Houghton, MI

MTU Disc Golf - Old Layout

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2.045(based on 13 reviews)
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2 0
1-UP
Bronze level trusted reviewer
Experience: 56 played 20 reviews
1.50 star(s)

Snack, not a Meal 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Jun 27, 2018 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

It's a course and it's near campus.

The terrain is actually really good for disc golf. It plays along a hill/ridge so elevation comes into play. It has a small creek running through it that kind of sort of comes into play.

The holes are generally interesting. It's never a case of throwing across a lawn into a basket. There's some sort of barrier, elevation change, or something at work to make it require some sort of skill.

Baskets are portable Prodigy's that have been anchored to the ground. They seem to catch just fine and are in good repair.

Signage is good. The verbal descriptions of the basket placement work.

Didn't spot any poison ivy, which both surprised and pleased me.

Cons:

The bones of a good course are here somewhere, but it needs some love. The biggest area of improvement would simply be to clear some of the fairways of brush and overgrowth. It's not really a course you're going to lose a disc at, but the "fairway" really only amounts to a trail through the woods. The underbrush is just thin enough due to being a mature forest that the scrub really isn't all that thick. The holes not through the woods use the university lawn, which is generally fine.

It's a very short course. Hole 1 justifies using a mid-range, but every other hole can be completed with a putter. You should really be looking to birdie every hole.

Hole 3 is muddy. It must be a perpetual problem because square timbers have been laid down as a sort of bridge. They sort of work, but I'd sure hate to cross them wet. A real boardwalk would be appropriate here, even for 15 feet.

I can't imagine people not getting hit on this course. There are several blind corners and way too many overlaps and close borders. I guess it's a good thing you're only using putters to throw for this.

Parking is...odd. Your options are lot 24 in the far corner, the mineral museum, or the end of a dead end road I think. None of them are all that close to the 1st tee. Good luck finding it because it's sort of tucked between what I assume is the soccer and football fields. There's not even a path to get to it per se, you leave the path and walk across some grass a ways until you get to what appears to be a scrapped soccer net. It's goofy.

Hole 2 runs right next to an athletic field that is fenced off. There is a very good chance a newer player is going to throw their disc over that fence. I know this because two of my party did just that, requiring somebody to hop the fence to retrieve them.

Pads are rubber garbage. Uneven and not particularly well anchored.

Other Thoughts:

It's better than nothing. I found myself playing this course several times while spending time at MTECH for training. It was good for 30 minutes of disc golf exercise. I would NEVER recommend you go out of your way to play this - it's much more of a "we're here, it's here, we have some time to kill" sort of course.

There really is a good set of land here though. The holes really weren't boring or simplistic, just too short. They need to stretch it out a bit - there looked to be a fair bit more woods that could be incorporated. Given that the course looks in no way permanent, I would begin by trying to lengthen some of the holes out and fix the flow/safety problems. Once a solid 9 was established, maybe throw in a 2nd 9 across the street where the trails are.

Rehabbing the course would be an excellent student organization project.
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3 0
davetherocketguy
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 20.3 years 114 played 105 reviews
1.50 star(s)

Short course in need of a DG club! 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Aug 20, 2016 Played the course:once

Pros:

- The terrain here just lends itself naturally to disc golf.
- Once you find hole one navigation really isn't an issue.
- Signs are in great shape and informative.
- While short, this course does a great job of presenting interesting challenges. In a vacuum, each hole is designed with beginners in mind but interesting enough for everyone else,

Cons:

- Baskets...These are single layer portable practice baskets. Did not try to figure out which brand but they did catch okay considering what they were. Practice baskets on a permanent course? SMH. What's worse, is I don't think ANY of these baskets were anywhere near plumb.
- Tee pads are a joke. These rubber mats - whatever the heck they are - are worse than bare ground. They're slicker than snot on a glass doorknob in January when wet and an injury waiting to happen, The only thing they were good for was a clean place for me to set my bag down.
- #1 and #7 are a complete design joke. The #1 tee has you throwing DIRECTLY AT the #7 tee...lol wut? This is a HUGE negative for me.
- #8 is a nice hole but there's a lot of opportunity to make it so much more interesting. There's all that space to lengthen it another 100-150' and put that basket on a mildly fast green. Instead it's a pedestrian 230' RHBH Hyzer shot - yawn.

Other Thoughts:

What this course desparately needs is a club to take care of it. It needs someone to be it's champion. Someone to care for and organize improvements. The terrain naturally lends itself to good DG but it just needs help. Looking back into the woods I am thinking there is more than enough room for a rather remarkable 18 holes.

While this course is short and only 9 holes sturdy footware is strongly recommended with the sharp rocks and up/down hill nature of the course. If you're in the area and are looking to burn up an hour to get a much needed DG fix or are a course bagger then by all means stop by but otherwise this is a course you can pass on.

The easiest way to find the course IMHO is to park in the new mineral museum parking lot and walk toward the football field. To the left will be the #8 tee pad. Go toward that and cross the creek behind it. On the left will be the #7 basket and off to the right will be the #1 tee.
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1 2
jowjohns
Experience: 3 played 3 reviews
2.00 star(s)

Short course 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Sep 5, 2015 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Good for begginers.

Cons:

Very short course. Could play every hole with a putter. Rubber tee pads are terrible with half of them not even sitting on a flat surface. Safer to tee off on the dirt next to them.

Other Thoughts:

Only course right in town but could be a lot better. Tee pads need to be fixed or changed all together.
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2 0
torihanus
Experience: 9.6 years 37 played 17 reviews
2.00 star(s)

2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:May 6, 2015 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

1.) A good beginner course. I believe all of the holes are a drive and then a putt. This is good course for beginners who don't have the skills to play with many different types of discs.

2.) Navigation is relatively easy to follow. Signage is easy to read/understand.

3.) A variety of terrain, elevation, and obstacles that I enjoyed. Hole 1 is pretty much a straight shot to the basket. Hole 3 is uphill and completely wooded. Holes 8 and 9 require you to throw your disc over a stream.

4.) Designer(s) made the most of what little space they were given to create this course.


Cons:

1.) Holes 1 and 7 cross in each other's paths, so be on the lookout for that. Holes 8 and 9 are side-by-side. This can almost be a safety hazard.

2.) While navigation is relatively easy to follow, if you park your car at the Mineral Museum, the first hole you see is hole 8. I usually start at this hole, and I believe this is where hole 1 should be.

3.) Tee pads are rubber pads that lay on the ground. Anybody could pick the pad up and change the tee's location. Somebody has done this to hole 7.

4.) Not a course where you will have the chance to use all your discs.

Other Thoughts:

From my understanding, the original spots for holes 8 and 9 were moved, due to the Mineral Museum being built, hence why they are side-by-side together now.

For those of you who want to start at hole 1: from the Mineral Museum, pass the hole 8 tee pad and down the hill toward the hole 9 basket. To your left there will be a small bridge over a stream, walk over that. From there, make a right and there will be hole 1's tee pad.
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2 1
jeremyhilss
Silver level trusted reviewer
Experience: 12.1 years 50 played 30 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Better than expected 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Jul 25, 2014 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Many short shots - basically a pitch and putt, save for the first hole, which is 340ish feet, but the rest are 150-250 feet approximately

Variety of ups, downs, open, wooded shots

Navigation while on the course was simple

***UPDATE 11/2016 Beautiful new Prodigy baskets make the course a bit better***

Cons:

Getting to the course - it is hard to find the course - park at the Mineral Museum and first tee is next to a soccer field.
Two holes (1 and 7) use the same fairway, one each direction, which could create a safety hazard, although both tees have views of the other, so it shouldn't be much of a problem

Some of the tee mats are uneven and on sloped ground, but they happen to be on the short holes, where you won't need a run up - the longer ones are nice and flat

Other Thoughts:

Judging by the reviews here I thought this wouldn't be worth my time, but I was pleasantly surprised. Lots of fun tree lanes to shape some fun shots - I played with a Roc that I purchased last minute because I didn't have my discs with me when I was in Houghton, but it was all I needed really.
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apdrvya
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Premium Member
Experience: 14.5 years 354 played 299 reviews
1.00 star(s)

ugh... 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Jun 23, 2014 Played the course:once

Pros:

Aesthetic-- plays through a forgettable portion of the Michigan Tech campus near the football stadium and other sports fields. Not thinking you'll see anyone else out here.

Routing and nav-- once you get going, it's not too bad... Follows a natual flow #6 from #5's basket is a bit of a stretch but it's there. (we missed it)

Cons:

Finding the first tee-- no matter where you come from, finding #1 is impossible. We parked at the dead end of Hickory and walked down the hill and to the right. There is a kiosk of sorts there. #1's tee backs up to a creek with rapids that you have to cross to get to #8-9.

Teepads-- flypads. slick with any wetness and sandy.

Baskets-- same as Mt Zion. Traveller baskets with single chains. Portable to be moved for the harsh winters.

Woods holes-- impossible rough, narrow fairways, standing water and much along with nonsensical lanes. just very poor design.

#5 comes out or thick woods and takes a 90 degree turn to the right.

Other Thoughts:

I kind of knew this would be a bit of a throw away but was surprised how forgettable it truly was.
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3 0
nyrblue2
Bronze level trusted reviewer
Experience: 14.6 years 28 played 23 reviews
2.00 star(s)

Forgettable 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Apr 29, 2012 Played the course:once

Pros:

Played 2 rounds for a total of 18 with my dad as a time killer after my sister's MTU graduation.
- Not crowded - maybe 2 other groups came during our second lap)
- Beginner friendly - not very difficult, mostly open holes
- Hole 9 (I think?) gave a few different drive options (hyzer, anny, OH, open, window, etc.)
- Simple navigation (once you get going)
- Tee signs and (rough) course map

Cons:

- Nothing memorable (at least nothing positive) about the course- Not much thought has to go into your play - very few decisions to make - most holes were pretty much play it as you see it (except hole 9 - see above)
- Poor tee pads - hole 4 (I think) was probably on a 45 degree incline - many were uneven/bumpy and/or slippery
- Muddy back in the woods and near the pin on hole 9
- Tee for hole 7 is kind of in the crossfire of the fairway for hole 1 and pin backstop of hole 6 - keep your eyes open
- Lots of beer cans and garbage littered the course when we were there
- I think the only parking puts you at hole 8, with no real indication of how to find hole 1 - we played 8, 9, 1, 2, etc.

Other Thoughts:

Designers probably did the best they could with the (assumingly) poor land they were given. However, the course lacks anything to keep you going back (expect maybe being one of the only courses around).
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0 0
donnie
Experience: 21.1 years 14 played 12 reviews
2.00 star(s)

Not Horrible 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Aug 13, 2010 Played the course:once

Pros:

Some of the holes are pretty decent, although not challenging. A couple wide open to start out with, the middle is mostly wooded, and the last few are open. The basket anchored in the stump on the 9th hole is a nice touch.

Cons:

No memorable holes. The wide open holes were way too open with no obsticles, all easily driveable for an experienced player. All of the wooded holes didn't seem very well planned out.

Other Thoughts:

Fun for a nine holes, but playing again would be boring. There is great potential for disc golf in this area, and this may be the starting point.
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1 0
swanston
Experience: 17.4 years 8 played 2 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Good short course 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Apr 25, 2010 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Good layout. 300-ft drives cross prevailing winds or enter trees, making them a bit more difficult than they first appear. Generally not crowded, but good folks when it is busy.

Cons:

Short. Could be more difficult, including more wooded holes. The course is super easy on calm days.

Other Thoughts:

The designers did the best they could with the land provided, and it's a good course overall. I would love it if this course were longer and in/around the MTU trails.
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1 0
mtuboarder
Experience: 3 played 3 reviews
3.00 star(s)

not bad considering where it is 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Aug 8, 2009 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

close to campus for quick games, its a good beginner course to teach your friends, makes you think you are awesome.

Cons:

reality hits when you play other courses downstate MI, SHORT holes!, not alot of variety

Other Thoughts:

They should use the "tech trails" land to make a nice 18 hole course, the mountain bikers have plenty of space, disc golf is a rapidly growing sport and deserves more space at tech!
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4 0
superberry
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 26.5 years 364 played 98 reviews
1.00 star(s)

Ride the AWESOME montain bike trails instead! 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:May 11, 2007 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

The only pro is that the area/houghton is gorgeous and there are some of the finest mountain bike trails arround, right across the street.

Cons:

Most holes are wide open. The design is fairly poor also, and the use of the land is a poor choice. This course is sandwiched between a football field and campus buildings. An AWESOME disc golf course could have been built on all the cross country ski trails. There is not much elevation, no water hazards, and not very good balance either considering only 9 holes won't yield great balance. The few holes that use some wooded patches are just a couple baskets perched in next to a bunch of shrubs - unimaginative and not well designed as a green. No real risk/reward designed into the holes or forced skill required - overall poor design and bad location.

Other Thoughts:

The cross country ski trail area across the road would yield 1 (and more) AWESOME 18 hole course. I'm talking the kind of course or disc golf complex that could draw players from all around to make the trip all the way up to houghton. The course as it stands is poorly designed and the land it sits on is a poor choice (someone must have said "fine, you can build a course, but only in this small area between buildings that we don't use for anything else").
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1 2
setebos
Experience: 15.4 years 21 played 6 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Short but kinda fun 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Aug 31, 2009 Played the course:once

Pros:

The holes around/through the woods were kind of fun. Very easy to figure out where to go; in terms of ease of finding the next hole it was laid out well.

Cons:

VERY short course, I think the longest hole was around 300 feet. A little on the boring side; no tee pads.
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1 2
flaglefrag
Experience: 1 played 1 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Decent 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Apr 28, 2009 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Almost no waiting for other players, located near town, Clean

Cons:

Short, Too compact

Other Thoughts:

While I enjoy throwing a few rounds with some friends, this course is not exactly what I would call a good course. Its located on some of the worst land that MTU has and there is not much variation in the holes. I would like to see MTU improve or move the course back into some of the Tech trial's woods.
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