(2.307 Rating) A diverse parkstyle niner with two tees.
- HOLE VARIETY FOR A NINER - In my travels, very few of the niners I've played have had this good of hole diversity. There's a Dog leg par 4 that requires proper placement on the tee shot. There's several opportunities to bring out a driver and there's an ace run to end it. There is a mix of tree coverages, although none I would define as heavily wooded. Water comes into play a couple times. A hole hooks left and right one time each. Among the 197 niners I've thrown now, I have the variety here in the top twenty among those.
- BASICS - DISCatcher baskets, Yay! Concrete Tees and two of them on each hole, Yay! Always nice when a course gets the standard required items right.
- SKILL LEVEL FRIENDLY - Considering the two tee element noted above, this place will work great for multiple skill levels. The back tees will work for MA1s and 2s, while the front tees will work for MA3s and 4s. Some of the hole distances are not optimal though. I'm not a fan when courses have open 435-foot par 3s and also open 455-foot par 4s. The noted examples here play no different and score no different.
- TEE SIGNAGE - Only one tee sign per hole, but the tee sign has all the required info except next tee direction. The sign is also very easy to read from a distance.

Figuring out how to get to tee (1).
- LAYOUT FLOW - There is zero parking by tee (1) on this course. There is however a ton of parking by tee (2) and (3), and a bunch by basket (9). Regardless of how one intends to start throwing their round here, there will always be a large transition gap between basket (9) and tee (1), which are nearly a ten-minute walk apart. Being my first time, I parked by (9), and walked to (1). This required walking through pathless woods at one point, as I was trying to cut down the distance I needed to travel. This is a huge course flaw. I could see reviewers shaving off significant rating score for just this issue.
- MISSED OPPORTUNITIES - I'd really like to know why the park's centrally located wooded hill was completely skipped over in the course design. Were they not allowed to go in there? It could have really helped the flow with just one hole present within this feature.
- MULTI USE HAZARDS - Most holes have a spacing conflict. For some it's an adjacent ball field or walking path, while for others it's a road or parking lot. I could see a hole or two needing to be skipped if there's an active park setting. It is what it is.
- NO EXTRAS - No practice basket, no tee benches and no course map.
- TIME PLAY - Gene Record takes much longer than most niners due to the layout issues noted in my first con.

I think a majority of small towns would love to have a course like this one. It'll appeal to a wide swath of skill levels because of the two-tee set-up, but also allow players to play 18 different basket and tee combinations if desired. I don't think the course is large enough or exotic enough to appeal to destination seekers. Near-by JB Rolling Hills likely fits that description, although I have yet to play it. The course sort-of reminds me of places like Gattman in Florence Alabama, North Drive in Kentucky and Mills Park in Gatlinburg. Overall a 2.25 to me with just enough positive aspects to cancel out the egregious errors and end up above my 2.25 rating threshold for a 2.5.
- NATURAL BEAUTY - I scored this aspect a touch below average. The small rural park has some nice features to it like a small creek and a modest hill. The view from tee (8) looks great with all the crepe myrtles and it also parallels the before mentioned creek. Hole (7) has a pond fountain in the backdrop. Too many open shots however and man-made features in view for me to personally score higher for this aspect.

- The Big 3: Gene Record Park features large concrete tee pads, Discatcher baskets in good condition, and good metal signage on all 9 holes. The great course starter kit is in place.
- Multiple Tee Pads: Most all of the 9 holes had a shorter concrete pad available. This course can cater to the big arms and the beginners. The short pads make the holes much easier for the most part and the long pads feature par 4s on 4 out of 9 holes. The short pads on these holes could also be played as par 3s.
- Holes 1, 3, 5, 7, 9: These holes feature good length, interesting challenges, and the best scenery. #1 is the only somewhat technical, moderately wooded hole. #3 is a par 4 that throws into somewhat of a tunnel. #5 throws over a creek. #7 is a long blind drive toward a pond. #9 features good shot shaping and basket guarding.
- Number Of Players: It seems like there are a good number of beginners usually playing here. If so, this course provides locals with an introduction to the game and that is always a great thing.

- The Walk: This is a 9 hole course that will log the same amount of total steps as an average length 18 hole course. The closest parking to #1 tee is past #1 basket so you basically walk the 401 foot #1 twice. The only long hole transition walk is from #2 basket to #3 tee. Finally, you finish on #9 at the totally other side of the park. This is definitely the most frustrating part. If you are meeting someone and have two cars, shuttling would be a good option. You can also park in the middle of the park if you want to break up the monotonous walk.
- Pedestrian Hazards: 5 out of the 9 holes can pose the risk/flow interruption of people using the walking paths. If you were to include potential cars and soccer players into this, nearly all holes can be problematic in this regard.
- Amenities: This course does not feature a course map or practice basket area. There are also no benches near tees (other than the picture that is posted which is a safari hole). However, there is a restroom with trash cans at #8 tee.
- Holes 4, 6: These holes lack any elevation or obstacles (for the most part). Simply straight, flat bombs.

Not pros or cons:
- Single Signage: Although the signage is nice and features information and distance for each tee pad, there is only signage at the long tee pads. Adding signage at the short pads would be a nice addition to this course.
- #2: This hole is a RHBH beginner's nightmare. Intense dog leg right with OB parking lot/road to the left the entire time. I can see lots of cars getting hit here. For the more advanced player, this hole is a great challenge and enjoyable.
- #8: This could be a nice hole but has a very major drawback. You throw straight down the walking path for the entire fairway. If you play on a day with no walkers (which I assume is rare as this park seems busy), it's great fun to throw a precision shot through the manicured tree lines.
- Navigation: This is average on this course but would be helped tremendously by a course map, next tee information on the signage, and/or separate next tee signage. The most confusing junction that needs signage is from #2 basket to #3 tee. Walk backwards to the far corner of the parking lot.
- Future 18: The previous review mentions the future of this course becoming an 18 hole course from 9. This would be incredible especially if the designers are able to use the densely wooded area on the hill "above" the park. This addition would easily elevate this course to a 3.0/3.5 with the addition of some amenities. However, this was last mentioned in 2018 so who knows. I'll be eager to do a reevaluation if this is ever the case.

2 sets of tee pads for each hole A lot of variety Good mix of par levels

Tee pads are not constructed well Some of the long tees make it very very difficult to get a putt for birdie Hole 2 if you throw to the right your get stuck on very thick thorns

Fun yet challenging holes. Long holes allow you to air out, but the shorter holes are more technical. Fun to play both short and long tees. Really changes the course. Plans to expand the course to 18 in the future. Multiple tee pads for each hole. The bathrooms are clean and well maintained. There are trash cans as well. Locals often throw across the pond to basket number 7 as a bonus hole. There is a bench with a perfect concrete pad for teeing off.

Currently start and finish require a little walking between, however there are future plans to expand and add another 9 which will solve this issue in the future. There are sometimes people walking on the track while we are playing, waiting on them is a minor inconvenience. During soccer season I would avoid playing in the morning, there will be very limited parking and people will be everywhere. It would be possible to play but I would avoid holes 2,3,4 for sure.

This would be a great place to play and bring the family. There is a nice playground for the kids, places to eat close by, and pavilions to sit and enjoy. There is a beautiful fountain!