shred on a good day.

Rating this course was a challenge. I played the shorts and then the longs and I was underwhelmed after the first round. Definitely lots of fun and interesting holes but overall it's pretty short and not as challenging as you might expect. I was much more impressed after playing the longs but there are still a number of easy holes and holes 4 and 5 still stuck out as very bland. Flat Creek is a half step below most of the other 4.5 ratings I've given but it seems a half step above most of the 4.0 ratings I've given; a true 4.25 rating. The awesome par 4 and 5 holes made me give it the bump.

The five par 4s and three par 5s are what really make the course. Make the drive out here to play the longs and enjoy the brilliantly designed longer holes. You can see that the course is conceived with those holes in mind and there are some great par 3s along the way too. The amenities on the course and at the winery are great, the views are spectacular, and the golf is a ton of fun.


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