Pros:
This course is a course that will separate the men from the boys.
-Varying terrain and ecological elements
sometimes you're deep in the woods, sometimes you're in a field. Sometimes you are climbing/hiking up and down very steep hills! As well as playing in a rugged creek bed, at the bottom of these hills. Spectacular scenery!
-Painted neonish baskets, which can be easily seen. As they need to be on this course.
-Cement Tee Boxes
-Very challenging course physically and strategically. I like that!
- Gives the option of playing the "Scenic Drive at Rodeo Park" course, to make it a 36 hole course.
- There is a rope to help you climb up one of the hills.
- Use of different strategies on different holes.
- Very good use of the terrain! I felt like Indiana Jones at one point.
-Just about every type of strategy shot you can think of, balanced out with some nice distance holes.
Cons:
2 Cons which I felt would have made a tremendous difference. The first thing is "First time frustration". The navigation will be brutal if this is your first trip. The signs need to be updated! Some signs are blank with no map, others had a vague map layout. There were a couple times we had to restart the hole because it looked like the map was telling us the basket was in one place, when it was really in another.
Pin Placement- Although I love a challenge, maybe I'll feel different the next time I play this course. The baskets were in locations that were hard to find, because you had to assume the placement using vague maps! After trekking up and down these hills, and discovering that the basket was not where you thought it was gets irritating after while. Remember the Rope statement from above? If the maps were more accurate, I probably wouldn't have been as irritated with the pin placement.
Other Thoughts:
First and foremost, the person that said you need to be in shape for this course was accurate! You will be doing A LOT of hill climbing and climbing over downed trees. Count on it! Think of this course as Disc Golf hiking! It would behoove you to wear hiking shoes.
If you can hook up with a local and/or someone that knows the course, by all means do it. This course can be rough for a first timer with no help and bad maps. Trust me!
Here is a little tip to remember: Hole number 4, (the first one that goes into the woods) you'll see the path that goes down the hill. The basket is not along the path. As you look down the path, the basket is to the right of the trail. If the trail is 12 o clock, then the basket is between 1 and 2 o clock, through the woods. To see it you have to go to the bottom of the hill, and look back. It's hidden! Plus it's a long walk up and down that hill, just to find the basket. If they improve the signage, then the pin placement wouldn't be that much of a problem. I would say that is making the difference between a 4 star and 4.5. ...possibly a 5. But not knowing where you are going gets VERY frustrating and reduces the fun factor!
UPDATE:January 27, 2010 I just got done playing 9 of the18 holes on this course for the second time. (I had to squeeze in a round) I had a blast playing it, and it wasn't hard to navigate on the second time having played it before. I'm trying to figure out how to work in another trip to this course. I wish they would put in a course map, because it would help. As well as having all the footage posted on the signs. On my return trip I knew where I was going, and I knew where the baskets were. This made the course much more enjoyable!
TIP:07/2013 If you are playing the 36 hole round, but would like to shorten it a bit, once you finish 5, follow the creek up a bit and you'll find the 12th teepad. I accidentally stumbled across this little shortcut.